Another challenging year. I thought the pandemic be over this year. I wrong. It is continuing to next year. Although lots of unknowns, I hope next year will be better than this year. Importantly stay safe, healthy and happy. See you all next year.
Belacan, a Malay variety of shrimp paste, is prepared from small shrimp from the Acetes species, known as geragau in Malaysia or rebon in Indonesia. In Malaysia, normally the krill are steamed first and after that are mashed into a paste and stored for several months. The fermented shrimp are then prepared, fried and hard-pressed into cakes. William Marsden, an English writer, included the word in his "A Dictionary of the Malayan Language" published in 1812.
Kaempferia galanga, commonly known as kencur, aromatic ginger, sand ginger, cutcherry, or resurrection lily, is a monocotyledonous plant in the ginger family, and one of four plants called galangal. It is found primarily in open areas in Indonesia, southern China, Taiwan, Cambodia, and India, but is also widely cultivated throughout Southeast Asia.
Tempeh or tempe (/ˈtɛmpeɪ/; Javanese: ꦠꦺꦩ꧀ꦥꦺ, romanized: témpé, pronounced [tempe]) is a traditional Javanese food made from fermented soybeans. It is made by a natural culturing and controlled fermentation process that binds soybeans into a cake form. A fungus, Rhizopus oligosporus or Rhizopus oryzae, is used in the fermentation process and is also known as tempeh starter.
The Apfelküchle is a traditional German pastry, consisting of sliced apples dipped in batter and fried to a golden brown color. It is popular in Baden-Württemberg, a federal state in South-Germany. The Apfelküchle has spread throughout Europe and the USA. It is similar to an apple fritter but is made more like a pancake and can be prepared in numerous different fashions. While it is traditionally eaten as a complete meal, because of its sweet taste, it has become popular to eat Apfelküchle as a dessert as well.
Menemen is a popular traditional Turkish dish which includes eggs, tomato, green peppers, and spices such as ground black and red pepper cooked in olive oil or sunflower oil. Menemen may be made with onions, but the addition of onions is often debated and is more common when menemen is eaten as a main dish, rather than at breakfast. The dish is similar to shakshouka. Menemen is commonly eaten for breakfast and served with bread. Its name originates from a small town in Izmir Province.
"Kanten" (agar, or agar agar) is made from frozen and dried mucilage of red algae such as tengusa (agar weed) and ogonori (Chinese moss). Kanten, as sold at markets, is produced through repeated freezing and drying in a naturally cold climate during the winter. It's similar to the gelatin of bovine and swine origin as an ingredient in edible gel (jelly), but chemically it's a different substance.
Jollof, or jollof rice, is a rice dish from West Africa. The dish is typically made with long-grain rice, tomatoes, onions, spices, vegetables and meat in a single pot, although its ingredients and preparation methods vary across different regions.
Harissa (Arabic: هريسة harīsa, from Maghrebi Arabic) is a hot chili pepper paste, native to Algeria and Tunisia. The main ingredients of which are roasted red peppers, Baklouti peppers (بقلوطي), spices and herbs such as garlic paste, caraway seeds, coriander seeds, cumin and olive oil to carry the oil-soluble flavors. Rose harissa, made with rose petals, is also made.
Gravlax or graved salmon is a Nordic dish consisting of salmon that is cured using a mix of salt and sugar, and either dill or sprucetwigs placed on top, and may occasionally be cold-smoked afterwards. Gravlax is usually served as an appetizer, sliced thinly and accompanied by hovmästarsås (literally "maitre d'hôtel sauce", also known in Sweden as gravlaxsås, in Norway as sennepssaus, literally “mustard sauce”, in Denmark as rævesovs, literally "fox sauce", and in Iceland as graflaxsósa), a dill and mustard sauce, either on bread or with boiled potatoes.