Not Sam Leong's Crispy Bean Steamed Cod (豆酥鱈魚)

Baked Fillet Cod Marinated with Miso-Honey Accompanied with Wasabi-Pickled Cucumber is one of the recipes in Sam Leong's A Wok Through Time. There're four problems with the recipe (apart from the terrible name):

First, the name for the recipe says Blah Blah Blah Honey, but there's no mention of honey in the instructions or ingredients listed.

Second, the marinade consists of 4 tbsp red miso paste, 3½ tbsp sugar, 3⅓ tbsp sake, 1 tbsp water and ½ egg yolk. All this stuff to marinate a piece of cod weighing 100 g, which is about the size of a deboned chicken drumstick? Overkill!

Third, the pickling liquid consists of 1 cup sugar, ⅔ cup white vinegar, ⅔ cup water and 1 tsp wasabi. Again, overkill, for 50 g cucumber which is about ¼ of an average size Japanese cucumber.

Fourth, who on earth cooks just one piece of cod weighing 100 g?!

I reckon maybe half of the recipes in A Wok Through Time have glaring, obvious mistakes like the Baked Cod Blah Blah Blah. Which makes me suspect there must be some mistakes that may be not so obvious. And what's with all the itsy bitsy portions? Would anyone make Warm Poached Marinated Prawns with Spicy Lime Vinaigrette with king prawns weighing 50g, which is at most half of one king-sized prawn? Or 东坡肉 with 100g pork belly, which I can eat in two mouthfuls (not that I do since I am, ahem, very dainty)?

A Wok Through Time is, without doubt, one of the worst cookbooks I've ever come across. I rank it right down there along with the three written by Shermay Lee and Mrs Lee.

Home Cooking with Sam & Forest, at first glance, seems better than A Wok Through Time. For a start, the recipes are for 4-10 rather than ¼ portion, and I don't see anything that doesn't tally between recipe names, ingredients, methods and photos. Sadly, looks are deceptive. The proof of the pudding, and cookbook, is in the eating.

Crispy Pork Ribs Marinated in Fermented Bean Curd is a total failure because of way too much 玫瑰露 (3 tbsp for 600 g ribs), and way too little 腐乳 (40 g). The meat is undersalted, and totally tasteless except for the the astringency of 玫瑰露, a Chinese spirit with 55% alcohol. The dish is a waste of money, time and effort. Pigs shouldn't die for recipes like this.

'Champagne Ribs' has such a nice ring to it, doesn't it? But, looking at the recipe, I can see three problems. First, the meat is again undersalted with just 1 tsp oyster sauce, 1 tsp fermented soya bean paste and 1 tbsp dark soya sauce for 600 g pork ribs. Second, using 1 litre water or chicken stock to simmer 600 g pork ribs is way too much when, if you follow the instructions, the liquid is discarded after the simmering is done. Third, the champagne sauce, made with 1 cup lime soda, 1 cup champagne, ⅓ cup lemon juice and ¼ tsp salt, is also way too much. And shouldn't there be flour of some sort to thicken it?

*google . . . .* Guess what? You can watch Sam Leong himself make Champagne Ribs and two other dishes for only S$120. Hey, maybe that's why the recipes in his cookbooks are crap, so that they don't take business away from his cooking school! Very clever, eh?

I'm not gonna cough up $120 to watch someone cook, especially when he doesn't have the integrity to make sure the recipes in his cookbooks work. I'd rather use my common sense, which costs nothing (but is worth something, hopefully). So I put on my thinking cap and start changing Sam Leong's recipe. Instead of 1 tsp oyster sauce, I use 2 tbsp. Instead of 1,000 ml water, I use only 60 ml, which is plenty for braising 600 g ribs in a slow cooker. And I reduce the amount of sauce by 80%, and thicken it with some cornflour.

Does the recipe work after the modifications? Yes, yes and no. The first part of the recipe, braising the ribs, works quite well after the modifications. The second part, deep-frying the braised ribs, is quite straight forward. The last part, tossing the ribs in champagne sauce, fails because the sauce simply doesn't taste right. And I have no idea how it should be adjusted. *wave white flag* The ribs are good though, after braising, because of the leek and coriander added. I'd make the braised ribs again, but leave out the deep-frying, and drink the champagne.


Sam Leong's steamed fish with crispy beans (豆酥), like most of the other recipes in his books, makes me go, 'Duh?' The chef says the crispy beans should be soaked in water for 15 minutes. But crispy beans wouldn't be crispy after you soak 'em in water! And a lot of the flavour would be lost, wouldn't it? Not that it matters if the beans are soggy and tasteless, because the instructions say nothing about what to do with them after they're drained and chopped. I guess you'd have to attend one of Sam Leong's classes to find out! Alternatively, you could use 阿基師's recipe which works and is free. That's what I do.

All good cookbooks are written by by good cooks, but not all good cooks write good cookbooks. Count yourself lucky if you haven't bought Sam Leong's books. If you're not so lucky, chuck 'em in the bin! go ask for your money back!

Check these out:

Bombay Duck Soup	Teriyaki Salmon	Ikan Tempera (Nyonya Sweet & Sour Fish)	Baked Fish Intestines

CRISPY BEAN STEAMED COD (豆酥鱈魚) Source: Adapted from 阿基師 (Recipe for 4 persons) 800 g black cod cut 3-cm thick, rinse, debone and slice into 8 equal size pieces any white fish such as threadfin, sea bass or red snapper would do too ½ tsp salt 2 tsp white rice wine 1 sprig spring onion, wash, trim and cut 5 cm long 4 slices ginger 4 tbsp 辣豆瓣醬 (hot bean paste) 5 tbsp vegetable oil 45 g 豆酥 (crispy beans; 1 ball), pound/grind into coarse bits, 1-2 mm 1 tbsp vegetable oil 3 cloves garlic, peel and mince very finely 1 sprig spring onion, wash, trim and cut ½ cm long Preheat plate by steaming over rapidly boiling water for 3 minutes. Sprinkle salt and rice wine on fish. Mix thoroughly. Spread ginger and spring onion on plate. Place fish on ginger and spring onion. Cover and steam over medium-low heat till just cooked, 7-10 minutes. Check that fish is totally opaque inside by flaking thickest part with chopsticks. Remove from heat. Discard ginger and spring onion. Baste fish with liquid in the plate. Whilst fish is steaming, stir-fry hot bean paste in 5 tbsp oil over low heat till fragrant. Strain oil onto crispy beans. Mix well. Set aside till fish is cooked. If pan/wok is not non-stick, wipe clean with paper towels. Keep drained hot bean paste for other dishes, such as 麻婆豆腐 or 回锅肉. If pan/wok is not non-stick, wipe clean with paper towels.) Heat 1 tbsp vegetable oil till moderately warm. Add crispy beans, minus excess oil (which may be used as for drained hot bean paste). Stir-fry over low heat till colour changes slightly, removing bubbles if any. Add garlic. Stir-fry till mixture is lightly golden. Taste and add some drained hot bean paste if too bland, or pinch of sugar if too salty. Turn off heat. Add spring onion and stir through. As residual heat dissipates, beans and garlic should turn just golden brown. Spread mixture evenly on steamed fish. Serve immediately with rice. Here's how 阿基師 makes 豆酥鱈魚:

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