“Anything tastes better with bacon!” With this in mind, TV Chef Sharwin Tee delighted his audience with dishes from salad to dessert, all bacon-laden, during his cooking demonstration for The Maya Kitchen’s Culinary Elite Series.
The young chef stars on “Curiosity Got the Chef” which is now on its 5th season on the Lifestyle Network. He shared culinary tips and tricks always pointing out that cooking should be a fun and interesting experience.
Try your hands on these easy to prepare, affordable yet appetizing creations especially created by Chef Shawin Tee. For more information, log on to www.themayakitchen.com or e-mail contactus@themayakitchen.com.
Arugula Salad with Warm Bacon Vinaigrette
Ingredients (serves 4)
1/8 cup strawberry jam
¼ cup coconut vinegar
¼ cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
8 strips bacon, chopped
4 cups romaine lettuce or mixed greens
2 cups arugula,washed & pat dry
100 g grated carrot
100 g kesong puti, cubed
Directions:
In a bowl, combine jam, vinegar and olive oil to form a vinaigrette. Season with salt and pepper.
In a saute pan, cook the bacon until crispy. Set aside half of the bacon fat for other dishes. Meanwhile pour the vinaigrette into the pan and heat for 1 minute.
Pour the sauce over the greens, carrots and kesong puti. Toss and serve immediately.
‘Cuick’ Clam Chowder
Ingredients (serves 4)
2 cloves garlic minced
1 kg clams
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup white wine
4 strips bacon, chopped
40g (1/4 cup) MAYA All Purpose Flour
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
1 L (4 cups) fish stock
1 cup cubed potatoes
1 cup cubed carrots
1/2 cup cubed red pepper
salt and pepper to taste
sour cream to taste
chopped parsley
Directions:
1. In a pot, sauté garlic and clams in 2 tablespoons of olive oil for one minute. Pour in white wine and let clams steam until they open.
2. Remove meat from clams and save the liquid.
3. In a new pot, sauté the bacon in the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil until fragrant but not crispy. Add in flour, herbs and cook until a paste is formed.
4. Pour in cooking liquid from clams and fish stock and stir well to break up any lumps.
5. Simmer for 30 minutes.
6. Add in the cubed vegetable and simmer until cooked. Season with salt and pepper.
7. Serve the soup with clam meat and sour cream as garnish. Top with chopped parsley as well.
Bacon-Wrapped Fish Fillet with Mango Salsa
Ingredients (serves 4)
4 pcs fish fillet of 120 g each
salt, black pepper and cayenne pepper.
3 calamansi
8 leaves of fresh basil
16 slices honey-cured bacon
1 whole tomato
1 whole ripe mango, peeled and seeded
1 small sibuyas tagalong, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon olive oil
5-7 leaves of cilantro
fresh asparagus spear
Directions:
Season fish fillets with salt, pepper, juice of 2 pieces calamansi and cayenne pepper. Top each fillet with 2 fresh basil leaves. Wrap each fillet with 3 slices of bacon overlapping one another.
On a hot pan, sear each bacon-wrapped fish to crisp bacon. Finish cooking in a 200 degree F oven for 7 to 8 minutes.
Meanwhile, chop tomato and mango into small dice and add minced onion and garlic. Combine all together with remaining calamansi juice, sugar and olive oil.
Rough chop cilantro leaves and add to salsa.
Serve fish fillet by topping it with the asparagus and the salsa.
Adjust seasonings as needed.
Bacon Waffles and Hoisin Syrup
Ingredients (serves 4)
12 strips honey cured bacon
1 200g pack MAYA Original Hotcake Mix plus egg and water as a directed by the package
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon 5 spice powder
¼ cup pancake syrup
½ cup hoisin sauce
¼ cup sour cream
Directions:
Cook the bacon over medium heat in a pan. Collect the bacon fat.
Cook the waffle mix according to package instructions, replacing the oil needed with bacon fat.
In a pot, sauté garlic and five spice powder until fragrant. Add in the syrup and the hoisin sauce and cook for 1 minute.
Serve the waffles with the bacon and syrup on top. Drizzle with sour cream.
Bacon Mallow Bombs
Ingredients (serves 4)
4 strips bacon, chopped
4 pieces graham crackers, crushed
8 strips bacon, whole
4 tablespoons hazelnut spread
16 large marshmallows
Directions:
In a pan, sauté the chopped bacon until fat is rendered. Add in the graham crackers. Cook for 1 minute.
In a different pan, cook the whole bacon on both sides for just 1 minute each.
Spread enough hazelnut spread on each strip of bacon.
Wrap two pieces of marshmallows with each strip of bacon.
Bake the mallows under the broiler until brown.
Top with the bacon graham crumble and serve immediately.
