Char Siew & Summer Somen

Instead of eating out, I decided to prepare a feast for my family! To me, nothing feels better than watching my family taste and enjoy the food that I prepare. I love the smiles, the laughter, the conversations, the clattering of dishes. Ah, and who can forget the praises ;)

Instead of the usual rice, I decided to go with a light & refreshing somen dish. Let's call it Summer Somen! The recipe below is a really rough recipe but tweak & twist the dish anyway you like it!

Ingredients:

• 250g somen noodles/any thin noodles (cook according to packet)
• diced roasted eggplants
• smashed roasted garlic
• diced long beans
• a handful of cherry tomatoes
• roughly chopped spring onions
• freshly grated ginger
• 3 tsp rice vinegar
• 6 tsp soy sauce
• 3 tsp honey
• 4 tsp sesame oil
• salt & pepper for extra seasoning

Gently toss the noodles, the vegetables & sauces together in a large bowl or wok and serve. Simple, fast & easy!

To compliment the meat that I was roasting, I decided to add a simple, cold cucumber dish.

(Remember! You can never get enough veggies!)

A tablespoon of sesame oil, a handful of toasted sesame seeds, a sprinkle of salt and you're done! Refrigerate till served.

And now, for the main star of the evening! Pork Neck Char Siew (Chinese barbequed pork), adapted from Adam Liaw's Two Asian Kitchens.

Marinated with cinnamon, cloves, fennel seeds, Sichuan peppercorns, star anise, honey, ginger, garlic, Shaoxing wine, soy sauce & caster sugar- it was as good as it gets!

The commercial Char Siew that are usually sold in shops are often marinated with red food colouring as well. But none of that nonsense in my food!

Now that I'm done cooking the savoury stuff, I'm off making gingerbread for Christmas!

What are your favourite Christmas treats? 

Do you have a 'signature' dish?