Cold Udon with Dashi (Bukkake Udon) ぶっかけうどん

There is still udon left in the fridge, so Bit Bit decided to make udon for dinner. Since Bit Bit made kare udon previously, Bit Bit was thinking of something simple, and so bukkake udon will be made for dinner.

The dish took about 30 minutes to finish cooking.

Things that Bit Bit found out about bukkake udon:

• One can put any toppings that they like on the bukkake udon. For vegetarians, just add vegetables. For meat-lovers, add more meat. For seafood lovers, add some seafood.
• Bukkake udon is a type of cold udon.
• For people who loves chilli or spicy food, add some red chilli padi. Bit Bit finds it very yummy when bukkake udon is eaten with red chilli padi.
• This is a very simple dish to make, and is healthy too.
 

 

Ingredients that Bit Bit used for Bukkake Udon:

1. Pre-cooked Udon - 2 Packets of 200g Each
2. Water - About 500ml (Around 2.5 Cups)
3. Granulated Kelp Dashi - 2 Tsp (About 4gm)
4. Mirin - 3 Tbsp
5. Light Soy Sauce - 4 Tbsp
6. Beansprouts - 1 Cup
7. Canned Button Mushrooms - 4 Pieces
8. Baby Bok Choy (Xiao Bai Cai) - 4 Whole Stalks
9. Red Chilli - 2 Pieces

 

 

Method that Bit Bit used to make Bukkake Udon:

1. Boil 500ml of water in a pot.
2. Add in granulated kelp dashi, mirin and light soy sauce.
3. Bring to a boil and simmer for about 10 minutes. This will be the dashi soup base.
4. Bring another pot of water to boil.
5. Add in the udon and cook for about 2 to 3 minutes.
6. Remove the udon from the pot, and wash it under running water.
7. Place the udon in a bowl.
8. Bring another pot of water to boil.
9. Wash the beansprouts and set aside.
10. Wash the canned button mushrooms, squeeze them dry and set aside.
11. Wash the baby bok choy and set aside.
12. Wash the red chilli, cut off the head, remove the middle seeds, cut into thick slices and set aside.
13. When the pot of water boils, add in the baby bok choy and cook for about 1 to 2 minutes till the leaves turn dark green.
14. Remove the baby bok choy and let it dry for a while before placing them on top of the udon.
15. Add in the canned button mushrooms into the pot of boiling water and cook for about 3 to 5 minutes.
16. Remove the canned button mushrooms and let them dry for a while before placing it on top of the udon.
17. Add in the beansprouts into the pot of boiling water and cook for about 1 to 2 minutes.
18. Remove the beansprouts and let them dry for a while before placing them on top of the udon.
19. Place the red chilli slices on top of the udon too.
20. When ready to serve, pour the dashi soup base from the top into the bowl of udon, splashing the dashi on the toppings and udon.
21. Slurp and eat!

Half Boiled Eggs with Milo 半生熟鸡蛋配美禄

Bit Bit wanted to make a typical breakfast which Bit Bit had always eaten for breakfast when Bit Bit was young. Bit Bit remembers sitting at the kopitiam (coffee shop), waiting for the uncle to put condensed milk at the bottom of the cup and pour hot milo made with the milo powder in the tins, and then cracking two eggs to give off two perfectly nice round egg yolks.

This dish only needs 10 minutes to prepare a nice and yummy breakfast.

Things that Bit Bit found out about half boiled eggs with milo:

• The eggs used should be fresh and at room temperature. If the eggs are too cold, it will crack once one puts it in the boiling water.
• To ensure easy cracking of the eggs, wash the hot eggs under running water for a while to let the eggs cool down. It will also stop the cooking process slightly.
• Be careful while cracking the eggs, Bit Bit used too much strength and caused the egg yolks to break. Try hitting the eggs at the top part instead of the middle to avoid the egg yolk from being hit.
• Drinking milo together with eating half boiled eggs, will cleanse the eggy feeling in the mouth, and feel more satisfied.
• One can also pour the milo and half boiled eggs together, they taste great together.

Ingredients that Bit Bit used for Half Boiled Eggs with Milo:

1. Chicken Eggs - 2 Whole
2. Instant 3-in-1 Milo - 1 Sachet
3. Light Soy Sauce - 1 Tsp
4. White Pepper Powder - A Pinch

Method that Bit Bit used for Half Boiled Eggs with Milo:

1. Bring a pot of water to boil.
2. Tear open the milo sachet and pour the milo powder into a cup.
3. When the water boils, scoop some hot water up to pour into the cup.
4. Stir well and a cup of milo is done.
5. Take the eggs and add them into the pot with boiling water.
6. Cover the pot with a lid for 2 minutes.
7. Remove the lid, and stir the eggs gently.
8. Cover the lid for another 2 minutes.
9. Remove the eggs and wash them under running water.
10. Crack the eggs and drop them into a bowl.
11. Pour light soy sauce and spinkle some white pepper powder over the eggs.
12. Mix the eggs well.
13. Eat and drink!

Tofu Burger 豆腐汉堡包

Bit Bit wanted to make something special for dinner, and since Pig also has to eat it, it must be vegetarian too. There is some wholemeal bread left, so something like sandwich will sound good. In the end, Bit Bit decided on tofu burger 豆腐汉堡包.

This dish took about 1.5 hours, including preparation of ingredients.

Things that Bit Bit found out about tofu burger:

• As Bit Bit did not add any flour or powder to let the tofu mixture stick together, the tofu patties have to be handled carefully as they are quite soft.
• One can add any sauce that they prefer to be in the tofu burger, just choose anything according to one's preference. Bit Bit likes the sauce to be something sour and slight sweet, while Pig prefers sweet chilli sauce.
• One can add any vegetable into the tofu patty according to their preference, or just use up the leftover vegetables in the fridge.
• Although the tofu is mashed up to be made into a patty, while cooking over heat, the tofu will 'close up' together so it would not be as fragile before cooking.
• Tofu burger is a nice healthy dish.

Ingredients that Bit Bit used for Tofu Burger:

1. Wholemeal Bread - 8 Slices
2. Tau Kwa (Firm Beancurd) - 1 Piece
3. Cabbage - 1/2 Cup (About 1 big leaf)
4. Carrot - 1/2 Medium Whole
5. Red Chilli - 1 Whole
6. Lettuce - About 8 leaves
7. Sweet Sauce - 2 Tbsp
8. Vinegar - 2 Tbsp
9. Sesame Oil - 1 Tbsp
10. Salt - A Pinch
11. Pepper - A Pinch
12. Canola Oil - 1 Tbsp

Method that Bit Bit used to make Tofu Burger:

1. Use a cup as a mold to cut out circle shapes from each slice of wholemeal bread. Repeat to get 8 round pieces of bread.  This will be the burger bread.
2. Use the leftover bread from the molding to make bread crumbs.
3. Heat up a pan and toast the leftover bread till it browns slightly.
4. Put the toasted leftover bread into a plastic bag and crush.
5. After crushing, tear the toasted leftover bread into tiny pieces.
6. Toast the tiny pieces of leftover bread again and put the bread crumbs in a small bowl.
7. Wash the cabbage and dice.
8. Wash and remove the skin of the carrot, and dice.
9. Wash the red chilli, cut off the head of the chilli, remove the seeds inside, and cut into small slices.
10. Mash up the firm beancurd in a big bowl.
11. Add in the bread crumbs, cabbage dices, carrot dices and red chilli slices to the mashed beancurd, and mix well.
12. Season the tofu mixture with salt, pepper and sesame oil, and mix well.
13. Divide the tofu mixture into 4 portions.
14. Shape each portion of the tofu mixture into a patty.
15. Heat up the pan and add canola oil.
16. Turn heat to medium-low and place the tofu patties in the pan.
17. Flip the tofu patties over when the bottom side of the tofu patties turn brown.
18. When both sides of the tofu patties turn brown, place them into a plate.
19. Using the spatula and a pair of chopsticks, place one of the tofu patties on its round side on the pan. Rotate the tofu patty in a circle so that round sides of the tofu patty will also be cooked.
20. Repeat step 19 for the rest of the three patties, and put them aside in a plate.
21. In a small bowl, mix the sweet sauce and vinegar evenly as the sauce.
22. Wash up the lettuce leaves and dry them.
23. Place one round bread on a plate as the bottom of the burger.
24. Then add 1 to 2 pieces of lettuce leaves on top.
25. Then add one tofu patty on top.
26. Drizzle some sauce on the tofu patty.
27. Then add one round bread on the tofu patty to form a burger.
28. Repeat steps 23 to 27 for the remaining three patties.
29. Serve and eat!

Hotcakes

Bit Bit went for lunch with Bit Bit's ex-colleagues - Yeti and Jaguar today, and Bit Bit wants to make something for them. After thinking over the different types of food, Bit Bit decided on something sweet - hotcakes.
The hotcakes took about 1.5 hours to finish making, including preparation of the ingredients.
Things that Bit Bit found out about hotcakes:

• The hotcake batter should be smooth, and if it has insufficient liquid, the hotcake made will feel stiff.
• Baking powder is needed so that the hotcakes can be raised.
• To let the hotcakes have a sweet smell, add some vanilla essence or vanilla extract.
• When cooking hotcakes, the pan must not be too hot, else the hotcake will get burnt very fast.
• Hotcakes can be eaten with almost any toppings, Bit Bit likes putting maple syrup, butter, honey, nutella, banana jam and many more.

Ingredients that Bit Bit used for Hotcakes:

1. All Purpose Flour - 150gms (About 1.5 Cups)
2. Baking Powder - 2 Tsp
3. Vanilla Essence - 2 Tsp
4. Egg - 1 Whole
5. Milk - 3/4 Cup (About 160ml)
6. Canola Oil - 1 Tbsp
7. Sugar - 2.5 Tbsp

Method that Bit Bit used to make Hotcakes:

1. Mix the egg, sugar and oil evenly.
2. Add in the milk and vanilla essence into the egg mixture and mix well.
3. Sift the flour and baking powder into the egg mixture and mix until batter is smooth.
4. Heat up a pan.
5. Turn heat to low and coat a thin layer on oil on the pan.
6. Pour one ladle of the batter into the pan.
7. When bubbles start forming, use a spatula and flip the hotcake over.
8. Cover the pan with a lid for about 3 minutes.
9. Remove lid to check whether hotcake is cooked. If hotcake is cooked, remove the hotcake.
10. Repeat steps 5 to 9 for a new hotcake.
11. Serve with favourite topping and eat!

Egg in the Basket (Toast)

Bit Bit was thinking of what to have for breakfast, and went to search for some breakfast ideas. Since there are wholemeal bread and fresh eggs at home, Bit Bit found a dish called egg in the basket which is an egg inside a piece of toast.

The dish took about 15 minutes to complete.

Things that Bit Bit found out about egg in the basket:

• Keep the heat low when making egg in the basket, else the bread or the egg may get burnt.
• Bit Bit made the fully cooked egg version, where both sides of the bread and the egg is cooked. To make the liquid yolk version, just cook one side will do.
• Using a non-stick pan makes it easier to make this dish, as the egg nor the bread will stick to the pan, so it is easier to flip the bread over.
• Egg in the basket is a yummy, satisfying and healthy dish which keeps one's hunger at bay.
• Using salted butter instead of unsalted butter to apply on the bread, gives the dish a slightly salted taste, so one would not have to add any other seasonings.
• For a healthier egg in the basket, one does not have to put any butter/oil in the pan, so that the bread would not be soaked in butter/oil, and using less butter/oil means less fats. Just apply butter on one side or both sides of the bread!
• To ensure that the egg completely settles in the middle of the bread, use a slightly thicker bread or make a bigger hole in the middle.

Ingredients that Bit Bit used for Egg in the Basket:

1. Wholemeal Bread - 1 Slice
2. Egg - 1 Whole
3. Salted Butter - About 1/2 Tbsp

Method that Bit Bit used to make Egg in the Basket:

1. Cut a hole in the middle of the bread.
2. Spread butter on one side of the bread.
3. Heat up a pan. Turn heat to low.
4. Place the bread onto the pan, with the buttered side at the bottom.
5. Crack an egg into a small bowl and pour it into the hole of the bread.
6. Let it cook for about 5 minutes.
7. When the egg white has started to cook, forming a white layer at the bottom, use the spatula to check whether the bread is toasted and the egg cooked at the bottom. Do this carefully so that the egg would not break.
8. Once the bottom side of the bread has browned and the egg is cooked, carefully flip the bread over. Hold the bread with the spatula and lift up the pan in a slanted way, so that the egg would not 'fly' out when it is being flipped.
9. Let it cook for about 2 to 3 minutes.
10. Check that both sides of the bread and egg is cooked. If not, continue to let it stay in the pan.
11. Serve and enjoy!

Peanut Butter and Banana (Jam) Sandwich/Toast

Bit Bit made banana jam the other day, and decided to make some sandwiches for Pig to bring to work. One of the yummiest filling for sandwiches is peanut butter and banana, so the sandwiches are made.

The sandwiches took about 15 minutes to finish making.

Things that Bit Bit found out about peanut butter and banana (jam) sandwich:

• To make toast, one does not have to use the toaster only. Heat the bread on a pan and it will be just as yummy.
• While toasting a bread on a pan, low heat will ensure that the bread is thoroughly toasted. Bit Bit tried on high heat and the bread browned quickly, however the centre of the bread is still soft.
• Peanut butter and banana sandwich is a healthy combination and keeps one full and satisfied.

Ingredients that Bit Bit used for Peanut Butter and Banana (Jam) Sandwich:

1. White Bread - 6 Slices
2. Banana - 1 Whole
3. Peanut Butter - 3 Tbsp
4. Banana Jam - 1 Tbsp

Method that Bit Bit used to make Peanut Butter and Banana (Jam) Sandwich:

1. Heat up a pan.
2. Turn heat to low and place a slice of bread in the middle of the pan.
3. Flip the bread over when the bottom side turns brown.
4. Remove bread when both sides of the bread are toasted.
5. Repeat steps 2 to 4, for the other 5 slices of bread.
6. Peel and cut the banana in thin slices.
7. Spread peanut butter on one slice of toast and put the banana slices evenly on top.
8. Cover with another slice of toast. The peanut butter and banana sandwich is done.
9. Spread peanut butter on one slice of toast and spread banana jam on another slice of toast.
10. Put the two slices together. The peanut butter and banana jam sandwich is done.
11. Repeat step 7 and 8 for peanut butter and banana sandwich. Repeat step 9 and 10 for peanut butter and banana jam sandwich.
12. Cut the sandwiches diagonally and serve!

Food Tasting : Royal Dansk Danish Butter Cookies (Biscuits Danois au Beurre)

Bit Bit went marketing the other day at Giant, and was eligible for the 'Purchase with Purchase' promotion, so Bit Bit bought this Royal Dansk Danish Butter Cookies. Butter cookies in a round tin has always been Bit Bit's favourite biscuits from young, so Bit Bit is happy to be able to buy it.

The ingredients for the butter cookies look okay for vegetarians, but the biscuits may contain traces of eggs, so Bit Bit thinks that it is not suitable for vegetarians on the safe side. And so, the whole tin of butter cookies belongs to Bit Bit only since Pig is unable to eat them.

Bit Bit has always liked the biscuit tins, because after finishing the cookies, one can keep their things in this durable tin. The tape sealing of the tin is also made of good quality, as Bit Bit is able to reuse the tape without the sticky feeling or tape sticking to each other.

The biscuits are firm and different shapes have different textures to them. The rectangle one covered in sugar, is crunchier and has a nice sweet taste. The circle swirl with a hole in the middle is crunchy and has a stronger vanilla taste. The one that is shaped like a pretzel is slightly softer than the rectangle one but just as yummy. The two circle ones are similiar, just that the one that has a rougher surface seems to have more coconut bits in it. They are also slightly softer than the ones with sugar.

Bit Bit loves butter cookies, but not the calories. As there is no nutrition facts shown, Bit Bit did a search and found out there is 170kcals for every 4 pieces of biscuits. Though these are empty calories, dieting does not mean that one is not able to eat them, 4 pieces of biscuits and a cup of water will keep one satisfied and full!

Japanese Curry Udon (Kare Udon) カレーうどん - Vegetarian

Pig bought 4 packets of udon from NTUC yesterday, as there was a promotion of 'Buy 3 Free 1'. Bit Bit started thinking about what kind of udon should Bit Bit make, and Kare Udon sounds great.

The making of kare udon took about 1.5 hours.

Things that Bit Bit found out about kare udon:

• Mirin gives the curry gravy much flavour, and so Bit Bit added quite an amount to it.
• Perhaps flour is needed for japanese curry, as Bit Bit did not include it into the recipe and the gravy was not as thick as it should be, though potato starch was added to thicken it.
• When adding potato starch into the soup, mix it well with warm or hot water so that it will dissolve well, and would not form small little solids in the gravy.
• Adding beansprouts to this recipe will make the dish have a slight taste of mee rebus.
• For a beginner cook like Bit Bit who likes experimenting and does not like to follow exactly to recipes, making japanese curry from scratch is not as easy as Bit Bit thought. Bit Bit should have used the japanese curry roux instead.

Ingredients that Bit Bit used for Kare Udon:

1. Chinese Dried Black Mushroom (Shiitake) - 11 Small Pieces
2. Potato - 4 Small Whole
3. Carrot - 1 Large Whole
4. Red Chilli - 2 Pieces
5. Beansprouts - 1 Cup
6. Oil - 2 Tbsp
7. Curry Powder - 2 Tbsp
8. Light Soy Sauce - 3 Tbsp
9. Salt - 1 Tsp
10. Mirin - 1/2 Cup
11. Coconut Milk - 1/4 Cup
12. Potato Starch - 2 Tbsp
13. Pre-cooked Udon - 2 Packets of 200g Each
14. Water - 3 Cups & 4 Tbsp

Method that Bit Bit used to make Kare Udon:

1. Wash and soak the shiitake in 3 cups of water overnight. Place them in the fridge.
2. Take out the soaked shiitake from the fridge. Cut the mushrooms into slices, and put them back into the soaking water.
3. Pour the mushrooms and soaking water into a pot.
4. Bring the pot of mushrooms and soaking water to a boil, and then simmer for about 20 minutes. This will be the shiitake dashi.
5. Wash the potatoes, peel off the skin and cut into medium cubes.
6. Wash the carrot, peel off the skin and cut into medium cubes.
7. Wash the red chilli, cut off the head, remove the seeds in the middle and cut into medium slices.
8. Wash the beansprouts and place them in a bowl.
9. Heat up a pan and add oil.
10. Add in the potato cubes and carrot cubes.
11. Also, add in the curry powder and mix well.
12. Stir fry for about 3 to 5 minutes.
13. Pour the shiitake dashi and the mushrooms into the pan.
14. Add in light soy sauce, mirin and salt.
15. Turn heat to low when soup comes to a boil, and simmer for 3 to 5 minutes.
16. Add in coconut milk, mix well, and simmer for 3 to 5 minutes.
17. In a small bowl, mix the potato starch and 4 tbsp of water.
18. Pour the starch mixture into the soup and stir.
19. Simmer for about 3 to 5 minutes.
20. When the curry soup has thicken, and potatoes are soften, add in the pre-cooked udon.
21. Turn heat to medium, push the udon underneath the soup, and cook for 3 to 5 minutes.
22. Stir all the ingredients in the pan.
23. Serve and slurp!

Food Tasting : Daiso Japanese Vegetable Curry (Hot) 野菜カレー (辛口)

Bit Bit had been wanting to eat the japanese vegetable curry 野菜カレー which was bought at Daiso a week back, as it looks so yummy and curry is one of Bit Bit's top favourite food. Since Bit Bit could not think of anything to eat in the morning, the vegetable curry came to Bit Bit's mind.

Method that Bit Bit used to make Vegetable Curry Rice:

1. Bring a pot of water to boil.
2. Open the curry package halfway.
3. Place the curry package in the boiling water for about five minutes.
4. Scoop some red rice on a plate to go with the curry.
5. Pour the curry next to the rice.
6. Serve and eat!

The kare raisu is done!

There are some small potato cubes in the curry package, and they do not taste soft and mashy, but soft and firm. Yummy! The spiciness for the curry is also good, not super spicy, but also not bland. The curry sauce is also a lot and Bit Bit just ate the curry sauce without the rice when the rice ran out. The calories is also low for curry! Bit Bit really likes this curry a lot, and is thinking of going back to Daiso to buy more.

However, although this is vegetable curry, it is not suitable for vegetarians as it contains onion, worcester sauce and garlic.

Bit Bit recommends to add some cube potatoes, carrots and sliced meat to the curry, cook it a little and serve with rice.

Japanese Fried Noodles (Yakisoba) 焼きそば

Bit Bit is meeting Duck today, and wanted to make something nice for Duck to eat. Bit Bit wanted to make a bento with onigiri, as Bit Bit just bought japanese rice recently. However, Bit Bit was worried that there is not enough time to finish everything, so Bit Bit decided to make yakisoba きそば.

It took about one hour to finish the dish, including preparing of the ingredients.

Things that Bit Bit found out about Yakisoba:

• When using dry noodles, remember not to boil for too long, as the noodles will be cooked again when frying.
• Adding some red chilli adds a slight spiciness to the noodles, which is very yummy.
• Using soba noodles, instead of ramen noodles, gives a softer texture, but Bit Bit still finds it just as nice.

Ingredients that Bit Bit used for Yakisoba:

1. Buckwheat Noodles - 1/2 Packet (About 150gm)
2. Cabbage - 2 Cups
3. Beansprouts - 1 Cup
4. Carrot - 1 Small Whole
5. Red Chilli - 1 Whole
6. Egg - 1 Whole
7. Canola Oil - 1.5 Tbsp
8. Light Soy Sauce - 1 Tbsp
9. Mirin - 1 Tbsp
10. Sesame Oil - 1 Tbsp
11. Oyster Sauce - 2 Tbsp
12. Salt - A Pinch
13. Pepper - A Pinch

Method that Bit Bit used to make Yakisoba:

1. Bring a pot of water to boil.
2. Add in buckwheat noodles and cook till the noodles soften a little.
3. Remove noodles from boiling water and rinse under cold water.
4. Wash and cut cabbage into medium sizes.
5. Wash beansprouts and set aside.
6. Wash and remove the skin of the carrot, then shred the carrot into long slices.
7. Wash red chilli, cut off the head of the chilli, remove seeds in the chilli, and cut the chilli into slices.
8. Heat up the pan and add canola oil.
9. Add in the cabbage, beansprouts, carrots and red chilli.
10. Stir fry the vegetables till cabbage softens slightly, giving a "not as crunchy as when it is fresh" feeling.
11. Add in the noodles and stir fry.
12. Pour the light soy sauce, mirin, sesame oil, oyster sauce, salt and pepper into a small bowl and mix well.
13. Add in the seasonings mixture to the pan.
14. Stir fry and ensure that the seasonings mixed well with the noodles and vegetables.
15. Stir fry for about 5 to 10 minutes and turn off the heat.
16. Bring a pot of water to boil.
17. Put in the egg and boil for ten minutes.
18. Remove egg from boiling water and rinse under cold water.
19. Crack open the hard boiled egg and cut it into half.
20. Serve the yakisoba and hard boiled egg!

Stir Fried Spinach with Century Egg 皮蛋菠菜

Bit Bit wanted to have century egg for dinner, and since there is some leftover baby spinach in the fridge, Bit Bit decided to make stir fried spinach with century egg. It is one of Bit Bit's favourite.

This dish took about 15 minutes, fast and easy.

Things that Bit Bit found out about stir fried spinach with century egg:

• Using baby spinach makes it easier to chew and tastier, than adult spinach.
• Normally chicken stock will be used to cook the spinach, but it still tastes yummy without it.
• To have a little bit of the century egg taste in the 'soup', mash up the century egg yolk slightly.
• To remove the century egg from its shell and the exterior clay wrapping it, just knock the whole egg slightly like cracking a normal egg. One can peel the exterior clay and shell easily after cracking it.

Ingredients that Bit Bit used for Stir Fried Spinach with Century Egg:

1. Baby Spinach - 2 Bunches (About 300-400gm)
2. Century Egg - 1 Whole
3. Garlic - 1 Clove
4. Canola Oil - 1 Tbsp
5. Light Soy Sauce - 2 Tsp
6. Salt - A Pinch
7. Water - 3/4 Cup

Method that Bit Bit used to cook Stir Fried Spinach with Century Egg:

1. Cut off the roots of the spinach and wash thoroughly to remove the dirt.
2. Heat up a pan and add oil.
3. Dice the garlic and add into the pan.
4. Fry the garlic for about three minutes.
5. Add in the spinach and stir fry till spinach turns dark green.
6. Turn heat to low, and add water, salt and light soy sauce.
7. Crack open the century egg, and cut the egg into small pieces.
8. Add the century egg into the pan.
9. Simmer till spinach turns soft.
10. Serve and eat!

Banana Jam

Bit Bit was waiting for a big bunch of bananas to ripen, but after two days, they were still not fully ripe. However, the bananas all started to ripe the day after, and since there are some black spots around them, Bit Bit decided to use them before they start getting overripe. One good way of using them is to make banana jam.

The jam took quite a while to finish, around one hour, but one will still need time for it to cool down.

Things that Bit Bit found out about banana jam:

• One does not need to mash up all the banana before cooking, as they will start to mash up during cooking.
• The riper the banana, the sweeter it gets, so less sugar can be added.
• Although the sugar added seems to be a lot, it is really required to form the jam. Bit Bit needed to add more sugar during the cooking, as Bit Bit added too little sugar at the beginning.
• The lemon juice added to the banana, prevents the banana from turning brown.
• To make a more yellowish banana jam, add white sugar instead of brown sugar.
• Water is not really needed as it will make the mixture more watery. Use minimal water for dissolving of the sugar will do.
• Storing the jam in a glass jar lets one store the jam longer than in plastic containers.

Ingredients that Bit Bit used for Banana Jam:

1. Bananas - 8 Pieces (Around 700gm)
2. Lemon - 1 Whole
3. Brown Sugar Strips - 200gm
4. Fine Sugar - 6 Tbsp
5. Water - 3/4 Cup

Method that Bit Bit used to make Banana Jam:

1. Cut the lemon into half and squeeze out the juice in a big bowl.
2. Peel one banana and cut into thin slices.
3. Add the banana slices into the lemon juice, and mix slightly.
4. Repeat step 2 and 3 for the rest of the bananas.
5. Add the water into a pot and bring to boil.
6. Add the brown sugar strips into the boiling water and simmer till all the sugar dissolves.
7. Pour the banana lemon mixture into the sugar water.
8. Keep the heat at low and stir every five minutes, till the mixture thickens.
9. After the mixture thickens, turn off the heat.
10. Bring another pot of water to boil.
11. Pour the boiling water over an empty glass jar and its lid.
12. Dry the jar and lid.
13. While the jar is still hot, pour in the jam and close tight with the lid.
14. Wait for the jam to cool down and refrigerate the bottle of jam.
15. Take the jam out anytime to serve!