Kari Bebola Ayam | Curry Chicken Meatballs

Kari Bebola Ayam | Curry Chicken Meatballs

   August 27, 2020       Lyn Alina

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Every time we re-stock our groceries, chicken breasts are a must have ingredient that we never forget to buy.

Why chicken breasts, you might ask.

It's because I have a lot of yummy recipes that I can prepare with chicken breasts - as fillings for my curry puffs, meat pies, quiches and of course, for making  our favorite chicken meatballs!

Some people prefer to use dark meat (usually chicken thigh) for making chicken meatballs since that part is more juicy than white meat (chicken breast).

I couldn't agree more that using dark meat indeed makes your chicken meatballs juicier.

You can use dark meat to make your meatballs, if your have any.

But if your option is only chicken breasts, don't get disheartened, because I know how to make delicious, chewy and moist chicken meatballs from chicken breasts.

Yes, trust me!😄

The secret ingredient is, OIL. 

You need to add oil in your meatball dough to make moist chicken meatballs.

And don't forget tapioca flour, it'll make your meatballs chewy.

The rest of the ingredients are spices of your choice and whole egg or just the white.

I used only the white egg for this recipe.

As usual, for visual instructions, you can watch the video below:

We like our homemade version of chicken meatballs very much and now we have never bought ready made chicken meatballs anymore.

These chicken meatballs can be frozen straight away after you shaped them into balls, just make sure to layer your tray with plastic and grease with some oil before putting the meatballs on top.

This is to ensure the meatballs did not stick to the tray once they've frozen.

Another option is to steam your meatballs over high heat for 5 minutes, until the outer layer turns whitish, and let them cool first before storing in a Ziploc bag or container to freeze.

I made chicken meatballs cooked in thick, fragrant curry gravy to be enjoyed with my homemade oat bread for our dinner.

Since we have to reduce our rice intake, I need to prepare fulfilling dishes to substitute rice to prevent binge eating later on.

These curry chicken meatballs is not only fulfilling, it is rich in flavor and also delicious even on it's own.

I'm sure you'll going to like it!

HOMEMADE CHICKEN MEATBALLS RECIPE

Category: High Protein Recipes, Diabetic Friendly Recipes

Serving Size : 3 to 5

CHICKEN MEATBALLS

(Yield : Approximately 26 pieces)

Ingredients:

2 pieces of chicken breasts (550 grams) - finely ground

3 cloves of garlic - finely ground

1 1/2 tbsp of coriander seeds - soaked and finely ground (can substitute with coriander powder)

1 cm of ginger - finely ground

1 tsp of fennel seeds - soaked and finely ground (can substitute with fennel powder)

2 tsp of black pepper powder Salt to taste Egg white from 1 egg 5 tbsp of tapioca flour

1 tbsp of olive/vegetable oil

Instructions:

1. In a bowl, add all the ingredients and mix until well combined.
2. Shape the dough into small balls and arrange on a tray line with a sheet of plastic. Lightly oil the plastic to prevent the meatballs from sticking onto it.
3. Heat some oil in a non-stick frying pan, once hot, fry the meatballs over medium heat until the meatballs are lightly brown on all sides. No need to fry for too long since we'll be cooking the meatballs in curry later on.
4. Set aside while we prepare the curry gravy.

FRAGRANT CURRY GRAVY

Ingredients:

1/2 onion - diced/thinly sliced 2 cloves of garlic - chopped/finely ground 1 cm of ginger - chopped/finely ground 1 pandan leaf 2 tbsp of meat curry powder 1 tsp of chili powder 1/2 tsp of turmeric powder 1/2 cup of coconut cream/thick coconut milk 2 tomatoes - cut into wedges Water as needed 1 medium size carrot - cut into bite size Salt to taste Sugar if needed Vegetable oil for cooking

Instructions:

1. Heat oil in a wok about 2 to 3 tablespoons, stir fry diced onion, chopped garlic and ginger until fragrant.
2. Add knotted pandan leaf, 1 tomato, meat curry powder, chili powder and turmeric powder and stir fry for a few seconds until the spices become paste-like.
3. Add water as needed, fried chicken meatballs and carrot. Season with salt and sugar if using. Cover and simmer over low heat until carrot is tender-crisp and the gravy is slightly thickens.
4. Lastly, add coconut cream or thick coconut milk and cook for another few minutes to ensure the coconut cream/milk is completely cooked.
5. Curry chicken meatballs is ready to be served!

*NOTE*

The meatball dough is quite sticky causing the shaping process is quite difficult. I would recommend to oil your hand before shaping the meatballs or wear gloves if you have any.

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Homemade Unsweetened Applesauce

Homemade Unsweetened Applesauce

   August 27, 2020       Lyn Alina

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Applesauce is one of a great substitute for white sugar if you don't have other natural sweetener available in your pantry.

I made this as a sugar substitute for my healthy, diabetic-friendly brownies which I uploaded in my Youtube channel a few days ago.

If you're curious on how I made a healthier version of brownies, here's the link of the video. This version of brownies is not only healthy, but also bursting with flavors!

This was actually my second time I made my homemade applesauce, while my first version I made applesauce for my sweet potato avocado brownies a few years ago.

For my first version, I didn't cook my applesauce - Add an apple, a tablespoon of lemon juice and water in a blender and blend, that's it!

The uncooked applesauce is suitable to be used right away while the traditional cooked applesauce, you can keep for few days in refrigerator.

The good thing is, this version of applesauce is sugar free and made with only four ingredients.

The traditional way of making applesauce is first, you need to chopped your peeled apples into small cubes or chunks and cook over medium heat together with cinnamon stick or cinnamon powder and sufficient amount of water until the apples chunks are tender, about 20 minutes.

Then, to make it smoother, you'll have to puree the applesauce by using an immersion blender or food processor until it becomes creamy.

But, if you don't have an immersion blender, you can always use a normal blender to puree your applesauce if want it to be creamy.

Some people prefer to have apple chunks in their applesauce, but for me, I like it to be creamy in texture.

To reap all the nutrients from the apples, I prefer to leave the skin unpeeled.

Wash the apples thoroughly with salt water especially if you're not using organic apples and then rinse under running tap water.

I used three medium size of Fuji apples to obtain approximately 460 grams of applesauce.

For visual instructions, watch my video on how to make this applesauce here:

Store homemade applesauce in a mason jar and keep it frozen or refrigerated.

It can lasts for about a week if refrigerated and a few months if frozen.

If you're ready, let's get started.

HOMEMADE UNSWEETENED APPLESAUCE

Category : Diabetic Friendly Recipes, Diet & Fitness

Yield: 460 grams

Ingredients:

3 medium size Fuji Apples

3/4 cup of water  | 177 ml

Lemon juice from 1/2 lemon

1 cinnamon stick/1 tsp of cinnamon powder

Instructions:

Wash apples thoroughly using salt water and rinse under running tap water.  With the skin still on, cut the apples into 4 or 6 wedges and remove the core.  Then, cut each wedges into chunks.

Place apple chunks in a pot or a pan.  Add water, lemon juice and cinnamon stick or cinnamon powder.  Stir and bring to boil over high heat, then lower the heat, cover and simmer for about 15 to 20 minutes, until the chunks are squishy but not mushy. You may test doneness by poking a chunk with a fork or tip of a wooden spatula.  The apple chunks are cooked through when you can easily poke through the apple flesh.

Let the mixture slightly cool then pour the mixture into a blender and blend until mixture is smooth.
Pour the applesauce into a mason jar and once it is completely cool, the applesauce is ready to use.  Keep the applesauce refrigerated or frozen to prolong it's shelf life.

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Low Carb Oat Banana Pancake (Sugar free, Gluten Free)

Low Carb Oat Banana Pancake (Sugar free, Gluten Free)

   July 21, 2020       Lyn Alina

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It's been quite some time since I posted in my blogs.

With a lot of things happened recently, I have to re-organize my priorities.

Lately I'm quite busy with developing new recipes for my Youtube channel, which means I have less time to sit and write.

Since I don't prefer to simply copycat other people's recipes and make them like my own, I need to go through the hard way-  the try and error episodes!

For me, though it may seem stupid for some people, I take it as an opportunity to gather as much knowledge in baking as possible.

I'm indeed an INFJ after all...

Learning isn't a big deal for me as I'm always a passionate and curious learner.  Hihi..

I have to admit that the past traumatic events that happened in my life has led me to begin my binge eating again because food is some sort of my comfort and my "best friend."

It was just that my eating habit now is not as bad as four years ago, while I was still working in my first company with my Hubby, where 60% of our meals were fast foods.

Our ignorance to take care of ourselves for these past few years take a toll in our health, and mindless eating has caused me to gain some kgs.

But my hubby's recent blood glucose reading, that is higher that normal really makes me worry.

This is a wake up call for me to re-program our eating habits and to practice a healthier lifestyle.

I decided to not take rice and simple carbs in our diet.

I have tried several diet plans but low carb diet worked for me so far.

While aiming to reduce my Hubby's blood sugar level back to normal, I can lose weight as well!

I made healthy, low carb version of banana pancake for our today's breakfast.

Banana is one of my favorite fruit when I'm dieting, even though it contains sugar and carbs, banana has a lower GI, so eating banana in moderation won't cause your blood sugar to spike.

But for those who are diagnosed with pre-diabetes and diabetes shouldn't consume banana daily.

Banana is also packed with other nutrients and vitamins that are beneficial for overall health.

Potassium in banana can help lower blood pressure.

Since this low carb banana pancake doesn't contain flour in the batter, I would suggest you to use a non-stick pan to cook the pancake due to it's soft texture.

You can reduce egg amount and use only one egg instead for this recipe, so that the batter will be slightly thicker and it'll be easier to flip the pancake, especially if you're using overripe bananas.

You can add a tablespoon of honey or maple syrup if you want your banana pancake a little sweeter.

We both prefer the natural sweetness from the bananas, so I didn't add additional sweetener in my pancake.

You can add chia seeds in your pancake if you have any.

On top of it's health benefits, adding chia seeds will also add crispy texture in your pancake.

To maximize it's benefit and not ruining your diet plan, enjoy your pancake with fruits rather than drizzling your pancake with sweeteners or butter spread. 

Alright! Here it is..my low carb version of banana pancake..

OAT BANANA PANCAKE

Category: High Fiber Recipe, Healthy Breakfast Recipe, Diabetic Friendly Recipes

Serving Size : 2 to 3

Ingredients:

3 medium size bananas

2 large eggs

1/2 teaspoon of salt

2/3 cup of rolled oat

1/3 cup of almond milk

Instructions:

Place peeled bananas in a medium size bowl.  Mash the bananas with a fork or potato masher.  

Add in the remaining ingredients and mix well.

Heat a non-stick pan over medium heat and lightly oiled the pan.

Once hot, pour a ladle, or a small portion of the batter at the center of the pan.  Do not spread the batter thinly to prevent the pancake from falling apart as you flip it.

Cover the pan with a lid and cook over medium heat for about 2 minutes on one side and once the side begin to firm up, carefully slip a heat proof spatula under the pancake and quickly flip it to cook on the other side.  (You may use two spatulas to do the flipping).  Cook until brown patches appear on the pancake's surface.

Transfer cooked pancake on a prepared plate.

Repeat the steps for the remaining batter until finish.

Ready to be served!

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