Chinatown Food Complex - Dessert Station

I believe that our food is medicine. Given that our cells die and renew within every few months, the food we eat, the air we breathe and water we drink, thoughts we think affect how the next generation of cells, how they are formed and their inherent DNA. In lesser words, our DNA is changeable and we actions and choices impact our DNA.

Thus the rationale for my picky food choices. I'm trying to steer clear of processed food, cooking oils, MSG, any form of chemicals in our food. Trying to cut down on sugar too, wish me luck on that. But still, I do eat junk food. Just that with all this new gained knowledge, I enjoy them less.

Right. But in every case, it has become a habit to selective choose healthier versions, including desserts. I love desserts, all the hot desserts, especially bean soups, sesame pastes, peanut pastes, yam pastes, gingko nut and beancurd, etc. I think you get the idea. But they usually contain too much sugar for my preference. So I prefer to cook my own sometimes. Except for Sesame paste. Far too much work.

And today a dessert stall in particular really won my heart.

 Dessert Station is at the red zone in Chinatown Complex and by 2pm, their yam paste was sold out. That was probably my first clue.

So I ordered my favourite Sesame paste instead.

Most sesame paste are made using pre-made black sesame flour, some starch and water. The black sesame flour might have had sugar already added. Thus they taste pretty much the same everywhere.

Except for this one.

Black Sesame paste - $1.80

 One the first try I found it grittier and stronger tasting than most black sesame paste. And on closer look, I can see oil from the black sesame coating spoon.

This is probably one of the rare stalls which grind and mill their own sesame flour, from roasted black sesame seeds. Thus their black sesame taste far less of sugar and starch but very much of the real stuff.

Oh my................it's really really good!  I'll definitely try to have some whenever I'm in the area. If I'm lucky, perhaps I'll get to try the yam paste next time!

Updated - Apparently, they have branches. One of which is located at Albert Centre Food market at bugis!


Dessert Station

Chinatown Food Complex - 2nd Floor Red zone #02-132
Opening hours - 10plus am till 8plus pm

Raw Vegetable Sushi

Hallo, Merry X'mas!

For the past two days I had been busy with potluck dinners with friends. Thus, it also called for some preparing of my favourite snacks and goodies.

When I first had vegetarian food, one of my favourite is the raw vegetable sushi. I would try it wherever it's on the menu and there's definitely no identical raw veg sushi in two places. The dressing, ingredients, all differ from place to place. It's a marvellously tasty, simple and healthy snack to make. And to my surprise, my vegetarian and omnivorous friends like it.

Even my mum, who don't quite fancy raw vegetables much. o_O

 I usually use beetroot, carrots, pea sprouts, red capsicum, zucchini (optional), and cucumbers. The roots are shredded while the other vegetables are cut into fine strips. And because it's Christmas, I added some almond flour.


I buy my nori sheets from Albert Centre market (third storey), where it's sold at 龍馬  at 50 sheets a pack for $5.50. To have a nice crisp nori, toast it for a few seconds in the oven, or over a gas flame.  But were the sushi to be served beyond 10 minutes later, it wouldn't make much difference.

First spread the dressing. I looooooove almond butter, so it's pretty much what I use most of the time. Especially since I make my own, I get quite generous with the stuff.  And the best thing is that it tastes and smells so good, no seasoning is needed. So the sushi is holistically healthily made from whole food sources.

Next layer on the veggies, with roots first.

The zucchini, cucumbers and capsicums next. The finer rheir strips, the neater the sushi will be.









Last of all, the pea sprouts. Pea sprouts are loose and it's hard to put anything else on top of them so they have to go on last.

And with firm fingers, push the vegetables inwards and roll it up!










This was a good attempt. Yay!

And the finished sushi roll. :)

My friends commented this is less crunchy than the one I made last year. That's due to the zucchini added and less cucumbers. To have a crunchier sushi with higher water content, just swap the zucchini for cucumbers. Or try substituting zucchini with chinese pears for a sweeter sushi.

Other possible ingredients are daikon, chinese pear, lettuce,  kale, spinach. avocado. Or for fruit sushi, with apples, pears, mangoes, dragonfruit, kiwi, strawberries.

Different combination of vegetables or fruit might call for different dressing. Alternate dressings are vegan mayo, plum sauce, cashew butter.

Have a healthy, lovely and wonderful Christmas!