The Hungry Bunny

This is a sweet and mildly tangy Flemish beef casserole stewed with Belgian abbey-styled beer. Use a dark Trappist ale like Leffe Radieuse, Ommegang Abbey Ale or Chimay Blue for a luscious caramel-ly finish. The stew derives its sweetness from copious lashings of onions, sweated and caramelised with a touch of sugar, and its sour tang from a dollop of wholegrain mustard and tomato paste.If you don't have mustard and/or tomato paste, you can substitute either with each, or apple cider vinegar. Like all stews, this can be prepped well beforehand, and reheated when needed. Ingredients (feeds 5-6 pax): 1 kg beef chuck, cut into 1" cubes 1 1/2 large onion (or 2 medium-sized onions), diced to 1cm squares 3 large cloves garlic, minced 400 gm white button mushrooms, sliced thickly 2 large carrots, diced to 3/4" cubes 1 bundle fresh thyme (about 10-15 sprigs), tied together with butcher's string 1 bay leaf 1 bottle beer, about 330ml (after scouring the superma

MK Restaurants in Bangkok are as ubiquitous as its 7-11 convenience stores. Just about every mall has a branch of this beloved steamboat chain. Being as hugely successful as they are in Thailand, I was curious to see how MK Restaurant s would fare in Singapore. Perhaps being situated in the same mall as the arguably best steamboat in town, Hai Di Lao , isn't the most brilliant of ideas. But it does get the patronage of a few trickle-down diners who are turned off by the inordinately-long waiting period at Hai Di Lao.  But such trickle-down diners will be most disappointed. I found MK Restaurant s' steamboat middling at best, and mostly clunky. To make the most of your steamboat experience, my take is to order the Tom Yum base ($4.90) instead of the chicken one; it's very robust, and while richly sour and spicy, it reeked of an instant paste packet, and tended towards the cloying, especially at the end. The Mushroom Platter ($20) was seriously overpriced. It w

Along with KazBar , Oosters Belgian Brasserie is a stalwart of the China Square/Far East Square/Capital Square food street. Belgian food has never really been my thing, as I'm no fan of mussels, waffles or beer (it's liquid carbs!), and the aforementioned 3 things are like the trifecta of Belgian cuisine. But we were a little peckish, and in need of light sustenance, so we popped in for a small bite. The Waffles ($10.50) with vanilla ice-cream were pedestrian, and reminded me of their frozen counterparts, and the strawberry syrup tasted like it came straight out of a freshly-popped can. The lackluster Barramundi ($10), served in a kitschy martini glass, reeked of its fishy origins. Best thing here is their happy hour deals; I particularly enjoyed their 1-4-1 South African Cabernet Sauvignon promo ($12). But if you're a purist beer drinker, I'd recommend the very drinkable Pater L Blonde ($12 per pint). Oosters Belgian Brasserie 25 Church Street #01-04

The Hubs had been hankering to try Hai Di Lao ever since I raved about it when my colleagues brought me to the Clarke Quay outlet . But his half-Korean heritage means that he's not one to wait in line for anything. Even if there are freebie snacks and mani-pedi services to reward the patient. So we've taken to popping by the insanely crowded steamboat specialist for midnight suppers. That's one way to beat the crazy-long waiting times at Hai Di Lao : dining at the most inopportune times, i.e. weekday afternoons, or any day after 12 midnight. Incidentally, afternoons from 12 noon up to 5pm is also the time allowed for reservations. Price-wise, Hai Di Lao is a little on the upmarket end of steamboat restaurants, but as the saying, "you pay peanuts, you get monkeys" goes, uncompromising quality must be paid for. A sound logic to me...besides, I'd much rather pay top dollar for freshness than to find a rat in my food at a cheap(er) place. The 313 Somerset

This is a childhood snack that I used to love munching on while watching the telly, so I set out to recreate it. If I may be so bold to say so, it tastes just like Saturday morning cartoons! Ingredients (makes 80 4cm-wide x 1cm-thick patties): 5 large potatoes, peeled 2 shallots, minced finely 300 gm minced pork belly 1 cup plain flour 2 eggs, beaten 1 cup breadcrumbs 1/2 cup flavoured oil (I used a bacon rendering-infused chicken fat for maximum oomph) 2 tbsp salt Seasoning: 4 tbsp light soy 1 tbsp mirin 1 tbsp sesame oil 1 egg, beaten 1 tbsp flour Dash of pepper Directions: 1) Boil potatoes in salted water until soft throughout, about 10 minutes. 2) In the meantime, saute shallots in 2 tbsp flavoured oil until fragrant, about 1 minute. 3) Add minced pork and fry till cooked through, breaking it up in the process, about 3 minutes. 4) Drain and mash potatoes. 5) Add minced pork and stir through. 6) Add seasoning and whip evenly. 7) Place i