one six b's finest

this is gonna be a somewhat short and sweet post to mark the coming out of a week of hospitalization leave (thanks to surgery number three in my journey toward getting my first implant) and the somewhat anticipation of the mayhem of the coming week, as i close the chapter of working at my present job. one would think i would have more time to blog during the rest week...but the time simply flew past as i nursed a swollen cheek, a cold and an overflowing inbox. but i digress... this post is as the title suggests...a recap of yet another chillax dinner with great company, fun guests tucking in full on to some of one six b's fab & favorite dishes - starting off with pak law's kick ass caesar salad.

Read More......

the simple poisson

the poisson or fish is one thing that i find very hard to cook right. it demands the simplest seasoning to bring out the sweetness of the flesh and precise timing, regardless if you deep fry or steam these swimmers, to get them cooked just right. maybe that's why pak law tends not to experiment that much with the simple poisson and stuck with the good old red meat suspects....but this girl is secretly glad that pak law has found inspiration from chef rick stein and begun to develop quite a perfect repoitre of fish mains, using the fab local variety no less!

Read More......

behind the scenes at one six b!

those who have had the chance to sample pak law's hokkien mee do know that he does whip up quite a mean version, and in my book, enough to rival some of the outlets here on the island! this girl literally grew up eating this...first cooked by my grandma now by pak law...and it has always been the only hokkien mee i eat. that's right, i don't eat this anywhere else but at home. i do have to mention that this dish is only cooked on occasion by pak law and it was recently served up at one six b on request from g, who was leaving for jdk. i know i have posted about this before, but this time, i'm taking a behind the scene perspectives on things and am proud to present you the makings of pak law's hokkien mee!

Read More......

makan - one six b style!

there's been quite a bit of feasting over the past couple of weeks....first with pak law returning from perth with an awesome cut of wagyu, followed by his two-day trip to the food and hospitality asia fair resulting in a special sitting of brunch at restaurant one six b and a recommendation of veal chops by pak law's butcher. yes, i do admit that life is pretty good and it is times with the family like these, sharing stories of the week, enjoying good food and great wine that i am reminded just how blessed i am...

Read More......

death by desserts - take 6

finally found the missing piccie for auntie ta's rendition of the pierre herme's dark chocolate tart. i do have to admit the pics in this post aren't fantastic but i do hope they do make your mouths salivate, tummy rumble and instill the craving for something sweet, for these truly decadent creations are all homemade and handcrafted by one six b's very own dessert chef auntie ta.

Read More......

joining in the march of the food revolution

i've been following jaime oliver's food revolution of late and only just begun to realize how much of an impact it is making on my perspective of food, eating and health. my recent post on b3 is probably the point where it really dawned on me (and hence made the burger vow!) that i've become a believer of the movement. it really wasn't a sudden revelation but rather a subtle one, with little things like writing for mojitos, dining more and more at homeand even messing about in the kitchen myself, that prompted me to think that i could potentially play a role and hopefully pass on the spark to start your own revolution. 

Read More......

proud to peranakan!

as with every chinese new year, the family tradition is to indulge in a full fletched peranakan feast. i know that i have raved about the feast before but as we really only indulge to this extent once a year, i figured that it is part of my duty as a peranakan to share with all the tremendous array of food that we had on the first day of the tiger year *grin*!

Read More......

reunion!

reunion dinner last night was one to truly go down in the law clan history. with uncle t and family in town (grandson nate included!) and both ben and g back in time for the festivities, the last day of the ox year was celebrated in true law style. the bulk of the dinner was literally air flown in for the occasion....from the repertoire of awesome salami, array of champagne, reds & whites to the ten, yes ten kilograms of meat carried back by ben from pak law's butcher in melbourne, the law clan were really treated to a fantastic dinner.

Read More......

pork parade!

having never really been a huge recipe book based chef, i have to admit that i am quite impressed at the level of engagement thomas keller's ad hoc at home has had thus far with pak law. it has got him quite inspired since he received it last christmas, experimenting quite relentlessly with all the new techniques and culinary ideas...and resulting in some amazing roast beef and lamb racks that we enjoyed over the holidays (do click back to mojito's archive!) but for me, the biggest breakthrough was in pak law's  repertoire of pork. 

Read More......

don't you just love christmas?

okay i do have to admit that thirty hours ago, i really wasn't in much of a christmas mood or spirit...i guess with everything that's going on in my life, i kinda got distracted and caught up in the roller coaster that i forgot what christmas should be about. guess god does work in mysterious ways and i was reminded that despite all the negativity that i seem to be drowning myself in, i am in fact actually extremely blessed. so before i show off the gorgeous christmas lunch spread that we were treated to today, i absolutely have to say that i am thankful for g and my family (extended included!), for all the love... nothing really defines christmas better than being surrounded by people you love, and people who love you no matter what. 

Read More......

one six b's welcome home dinner

i know it has been all quiet on the one six b front and i am deeply sorry for not giving all at least a heads up that the kitchen would actually be closed a large part of november and december as pak law jets about, taking a break from the cooking and stretching his legs on the golf course! the dessert kitchen too, albeit located at the other end of the island, was also closed for the past month or so but for the very different reason of remodeling! the re-surfacing of the one six b thread is thus officially marked with this post, with pak law back in the kitchen from down under - eight kilos of meat in tow no less (yes eight!), and auntie ta busying herself in her new kitchen, fully decked out i hear with a spanking new oven!

Read More......

simplicity

simplicity is often time forgotten and cast aside for the more hip and happening bells and whistles. it applies to art, design, style and yes, cooking, where many atime, we often think the more complicated the dish, the more fanciful the ingredients, the better the taste, flavor and dining experience. i admit that i am often caught in the trap of being intrigued by the complex...so i'm punching out this post, inspired by the subtle simplicity of recent weeks in pak law's cooking *grin*

it is quite amazing what pak law manages to put together with just a simple fillet of chicken and an orange. the end result is a really nice, tender, sweet yet tangy piece of meat...topped with orange rind and a specially made orange sauce, pak law kept it simple and yet managed to spiced things up with this new spin on the grilled chicken.yums!

with seafood, one would think it would either go grilled as is or served or smothered with some kind of chilli... pak law has his own special repertoire of grilled fish and the like, but one saturday (probably inspired by some program on the asian food channel!) he started wrapping the prawn and fish in crispy bacon. as much as i am not too big a fan of the streaks of pork, the synergistic flavor of the salty, crispy and sweetness of both the prawns and creamy fish was quite outstanding. served on a bed of simply stir fried mushrooms and snow peas, dinner that evening was another example of true simplicity.

last but definitely not least, simplicity beef style. beef is one thing that pak law has always kept simple. seasoned typically with just salt and pepper, sometimes with a side dollop of au jus or mustard, beef by pak law is usually already quite uncomplicated. so one can imagine the amazement when one saturday, the beef come pretty much au naturel! just grilled till medium rare and served in its on juices, the beef on its own was such a fantastic cut with the right proportion of marbling that it was no wonder pak law kept the beef as is! the pea and onion side dish further augmented the simplicity theme for i was one that was quite blown away that peas could actually taste that yummy! think sweet caramelized onions and crunchy garden peas tossed in a touch of salty butter...enough said don't you think?

so there...simple ingredients but put together for outstanding tastes!
simplicity rocks!

Read More......

still cooking up a storm!

its been unusually busy on the blog research front....with some days seeing this girl capturing images and making mental notes to blog on two, sometimes three places! and yes while i do promise to play catch up soon...i am quickly putting in a much deserved post on the happenings on restaurant one six b's front. it has still been busy, as you can tell from the collage above, and pak law has most definitely been continuously cooking up a storm. with new touches, attempted culinary experiments, spins on old dishes and some traditional classics, the past couple weeks have been filled with a myraid of old and new, and all fantastically good!

so starting from the top left, east met west with duck confit served peking style. week 2 saw one six b combining a touch of french with bite sized chicken morsels and a seriously kick ass pasley garlic dip and classic italian angel hair vongole with a side of buttered king prawns. week 3 saw serious indulgence and a return to our roots with some awesome traditional pernakan fare. mom whipped up some of her fantastic chap chye, fabulous bling bling and freshly made sambal, while dad put together his signature pong teh, assam pedas and bakwan keptiting.

there definitely is no doubt that one six b is still cooking up a storm!

Read More......

the mice continue to play!

this time, playtime involved wagyu beef patties, korabuta pork patties and our new cuisinart griddler. not forgetting of course, panfried fresh onions in butter, grilled portobello mushrooms, sunny side ups, tomatos, cucumber, butterhead, melted emmenthal cheese and a touch of creativity....we all had our very own versions of what a burger should be....and trust me, it most definitely got messy!

Read More......

the cat's away!

with chief chef pak law out of town, sous chef b and the rest of us wannabe kitchen helpers, took over the kitchen at one six b and kinda went slightly amok! i guess the saying when the cat is away the mice come out to play pretty much summed out the little pasta making escapade we had! so out came the shiny pasta machine and the eager helpers (kids included!) plodded around the kitchen to get the flour, eggs and rest of ingredients going.

once the fun started, we pretty much couldn't stop ourselves.....resulting in not just homade pasta but basil fettucine and truffle oil pumpkin stuffed raviolis!

g and i contributed with our own rendition of oven baked escargots - think generous freshly chopped garlic, dollop of basil and ball of butter covering each and every snail. these were so good we ended up having one and half dozen of this little creatures! the pastas turned out pretty good too, considering that this was our first attempts of literally doing everything from first principles! b cooked it pretty al dente and served both pastas up in a light cream sauce with fiercely spicy italian sausages. pak law if you are reading this, hope you are proud of us....no we didn't starve and no we didn't mess up your kitchen!

*grin!*

Read More......

meat melodies

it's been pretty much back to back weekends of roasted meats at one six b...not that i or anyone is honestly complaining! i guess the regulars of one six b all do enjoy a good cut of beef, lamb and pork pretty much any time that we don't realize that its been a few carnivorous weekends of pure meat indulgence!

served up with a nice side portion of rissoni and topped with home-style stewed veggies, dinner one was a simple yet heart (and tummy!) warming experience. the beef was good, roasted to a perfect medium rare, crisp on the outside and pink on the inside, and the rissoni done al dente (just imagine the texture of risotto but with the soft crunch of macaroni) with a tangy touch of well stewed veggies...but as much as i would like to say the meat and rissoni were the highlights of that evening, auntie ta's imported stash of belgian chocolates and fruit pastilles most definitely stole the limelight. carried all the way back from france, these were exquisite! from the strawberry to lemon pastilles, milk to dark chocolates, one really could tell the delicate craftsmanship and quality of the ingredients gone into each and every morsel of the sweets. thank you auntie ta for spoiling us rotten!

dinner two saw us indulging again in cuts of steak...this time, two hundred and fifty grams of tenderlion donned all of our plates. served with a dollop of homemade hollandaise-inspired sauce, flurry of caesar salad and fresh buffalo mozzarella and tomato, the steak could have easily rivaled that served up at reputable establishments here in singapore...kudos to chef pak law!

dinners three and four revolved around pork. the first version inspired a little by french country style cooking while the second was the classic fusion of east meets west roasted pork. guess pak law was experimenting a little with version 1, combining some of the french cooking techniques with that of chinese cooking, producing what he coined french style ba kut teh! it turned out not too bad...the soup was hearty and wholesome, and the meat was moist and tender, only disappointing thing was that the flavors didn't quite pull through the meat. was a great attempt nonetheless and i'm sure pak law's going to nail the dish the next time around!

the roast pork is probably pak law's next pet dish next to the beef. browned to produce almost perfect crackling, the pork was roasted such that it was infused by its own juices, producing tender and juicy cuts of pork rib. topped with apple risotto instead of the usual out of the can apple sauce, pak law has again took one of his classic dishes up by a notch! completing the meal that evening was yet another classic, auntie ta's signature creme caramel. i think i did mention this before that i'm not one that is big on custards but when it comes to auntie ta's version, this girl will not refuse. smooth and creamy with the just the right hint of sweetness, the creme caramel brought the evening of feasting and great company to a happy and satisfactory close.

till the next feasting episode at one six b!

Read More......

new at one six b

i know its been a tad bit quiet, even on the one six b front...so this girl decided to shake things up a bit and present a summary of the experimentations going on in the one six b kitchen. with pak law's culinary skills honed to perfection in the chicken, beef and lamb departments, he decided to venture into the duck, fish and pork arena, and even better...try his hand at the fusion approach! the end result? pretty awesome versions of sweet & sour kurabuta pork, lemongrass seabass and duck confit. 

so, here's the quick run down:

the sweet and sour pork was a simple integration of the classic hainanese sauce over pan fried kurabuta pork. pak law deliberately kept it simple as the well marbled slices of pork produced salty flavors that complemented the sweet and tangy sauce, making each piece of pork a tender slice of heaven. this beats any hainanese pork chop version in my book!

as much as i do love the pork....the lemon grass seabass wins my vote amongst pak's law trio of new creations, simply because the fusion of the flavors was remarkable and you have to admit, getting fish done right is an art in itself! think fresh sea bass, cooked just right such that it is still moist and creamy, sandwiching a layer of fish paste infused with lemon grass. again....extremely simple but the combination of the fresh fish and lemon grass produced a rich, creamy almost lemak experience....served up with a cylinder of claypot-type rice, this dish will most definitely become one of pak law's and one six b's signatures. 

last but not least, the duck confit. not being a big fan of confit, as i tend to find the dish a bit overwhelming, i do have to give it to pak law for producing a confit that could easily rival that served up at any of the big name restaurants. crisp on the hot side, yet tender on the inside, nestled on top of a bed of mash and side of freshly tossed sesame dressed rocket salad, the duck confit does deserve a mention and i am quite sure, with a bit of practice and further experimentation, pak law will be able to turn this dish into another fusion-y delight!

Read More......

steak & foie gras

one six b was a buzz a few weekends back as pak law was planning a huge steak and foie gras meal, and apparently he was so psyched about the meal that he was already planning for it since the wednesday before! just for the record, this meal was some what of a thank you meal to g who bought pak law quite the bottle of macallen en route home from phuket, but just between you and me, i think we (and i'm sure i speak on behalf of the regulars at one six b) were all secretly thankful to both g and pak law to be able to benefit from the 'deal'!

the planning most definitely paid off with pak law not only sourcing the best cuts of beef and huge fresh slabs of duck liver, but also going a step further to put together an awesome melon parma ham appetizer (think ultra sweet and juicy rock melons enveloped with streaky, almost melt-in-your-mouth smoked parma ham!), and yummy sides of tangy salad and hot-out-of-the-oven rosemary butter roasted potatoes. 

all conversations around the table, literally came to a stop the moment pak law brought out the huge plate of freshly fried foie gras and congregated to a loud 'wah'. nestled on top a bed of caramelized apples, the foie gras was cooked quite to perfection, crisp on the outside but yet creamy on the inside and yes, it most definitely melted in the mouth! the caramelized apple was a fantastic touch as it help cut down the 'lemak-ness' of the foie gras and added a really nice sweet tangy background to complement the unique flavor of the liver. pak law has without a doubt outdone himself with this composition! the gastronomia however didn't stop there, and while we were indulging in creamy foie gras heaven, pak law was already getting ready to wow us even further with some very marbled cuts of beef. simply seasoned with salt and pepper, the steak was very very good. brown on the outside, pink on the inside, pak law's steak really never ever disappoints. needless to say, we polished off all the plates of foie gras and steak (we had two plates of steak by the way!) and were all truly satisfied!

dessert that evening was also something new from auntie ta's kitchen....this girl was a little worried when she heard it was mango cheesecake as after such a rich meal, having such a heavy dessert might not be too good an idea! but, i do have to give it to auntie ta for her version was like a cross between the traditional and japanese cheesecake. light and fluffy, with just a hint of cheese, it was rich in the sweet flavors of the fresh mangoes used and had the yummy lemon rind and coconut infused digestive base. 

it was most definitely a meal to remember and i bet my bottom dollar that all the regulars at one six b will be asking for another steak and foie gras meal again soon!

Read More......

old time favorites upgraded!

just to set the record straight, restaurant one six b hasn't closed its doors...rather its been keeping a slightly lower profile as pak law refines his skills and experiments. with new cuts of meat. the end result is some pretty awesome spins on some of pak law's old time classics.

classic number one - beef. i guess in most people's books, wagyu is without a doubt the choicest piece of meat. but what most people don't know is that there are actually really good cuts of meat out there...and if done just right, like how pak law put it altogether, one really would not be able to tell the difference! just the right amount of marbling, cooked to perfection (think pink tender melt in your mouth pieces!), drizzled in the meat's own juices, and coupled with a fantastic homemade caesar salad, it is no wonder all the regulars all wait in anticipation of the next time steak is on the menu!

classic number two - pork. okay okay, i do admit i never have been a big fan of pork but when pak law mentioned he managed to get some cuts of the infamous kurobuta, i am pretty much a convert. nestled on a bed of roasted vegetables (yum!), the fillet of kurobuta was grilled crisp on the outside but immensely moist on the inside, thanks to the intricate marbling peculiar to the kurobuta. paired with a simple potato mash, this dish would most definitely be sold out within the hour if it was served up at any good establishment! 

awesome stuff pak law! already looking forward to more!

Read More......

death by desserts: the third installment

i truly have to give credit to my auntie ta for the array of outstanding desserts that she whips up faithfully, week after week...so much so that i think this third installment will still not quite yet bring me up to speed with the repertoire of good stuff that we have been spoiled with *blush* (yes, i'm already thinking of installment four!)

knowing that pak law was putting on his pernankan hat one weekend, auntie ta matched up and brought over some pretty fantastic apom. there is apom and there is apom....and mind you with the crowd at one six b giving probably only peramakan the nod for authentic pernankan desserts, auntie ta's home made version was pretty much quite up there as well. fluffy and fresh pancakes, complemented by sweet pisang rajah's and outstanding gravy, these melt in your mouth treats were so well done that despite cries of 'i'm stuffed', all i'll say is that there were seconds going round!

the next two desserts are what i coin classics with a twist. the regulars of one six b were first treated to a lemoncello tiramisu. knowing sometimes how full we get with dinners at one six b, auntie ta always manages to serve up something that will fit right into that section of the tummy we reserve and proudly call the dessert section *grin*! light, refreshing and tangy (the lemoncello is imported fyi!), this version of the classic tiramisu was defintely a welcome change to the palate following a big meaty meal.

the roulade was the other somewhat twist on the classic swiss roll. it was auntie ta's first time at a roll and she nailed it. having had some gos in the kitchen, i shy away from rolls and cakes in general as they are well...that much more technical! the lemon roulade again, complemented the rich meal perfectly, with it being a lot less rich as compared to the tiramisu but still sufficiently tangy and refreshing to hit that sweet spot.

the final dessert (these are not listed in any particular order, although i do tend to save the my favourites for last *wink*) in this partie trois installment is the hibiscus peach granita. yup! you read right... hibiscus. combined with the fuzzy half sweet half tangy flavour of the peach, the hibiscus added a nice fragrance and sweetness to the drink dessert. with or without the shot of vodka, the granita was a perfect end to an outstanding meal on a warm september evening.

Read More......