Life is Great

Chicken Soup Fried Rice

Serves 4

• 4 standard servings of leftover rice (chilled overnight)


• 2 large eggs


• 1 onion, sliced


• 2 tsp finely chopped garlic


• 2 slices lean bacon or beef bacon, chopped


• 1 cup button mushrooms, freshly sliced


• ¾ cup chicken soup


• 1 cup roughly shredded chicken meat from the soup


• salt and pepper to taste


• 1 tbsp oyster sauce


• 1½ tsp Worcestershire sauce


• ¼ tsp nutmeg


• ¼ tsp dried rosemary


• 2 tbsp parsley, finely chopped


• olive oil and/or butter

Beat eggs and season with salt and pepper to taste. Heat up wok with oil for frying. Sauté bacon, onion and garlic. Add mushrooms and butter. Sauté till mushrooms brown before adding chicken pieces.

Lower heat and add in the eggs to cover the ingredients. Stir briefly, turn up heat to medium, add rice. Fry to coat the rice with the egg and mix well with other ingredients. Turn up heat, add chicken soup, oyster sauce and Worcestershire sauce. Continue to fry till rice dries up slightly, adjusting the heat if necessary.

Add spices and salt (diluted in warm water for even seasoning) to taste. Just before rice is done, turn up the heat and add parsley.

Serve warm.


Chicken Soup

Makes roughly 3 liters of soup

• 1 chicken, cut into parts


• 8 sticks celery, roughly chopped


• 5 medium onions, roughly chopped


• 4 large carrots, roughly chopped


• 4 liters water


• 1 stalk lemongrass, smacked, tough outer leaves and bulb removed


• 4 bay leaves


• 8 whole black peppercorns


• 5 sprigs of fresh parsley


• 2 tsp dried or 3 sprigs of fresh rosemary


• oil for frying


• salt and pepper to taste

Pan fry the chicken pieces, skin side down first till brown. Remove the chicken and transfer the oil, including the brown bits into a large stock pot. Sweat the onion till brown, add in peppercorns, lemongrass, bay leaves, celery and carrot.

Cook on high heat till carrot softens slightly. Add salt and pepper to season. Add in chicken and mix well. Add in water, cover and bring the soup to a boil. Add in parsley. Turn down the heat to a slow simmer. Continue to simmer for at least 1 to 2 hours. Season accordingly before serving.

Quiche Lorraine

Serves 4

• 1 baked pastry shell for 9–inch pie plate


• 3 eggs


• ½ cup chopped onions


• 6 slices lean bacon or beef bacon, cooked and crumbled


• 1 cup button mushrooms, freshly sliced


• 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese


• 1 cup shredded Swiss/Romano/Colby/Monterey Jack cheese


• 1 cup cream


• ¼ tsp salt


• 1/8 tsp pepper


• ¼ tsp nutmeg


• 1/8 tsp garlic powder


• 2 tbsp parsley, finely chopped


• juice of 1 lemon


• olive oil and/or butter

Transfer frozen pie shell from aluminum pan to a 9–inch glass pie plate. Cook uncovered in microwave 1 minute on high. Prick shell thoroughly with a fork. Cook uncovered 4 minutes at high. Rotate ¼ turn twice.

Place bacon on roasting rack and cover with paper toweling. Microwave at high (100%) until crisp, 5 to 6 minutes. Crumble and set aside. Alternatively, fry until crisp, then crumble and set aside.

Sauté the onion in butter until they are soft. Add the mushrooms, lemon juice, salt and pepper and sauté for an additional 5 minutes or until the center of the onion is clear and the edges start to brown. Drain well in a strainer lined with paper towels.

Combine eggs, salt, pepper, nutmeg, garlic powder in medium bowl. Beat with a wire whisk or electric mixer until well blended. Heat cream in microwave and blend into egg mixture.

Place crumbled bacon evenly in pastry shell. Sprinkle cheese, onion and mushroom. Pour hot egg and cream mixture over top. Place quiche on inverted saucer in oven. Microwave at 70% to 80% (medium) for 8 to 11 (sprinkle parsley) or 15 minutes or until set (but not dry) in center (knife inserted off center comes out clean), giving pan a ¼ turn every 3 minutes.

Let stand 10 minutes before serving.