It’s been nearly two months into this stay-home period, and I’m sure many of us have been converted into Circuit bakers and cooks. If you want to put your newfound culinary skills to the test, there’s no better way than to host your own version of Bon Appetit’s ‘Gourmet Makes’ at home. See if you can dupe your family into believing your creations are the real deal, with these easy recipes of famous dishes.Â
In this time of isolation, IKEA released their Swedish meatball recipe on Twitter for all the folks who want to try cooking it at home. To the official IKEA Meatball recipe, we’ve added a pinch of allspice to give it more flavour, and included a homemade cranberry sauce recipe as an alternative to IKEA’s lingonberry jam.
Before the viral recipe was released, we made our own take of the beloved dish with our IKEA meatballs recipe. To see how well our recipe fared against the real deal, as well as the full illustrated steps, check out our Eatbook Cooks YouTube video on the iconic Swedish meatballs!
Yield: Serves 5 (40 meatballs)
Time needed: 60 minutes
Ingredients
500g minced beef
250g minced pork
1 onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
100g breadcrumbs
1 egg
5 tbsp whole milk
1½ tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
¼ tsp allspice
Cranberry sauce:
100g cranberries
50g water
50g sugar
Gravy:
3 tbsp butter
3 tbsp plain flour
150ml vegetable stock
150ml beef stock
150ml thick double cream
2 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp of Dijon mustard
Directions:
Recipe adapted from IKEA UK’s post on Twitter.
The divine buttery aroma of Famous Amos Cookies is something I dream about from time to time—I could smell ‘em from a mile away. It seems like the cookie gods have answered our calls with this viral Famous Amos chocolate chip cookie recipe, for us to kickstart our stay-home baking adventures, and add to our recipe lineup of famous dishes.
Making this fuss-free chocolate chip cookie is as easy as combining all the ingredients together in a single bowl, so it’s definitely a recipe you can whip up with kids. If you want, you can even make the cookie dough a few days in advance and keep it in the freezer till you’re ready to bake. Watch us try these recipes of famous dishes on Eatbook’s YouTube channel!
Yield: Serves 6 (36 cookies)
Time needed: 15 minutes
Ingredients
250g butter, softened
1¼ cups brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 egg
2½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup cornstarch
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
6 tsp vegetable oil
2 cups chocolate chips
Steps:
Of all our recipes of famous dishes, this one is the most sought after right now. McDonald’s may be back in the fast food scene, but I doubt the elusive McGriddles will be making a reappearance anytime soon. For all those missing this popular sweet and savoury McDonald’s item, try constructing your own Breakfast McGriddles at home.
This recipe makes a good ol’ bacon, cheese, and egg burger, sandwiched between maple-filled, fluffy pancakes. Use the fluffiest pancake recipe you can find for the best results. Check out our list of zhnged sandwich recipes for more quick meal options.
Yield: Serves 3
Time needed: 30 minutes
Ingredients
1 batch pancake batter
3 tbsp maple syrup
6 bacon strips
2 eggs
Salt
Black pepper
Cheese slices
Steps:
We couldn’t leave this pasar malam staple out of our list of recipes for famous dishes. The nostalgic Ramly Burger has always been a must-get at any night bazaar, but since pasar malam isn’t much of a viable option now, one thing you can do is experiment with recipes of one of their most famous dishes.
The secret ingredient to this low-cost, low-effort DIY burger is adding a few drops of Maggi seasoning into the chicken marinade. This grants the patty all the addictive umami notes that you’d want in your burger dupe. Make sure to give your burger a trademark squeeze of mayonnaise and chilli sauce to serve it just like they do at food festivals!
Check out our fully illustrated Ramly Burger recipe.
Yield: Serves 4
Time needed: 30 minutes
Ingredients
4 burger buns
2 tablespoon butter
Chicken Patty:
360g fresh minced chicken
½ tsp white pepper
1 tsp Maggi seasoning
1 tsp salt
Sauce:
2 tbsp mayonnaise
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp black pepper sauce
2 tbsp chilli sauce
1 tsp curry powder
4 eggs
Steps:
Soft, pillowy, fragrant, and green—the first thing that comes to mind is a Pandan Chiffon Cake, more specifically, the one sold at Bengawan Solo. This iconic cake is the best after-school snack to come home to; it’s not too jelak, but just sweet enough to quell your sugar cravings till dinnertime.
The trick to an ultra-fluffy chiffon cake is to incorporate lots of air into the batter, and this is done through whipping the egg whites into a meringue. Remember to fold the meringue carefully with the rest of the ingredients so you don’t undo all of your hard work! For a more intense pandan flavour, we used both pandan paste and homemade pandan juice in this recipe.
Watch our YouTube video to see how well our recipe did against the legit Bengawan Solo cake.
Yield: Serves 8
Time needed: 25 minutes
Ingredients
Pandan juice:
5 pandan leaves
100ml water
Egg yolk mix:
6 egg yolks
50g castor sugar
50ml vegetable oil
150ml coconut milk
120g cake flour
1 tsp baking powder
â…› tsp salt
½ tsp pandan paste
1 tsp vanilla essence
30ml pandan juice
Egg white mix:
6 egg whites
½ tsp cream of tartar
80g castor sugar
Steps:
A few years ago, food bloggers across the Internet buzzed with excitement over the release of the alleged original recipe to KFC Fried Chicken. Many homecooks set out to test their own recipes of the famous spice mix, which consists of 11 herbs and seasonings, and their dishes can vouch for the legitimacy of the viral recipe.
To make fried chicken, you need to be deep frying. However, if you’re not a fan of working with a pot of hot oil, you can try out this air-fryer version instead. For more KFC-inspired recipes of famous dishes, check out our video on the KFC Hotblaze Grilled Chicken dupe!
Yield: Serves 9
Time needed: 40 minutes
Ingredients
Buttermilk
2 whole chickens (about 3kg)
2 cups all-purpose flour
OilÂ
Spice mix:
2 tsp salt
1½ tsp dried thyme
1½ tsp dried basil
4 tbsp paprika
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tbsp celery salt
2 tbsp garlic salt
1 tbsp black pepper
1 tbsp mustard powder
3 tbsp white pepper
1 tbsp ground ginger
1 tbsp MSG (optional)
Steps:
Recipe adapted from RockRecipes.com’s post.
Image credit: @cutieada
When I enter a food court, the smell of Pepper Lunch is the first thing that attacks my nostrils, and I’m immediately tempted to get myself one of their sizzling hotplates. One of their most famous dishes is the Beef Pepper Rice, which features strips of melty sukiyaki beef surrounding a mound of slightly charred, buttery rice.Â
Image credit: @whatsarahcooks_
No sizzling plate of Pepper Lunch is complete without a saucer each of honey brown sauce and garlic soy sauce. Make a big batch of these iconic sauces and keep them in your refrigerator to use another time. This recipe makes enough for two, and if you don’t have a large enough iron skillet for two portions, split the cooking of the pepper rice into two pans, and cook each portion separately.
Yield: Serves 2
Time needed: 30 minutes
Ingredients
Amakuchi sauce:
¼ cup honey
¼ cup tamari sauce
¼ cup oyster sauce
2 tbsp water
Karakuchi sauce:
1 tsp vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
½ cup tamari sauce
½ tsp black pepper
¼ cup water
1 tsp cornstarch
Beef Pepper Rice:
2 tbsp vegetable oil
½ an onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
2 cups precooked Japanese white rice
350g sukiyaki beef or very thinly sliced beef
Black pepper
½ cup corn
2 tsp butter
1 tbsp spring onions, choppedÂ
Steps:
Recipe adapted from Healthy World Cuisine’s post.
Image credit: @tiem_co_bong
Nama Chocolates is one of those classy food gifts that anyone would enjoy receiving, simply because they taste so good. The word ‘nama’ translates to ‘raw’ in Japanese, also referring to the purity of the chocolate in this decadent treat.Â
Image credit: @miwa_ishino
This nama chocolate recipe needs only three ingredients: high-quality dark chocolate, heavy cream, and cocoa powder. If you want to give your chocolate bites a bit more bitterness and depth, spike the mix with your favourite liqueur. For the best results, use high quality, Dutch-processed cocoa powder.Â
Yield: Serves 9 (36 pieces)
Time needed: 30 minutes
Ingredients
400g 70% dark chocolate, roughly chopped
200ml heavy whipping cream
Unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tbsp liqueur of your choice (optional)
Steps:
Recipe adapted from Just One Cookbook’s post.
Seeing how overpriced Starbucks drinks are, I really only treat myself to a cup when I’m feeling fancy, or on the rare occasions that they have 1-for-1 deals. For those who don’t really want to make a special trip out and overspend on a cup of coffee, we’ve come up with these copycat recipes for popular Starbucks frappes and lattes.
You’ll feel like a legit barista stirring and blending up this earthy Green Tea Latte and chocolatey Java Chip Frappuccino, and a bonus is that you get to decide how sweet, as well as how icy you want your Starbucks dupes. Check out our recipe for Starbucks’ Iced Caramel Macchiato!
Yield: Serves 1
Time needed: 6 minutes
Ingredients
Green Tea Latte:
2 tsp matcha powder
2 tbsp brown sugar
60ml hot water
2 drops vanilla essence
1 cup fresh milk
Java Chip Frappuccino:
1 tbsp instant coffee powder
Hot water (as desired)
1 cup ice
½ cup fresh milk
4 tbsp chocolate chips
Chocolate syrup (as desired)
Ice (as desired)
Steps:
Image credit: @gracekitchencorner_
With a crunchy, chocolatey exterior encasing a creamy, cold centre, Magnum Ice Cream is an ingenious combination of two of the best things in the world: chocolate and ice cream. As pleasurable as it is to enjoy this luscious chilled treat, it’s way more gratifying to DIY them.
Image credit: @thehungergains
Toss some chopped almonds into the melted chocolate to give your ice cream bars the emblematic crunchy exterior of a Magnum Almond. Mix and match chocolate types, flavours, and coatings. You can even melt some ruby chocolate to recreate the recently released Magnum Ruby, if you want something more unique.
Yield: Serves 6
Time needed: 15 minutes
Ingredients
Ice cream:
220g whipping cream
160g condensed milk
100g evaporated milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
400g dark chocolate
400g white chocolate
400g milk chocolate
300g coconut oil
Almonds, roughly chopped (optional)
Steps:
Recipe adapted from Leonor’s Sweet Creations’ video.
Imitation is the highest form of flattery. One of the best ways to celebrate your favourite dishes is to try recreating these recipes of famous dishes yourself, and giving them your own little spin. Not only can you make them more cost-effective, it’s also way more rewarding to whip these dishes up with your own effort. Just give these recipes of famous dishes a try and you’ll know what I mean!
For more recipes to try out this Circuit Breaker, check out our list of no-bake Asian desserts or this list of upgraded instant noodle recipes.
Feature image adapted from @tiem_co_bong‘s post.
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