Well, if you don’t eat sardines, just substitute them with tuna, it will work just fine.

I use microwave cooking for the sardine filling, so it’s really easy and something you can slap on if you are rushing for time.

Ingredients (Serves 2 adults):

• 230 g canned sardines or tuna
• 1 red onion, chopped
• 1 teaspoon cooking oil
• 1 tablespoon tomato sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon chilli sauce (optional if you don’t like it spicy)
• Ground pepper

Instructions:

Step 1:  I usually debone the sardines (although the bones can be eaten) and shred them with a fork into smaller pieces.  Set aside in a bowl.  If you hate the thought of it, just use canned tuna.  No bones to fret about.  LOL.

Step 2:  To cook the chopped onion, I place them in a microwave-safe bowl.  Add in a teaspoon of cooking oil and mix well with the onion bits.  Put it in the microwave oven and set it on HIGH cooking for 2 minutes.

Step 3:   Combine the sardine with the onion bits.  Add tomato sauce, chilli sauce, sugar and a dash of pepper.  Mix well.  Put it back in the microwave oven and cook it on HIGH setting for another 2 minutes.  Now the sardine filling is ready!

And look at this bread we just baked with a bread maker, doesn’t it look soft and fluffy?

If you are keen on the bread recipe, just let me know and I will post it separately.  For this sardine filling recipe, any type of bread will do.  I recommend wholemeal or wholegrain ones for their goodness.  You can also use croissants, pitas, baguettes, ciabattas, etc.

Step 4:  Now spread the sardine filling between two slices of bread.  This is how it looks when cut.  See the onion bits?

The reasons why I add onion to this recipe is to remove the “fishy” smell of sardines and to add some crunch to the filling.  Don’t worry about it tasting raw because after cooking in the microwave, it should be soft like you just saute-d it, but in a “lazy” way.  LOL.

Besides these sardine sandwiches, do add a side dish to your lunch box as well for a balanced meal.  A salad or slices of fruits will be a good choice.  And yes, this goes well with yogurt too!

It’s exterior looks like a large kiwi, with the fine hairs, but the interior comes as a cross between winter melons and zucchini.  To me, at least.  LOL.

It must be peeled before cooking and has a mild taste.  We usually cook it as a stir-fry dish or soup.  This recipe below is quite simple to follow and is a good variation to the usual broccoli, bok choy and cabbage stir-fry.

Ingredients (Serves 3 adults):

• Half a medium-sized hairy melon (or a small one)
• Half a small carrot
• 6-8 medium prawns, deshelled and deveined
• 1 teaspoon garlic, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons cooking oil
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Dash of ground pepper
• 1 egg, beaten

Instructions:

Step 1:  Slice prawns into halves sideways.  Peel hairy melon and carrot.  Cut into strips about 2-inch long and set aside.  There are seeds inside which can be eaten, but if you do not like it, you can remove the seeds when cutting.

Step 2:  Heat up a wok or pan with cooking oil.  Add in the chopped garlic.

Step 3:  When garlic starts to brown, add in carrot strips (because carrots take longer to cook).  Stir fry for 1 minute.  Add in the prawns and hairy melon strips.  Stir-fry till carrot and hairy melon strips are soft.

Step 4:  Add sugar and salt for seasoning.  Stir-fry for another 1 minute.

Step 5:  Pour the beaten egg evenly on the vegetables and stir-fry to blend well.  Add a dash of ground pepper.  Stir-fry a few more times.  It’s ready to serve!

Because hairy melon is mild flavoured, it takes on the sweetness of the prawns and aroma of the egg very well.  I think children will enjoy it too.

As usual, I will keep a portion in my thermos food jar right after cooking to keep it warm as long as possible.  Hmm.  Does it look appetizing to you?

When I cook the soup version (which is quite similar) on another day, I will also post the recipe here to share.  Do stay around!

Well, for these bread rolls, you probably have to make them the day before as it will take a few hours to complete.  But it is a very fun activity that you can involve your kids as well.  Allow them to design the bread rolls the way they like them to be and I sure they will look forward having their own masterpiece in their lunch box the next day!

Even me, the “old” kid, had so much fun.  My mum and I moulded the dough into different shapes just to see how it would turn out after baking.  I even created one “uniquely shaped” bread roll (see it below) specially for Hubby.

Ingredients (for sweet bread dough):

Part A

• 480 g bread flour
• 120 g plain flour
• 110 g sugar
• 10 g fine salt
• 20 g milk powder (can be substituted with bread flour)
• 4 teaspoons instant yeast

Part B

• 1 egg
• 300 ml cold water

Part C

• 60 g butter

Ingredients (filling for sweet bread roll)

• About 400 g of luncheon meat, cut into smaller pieces

Instructions:

Step 1:  Mix Part A ingredients in a mixing bowl till they are well blended.

Step 2:  Add Part B ingredients and knead to form a dough.

Step 3:  Add Part C butter and continue to knead until the dough looks smooth and elastic.  Cover dough with a clear film.  Let it prove for 50-60 minutes or until it doubles its size.

To check if the dough is ready, test by pressing a finger on it lightly.  If the dough does not sink but shows a clear finger print mark, you can proceed to the next stage of separating them into individual portions.

Step 4:  Divide the dough into 60 g portions.  Shape them into balls and leave them to rest for 10 minutes.  Meanwhile, you can prepare the luncheon meat filling.

Step 5:  Now the fun begins!  You can make the bread roll according to your liking.  The easiest way is to wrap the luncheon meat in the dough completely, or you can elongate the dough and coil them around the luncheon meat.

See what I did for the first tray?  I made a round one, an oval one, a “pillow” shaped one, and one that resembled a croissant.

Step 6:  Brush the surface of each bread roll with a little egg wash (egg yolk+water) and bake at 190 deg Celcius for 12 minutes.

Does my first tray of sweet bread rolls with luncheon meat look good?

I can’t describe to you in the picture, but the smell of freshly baked bread is just heavenly!

Besides luncheon meat, you can also vary the fillings for the bread roll.  Think of tuna?  Ham?  Raisins?  It’s up to your family’s preference!

For lunch box meals, just pack these sweet bread rolls in a normal bento box with a salad or some fruits at the side.  It’s a lighter meal, and an interesting alternative to noodles or rice.

Well, we made about 17 sweet bread rolls in total for this batch.  And this is the “masterpiece” I mentioned above that I gave to Hubby.  Can you make out what it resembles?  (Clue:  We usually call it a pile of …)

We both had a good laugh and he really ate it for breakfast next morning.  LOL.

Hope you like this recipe and have fun making your own home-made bread roll!

I love it so much still that every time we cook this, I can finish two portions.  LOL.

I also found out that almost every kid who tried this dish liked it very much as well.  It is not only colorful, but it’s healthy, tasty and filling.  If you have kids who are fussy eaters, try cooking this once and see if they like it.  Perhaps, they will ask you to cook it again the next day!

Ingredients (Serves 4 to 5 adults):

• 1 medium carrot, diced into 1 cm cubes
• 2 regular sized potatoes, diced into 1 cm cubes
• About 170 g luncheon meat, diced into 1 cm cubes
• 1 small red onion, sliced
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon dark soy sauce (optional)
• Ground pepper
• 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
• 5 tablespoons cooking oil
• 3 tablespoons water

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1:  Heat up 4 tablespoons cooking oil in a fry pan.  Deep fry the potato cubes, carrot cubes and luncheon meat cubes respectively.  Remove and set aside after they are cooked.

Step 2:  Heat up 1 tablespoon cooking oil.  Add the minced garlic.  When it is turning golden brown, add in the red onion slices.  Stir-fry for 1 minute till onion slices are soft and starting to brown too.

Step 3:  Put in the deep fried potato, carrot and luncheon meat cubes prepared earlier.  Add 3 tablespoons water.

Step 4:  Add the sugar, light soy sauce and dark soy sauce (optional).  Stir-fry for another minute, ensuring the ingredients are blended nicely.

Step 5:  Add a dash of ground pepper.  Stir-fry a few more times to mix well.

This is how it looks after it is completed.

It’s a well-balanced lunchbox dish as it is made up of a meat, vegetable and potato combo.  I recommend you to eat it with plain white rice.  Yummy.

It is good enough for me as a one-dish meal, but with another vegetable dish, my lunch box will be perfect.

Sometimes, home-cooked comfort food taste best, don’t you agree?

PS:  I am infatuated with luncheon meat, so there will be more luncheon meat recipes to come.  Hehe.

It is important to know at least how the food should be stored after cooking and the type of containers that are most suitable.  Basic food safety and hygiene procedures during the cooking process should also be kept to as well.  You wouldn’t want all the money you saved from bringing lunchbox meals to end up at the doctor’s right?  LOL.

Here are some tips to share with you:

For items that should be kept chilled, like salads, sushi, cold cuts, yogurt, milk, always transport them in an insulated bag with a cooler pack.

For hot meals, it is most convenient to transport them in a thermos flask.  Single thermos flasks are great for a single-dish soup meal.  But if you have two dishes and rice, there are also thermos flasks with three or four compartments to separate them.  Just take them out one by one and it will look like you are having a feast!

For simpler meals like peanut butter sandwiches, muffins, cookies, or roast chicken pitas, that does not require any heating up, you can store them in a normal plastic container.

For lunchbox meals that are cooked in advance, for e.g., the night before, you have to be extra careful though in handling your food for the next day.

• Make sure the cooked food is allowed to cool before storing in the fridge.
• If you intend to reheat the food with a microwave at your workplace, remember to store your food in microwave-safe containers only as normal containers may melt during heating and contaminate your food.  In the morning, transfer your containers from the fridge directly into an insulated bag (preferably with a cooler pack) so that it stays cool till your lunch time.
• If you intend to bring your food in a thermos flask, reheat them thoroughly at home before transferring them into the flask.  Make sure the cover is sealed well to keep the food warm.

When reheating food in a microwave, make sure the lunchbox is steaming hot before taking it out.  I usually do a “Defrost” for 1 minute, followed by a “Medium High” setting for 2 minutes.  If you suspect that the food is not hot enough, do reheat another minute.  If you see steam coming out of the food, it should be ready.

These are what I usually take note of while preparing my lunch box meals and so far everything has been fine (no tummy aches and visits to the doctor).  LOL.

Looks like I must be doing it quite right?

You can too!