MAKING MIE GORENG | HOME ECONOMICS 🍲

Yesterday in Home Economics Chloe, Kayne, Jay and I made Mie Goreng. Mie Goreng is a traditional Asian fried noodle dish which is typically spicy. 

INGREDIENTS 

• 3 tablespoons of oyster sauce
• 3 tablespoons of tomato sauce
• 2 teaspoons of sweet chilli sauce
• 2 crushed garlic cloves or one tablespoon of crushed garlic
• Quarter teaspoon of salt
• 200g of sliced beef or pork schnitzel
• 2 teaspoons of oil
• Fresh or dried noodles
• 2 lightly beaten eggs
• 2 carrots
• 2 finely chopped spring onions
• 1 cup of mung bean sprouts
• 1/4 or 2 cups of finely sliced green cabbage

METHOD

In a bowl, we combined the sauces and beef (which we sliced on the red chopping board) as well as the garlic and salt. We then stirred it to coat in evenly and set aside for 5 minutes to marinate.

While it marinated we chopped up the carrots, cabbage and spring onions finely. We also set up the Wok cooker and heated it up on the stove.

When the meat was finished marinating we put a quarter of it in the Wok and started to cook it. When cooking in small batches the pan temperature doesn't drop and the meat doesn't stew instead of seal. 

We cooked the noodles in the microwave according to the packet instruction while the meat was cooking, and beat the egg with some salt and pepper.

Then, when everything was prepared, we cooked the cabbage, spring onions, mung beans, carrots, eggs, noodles and beef till everything was soft. We then served.  This was where Chloe and I decided to add more Sweet Chilli Sauce and Soy Sauce to ours to make it more flavourful. 

I actually would have preferred to add Worcester Sauce and Paprika to mine at home to make it better. I also would have added corn (although it's not traditional) and more beef. 

RESULTS
In terms of safety this week I think we did pretty well. We got one point deducted because our chairs were not tucked in all the way which is something we kind of struggle with. We cleaned up quickly and effectively with only one point for cleaning taken away (we forgot a single tea towel). 

I really enjoyed making Mie Goreng and it's something I want to make with my family at home cause it's healthy. 

VEGETARIAN NACHOS 🇲🇽

Yesterday, my class made Vegetarian Nachos in Home Economics. Despite I was away at a meeting, it's a recipe I really want to try and make someday, since nachos are my favourite food.

RECIPE

• 1 cup of red chilli beans
• 1 cup of tomatoes
• Corn chips
• Grated cheese
• 2-4 mushrooms
• 1/2 onion
• 1/2 cup of corn
• 1/2 cup of green beans
• Sour cream to serve

METHOD

• Step One: Gather equipment and ingredients in correct amounts. Preheat the grill to high.
• Step Two: Slice mushrooms.
• Step Three: In a large, non-stick pan saute the onion with a tablespoon of oil for 2-3 minutes or until clear.
• Step Four: To the pan add corn, beans, 1/2 can of tomatoes, 1/2 can of red chilli beans or baked beans. Stir for 3-4 minutes until tomato is slightly softened.
• Step Five: Arrange a large handful of corn chips around a plate. Spoon the bean mixture into the middle of the plate. Sprinkle cheese on top, place under the grill to melt.

If I was making this at home, I think I would add more corn and of course, some meat (minced beef or turkey). I'm not vegetarian but my sister is and she makes a similar recipe often. I also do not like tomatoes or sour cream at all so I would replace that with some sweet chilli sauce or more beans. 

NUTRITION 🍎🍊

MAKING PITA POCKETS 🥙🥙🥙

Yesterday in Home Economics Kayne, Chloe, Jay and I made Pita Pockets. The biggest nutrient we got in the pockets was carbs because of the bread. I liked the end result but I would have changed a lot of things just to my liking.


INGREDIENTS

(just to clarify this isnt ours but i wish it was)

• Pita casing
• Lettuce
• Cheese 
• Tomato
• Grated carrot
• Green onion
• 1\4 onion
• 1t oil
• Sauces (we used sweet chilli, mayo, and barbecue sauce)
• 1 chicken breast

THE METHOD

We started off by chopping up the veges and chicken on the correct boards-  veges on the green board with the green knife and the chicken on the yellow board with the yellow knife. We had to cut the chicken into small pieces, not chunks, cube the onions and tomato, grate the cheese and carrot, and slice the green onions into small pieces.

The second thing we did was sautee the onion and chicken on the element with oil in a frying pan. The most important thing here was ensuring the chicken was cooked through properly to prevent food poisoning. 

While we cooked the onions and chicken we mixed up the vegetables in a bowl and cut the pita casings with a knife. We had to be precise to make sure we didn't cut too far and pierce the outside layer, but we ended up with a few holes anyway. (Oops!)

When the food was finished cooking, we mixed everything up in a bowl with a spoon, ensuring everything was spread out evenly. We put some grated cheese at the bottom of the pita pocket for flavour and then spooned in the rest of the toppings in. 

For some extra flavour we were able to add our favourite sauces - I used sweet chilli (low in carb and fat) sauce and barbecue sauce (high in sodium and carbs), but I also could have included mayonnaise.

THE RESULT

I think our Pita Pockets ended out tasting delicious but I didn't like the taste of the tomato or the texture of the lettuce. 

CHANGES I WOULD MAKE
If I made these at home I would have used beef, not chicken, and replaced the lettuce with iceberg lettuce and removed the tomato. I would have included corn and bacon in mine too because it's my favourite vegetable, and used extra onion. 

I think we need to work on making sure we clean up our kitchen before eating because we got points deducted from us for that. I also think we could have done better cutting our Pita casings and the ratio of vegetables to chicken - I would have preferred less lettuce because it didn't provide a good texture. 

I also need to learn how to open bags of lettuce properly. 

NUTRITION

Tomatoes

• Good source of Vitamin C
• High in potassium
• Good source of Vitamin A - vision and immune function
• 
  

Cheese

• High in calcium
• Good source of Vitamin A and B-12
• High in sodium
• High in cholesterol

Lettuce

• High in Vitamin A - vision and immune function
• High in potassium
• Low in fat
• Low in Vitamin D

Carrots

• High in Vitamin A - vision and immune function
• High in potassium
• Low in fat
• Low in protein

Pita bread

• Source of carbs
• Source of protein

Onions

• Low in fat
• Low in cholesterol
• Good source of fibre

Vegetable oil

• Source of monounsaturated fat

Chicken

• Good source of calories
• Good source of protein
• Low in carbs

BBQ Sauce

• High in potassium
• Very high in sodium

Sweet Chilli Sauce

• Good source of calories
• Low in fat
• Source of carbs

BAKING HOT CROSS BUNS🐣

Yesterday, as Easter is rapidly approaching, Chloe, Kayne and I baked Hot Cross Buns in Home Economics.

Ingredients

• Whole wheat or white flour
• Baking powder
• Salt
• Butter 
• Honey
• Cinnamon
• Raisins
• Milk

Frosting ingredients

• Icing sugar
• Milk
• Vanilla essence

The method consisted of mixing our dry ingredients together in a bowl, then incorporating the butter in until it resembled coarse breadcrumbs. 

Next came the honey, cinnamon and raisins, which we had to toss slightly, for some flavour and texture to our buns. 

The next step is to make a well in the middle of the bowl. Then you add the entirety of the milk at once, using a fork to stir it around quickly. The dough should pull away and look like a ball.

The final step is to divide the ball into smaller, even balls, but Kayne, Chloe and I divided ours into three big ones.

To bake the buns, place the balls atop a baking sheet. Use a knife to cut a deep cross through the top of each ball. 

Bake the buns at 200 degrees for 15-20 minutes. 

Ours took approximately 14 minutes to bake. 

To make the icing, in a bowl we mixed icing sugar, a small amount of milk, and a few drops of vanilla essence. Remember to be careful! The icing consistency must be thick but not runny. If you pull it up with a spoon it should run down, but not fall off the spoon. I think we nailed our icing because it delicious and a perfect consistency without needing an extra amount of any ingredients. 

Once the buns are finished baking, leave them to cool for just a few minutes if time allows. We actually had a lot of spare time so we left them for about two minutes to allow the bread to set and cool. If we were to put the icing on immediately, it would have melted down due to the high temperature of the buns.

 Now it is time to ice the hot cross buns! Using a spoon, we drizzled the icing on the buns using our cross as a guideline. It was difficult to get a perfect cross but we definitely could have done worse. 

We believe we had a really good practical lesson. Our buns were cooked perfectly on the inside - light and fluffy, and firm on the outside. 
They tasted delicious, I really liked how the cinnamon, honey and salt added flavour, as well as how the raisins added texture. 

My favourite part of the process was the icing, it had a really good consistency and sweet taste. It was also fun to drizzle it on top of the bun. 

It is very important to ensure your measurements are accurate. Baking is a science, not an art. One wrong measurement can lead to bad consequences in the end, whether your muffins go flat or cookies are crumbly. 
It is worth taking extra time to make sure they're correct than guessing!

BAKING CUPCAKES! | HOME ECONOMICS 🎂

Yesterday Chloe, Kayne, Jay and I made cupcakes in Home Economics.

The ingredients we used included:

• Caster sugar
• Flour
• Egg
• Butter
• Cocoa powder
• Baking soda
• Milk
• Cupcake liners, muffin pan

For the icing:

• Food colouring
• Caster sugar
• Butter
• Vanilla essence

I think we did well as we worked and baked. What worked well is that we were able to work quickly and the cupcakes baked perfectly. What didn't work is how long it took us to clean up and making the icing - we had to add more butter as there was too much caster sugar in there and the mixture was crumbly and dry. Our dishes were not washed properly but we could solve this by assigning a dish washer that can do dishes properly. 

This is what the cupcakes ended up like. For our batter we decided to add cocoa powder to make it chocolate flavoured instead of vanilla flavoured. 

We also decided to make our icing blue using blue food colouring.

Our cupcakes tasted nice however they were a little dry. We could improve this next time by adding more butter or wet ingredients. 

My favourite part of the process was mixing the wet and dry ingredients together to create the thick batter. My least favourite part was the icing, I was getting frustrated because the butter wasn't working.

When and where will you apply the knowledge you have gained from this experience?

I think we will apply this knowledge in the kitchen while baking or cooking in general. We learned a lot about measuring accurately and problem solving (adding butter when the mixture was too dry).

Pizza Swirls | Home Economics 🍕

Pizza Swirls in Home Economics 🍕

Yesterday Jay, Chloe, Kayne and I created pizza swirls in Home Economics.

We were proud about how they tasted at the end, how fast we worked, and how we were able to problem solve during the process. 

Next time, we will try to improve the amount of flour in our dough because we had to use extra milk to counteract the dryness of the flour. We also added a bit too much butter in our frying pan and as a result Chloe and I were burned on our faces when it started to jump out of the pan.

Ingredients 🍕

• Flour
• Butter
• Milk
• Salt 
• Baking powder
• Onion
• Ham/bacon
• Cheese
• Tomato puree
• Herbs
• 
  

Method 🍕

• First of all we had to cut up the butter into small cubes and incorporate that into the flour with our fingertips, until it resembled breadcrumbs. 
• 
  
• We had to cut the rind (the hard, thin layer around the edge) of the bacon before slicing it with a red-meat knife into small pieces.
• 
  
• Then we added milk to our flour and butter bowl and used a butter knife to mix it into a dough. 
• 
  
• We then had to knead the dough with the palm of our hands on a lightly-floured dairy board. It is important not to over knead it as the dough can become tough and difficult to roll out. 
• 
  
• While we did that, we fried the bacon and onion in a frying pan. We used butter, but you can also substitute it for oil or cooking spray.
• 
  
• We also grated some cheese using a cheese grater. 
• 
  
• We then rolled out the dough with a rolling pin. We had to ensure it was thin and even, and shaped like a large rectangle, approximately 30cm by 24cm long. 
• 
  
• Using the back of a spoon we spread tomato puree, sprinkled a little bit of herbs and grated cheese, and topped it off with the fried bacon and onion on the dough. 
• 
  
• After that we rolled the dough up into a cylinder shape and used a knife to cut it into rolls about an inch wide. 
• 
  
• It was then baked in the oven on 220 degrees fan bake for about ten minutes, until they looked brown at the top and were cooked on the inside - you can test this by taking one out and cutting into it, but be careful as they are hot! 
• 
  
• We learned that if they looked a slightly doughy on the inside, after we let them sit the doughiness would subside. 

Cheesy Scones Fail? | Home Economics

Yesterday, Chloe, Jay and I created cheese scones in Home Economics.

We were proud about how we worked together even though we had lost a team member. Next time we will work on ensuring they are cooked thoroughly as they were like dough on the inside. Also we worked the dough too much so it was too firm to roll out properly. 

Chicken and Vege Stirfry! | Home Economics

Today, we had another practical in home economics.

What is the learning outcome?

To learn to create a chicken, noodle and vegetable stir fry in our groups (my group is Kayne, Chloe, Jade and myself).

What learning process did we use?

We were first given a sheet of instructions showing us how to do it. We first had to select our vegetables. My group selected broccoli, cauliflower, onion and carrot. We had to dice the onion evenly and cut the carrots into thin sticks called "julienne". That is something new I learned! 

Next of all we were given our chicken breast which we had to dice into even and small pieces. This allowed the chicken to cook through the whole way without some pieces being cooked faster than others. We also had to wash our hands after handling the raw chicken as if is a health risk to put it in contact with any other foods or cooking surfaces. 

After we had cut the chicken and vegetables, we started to fry it all together. On an element we put a pan on high heat and let the oil heat up for a few moments. Then we let the carrots and chicken saute (which means to brown) before adding the rest of our ingredients.

The next ingredients we added were our broccoli, cauliflower, honey, and soy sauce. As we let that cook on medium heat, we boiled noodles for 2-minutes on another element. After they were finished, we added them into the stir fry and continued to fry for a few more minutes. 

Cooking the chicken safely

The most important thing about the cooking process was ensuring the chicken was cooked all the way through and evenly. 
The best way to tell if your chicken is properly cooked is if it cut it open. If the chicken is brown on the outside and the flesh is white on the inside, it is done.

If the chicken is pink or the outside is not brown then it is safer to keep it cooking for a few minutes. If the chicken is not cooked it puts you at risk for getting salmonella or food poisoning. 

If you need to check boned chicken, stick a fork into the flesh. If the juice that runs out is clear and the fork is easy to put in, the chicken has been cooked. The meat should feel firm rather than jiggly or rubbery and juices should not be pink. 

The best and safest temperature to cook chicken is 75° degrees Celsius or 165° degrees Fahrenheit. 

What evidence can you use to show this?

 What worked, what didn't, and what would you change?

I think we did well on cooking the chicken and vegetables, as the chicken was well cooked yet the broccoli wasn't too soft. 

What didn't work was our honey to soy sauce ratio, I think we added a little bit too much honey and not enough soy sauce, it didn't have much flavour. We also noticed that halfway through our dishes our element was left on. That is something we have to keep an eye on for next time. 

I would change cooked noodles to uncooked noodles to incorporate texture into our dish. I felt the noodles were too soft and didn't have much of a flavour. I would also have added a lot more soy sauce and a little bit of spice. 

Making Savoury Bread Cases | Home Economics

Yesterday we created savoury cases during our first practical in Home Economics. 

The students I worked with were Chloe, Kayne, and Jay. 

We were proud about the end result, as well as how fast we worked. 

Next time we will improve having every person doing every task they are assigned and staying focused. We ended up missing an ingredient because we were not aware of what was being said and put our muffin tray in the wrong oven slot. 

In our savoury cases we had:

• Cheese (shredded) 
• Ham (sliced)
• Corn
• Onion (fried)
• Bread (buttered)

The cases we made were made out of bread, which we buttered and then placed in a muffin tin to cook. Our estimated cooking time was ten minutes but we didn't require that time as we put our tray in the top of the oven instead of the middle slot.