3 easy snack recipes to try when working from home

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SINGAPORE - When my colleagues and I used to work in the office, the Life section snack table was where we gravitated to; when we were peckish, when we had writer's block, when we needed to talk through an idea with a colleague, when we were bored.

Most times, there'd be something delicious for noshing.

Then we started working from home. No more snack table. Great, I thought. Time to get in shape. But I forgot. My fridge and pantry are filled with temptation. Bars of chocolate. Crackers. Ice cream. Then the gifts from friends started to arrive, as we tried to cheer one another up. Cookies. Cakes. Nasi lemak. Putu piring.

So I decided to do snack prep on Sundays, to make sure I would always have something healthy-ish on hand when the munchies hit.

Some weeks, it might just be cutting up watermelon to stick in the fridge. I love it really cold.

I also boil frozen edamame in salted water to stick in the fridge. Then I liberate handfuls of pods from the box to nosh on when I'm peckish.

Tuna and egg salad are easy to make and healthy-ish too, if I don't go overboard with the Kewpie mayonnaise. I particularly like tuna, finely chopped kimchi and a sprinkling of toasted sesame seeds all mixed together - no mayonnaise needed.

With working from home set to continue for now, I need to be prepared, so that I am not tempted by potato chips or belinjo crackers or food I can order in all too easily. Here are three things I enjoy making and snacking on. They are easy to make and endlessly adaptable.

 

Granola

During the circuit breaker last year, I realised from seeing my friends' social media posts just how many of them make their own granola.

It might seem like a waste of time and effort because there are so many choices in stores and not all are trashy. There are some, for example, with no added sugar.

But what my friends do makes total sense - you know exactly what goes into the granola you make, you can choose the fruit and nuts you want in it.

Other pluses - there are no preservatives in granola you make from scratch. Also, it is dead simple to make.

The nuts and dried fruit make granola rather calorific. But a little goes a long way. Sprinkle some on yogurt for breakfast or a snack, have it with milk or mylk, stash some in a container in your bag for when you get hungry while out and about or sprinkle on ice cream for dessert. Some days, you really need dessert.

Ingredients

• 300g rolled oats, old-fashioned or quick-cooking, not instant

• 120g raw nuts and seeds (I used chopped pecans, slivered almonds and pumpkin seeds)

• 1 tsp coarse sea salt (if using table salt, use ½ tsp)

• 1 egg white

• 100ml neutral-tasting oil

• 100ml maple syrup or honey

• 120g dried fruit (I used wolfberries, mango and dates)

• 30g black and white sesame seeds

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180 deg C. Line a shallow baking tray - I used one measuring 30cm by 25cm - with baking paper.

2. Weigh the rolled oats into a large mixing bowl. Add the raw nuts, seeds (not the sesame seeds) and salt. Mix with a large spoon until well combined.

3. Whisk the egg white in a medium bowl until frothy. You don't need to get it to soft or stiff peaks. Add the oil and maple syrup or honey. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix well with the large spoon.

4. Spoon the oat mixture into the prepared baking pan, spreading it out so that it covers the entire pan. Press down with the back of the spoon.

5. Bake for 15 minutes. Take the tray out of the oven, close the oven door. Using a fork and spoon, toss the oat mixture and press it down again with the back of the spoon. Return the tray to the oven, bake another 15 minutes or until the oats are evenly brown.

6. Remove from the oven and set the tray on a metal rack. Cool completely.

7. Meanwhile, toast the sesame seeds in a dry pan until the white seeds are golden brown. Transfer onto a shallow plate and let cool. Dice the dried fruit. If using wolfberries, leave them whole.

8. When the oat mixture is completely cool, break it into large chunks in a mixing bowl. Add the dried fruit and sesame seeds, toss until combined. Transfer into an airtight container, where it will keep up to five days.

 

Ramen Eggs

Also called ajitama and nitamago, these marinated eggs are savoury, filling and easy to make and eat.

I make 10 at a time, using a whole carton of eggs. They will keep three to four days in the fridge. Do not be tempted to marinade the eggs longer than 12 hours - the liquid cures the eggs, toughening up the whites. Take the eggs out of the marinade after 12 hours, and store them in a tub in the fridge.

You can reuse the marinade for two subsequent batches, but be sure to bring it to a boil, let it cool, then store in a glass jar in the fridge or freezer after each use. If any of the eggs break and spill liquid yolk into the marinade, I would not reuse it.

Pasteurised eggs, I have found, tend to stick to the shells. This batch was made with Chew's Sakura Fresh Eggs from FairPrice and they peel with very few blemishes.

I used to make these with eggs that weigh 60g each, but these days, 55g ones are more common in supermarkets, so the boiling time is for 55g eggs.

If you are watching your sodium intake, look for low-sodium shoyu, available in many supermarkets. If you would rather not use sake and mirin in the marinade, then use 500ml water, 300ml shoyu and sugar to taste. You will need to heat this mixture up to dissolve the sugar, then let it cool completely before marinating the eggs in it.

Ingredients

• 2tsp salt

• 10 eggs, each weighing 55g, at room temperature

• 250ml water

• 250ml shoyu

• 250ml mirin

• 125ml cooking sake

Method

1. In a pot large enough to hold the 10 eggs in one layer, bring to boil enough water to submerge the eggs. Add the salt while the water is boiling.

2. In the meantime, prick a little hole at the rounded end of each egg. Daiso sells a device that does this, but you can also use a thumb tack - be gentle. The hole helps the shell release from the egg more easily, but this is an optional step.

3. Set a timer for 5 minutes 50 seconds. For more liquid yolks, set the timer for 5 minutes 45 seconds. When the water comes to a rolling boil, gently lower the eggs into the pot. I find a metal spider useful for this. Start the timer. If you had used high heat to bring the water to a boil, turn it down to medium high.

4. Fill a tub with tap water. When there is just a minute of cooking time left, add a handful of ice cubes to the water. When the timer goes off, transfer the eggs gently into the tub of iced water. A metal spider is useful for this. Let them sit in the cold water for 15 to 20 minutes.

5. Pour the remaining ingredients into a plastic container that will hold the eggs in one layer.

6. Using the back of a metal spoon, tap each egg gently all over, to break the shell. Return them to the water until all the eggs have been tapped. Peel the eggs. Pat them dry and put them in the container. Place a plate over the eggs to keep them submerged. Cover the container and marinate the eggs in the refrigerator no more than 12 hours. Remove the eggs from the marinade and store in a container in the fridge for up to three days. If you plan on reusing the marinade, bring it to a rolling boil, cool completely and store in a jar in the fridge or freezer.

 

Tomato and Corn Salsa

One of my favourite things to have in the fridge is a tub of salsa.

I spoon it onto lettuce leaves then fold and eat, use it as a topping for grilled fish, mix it with mashed tuna from a can to make a sandwich filling or have it with fried eggs or an omelette. Sometimes, I scoop it up with tortilla chips, although I am much more likely to have rice crackers at home.

I can eat a ton of salsa with no repercussions. The dressing is just lime juice.

If you have pickled jalapeno chiles, chop them up and add to the salsa in place of the red chilli. And add a spoonful of pickle brine to it too. I am too cheap to buy a jar of pickled jalapenos, so fresh chillies will have to do.

I use the best-looking tomatoes I find at the supermarket or wet market. For this salsa, I used large, firm Roma tomatoes, but have used cherry tomatoes with great success too.

Sometimes, I use avocado in place of the corn, but I rarely have any luck with avocados. Corn kernels are a sure bet. Also, unless you like the sharp flavour of raw onions, do not skip the step of soaking the chopped-up onions in iced water to remove the sting.

Ingredients

• 1 small purple onion

• 1 cob of corn

• 400g to 500g tomatoes

• 1 large red chilli or bird's eye chillies to taste

• 4 to 5 sprigs fresh coriander

• 1½  tsp coarse sea salt (if using table salt, use ½ tsp)

• ½  tsp dried oregano (optional)

• Zest and juice of 2 large limes

Method

1. Peel and chop the onions finely. Place them in a bowl of iced water (tap water with ice cubes) and soak for 20 minutes. Drain and let it drip dry while you prepare the other ingredients.

2. Remove and discard the husk and silk from the corn cob, and steam it over high heat for six to nine minutes, depending on how soft you want the kernels to be. I usually steam mine for eight minutes. Cool completely and, using a sharp knife, slice the kernels off the cob into a large mixing bowl.

3. Dice the tomatoes. If using large tomatoes, scoop out the seeds first. If using cherry tomatoes, leave the seeds in. Transfer into the large mixing bowl with the corn. Finely dice the chilli, leaving the seeds in. Chop the coriander roughly. Add both to the mixing bowl, together with onions, salt and oregano, if using.

4. Add the lime zest and juice to the salsa. Mix thoroughly. Have a taste and add more salt, oregano or chilli if needed. Transfer to a non-reactive container (not metal, glass is best), cover and refrigerate at least one hour before eating, for the flavours to meld. Keeps in the fridge up to two days.

Source: The Straits Times © Singapore Press Holdings Limited. Reproduced with permission.

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