Hay Bee Hiam

On our latest trip to Canberra, we went on a shopping spree to get things we cannot get in Sydney. (Oh yes, there are things that is only available in Canberra!)

The number one thing we wanted was: Hay Bee Hiam!

It had became Eric's number one favorite snack when we were in Canberra. A Vietnamese grocery shop in Dickson sells them for very cheap. But unfortunately, it was sold out that day! >_< the next shipment in was in two weeks time. Ohmy... Should have look at the disappointment one Eric's face! 

So a week past and Eric could not forget the Hay Bee Hiam from Canberra. So during the ANZAC day public holiday, he suggested having hobby baking to spend the day. And what more appropriate to make than his much loved and missed Hay Bee Hiam!

So, first you need the dried prawns. I mixed it with dried prawn skins too. Chop onions, garlic and some chilli padi. I use simple seasoning of sugar, salt and soy sauce. Some people use sambal paste, but I prefer it not so spicy.

Fry the prawns first till fragrant, then add in the garlic, onion and chilli. Fry till the fillings are dry and full of fragrant. Below are the ingredients for making Hay Bee Hiam. 

First, need to cut the spring roll skin into small size. Divide each sheet into 9 squares.

Remember to cover the skins with damp cloth to prevent it from drying!

Now, come to the rolling stage.

Take a tiny portion, about 1/4 of teaspoon or even smaller, and place in the middle of the wrapper.

Fold the sides over and stick it with beaten egg.

Brush more egg wash onto the bottom of the wrapper.

Fold it up to the middle.

Lift up the 'parcel' and using finger, push the fillings down and spread it evening at the base. This helps to get a nice compact shape and allows easy rolling.

Brush more eggs wash on the remaining surface.

Start rolling!

Tada!

And keep repeating till the fillings or the wrapper finished. This is the most time consuming process. Glad that Eric was there to help with the wrapping. We eventually made a production line where he help to pre fill the fillings onto each wrapper, and I fold them into the little rolls.

Here's a bunch of beautiful rolls.

We had left over wrappers. So I mixed some black sesame powder with butter and sugar. And wrapped them up into sesame spring roll! 

They taste so yummy!

Instead of deep frying, I sprayed it with some oil and then baked them in the oven till nice n golden.

There you go, Eric's snacks for the coming weeks!

Kcan

Flat bread recipe

This is the recipe for the flat bread, taken from the recent summer series of Coles magazine.

I made this in the grill, and am amazed with the balloon-ing of the dough as it cooked. 

Must keep an eye on it, so as it will not get burnt. A food timer is useful to remind you of the baking time. 

As a personal preference, I prefer not to roll the dough too thin, so as to have a more 'Bready' soft bread. If you like the thin crispy like flat bread, roll out the dough thinly. Keep the cooked bread in a foil lid to keep warm n also to allow the moisture to softens the bread. I find very thin bread can be hard n chewy if you are just eating it plain. 

This bread goes well with curry or saucy dish.

Enjoy! And let me know how it went!

Kcan