MasterChef’s Poh Ling Yeow shares tasty dishes she and husband have been making at home in isolation

Poh Ling Yeow reveals the dishes she and husband Jonathan Bennett have been making at home in lockdown – and shares the secret recipe for her popular rice soup

MasterChef Australia star Poh Ling Yeow has revealed the mouth-watering dishes she has been making with her handsome husband, Jonathan Bennett, during the coronavirus lockdown.

The popular 47-year-old chef says the couple have been indulging in comfort food, including chicken congee, pineapple fried rice with egg and her famous rice soup, which she brews with plenty of immune-boosting spring onion and garlic.

Poh – who also loves a semolina spaghetti filled with fresh herbs and spices – has given fans her top tips for cooking in isolation. 

Ready to tuck in? Poh Ling Yeow has shared the tasty dishes she and husband Jonathan Bennett have been making at home while in isolation

The TV star told 10 Daily this week about the foods she’s been making and her cooking hacks. 

Poh said that home cooks should make good use of their freezer, by making foods that can be easily stored in there. She added that stock should be kept in the freezer for all types of cooking. 

‘Stews, curries, soups are obvious choices but the other great thing to do is to squirrel away some staples like chicken and beef stock and buy cheap cuts of meat to braise,’ Poh told the publication. 

‘If you freeze all these, you can make a lovely winter stew in a matter of minutes by adding seasonal vegetables,’ Poh said. 

Her tips and tricks: Poh said that home cooks should make good use of their freezer, by making foods that can be easily stored in there. She added that stock should be kept in the freezer for all types of cooking

Her tips and tricks: Poh said that home cooks should make good use of their freezer, by making foods that can be easily stored in there. She added that stock should be kept in the freezer for all types of cooking

POH’S TOP TIPS 

1. Freeze meals 

2. Use a compound butter at home that you can store in the freezer to flavour things like proteins 

3. Get children involved with cooking at home 

Poh added that everyone should be using a ‘compound butter’ at home to flavour their food, which can be stored in the freezer before cooking. Poh makes hers with the likes of anchovy, capers, chilli and garlic. 

Poh also said that parents should encourage their children to get in the kitchen while at home, and suggested teaching them how to make poke bowls, burritos and sushi, all dishes perfect for family.  

‘Things like noodles and pasta, baking, especially bread, is a great one for teaching science, numeracy, and patience,’ she said.   

She said her rice soup is perfect for the family, with it including shimeji mushrooms, tofu and spring onions, something that she always enjoyed as a child and even now. 

Her secrets: Poh added that everyone should be using a 'compound butter' at home to flavour their food, which can be stored in the freezer before cooking. She also suggests that children should get into the kitchen while at home

Her secrets: Poh added that everyone should be using a ‘compound butter’ at home to flavour their food, which can be stored in the freezer before cooking. She also suggests that children should get into the kitchen while at home

POH’S RICE SOUP RECIPE (SERVES 2-3 PEOPLE)  

1. Sauté 1 tsp of chopped garlic and 1/2 a long red chilli cooked in 1 Tbs olive oil until golden.

2. Add 2 cups water and bring to boil.

3. Whisk in 2-3 Tbs Shiro (white) miso OR to taste, then stir in 1/4 cup wakame (dried seaweed), 300g silken tofu, diced 2cm, a couple of handfuls of shimeji mushrooms, with the lower part of their stems sliced away and discarded and the mushies separated (enoki, fresh or dried shiitake also delish).

4. Add 1/2 a cup of cooked SunRice Brown Rice – even faster if you use the microwave pouches, then garnish with a handful of sliced spring onions. 

What do you think? It comes after MasterChef Australia fans slammed Poh's cooking on the show on Sunday. She whipped up a lychee and strawberry chiffon cake to save her from elimination, but one Facebook user said the three-tiered creation was 'inauthentic'

What do you think? It comes after MasterChef Australia fans slammed Poh’s cooking on the show on Sunday. She whipped up a lychee and strawberry chiffon cake to save her from elimination, but one Facebook user said the three-tiered creation was ‘inauthentic’

It comes after MasterChef Australia fans slammed Poh’s cooking on the show on Sunday. 

She whipped up a lychee and strawberry chiffon cake to save her from elimination, but one Facebook user said the three-tiered creation was ‘inauthentic.’

They said that it wasn’t correct because chiffon cakes aren’t meant to have more than one layer. 

The comment sparked furious debate among MasterChef Australia fans.    

Meanwhile, some fans pointed out that Poh never claimed to be making a ‘traditional’ recipe.  

But all three judges were impressed by Poh’s technical abilities, leaving her safe from elimination. 

They were impressed! All three judges were impressed by Poh's technical abilities, leaving her safe from elimination

They were impressed! All three judges were impressed by Poh’s technical abilities, leaving her safe from elimination