My girl was on a no sugar/salt diet before she turned 18 months. She was eating mostly homecooked food. But after she turned 18 months, she was more aware and she knows that her food was bland. SHe wanted adults’ food that Is full of flavors. However, i was not ready to introduce Salt to her, so what i did was i started to hunt for healthy seasoning. Mushroom powder, chicken powder, ikan bilis powder, Scallop powder, Dried Shrimps powder etc etc.. all these definitely came in handy in providing a bit of taste to the food i prepare for my toddler.
However, homemade is still the best. As those sold in the supermarket are usually packed with high content of salt/sugar and preservatives. So i started to prepare this seasoning at home. By doing this, i can make it as natural as possible and do not add in salt/sugar too.
Now, not only my girl and my friends get to enjoy this homemade goodness… if you would like to order some, feel free to leave a comment or email me at mummyms13@gmail.com. Do note that there’s zero preservatives, so it has to be kept in the refrigerator and best to consume within a couple weeks ( you can actually keep it for months, but i always try to provide healthy and fresh food for my kid and family, so i will try to use it up as soon as possible)
In this post, i’ll share how this ikan bilis powder/stock is prepared. First, buy some top grade ikan bilis. I’m not sure how you choose but my mom would go to Pulau Ketam/Pangkor Island to hunt for them. She’ll always to go her regular stall as she trusts this aunty to give her top grade ikan bilis and we’ve heard horror stories on how some sellers spray Insect Killer Aerosol Spray over the ikan bilis/dried shrimps while drying them under the sun. Why? cos they want to get rid of the flies? yuck… cannot imagine serving poisoned food to my family.
First, remove the head and the entrails. Wash and soak for a good 15 minutes to remove the salt conte.
Then dry it with towel. Now, you’re ready to pop them into the oven/airfryer. The timing really varies depending on the oven, how much ikan bilis and how dry are they. I’ve yet to try it on my airfryer but i’m sure the time will be shorter. Temperature wise, i started off with 220 degrees for 15 minutes. then 200 degrees for 30 minutes.
How do you know if it is ready? Ikan bilis should be very crispy and would break easily when you try to break it into half. It has to be very dry in order to lengthen the storage life. Also, if it is not completely dry, you may not achieve the powder form when you blend it too.
Finally, blend them in a food processor or Thermomix. Turbo for 2sec x3 times if you are using Thermomix. Or simply blend till your desired texture. Store them in air tight container and place it in the refrigerator.
When will it be good to add in Ikan Bilis Powder? Hmmm.. such a tough question. Answer is as long as you are making something savoury and would want to make it tastier. You can use it as salt replacement or make soup, add into porridge/noodles or you can simple sprinkle them on your fried rice too. It is a multipurpose powder.
I know some mommies may be abit skeptical on feeding their child Ikan Bilis, don’t worry, I make organic Mushroom Powder too! and that’s also 100% pure organic mushroom powder! 🙂
**Kindly do the 3-days allergy test before serving this to your precious baby/toddler.
*** Theres is no secret in making these powder, the recipe is widely available once you google. I got my recipe from https://my.thermomixrecipes.com/recipe/i5c8fxpe-182be-631284-cfcd2-m5e1h3m9
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