This  abacus seeds was make by my mother and help to fried this dish. 

500gm yam 
1 medium-sized dried cuttlefish
30gm dried shrimp
20gm of fish cake , cut to small pieces
2 pieces of imitation crab meat,  cut to small pieces
8 dried shiitake mushrooms
 
5g spring onions, sliced
10g flat leaf parsley, coarsely chopped
 1 red chillies, sliced

Seasoning
2 tsp light soya sauce
1 tbsp of oyster sauce
1 tsp sesame oil

Method
1  Soak dried shrimp, drain and pound.
2  Soak dried mushrooms and slice.
3  Soak cuttlefish until softened and cut into 3cm-long strips.
4  Marinate pork and leave in fridge.
 
5  Preparing the Abacus Seeds  
- Peel and slice the yam into small pieces to cook faster.
- Steam the yam for 20 ~ 30 minutes until cool. Poked through with a chopstick to test whether is fully cook. Mash the yam while hot.
- Transfer the mashed yam into a large mixing bowl.
- Let it cool slightly before add tapioca starch to the mashed yam and knead.
- Continue kneading until the yam is combine with the starch and non sticky.
- Shape it a approx. 2cm ball.
 - Hold the ball between index finger and thumb  to make into abacus shape and slightly depress one side of the ball.
 - Put all abacus seeds in the boiling water and slightly stir to avoid stick together.
 - Transfer to the basin of cold water with sieve scoop to remove immediately cooked Abacus Seeds  once it float.
- Drain water once cool down and left some water to prevent from stick together.

6  Fry  cuttlefish  and dried shrimp with oil until crispy and remove.
7  Fry the garlic and shallots with oil until fragrant in a wok.8  Slightly fry mushrooms, imitation crab meat and fish cake. Add crispy cuttlefish  and dried shrimp.
9   Loosen yam abacus seeds with hand before add into wok. Stir-fry for 1 ~ 2 minute. Do not fired too long as it already cooked.
10 Add the seasoning and mix well.
11 Sprinkle chopped parsley, chillie and spring onions before serving
 

Time : 4 ½  ~ 5 hrs (include preparation)
Serving : 10 persons
Another recipe that I learned from one of expert cooking teacher.
This Nyonya Achar is still the best after tried many Achar recipe.
Prepared this during 2013 X'mas for my mother.
and it is taste better and cheaper than those sell at supermarket




Ingredients:
3 pieces of cucumber ( cut lengthwise with the skin)
1 jicama/yam bean (locally known as bang kwang), finely grated
1 carrot, skin peeled and cut lengthwise
½ pinapple

Garish and Ingredients Seasoning
50gm roasted ground peanut
50 roasted white sesame seeds
50g roasted peanuts, ground
Salt to taste
Sugar to taste

Spice Paste
5 tablespoons oil
180gm Shallots (small onion)
2 deseeded fresh chili
3 dried red chilies (soaked and deseed) -(can obmit)
60gm Candlenuts (Buah Karas)
1tsp of balacan powder (can obmit)
1 tsp of turmeric powder.

Seasoning
1 rice bowl Chinese Rice Vinegar
200gm brown sugar or white sugar
1 tsp salt

Method:
1. Cut the carrot , cucumber (cut away seed portion) into 50mm long and pineapple into small pieces.
2. Remove vegetable slices and pineapple juice by season with 1 ½ tsp of salt for 3hrs and drain away juice.
3. Season again with 3 tbsp of sugar and vinegar. Again drain away juice and set aside.
4. Blend the spice paste in a food processor and set aside. If you want more spicy, you can add more chillie. I add 2 pieces of red chilie only.
5. Heat up a wok and add oil. Stir-fry the spice paste until aromatic.
6.  Add turmeric powder.
7. Add vinegar and bring to boil. And add salt and sugar to taste.
8. After colour turn slight darker, add all vegetables into the wok and fried slight before turn off the fire (Do not fried too long - 1 ~ 2 minute will do).
9. Sprinkle and fried ground peanut and roasted white sesame seeds, stir to mix well.
10. Dish out, let cool and serve.
11. Acar is best served on next day or after cool down.
You can keep acar for a few days by place a tight clean glass container and  keep inside refrigerator

Ingredients
1 medium carrot
1 small cabbage
5 pcs of small black fungus
1 cup canned straw mushrooms, drained
1 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with 1 tablespoon chicken broth
1 tbsp dried shrimps
1 pc of fish cake (sliced).

Seasoning Sauce
¾ cup chicken broth
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 teaspoon soy sauce
½ teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon pepper

Method
Wash and peel carrot.Cut diagonally into 5mm slices.
Cut the cabbage and remove the center stem.
Soak small black fugus and mung bean thread thread (Vermicelli)
Mix seasoning sauce ingredients in a bowl and set aside.
Heat oil in a wok over medium-high heat and fried shrimp until crispy.
Add chopped garlic and fried until slight brown.
Add carrot, fungus and cabbage before add in seasoning sauce and stir-fry for about 10 min.
Make a small opening at center before add vermicelli)
Stir in seasoning sauce and mix well.
Stir in cornstarch mixture and heat just until sauce comes to a boil and thickens.
Serve hot with steamed white rice.
Note: Can add canned mushrooms and baby corn.

Run out of idle to cook fish fillet, I click and found sauce for sweet and sour pork. Sauce turn out unexpected good good although I did not add chilies capsicums, pineapple. 　 Ingredients 300gm of fish fillet. a little of potato starch 　 Sweet And Sour Sauce Ingredient 4 tbsp Maggi tomato sauce 2 tbsp Maggi chili sauce 3 tbsp plum sauce 1 tbsp sugar 1 tbsp rice vinegar 1 tbsp lime juice 1 tsp salt 3/4 cup of water. 1/2 big chopped white onion 　 Marinade 1/2 tbsp pepper, 1/2 tsp sesame oil 1/2 tsp salt 1 egg 1tsp of ginger juice (to remove fish smell) 1 tbsp potato starch 　 Method 1. Fried chopped onion with hot oil and stir fried seasonings in wok until sugar dissolves. Don't cook too long or else lost the aroma taste. Put aside for later use. 2. Season fish fillet with salt and flour for 30 min. 3. Coat fish with a little of potato starch and deep fried with hot oil until brown. Remove from wok. 4. Leave some oil in the wok and fry garlic, (some chilies capsicums, pineapple - I did not add) 5. And the in prepared sweet and sour sauce and bring it to boil before add in the fried fish fillet. Thicken the sauce with potato starch if necessary