Sushi cravings

Several days back, I had this craving for sushi. In Malaysia, I would have rushed to Sagano at Renaissance or Gen Japanese at Legend hotel to have my dosage of Japanese buffet, no problem! For about RM 60++, I would have the whole spread of Japanese food for my picking...including fresly made sushi and sashimi. (oooo...how I miss all that...on top of domestic help of course)

But here...errr..things are a little different...I live in the sticks, unlike in the big cities like London or Birmingham, there's only ONE Japanese restaurant around town called something corny like SAKURA or whatever. It will cause an arm and and a leg to pay a visit. So we did we go? TESCO lar!



Can always depend on our good ol' local Tesco.

Disaster and Delight

The other evening, I felt like cooking up a storm for dinner. Well, not exactly a feast, especially after a ..umm..'hard day's work'. Anyway, it was suppose to be spring onion and ginger lamb and mushroom prawn.

So I chopped and sliced......




Then, I painstakingly sliced the meat off half a lamb shoulder. The almighty light bulb came on.. 'Hmmm...maybe I can TENDErise this....' I read in a food blog that sodium bicarbonate (the one use for baking) would do the trick! Using my usual sledgehammer style (according to SK), I just add in the amount I felt was right. It was about 5 teaspoons...I figured it should be the same amount, as if adding flour...so I marinated it for 15 mins, then it started to smell funny...something was wrong, so I rinsed the meat under running water again and again...

I started cooking...stir-fried the ginger, garlic and the white- of the spring onion, then added the lamb pieces...it started to FOAM!!!! I can't believe my eyes, it was foaming off the wok!...when it's ready...I tasted it ,and it tasted nothing like lamb, but like some jelly!...yukk!!!!! anyway, it was to the bin....$%^&**...an hour lost just because of my stupidity. I went online and found out that I am suppose to add something like HALF a teaspoon of that potent stuff into the meat.....well, lesson learnt the hard way...

But thank God for prawns...it didn't need any sort of tenderising...



Sigh...

A year older...

.....ummm...hopefully wiser?!

Ikea and Asda

SK went for his weekly badminton session with my bro-in-law last night. me? I went to my earthly heaven...Ikea. Best of all, I can shop for 2 hours all by myself and without some impatient male presence waiting to get out of his version of hell. Thank God for their 10pm weekday closing time. Once inside, I felt like a kid in toys 'R us.

I went straight to the Market Hall to browse throught every section. Then I made a second round to grab what I wanted from the 1st round of browsing. I tried very very hard to only buy what I needed . So I needed a poster for the blank wall in the lounge, got that, a bathroom mat, got that *goody-goody me for being practical* , a spray can, needed for my indoor plants' foliage, and a bamboo plant...shhhhhh. You see, SO in-control right?

Well, let you in on a secret, there was actually another poster 70cm x 100cm frame, matching picture, a bonsai plant and a set of curtains in my shopping bag before heading for the check-out, but I gave up half-way, stupid me for not getting a shopping cart, as the big yellow Ikea bag strap was eating into my shoulder. It was a painful way for my sensible side to kick-in, but it did nevertheless...I off-loaded what I don't need, or could live without and escaped with only a slight dent. It felt victorious!

By the end of that 2 hours, I had another hour to kill before I get picked up, so I visited Ikea's neighbour, the huge Asda/Wal-Mart. It was a 24 hours superstore and oh boy! they even have a section selling wholesale sized packs of lentils for curry and dhal making...first for me, as these stuff are usually found in Asian shops in your local 'little India' dotted throughout the UK. They also stock roti canai!!! (Roti Pratha). Again, this is news!

Anyway, by the end of the evening, I was extremely tired but satisfied.

Curry Laksa

We made Curry Laksa for dinner last night.

Boiled a pack of 'Thean Gourmet Curry Laksa Paste' in 1.5L of water. Seasoned and pan-fried chicken pieces were thrown into the mix. 10 minutes later, 150mil of coconut milk, fresh prawns and 'tou foo poks' were added to the pot. 5 minutes later, Voila! Curry Laksa served with rice noodle and hard boiled egg. Yummmmmmmm..........

Talking about blending into the wall.......

This moth/butterfly ( I can never tell) is the same colour as my wall!

I can't get enough of these...

Sunday at Wing Yip Birmingham

This place is like a small Chinese town. It has 2 Chinese restaurants, a huge Oriental Supermarket (which sells groceries, frozen seafood and fresh produce at wholesale prices), a video rental store and several other tiny establishments. Definitely would return to this place again. 

Summer Fruit Meringue

Whipped double-cream on meringue nest topped with favourite summer fruits....yummy!!!!!!

Malaysia May 2006

This was a short and meaningful trip back home to attend my cousin's wedding. She's as close to me as a sister, so wherever I am in the world, I made it a point to attend her wedding. She was gorgeous as usual and am really happy for her.

Besides that, the real bonus is that I got to spend quality time with my parents and brothers. I realised that it's essential to spend some alone time with them every year. I got to catch up on them and knowing them more as they grow older and wiser. So I am making it a point to go back at least once a year to spend several weeks in my family home with them. I also managed to meet up with many other relatives.

It was tremendously quiet to be back here. Everthing was so fast - paced for the week I was home.Oh well, soon enough we would be back for good.

The dread of Long-haul flights and Jet lags...

It's almost 5am Malaysian time and I just had at best 5 hours sleep in the last 35 hours. Some on the plane and some back home. It was dinner time for me 2 hours ago in UK time, so my internal clock woke me up telling me that it's time for some food. My brother was actually kind enough to bring me to the famous nasi lemak stall near my house for some nasi lemak with samble sotong and fried chicken.

It was a looooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooong flight. And to top it off, it was a full flight with tonnes of babies and kids, just like a nursery. Just imagine trying to sleep when there's a least one child screaming on top of his/her lungs. Also, flying economy means trying very hard to get comfortable enough to sleep in that bloody bucket small seat. How I wish they let me stretch out and sleep on the wider area near the emergency exit door. I might just get in a blow-up bed ,some ear plugs, pop a Nytol and Bob's your uncle.

I actually saw a couple that I knew, actually they are more friends of SK. I was in no mood to go over and acknowledge them. Then I thought to myself, there's 2 of them and there's just one of me, if they decide to ignore me, why should I approach them first? So bugger them, I just decided to go along with my mood swing. The problem is, I actually feel bad about it now. Sigh, it's hard being me.

And the worst part is that have to be back on that plane to get back to the UK in 5 days time...boohooo...I am trying very hard not to think about it and enjoy this SHORT trip as best as I can.

I miss SK :(

Formula to Happiness

Nothing to do with the pic above, just like to decorate this space.

BBC is running this investigative series on the 'The Happiness Formula'. From the 15 mins watched, I gathered that they were trying to tell me that the key to UNhappiness is simply by wanting more all the time, by constantly keeping up with the Joneses and by setting an unachievable goals for ourselves...blah di blah da...all should just chill on the beach ...you know the drill...

Funny enough, I stumbled upon an article in the Daily Mail last Sunday that claimed that having poorer friends around is the key to happiness. It went along the line of something like if you own a new BMW doesn't mean a lot if your neighbours all have the same car, or even less if they have a Ferari or a Rolls.

Very Human. Although I know of many that could swear that they don't do or feel any of the above at all, I don't believe them. I think that wanting more is in our DNA. It's an inbuilt self-motivation mechanism. But knowing when you have ENOUGH is the key. When one doesn't recognise, let alone count them, the blessings he or she has and start enjoying them, then that person will be on a quest for the unachievable happiness.

This is what I love about this place. ABSOLUTELY every issue is up for discussion on a national level. Every debate is like a passing flash. For a moment in media history, both the television and newspaper would cover it extensively, then it's gone and onto the next issue...I suspect the next would be about who is who's love interest in the upcoming Big Brother .....haha...just when you thought we are deep...

Blossoms...

 

Spring around the house.

 

Musings...

It's amazing how much one can enjoy reading blogs. I did that for 2 hours to start the day off. My eyes hurt, so I switched to reading books instead. Started off with a book by Tony Parsons, 'One For My baby'. It's light reading and very touching at times. This is the 2nd time I am reading this. This time around I could identify more with his description on the Brits and their surrounding, after living here for much longer. After an hour, I switched to 'The DK Pregnancy Question & Answer Book', as my close ones already know, we will be trying for a baby later this year or early next year (pray pray pray), hence the prep. The real life pics showing a woman in labour was enough to put me in shock for the next half hour. It was then broken by a call from a friend. So we yak for a while and it's time for lunch! CHIPS!

And now it's after lunch and I am back on the web, trying to scout out some bargain holiday package to Italy. We hope to visit this country before the baby comes along. The other day on Eurostar, the couple next to us was travelling with their baby boy. We were fortunate to witness for 2 1/2 hours their struggle to keep the 'bundle of joy' settled and happy. There was puking, crying, pooing, rocking, feeding, drooling, change of clothes and the ocassional giggles that made all the earlier effort worth while.Awww...

While blogging this, I am subconciously thinking of what to cook for dinner. Plus, I am going to mow the back lawn this evening if the weather permits. Hubby has got his badminton session tonight, so he can't separate me from my mean machine of a lawn mower.

By the way, I am not at home, I am at my WORK PLACE!!! Yup, it's frustrating to be so unproductive...at moments like this, I wish to just pack my bags and leave this whole godforsaken place and get back into the ratrace in m'sia, complete with huge car and housing loan, traffic jams and after work activities (other than moving the flipping lawn!).

I shall stop complaining now...

Brussels

It's been a short and sweet trip. We visited all the major attractions such as the Grand Place, several Churches, parks and historical buildings. Some said that it is impossible to eat badly in Brussels, they are right. We visited several recomended restaurants and came out satisfied each time. Plenty of mussels and fries plus even more Belgian chocolates. If it's in the guide book, we did it. Yeah, we are getting better at this being a tourist thingy.

The hotel was Marriot. After an initial change of room (the first room was unsatisfactory, air-con wasn't working), we landed ourselves with an upgrade to an executive room on the highest floor (air-con still didn't work well, we decided that it's the hotel not the room, so just accepted it). Of course as usual, their bed was heavenly, the level of cleanliness exceeded expectation and the breakfast was superb but the best feature of the room was these 2 round windows (like submarine windows) in our room. We spent late nights sitting by these windows and watched the city's night life. There was this drunken man who harrased clubbers, the traffic jam after midnight and the woman in the building opposite who loves to undress without closing the curtains. She is OBSESSED about her boobs. Then there's the common orchestra of car honks...yes Belgian drivers love their honks. We laughed our socks off. Oh, how we miss those windows....

It has truly been a pleasant break...

Marble Cake Ramblings

Errm.. I was convinced that my baking skill was down the drain...until now!!!

Hubby: Wow, dear, this is the best cake you baked for...hmm..let's see, for the last 5 years...almost better than the chocolate cake you used to lure me with into marrying you.

Me: Idiot.

Seriously, I use to bake using the 'cup' system...1 1/2 cup flour, 1 1/4 cup sugar...and it was perfect every time..until I came to UK and forgotten to bring my precious cup. So for the last few years, I have been pridefully insisting on measuring baking ingredients using cups and not by grammes! Of course.... each attempt was disastrous as every cup is not THE cup..too soggy, like 'kuih', mediocre...I blamed everything, the flour in UK is rubbish lar, the oven(s) don't work properly lar...everything but pride!

Today I gave up looking for the perfect cup...I used the bloody measuring gadget..and actually followed a recipe (thanks Amy Beh) and it turned out fine. Well, I guess there must be a good reason for almost every household to own a measuring jug or some sort of weighing machine. Oh well, life !

Boredom

What a job. There are times when work gets so hectic that I often wish that I have additional 2 sets of hands and ears just to almost cope. But there are times like these few 'slow' months , when all I do is to answer to some queries and suft the net. 'Great, you can do whatever you like!' some said, but after the 10th visit to every website that I know for the day, even the WWW does not cure my boredom. Sometimes, I even resort to do some stretching exercise!Can't believe they pay me for this. What a job.

Mini Pizzas

We made pizzas using pita bread as a base for Saturday's lunch. We cut-up onions, mushrooms, ham, pineapples, crab-sticks, anchovies and some pepperoni as toppings. Spreaded tomato ketchup onto the pita bread slices, and piled-on the toppings. Added grated cheese and put it in a pre-heated overn 220 C for 20 mins. Hmmm....yummy...plus we had fun. Would we do it again? Yes, but not in the near future, too much work!

Spring is in the air...

Daffodil
Originally uploaded by seriouslygood1.

It's still below 8 Celcius, and it still snows... I don't care, it's March! It's officially SPRING.....yippeeeeee!

Daffodils, Snow Drops and Crocus are all springing up from the ground, welcoming the longer days filled with Sunshine.

After such a never ending winter with nothing much to do, Spring brings reason to venture back into the garden, garden centres, pondering upon which vege to plant, BBQs into the nights, Bank Holidays,weekend trips, hanging clothes on outdoor lines without risking it being frozen, bright and airy house,waking up on saturday mornings to the sounds of the neighbours lawnmowers and simply butterflies and bees...

Spring, my favourite season of the year. It's all of the above and many more, but most importantly it signifies new beginnings.

Picture Speaks Louder Than Words...

Life as usual...on a floating market...

UK-M'sia-Thailand-M'sia-UK

We have been back for a week now, finally life is back to normal, in terms of waking up time and the fact that we no longer feel like zombies going about our daily life. Stupid Jet lag.

Needless to say, we had a fantastic time. Our daily m'sian days are filled with a trip to Penang for a few days with my family, CNY visits, friends visits (didn't manage to meet everyone that we want to meet because of time shortage, sorry!), spending time with both sets of family, dental, hairdresser, doctor and optician visits. Yes, total MOT! And the gaps between each visits are filled with FOOD, FOOD, FOOD! (which contributed to more Doctor's visits, and it's well worth it!)

Dentist: Please refrain from eating as your tooth filling needs time to set.
Me: How long?!!!
Dentist: Why?
Me: I need to eat (DUH!). ..umm.. I am back from overseas for just a few weeks, every minute counts!
Dentist: hahaaha...30 minutes
Me: phew!

(29 minutes later, I was happily chewing on deep fried pohpiah in SS2, drinking 'teh-o-AIS-limau' between chats, ignoring the tinge of pain on my freshly filled tooth with every sip)

As you can gather from the title, we went to Bangkok for a few days.

Day 1: Walk around Siam Paragon, MBK and at shopped in Pat Pong (bargain bargain bargain...sigh...tiring)

Day2: Floating market (2 hours north of Bangkok, we went on the boat for an hour), seafood lunch in a fishing village, Grand Palace, Dinner by the Chao Praya (muddy) river and foot massage (which was literally heaven on earth)

Day3: Chatucak market, Dinner at Silom tourist trap.


We stayed in Sofitel Silom. SUPERB hotel! Tastefully decorated club room with floor to ceiling view of Bangkok from the 29th Floor. Bathroom with both tub and walk-in shower. Personal check-in and out and free drinks all day long, accompanied by pastries. Choice of breakfast venue at the Club lounge on the 27th, Chinese restaurant on the 38th or on the 2nd floor with the rest (hehehe).


Personally, I would only go back to Bangkok for the Chatucak market, more Foot massage and hotel. I am not too keen on their food. Thais uses Basil, Coriander and Lemongrass in almost every freaking dish! for a while they tasted all the same. My hubby said that it felt like eating grass.
We still preffer the good ol' Malaysian food.

I will be going back in May for my cousin's wedding for a week, so more food for me!!! ( dread the 7 hours difference though)

Chinese New Year 2006

Fire Crackers
Originally uploaded by the little superhero girl.

OMG! I am going back to Malaysia in less than 9 days time. It would be 21 months since I have been home.Also, I have missed two CNYs in a row. Although I would only be around after the first few days of CNY...so that at least some of the food stalls and restaurants are open-lar, of course...(smart ler...hehehe), but I know it's going to be fantastic! Celebrating and meeting up with family members, in-laws, from near and afar, The glorious food, the gambling,the 'seasonal' drinking, the cheeky grins on kids enjoying one of their most profitable days in a year (enjoy it while it last kiddos!), funny antics of the elders , all trying to be the queen of the kitchen, ang-pows...wait, darn! NO ANG POWS for me this year, instead have to GIVE ang pows out *sob*...Oh well, lets just hope they don't expect £s.

I am trying to capture my excitement in words. Sigh, it's pretty impossible. Having said all that, I know my CNY will never be the same again without my beloved granma. Normally around this time, she would be up all night making the traditional 'lin kow' using only woodfire. She used to cook the most elaborate and delicious Hakka reunion dinners. It's been 3 years, but I still miss her immensely....she will always have a special place in my heart.

To all, have a great new year and cherish your love ones and your elders every chance you get, life is too short to hold back.

Happy New Year 2006!

follow your bliss
Originally uploaded by Elan Photography.

My wishes for 2006?

I wish for Health, Love, Happiness and Prosperity for my love ones. Also, I wish for total contentment for myself....

I believe that is the key to my Happiness.

Unexpected...

...dusting of snow. Everything was whiter than white. What a pleasant and lovely suprise from the one above.

The Day After Christmas

Yes, it's Boxing Day and it's when the mad winter sales starts... Of course, we were up bright and early to hunt for good buys. Being the thrifty couple we are (*cough* x 2), we usually try to stock up on clothing essentials during this period. We had a good day. Browsed lazily around the shops and had tim sum for lunch. My better half managed to get himself some jackets and shirts from River Island. I was still too tired from yesterday's dinner prep, hence lack the concentration and energy to bag anything nice. Not to worry, there's always the DAYS after
Boxing Day..... I am off till 2nd Jan...Yipee!!!!!!

Christmas 2005

We had friends over for a small Christmas dinner. Did another roast, the traditional turkey...turned out fine...We had the above with a bottle of Australian white (Hardy) and tiramisu as dessert. Also lots and lots of ...


Hope everyone had a good Christmas. God Bless! xxxxx

Saturday Night Roast

Lamb Roast..hehe, it turned out quite well this time. I used dried tyme, and chillies infused olive oil, salt (be generous with this, preferbably sea salt) and pepper as marinate. Popped it into my pre-heated oven at 180 celcius for 75mins. (55 mins for every kg). We had it with steamed vege, garlic bread and gravy. Not the healthiest meal you can have but oh so yummy.......

Oriental City, 399 Edgware Road, London, NW9 0JJ

Last Saturday, we travelled 12 junctions down the M1 to go to our favourite destination, Oriental City. It houses a food court that has Malaysian, Thai, Japanese, Korean and many other Far Eastern cuisine. A standard meal including drinks would cost £7. So it's not bad for when you crave for some near authentic hawker food from home.

You can also find a decent size supermarket for Far Easter groceries and seafood. The prices are not cheaper than your usual chinese shops around UK, but it definitely offers a better variety of brands.

To fellow Malaysians here, do visit it if it's not too far from you, it's worth a trip.

Tomatoes

Ummm...just a feel good reminder to myself that I once DID planted these from seeds....

That Time In The Officer's Car.....

Today, a new collegue, L, started at my work place, she is lovely and we chatted the whole work day. The usuals , the common obstacles we both face being a foreigner, our family, culture...the works. Since we live around the same area, she suggested that we travel in the same car and share the fuel cost. I was totally for it! as it saves my husband having to drop me off at work each morning (which I am ever so thankful with a tinge of guilt). We'll just have to work out the new hours with the manager. She offered to give me a leave home after work (as we both finish about 5pm today) just to see where I live. Better for me, as the great British weather totally gave up on Northampton today.

On the way home, we happily chatted and laughed...all of a sudden we noticed a police car tailing us at the back. I told L to move onto the other lane as the police need to chase after someone ahead of us . L didn't, instead , she slowed down, so that it can overtake us, but despite leaving plenty of gap enough to fit a truck, it was still behind us! Then it dawned upon us that he wanted US! not any others but US! Two perfectly innocent law abiding road user...not.

We stopped and got out, felt so surreal, the blue strobe light blinded our sight, we were up close and personal with the famous yellow flourescent stripes of the police car. The police officer approached L and told her that her car's tax disc has expired. He asked us to get into his car, me at the back and L at the front and started questioning us politely. Admist all the questioning, L started to panic, as for me , I was savouring EVERY MOMENT of it! I mean how often will one get into a British Police car??? I gave all my info in detail as fast as I could, even offering my postcode when not asked, so that he don't have to bug me whilst I take in all that was around me. I saw the gun, the baton, the cuffs, the Hi-Tech screen in front of him, the panel of buttons which was labelled 'spotted light' and such, the 'code' words he exchanged through the walkie-talkie such as 'scribble' and 'non-white female' and the oh so cool 'ROGER' and 'OVER' to his collegue, on the quick response he got from the immigration officer at the other end of the phone on our status, stacks of paperwork labelled 'Vehicle most wanted' and ' Warrant' and 'Operation training'....woohooo....FANTASTIC! I even handed the police officer his file from the back seat containing his summon booklet! Police admin work!!!

Oh, L got fined £120, £60 for driving on a non-UK license and £60 for having an expired tax disc. We couldn't use the car to get home, as it would be a risk of being caught AGAIN. Thankfully, our manager came to our rescue and got us home in time for me to cook dinner and relate my mini adventure to my husband....of course my husband objected me car-pooling with her as he thinks that it's not safe. No way, I crave for more....

FlightPlan

Ok, movie and food blog, because thats what fills our boring existence here...

After watching its trailer for what felt like 2 years, finally it's on screen. I would rate FlightPlan as 3 1/2 stars out of 5. Don't get me wrong, Jodie Foster gave a superb performance (it's definitely worth going just to watch her), just that the storyline was a bit far-fetched for my liking. Having said that, good movies are hard to come by nowadays, FlightPlan is as good as it gets for these few weeks. It's about a lady who just lost her husband found her daughter lost on a plane. When she freaked out, everyone around her questioned her sanity until she herself started to have doubts about her state of mind.

It's Saturday, we can't decide between MK Lido Dim Sum or the famous Northampton Ramsbottom Fish and Chips (will try to post up pics later), then it's off to watch 'The Exorcism Of Emily Rose'....sigh....what to do, it's better than 'Nanny McPhee' right?

ummm....Fish and Chips won....greasy greasy affair, definitely would satisfy any 'deep-fried food' cravings.

Kwong Fu Yee Mee

I have spent more than a month contemplating the fate of this blog. I have discovered that I am not such an extrovert after all. Many treat their blog as an 'Online Diary', but for me, both words contradicts each other. So, I think for now it's gonna be a food blog. Good way to show my parents the latest dishes I whipped out from the kitchen.

Kwong Fu Yee Mee

(Known in Chinese restaurants in UK as 'Meaty/seafood egg sauce poured over crispy noodle')

Made this the other day....

Actually it was the 5th time. Finally got it just right. My husband was the 'taster'. By this time, he has to beg me to not make it anymore for a long long time to come. Recipe as follow, feel free to try...if like me, you love Kwong Fu Yee Mee as well.

Step 1 : Warm wok over stove. Dry fry cubes of pork fat to induce oil. When golden, remove for topping later (Sounds disgusting I know, but essential!!!)

Step2: Fry half a bulb of chopped garlic till fragrant and add slices of pork (loin preferred, amount? about the size of a block of butter).

Step 3: Add a mug of prawns (and squid if you prefer) and leafy greens ( fresh prawns and mustard green preferred, but if not easily accessible, just use frozen prawns and any leafy green), stir-fry for a minute.

Step 4: Pour in 2 mugs of chicken stock ( depending on how much gravy you want) and cover.

Step 5: After 3 mins, add in 2 beaten eggs. Stir a little and cover for another 3 mins. Add diluted cornflour (dilute with cold water) and stir.

Step 6: Season to taste and pour over crispy noodle. (deep fry rice noodle worked best)

Good luck!