Thursday, June 30, 2011

Kitchen Malfunction...

I guess not everything will turned out perfect every day. For example that burnt Norwegian Pork Roast, completely burnt in the crockpot itself. I went to the gym and asked the cleaning lady how to rescue the burnt meat. She suggested adding water and continue boiling it but then it didn't help. The meat was so hard if I throw it at a dog's head, the dog will have concussion and never be able to recognize anyone anymore. It might even forget how to bark. Now, everything went haywire from there. It was Spanish rice today. I multiplied the ingredients to give more taste but well... the rice left me wordless. It was totally bland. So tasteless that even the starchy rice couldn't do anything to help bring out the taste.Topped with that burnt Norwegian piece of plank. I prefer chewing on a piece of wood rather than that. Since there's nothing left to eat, I smartly prepared a vege dish. Took out the two cans of green curry tuna from the rack. Mixed them together... *yummy* Green curry~! Took out a spoon to try the taste... *gulp**gasp* How could this happen to me all in one day?? How could that be... it's not my first time cooking but... how could this happen? I went on hunger strike after that. Then, my pineapple offered to prepare some dessert for me. I didn't have any appetizer, neither did I have any soup and absolutely no main course and there... she offered to give me a good appetizer. I left the kitchen for her to take charge. When I came back from work... viola~! Dessert in the refrigerator. It's suppose to be creamy... but honey~!! What on earth is that. That is better than the punching bag. Even the fork could stand perpendicularly without moving an inch. It's so hard and oh, dear... my whole block of butter, chocolate for my chocolate drink, condensed milk and what else did you put inside there?? It's so hard... and it's extremely sweet. I went for the second round of hunger strike. My mama saved me after that. Even the 'char koay teow' that I hated so much, I seem to be enjoying it. And there's fried Jawa noodles. Oh... they tasted so good. Went to the new Tesco for fun. Midnite walk in the hypermarket. Bread History had a surprise promotion. 3 pieces of any buns for only RM5. Munched one on the way out of the place. Bought 4 small trays of durians from Tesco. Cost me RM10 only. Dirt cheap again. Ahhh... I'm so full... but I'm going to sleep... don't care... I'll hold on to my belief. As long as I can stand straight, look downwards and still see my whole leg clearly without my view being blocked by my stomach, I'm considered not fat at all.

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Burnt Pork...

You see why I don't like to follow recipes. Half of the recipes cannot be trusted. Put the marinated pork in the crockpot for 8-10 hours at low heat. 10 hours?? I cannot imagine what I will have after 10 hours. This is what I get after 8 hours. Burnt. Dry. Completely dry... and that hubby of mine didn't even help me to shut the thing off at 5 hours when he smelt something burning. Now, how am I going to rescue it now? That's the main menu. I don't have plan B. The only thing I can think of is everyone can go on a strict diet as I'm too upset to think about cooking something else. You see why there's never been pork in my house? I cannot understand pork at all. I don't even know when the meat will become tender, when they're nicely cooked. No more pork in my house after this week until I can master the art of understanding a pig. Stupid pig~!

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

When Life Is Like A Treadmill...

Interesting topic shared by Ps Robert on Saturday. I totally understand how does it feel like to be running on a treadmill. It's a vicious cycle of unending run, you get energetic for the first 5 minutes... oh, you thought it was the first 5 minutes but actually it was only for 2 minutes. Then, you were huffing and puffing and you felt like giving up. But with my gym partner beside me, it makes running like a lab mouse bearable. If you slow down, you will be underneath the roller and come out like a perfectly rolled sushi.

Sometimes when I was alone, I almost dozed off while running. I always get sleepy when I'm working out, dunno what's wrong with me. Sometimes I will be thinking about... food. Thinking about how best to prepare everything in an hour or two. Today's shrimp fried rice with the apricot chicken. It's too sweet. Thank God I didn't follow the recipe to do dot where I'm suppose to put 1/4 cup of sugar. If I put that much, I think I'll have to dump the whole wok of chicken into the rubbish bin. I just sprinkled a little bit of sugar.

Oh, this is not what I want to talk about. Now, when life is like a treadmill, it's like going through your mundane life, repeating your activities in a clockwork manner. Life seems to be meaningless, rushing to work, rushing home, rushing in traffic. Then, you get mad when nobody seems to understand you. You're simply mad at everyone. Life is like chasing after the wind. But when there's someone beside you who can totally relate to what you're going through, life is so much better. There is someone who can perceive our thoughts even when we're being very difficult and unreasonable.

You have searched me, LORD,

and you know me.

You know when I sit and when I rise;

you perceive my thoughts from afar.

You discern my going out and my lying down;

you are familiar with all my ways.

Before a word is on my tongue

you, LORD, know it completely.

You hem me in behind and before,

and you lay your hand upon me.

Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,

too lofty for me to attain.

Where can I go from your Spirit?

Where can I flee from your presence?

If I go up to the heavens, you are there;

if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.

If I rise on the wings of the dawn,

if I settle on the far side of the sea,

even there your hand will guide me,

your right hand will hold me fast.

If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me

and the light become night around me,”

even the darkness will not be dark to you;

the night will shine like the day,

for darkness is as light to you.


For you created my inmost being;

you knit me together in my mother’s womb.

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;

your works are wonderful,

I know that full well.

My frame was not hidden from you

when I was made in the secret place,

when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.

Your eyes saw my unformed body;

all the days ordained for me were written in your book

before one of them came to be.

How precious to me are your thoughts, God!

How vast is the sum of them!

Were I to count them,

they would outnumber the grains of sand—

when I awake, I am still with you.

If only you, God, would slay the wicked!

Away from me, you who are bloodthirsty!

They speak of you with evil intent;

your adversaries misuse your name.

Do I not hate those who hate you, LORD,

and abhor those who are in rebellion against you?

I have nothing but hatred for them;

I count them my enemies.

Search me, God, and know my heart;

test me and know my anxious thoughts.

See if there is any offensive way in me,

and lead me in the way everlasting.


~ PSALM 139 ~


Isn't it great to know that there's someone who can understand you completely even without you voicing out loud? Isn't it awesome to have someone pursuing you? Isn't it lovely to have someone thinking about everything good just for you and have your whole life etch out beautifully even though it might not be fairy-tale prefect? By the way, fairy tale doesn't exist in the real world.

Monday, June 27, 2011

Of Clams and Drumsticks~!

Fresh. Still alive. Open. Shut. Open. Shut. EeeeeEEEE.... Open. Shut. Clean it with water a few rounds to remove the dirt. Kept them in a box, refrigerated. Pasta :D It's linguini for today with my own blended tomatoes for the clam sauce. Quite an easy job to cook all those. I've added something else~! Razor clams~! I've always walked past the aisles with canned food and razor clams have always been expensive. But I made an exception yesterday and bought just one can to satisfy my appetite.Hhhmmm... not bad. I like how it looks like. Like the menu of some restaurants serving pasta. I like it. I cooked some spinach as well no doubt it's not in my list. Must serve some vegetables to those who love to eat plants. Ahhh... next... my favourite. Chicken. Marinated with mayonnaise, Worcestershire sauce and mustard. Coated with breadcrumbs. Ta-da~! The result after sitting in the convection oven for 25 minutes. Crispy. I'm happy~!

Awesome Sunday... :D

A piece of murtabak. Had a sudden craving for murtabak and roti telur. Swallowed the roti telur before I even snap it. No energy to even hold the camera after shopping for groceries. I'm very please with Tesco for supplying most of the things that I wanted but still, there's not enough. Thank God Judz called while I was having lunch or else I wouldn't have seen the SMS-es on my PDA. Since my afternoon class has been cancelled, we made a sudden change to our unplanned outing, it became very rush just to go and catch a movie. We went for Blitz. Got a Buy 1 Get 1 Free ticket with Gracie's Citibank card at TGV. I wanted to watch Blitz because Jason Statham was starring but to my disappointment, there wasn't any element of surprise in the movie like those great Transporter Trilogy. There wasn't even much action and he did more talking than in any other movies that he acted before. I like him quiet and cool with lots of action. When I'm not working and I'm out, my money will flow out of my wallet very very fast. It's like having a pipe burst. Moreover there's a 30% discount to every Betty Boop item. You see, I've not been shopping for quite some time. I've been spending on food and doing grocery shopping. The biggest bulk of expenditure goes to food and seconded by petrol. Petrol is so expensive now. It is scary looking at the petrol needle indicator going down so fast. So, after so long I shouldn't feel guilty pampering myself once in awhile. I was actually thinking the the price of those bags will be able to get all the grocery stuff for two weeks. Shouldn't think that way... Oh, the moment I hold on to that bag, I refuse to let it go. I've never wanted a bag so badly in my life. It's a MUST-HAVE~!! That's the front.... and this is the other side. I hope it's better than my Elle bag. I like the softness of the bag. Love it to the max~! That's the second bag that I held on to. I was like one nutcase holding on to two bags but couldn't decide on which one to buy. I wanted both so in the end I got both :D And Lem, the shop owner was so nice to let me know about the 1st Avenue's great offer for those who spent RM300 and above. Two passes to enjoy a special screening :D I was wondering when I'll be catching the Transformers moving since it's gonna start this Thursday and the tickets have been released since last Thursday. Now, I got access to a special screening in TGV just that it's in the third row... so front. I will like it far far away from the big screen. Then, we had dinner at Brewery Tap. The food wasn't that bad, was edible. No more comments. It's hard to comment on each place that I dined in. Then, when we were looking through the menu, we were staring at the word 'castrated'. How do you castrate a lamb with turmeric? I've been studying recipes. I know saute, marinade and mix well. But... to castrate a lamb? And do you have to describe that the lamb has been castrated? Oh, boy... I no longer know how to use English words. My vocabulary is not wide enough to describe the texture and the taste of food or even to understand the way of cooking - bake, blanch, deep-fried... what else do you have? If I eat until I couldn't muster a word, means they're too delicious. But... castrated... I'm still thinking about it. Damn... shouldn't it be marinated with turmeric??? Anyway, went for a second movie after dinner. I've been wondering myself what's Henry's Crime. That movie is superbly boring. There's no background music. No thrill in anything. Keanu Reeves who acted as Henry was such a dumb guy. He got caught for robbing a bank when he didn't do anything at all. And he just kept quiet and let himself stay in prison for 3 years. Never seen such stupid person even in a movie. He's such a boring person, if that's my husband I'll whack his brain out. Really regretted watching that movie. Wasted my time... but at least I'm hanging out in the cinema... something that I've not done for a long time. Haven't even do movie marathon for months.

Saturday, June 25, 2011

The Hallelujah Diet...

Never heard of that kinda book title. Claudine texted me early in the morning to make me go to the gym which I said yes to even though I didn't have much free time in the morning. When I went to the gym, to my horror, she has already taken her shower and I'll be left alone running at those machines. I'm losing my stamina... but then Claudine said excitedly that she has something for me. I'm very surprise to see a book. It's a book with recipes and the biography of the author. The only recipe that caught my eyes is that Apple Pie recipe. I'm not sure whether I have the passion for baking. Since I have that book, I better do something about it.

Friday, June 24, 2011

African & American... Perfect~!

African stew and American fried rice. I have no idea how Americans have their fried rice but it's definitely very different. Main ingredients for the African Chicken Peanut Stew as shown above. Sweet potatoes, chicken cut into cubes, a bottle of peanut butter, should get chunky instead of smooth, a can of tomato paste and you can never cook without onion and garlic. I sweat like a pig peeling potatoes and chopping them into small pieces. Literally dripping from head to toe. It's worse than working out in the gym with Claudine. I cooked the chicken separately together with the blended onions and garlic. It's better to cook separately to bring the best out of the marinated chicken. I don't understand how come all the recipes do not require the chicken meat to be marinated. Cooking without oyster sauce will make everything quite bland. This is the best stew that I've ever tasted. Brilliant recipe by SimplyRecipe.com After putting everything to simmer for more than an hour, the sweet potatoes are so soft. I've never cooked something so delicious before. It was like going for fine dining and having a little cup with the delicious stew where you're given a big soup spoon but you can only take a sip one at a time to savour every moment of it. Now, I have a whole big pot where all my guinea pigs get to have a big bowl of it. Such delicious stew must be accompanied by another main dish that's equally as delicious. Pieces of ham and finely grated carrots for colouring. Cooked rice yesterday nite at 1 a.m. because I went to Tesco around midnite. Fancy frying rice with chicken soup? The rice is sticky compared to our chokingly dry fried rice. The rice with chicken and ham mix together with the African stew... wow... I've never been so satisfied with my own cooking before. It's truly a great combination. And it took me two days to come out for one week's menu. I'll have to prepare next week's menu and I have no idea what I want for next week.

McJu's Chicken Burger...

Thursday is my off day from cooking but then I decided to make some chicken burgers like those sold by the road side. Ramly burger... I like. I make my own... in the end I made for more people and tomorrow I'll be making more because of the demand... hahha... back by popular demand. What I like about it is... there's no vege in it... not even a tiny strip of vege...

McJu is created by Judz, shorten by me. I'm not going to compete with McDonald's but hey... why not... I should try to make my burgers tastier... for example... the GREAT CHICKEN BURGER is back and I love those chicken burgers to bits. But it's so expensive.

McJu is strictly not for sale. I'll gladly make it for those who want it provided I have the raw material in the freezer. HHhmmm... I wonder what I will come out with next week. Haven't give next week's menu a serious thought.

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Our Morning Walk....

It's Thursday again~! If you remember, last Thursday we were very diligent with our morning walk. This morning, we were more diligent. You see, I was on an escalator. Our morning walk was done in the newly opened Tesco in Tanjung Tokong. It's so huge and new... of course it's new. It's just one day old. Hehehe... morning walk from one aisle to another. The arrangement of items are about the same as the one in Gelugor and I'm a pro in jogging around a hypermart. I can finish buying the whole week's food supply within 30 minutes. I like the sparkling and smooth floor. Can skate around the place. Onions~! Potatoes~! Gingers~! Oh, the smell... gratifying~! I love the colours... red, brown, yellow... and then... GREEN~! The vegetables are so fresh so unlike the one in Tesco main where the vege looks like it has been squashed and eaten by worms. Hi, Tesco~! If you're reading this, take note that I hope you will maintain the freshness of raw products so that I can happily shop there without stepping into a wet market which I detest doing. You have everything there so make sure you always have everything there. And thus, you'll make me one extremely happy customer. Your hardwork in fulfilling the wishes of your customers is deeply appreciated :D We decided to jog around the place and we started to sweat... erm, not sweat... eeewww that's saliva. We jogged straight into Mizi for brunch... hah~! There goes our hardwork. Look at those soft white bread with little butter cubes. Aren't they just delicious? Dip the bread with Mizi's famous mushroom soup. It's so nice. I want more~!! I want more~!! I want more~!! Oh, I can make my own if I really want to. Where's the recipe? My chicken dish~! It's in Swedish style with prunes. I like but not really special... Lady Astor's fish fillet is really nice. Will get that next time. Steak... medium cooked? Half done? Can't remember... but it's so juicy... I've never tasted such juicy steak with blue cheese. Oh, just look at that. It's so nice :D
Our free flow of ice-cream. Yummy... but didn't have much of ice-cream...

Happy Birthday, Lee~!

God is good~ all the time~! *singing in Ron Kenoly's voice* There's a story behind the cake. Yesterday, I had a really really bad craving for cakes. If I buy one piece for myself, it wouldn't be enough. I wanted to have one whole cake to savour but I don't buy a cake without any birthdays and I don't want to feel guilty about spending unnecessarily. You see... God knows the desire of my heart... eerrrr... my stomach actually... I woke up and for the first time, I checked my Facebook 'Home' and I saw your name and it's your birthday~! Now, I have all the reason to get that orange cake that I wanted so much. Simply because it's your birthday :D ... and I'm celebrating on your behalf. I even cut a big slice for you but ate it on your behalf before I could even wish you 'Happy Birthday' It's faster to chew and swallow than to say 'Happy Birthday' in one breath. Oh... they're so tasty. There's half of the cake left in the refrigerator and I wanted to ship it to you by sea but the cake might get sea sick so I've decided to keep the other half for my breakfast tomorrow. It's the thought that counts *wink* Thank you so much. I'm totally... completely satisfied... no more craving.



HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LEE ... *BURP*

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Chinese Cuisine.. the Best~!

Reading through the recipe, the two dishes were quite easy but cook but it took time to marinade and chopped the rest of the ingredients that will bring out the good taste and smell. Chicken dish~! Love chicken in anyway it's done. Nothing tastes better than chicken. The ingredients are almost the same. Salt, pepper and sugar - the three simple ingredients that will bring the best out of any food. General Tsao's Chicken II. I have no idea what story is standing behind the name of this dish. Is it General Tsao's favourite dish? Is it General Tsao's own concoction due to his love for orange sauce? And what's with the 'II'... his second dish? The improved version? I think I better stop guessing but I was attracted to the name of the dish and orange zest in the recipe made me decide to give it a try. The taste... I like it~! Fish... just keep swimming... just keep swimming swimming swimming. Dead... can't swim. Clean the fish. No more scales. Need ginger to remove whatever unpleasant fishy smell. That rock sugar makes the soy sauce tastes fantastic. Oh, I just enjoy cooking Chinese cuisine... can't blame me. I'm a Chinese. I don't even remember what type of fish I bought. The flesh is so soft and juicy. Eat with rice and everything is simply just so delicious. There's not much to write about cooking I guess. I prepare them, start cooking. Make sure I have all the ingredients ready. Improvise some of the recipes. Remove stuff that I can't get from the market here. Add something that I like. Make it more tasty. Then, you eat.

It was a lonely lunch hour for me today. My two kids had to stay back in school for school activities. After cooking, I sat all alone in the kitchen and have lunch all ALONE~! It's so lonely sitting in the quiet kitchen...