Vase 303 - 2013 14th Dec

Orchids, the national flower of Singapore. I like its delicateness.

Lentils, Not Our Favourite Food

There were several recipes in Gordon's cookbook which calls for lentils. Honestly I thought it was a type of vegetable when I first saw the word. It's not something you normally eat in Asia. And it is hard to find too, I managed to find a pack at the organic, aka expensive, aisle at Cold Storage.

It taste like salty green beans, and are hard to cook through. Maybe I was doing it wrong but I find it baffling that some of them are not cooked after an hour in the pot. I should have substitute it with rice or pasta. Oh well, I suppose there is no harm trying new stuff once in awhile.

Sauces Fantasy

I've always been one for the sauces, especially when it comes to eating western.  A piece of fillet is a piece of fillet. A strip of sirloin is a strip of sirloin. Its the seasoning, the marinate and the serving sauce that really brings out the favour of the meats and fish. Some would argue that having just the meat is the best way to taste it. Yes I would agree if this was in a western country where the meats are fresh from the farm. But in Singapore where everything is imported frozen ... nah.

I remember asking for more mushroom sauces on my sirloin beef or more of the white mayo for my surf and turf. Funny thing was, I never bothered with Asian sauces. I think asian cuisine are already coated with too much sauce, and most of them are starchy and sticky ... not really my taste. So as I picked up some of the simpler recipes from the cookbooks, my eyes tend to gravitate towards the sauces preparation steps. I somehow perk up when it comes to making my own sauce.

Since I was making fish these few days, the first I tried was a vinaigrette. I never figured vinaigrette was this easy to make. 4 parts olive oil, 1 part white wine vinegar. Hmm it's that easy? Add in mustard, fried onions, chopped spring onions and whatnot to layer a further favour. Wow ... now I have a good sauce for fish!

Shredded Pork Shoulder with Garlic Bread and Cherry Tomatoes

Meimei had marinated the pork over night with lots of spices. Fabulous afternoon snack. Guilty pleasure!

Pan-Fried Red Snapper in Vinaigrette Dressing, White Button Mushrooms, Carrots and Potatoes

I made my first vinaigrette today. It really goes well with the fish. Now I know how easily it is for restaurants to make a sauce for fish.

My First Home Repair!

The contractor Uncle Lim was here yesterday to look at the touch-ups we wanted done before CNY. He advised to get a wrench that had teeth to open the cap. He didn't sound keen to open it himself, said it would leave scratch marks ... i.e. he doesn't want to be responsible for replacing the tap if we become nasty and blame the scratches on him. Understandable, I would have done the same if I was in his place.

So I went to the hardware store today and got the most mean and tough looking wrench. Wala, the cap came off on the first try, yeah!! After that the valve came out pretty easily and I was done in 5 minutes. Woot! I will chalked this up as my very first repair job. 

It may look simple to most people but it's a milestone for me. I've never been a hands-on person. So to be able to find the valve and change it myself was a small accomplishment. Hopefully this can spur me to do more simple touch-ups myself.

Oven Baked Pork Shoulder with New Potato and Tomato

Over cooked the pork, turned out tough and dry ... will remember to watch the time on the meats. But still as tasty, though the picture doesn't do it justice.

Teriyaki Cod Fish on Bed of New Potatoes, with Portobello Mushrooms and Imperial Batavia Lettuce

Casual lunch, cod fish was for the weekend but we were busy. Better cook it than let it go bad in the fridge.

Say Cheese You Lousy Drivers!

I can't say it enough that I should have installed a car camera long time ago. It's been 'on my mind' since the big accident but somehow as time goes and the scars heal I set it aside. It costs a few hundred, the workshop to install is of unknown creditability, fear of being conned etc. It went into the abyss of my memory bank till ... the recent Injustice On Wheels. That spurred me to immediately re-look at the camera e-flyer Meimei had sent ages ago.

So today I went straight to the workshop after sending Meimei to office. $400+ is quite a hole in the pocket for just a camera but priceless for a peace of mind. Meimei was elated that we got it. So smile you idiotic drivers, pose for the camera! 

 

Mozzarella and Cheddar Cheese Baked Rice with Bratwurst and Portobello Mushroom

Cool lovely weekend cooking with Meimei. I like lots of cheese in my baked rice.

A Cook Book?

Pokpok don't remember publishing a cookbook on Thai street food. I call dips on the name Pokpok ... been so for 30 odd years.

冤枉啊！Injustice on Wheels ...

I really don't know why this always happen to us. A Lexus just reversed into us today in the carpark of Vivocity. It wasn't trying to park ... it just reversed straight on into our car. Our front bumper was dented but there wasn't a single scratch on the Lexus. Who is going to believe that we were stationary and it was the front car that came at us ... We did our best to mitigate it by asking the other driver, a lady foreigner with a leased car by the way, to sign off on the incident on paper. 

Seriously ... are you blind and deaf? And you actually have the audacity to question "What's wrong with your car? I don't see anything wrong here." *thoughts 'Hello bitch?! You reversed right into us and you still dare to claim there was nothing wrong??!!' Thankfully Meimei was there to control my temper.

Even my own mum thinks we banged someone else when she saw the damage at the front. The workshop agents advised the same ... it's going to be very difficult to prove my case that it was the other driver's fault. Worst still, they may turn around and claim against my insurance. 

I should have installed the camera a long time ago. It was silly of me to put it aside for so long. A video of the incident would have given a clear cut victory to us, but instead here we are in agony over what might happen. I'm following up closely with the workshop to resolve this and hopefully we can have the car repaired before Chinese New Year. Oh and I'm installing the camera first thing Monday morning. No more delays ...

Update 4 Dec 13: Went to buy the 3rd party report made by the other party today at GIA after getting the run around by the insurer's appointed workshop. Thankfully they were honest and indicated that they reversed into our vehicle. Phew! 

Last Exam I'll Ever Take, Maybe

This morning I took my last paper for the MBA. Next is the 6-8 months final group project and then I should graduate sometime in Dec 2014. It's been an extremely stressful and tiring journey since Jun 2011. Not just for me, but also for Meimei as well. The time, the cost, the stress ... I need a long long break from this.

I'm glad it's over. I don't expect the MBA would help me in anyway in terms of my career. I can honestly say though that I've learned quite a bit from the course. Maybe not technically in-depth as I like but that's the beauty of an MBA. It exposes you to various fields in the business spectrum and arms you with the analytical avenues and research capabilities to further any topic you wish to dive into. I've gained a greater appreciation of the varied functions in business through this course.

I suppose if I were to study again it will be short courses. And hopefully it will be something that Meimei can join in as well. It really makes a differences if we could motivate each other. Maybe cooking or painting classes would be fun for the both of us :-)

Droop, Droop, Droop ...

Our kitchen tap has been leaking over the past few days. We could go to bed and the sink bucket would be full next morning. Sigh ... things just don't last these days huh? We didn't know where it was leaking exactly so I dismantled the water filter and isolated the cause to the tap valve. Bah ... we may have replace the whole tap.

Update 2 Nov 13: Went down to Adamas at Jalan Besar to see if I can find the same tap again. I took Meimei's advice and ask if the tap can be repaired, and what you know, the Uncle say yes and taught me how to remove the parts to install the valve. Yeah! instead of spending $80-100, I bought the valve for $12 instead. Sadly my cheer was short-lived. The round cap holding the valve is stuck. I've tried pouring hot water, use ice to freeze the cap ... nothing works ... it just wouldn't bulge. Looks like we may have to engage a plumber after all.

My First Oven - Tefal Uno XL OF1802

I've never used a oven before. There never was one at Hillview and mum and dad didn't even have a microwave till a few years ago after I've moved out. An oven always seemed like a 'luxury' item for a typical Chinese home. So when we renovated our new place, we didn't set up a build-in oven cabinet in the kitchen design. It seemed impractical to have a white elephant appliance at that time since we thought we weren't likely to be cooking much.

But as we started cooking on the weekends and surfing the web for recipes, an oven became something we miss. Most recipes we find includes an oven baking process and without one we were handicapped. And with a new design idea of a kitchen trolley, the space for an oven suddenly materialised.

So next came the research phase for an oven. There sure are a lot of brands out there. And they don't come cheap. Well I suppose if we were to use it regularly, the cost is going to justify itself. I mean, imagine baking your own double chocolate muffin ... now that's something I've been dreaming of doing for sometime now.

Eventually we decided upon Tefal's mid range ovens and went ahead with the Uno XL. *smile I've started to dream of the days where I can make delicious cakes and pastries with the oven. Now I just need to buckle down and start experimenting with the different techniques of baking. Oh and invest in baking tools as I go along. So look forward to more cooking pictures on the blog!