Have you ever wanted something so badly that you would climb the highest mountain to get it? I have - over a bowl of Penang Laksa.
Last Friday, I needed to cheer myself up and suddenly craved for some Penang Laksa from Penang Road Cafe. However daddy M was not able to go with me. It’s ok, I could go by myself.
So I decided to take a cab from the office to Novena on a Friday evening. Of course the queue was long – It’s ok, I’ll take the train.
But you’re having back and knee ache – It’s ok, I’ll feel better after the Laksa!. It’s worth it!
It’s getting late, don’t you want to go home and see S? – It’s ok, she can wait. Mommy needs her fix, badly.
When I reached Novena, it was drizzling – It’s ok, it’s just a short distance. Walk faster!
Then I realised that I had to cross an overhead bridge to the other side of the road!! (what about my acrophobia?) –It’s ok SK! Just pray and go, you’re very close to your target!!
So there it was, a woman in her 30’s, marched in panic across the overhead bridge along the busy Thomson road on a Friday drizzly evening, talking to herself in her head, JUST to satisfy her intense desire to consume a bowl of Penang Laksa!
I didn’t know I am such a determined person.M said I was trying to prove a point. Strong willed? Tenacious? Perfectionist? Nut case?
I did it again. I have been eating ONE kind of food repeatedly for more than 2 weeks! My mom’s spicy and pungent Sambal Hae Bee (dried shrimps).
“Everything in moderation” just doesn’t ring a bell to me…
I eat it in my egg sandwich for breakfast, sprinkle some onto my rice for lunch, sometimes even with bread for tea!
Everyone loves this at home. The household is into its third container since last month, including one that was slated for our neighbour.
The ingredients are simple: Dried shrimps, onion and shallots, garlic, chilli and belachan. Blend all ingredients and fry until dried up.
The cooking process sounds easy but the actual execution is tedious, requiring a fair bit of patience and love…
Apart from my Saturday flowers, these butterflies dough from the Mayflower hawker centre keeps me sane as I do my weekly marketing. It’s popular for its freshness because the seller fries them on the spot as you place your order. The generous sesame seeds also makes it crunchier than the normal ones. Top it up with a cup of black coffee, my unhealthy indulgence is complete!
Marinate chicken breast with mushroom seasoning, sliced ginger, garlic and coriander root.
Steam chicken for 30 minutes.
Garnish with cucumber, cut chilli, coriander leaves, spring onion and chilli flakes dressing*
*2T olive oil, 1T balsamic vinegar, pepper and chilli flakes.
I’m an Asian food lover. Western food is only for times when I have no other choices, special occasions or for work. With that, I don’t like Pizza. My uni housemates used to order pizza when I was not home for dinner. BUT I guess that’s because nobody had introduced me to Quinta then…
Quinta, one of Spizza’s thin-crust pizza has changed my perception on pizza… This is exquisite! The mozzarella, sunny side up egg and black truffle sauce topping makes the whole idea of eating pizza sound like having the other all-time favourite of mine, Chinese Tze-char Moonlight Hor Fun.
Maybe that’s why I’m attracted to it :)
My original idea of hubby-baby-maintenance was to take a short trip to Phuket before work starts to peak again. Alas, bb S was down with bronchitis a week earlier so we had to call off the idea and hang around in Singapore. So what have we been doing over the past few days? We tried new things everyday, or rather, new food, just like a tourist in a new place :)
1) Simply Bread at Cluny Court. The decor was simple with pure white tables and some wooden stools. The place smelled “fresh” but the food was so so only. I’m sold on the decor.
2) Udders – Mao Shang Wang durian ice cream. It was beyond description, as good as eating the real thing.
3) Gurney Drive at Jubilee Entertainment Complex, Ang Mo Kio. I thought maybe I could redeem myself from proclaiming my new love, and ordered a takeaway Penang Laksa from this joint. A total waste of money. Don’t even bother trying.
4) Itachio Sushi at Ion- It was M’s first time and I think he may be a new convert. Must tries: aburi fatty salmon, aburi wagyu beef, scallop sashimi to name a few. We also discovered Okono Matsu Tokubetsu Junmai- which we stocked up in the fridge now.
5) Fish Mart SAKURAYA at Parkway Parade. Now that we have Okono Matsu Tokubetsu Junmai in the fridge, it’s incomplete without some sashimi…
It’s been a good break.
If I could only choose ONE dish to cheer me up, it would be this fatty and succulent aburi flounder from Inagiku. Although part of me feels like I’ve cheated on my life-long favourite Penang Laksa but I supposed Inagiku is more practical and accessible over flying back to Penang! Long distance just doesn’t work for me…
I am not a big fan of mashed potatoes BUT this homemade recipe is awesome! It came out perfect! The texture was smooth yet rich. The flavourful Basil pesto topping also added a hint of colour to the usual mash!
What you need:-
How:-
PS: It’s a yummy comfort food for post- wisdom tooth surgery. This recipe was inspired by M who had just gone through a dental surgery and 2 teeth less wiser :)
The latest craze of the household – black glutinous rice delight, adapted from Cyrstal Jade Palace @ Taka. Boil glutinous rice with water until the liquid has been absorbed and rice is soft and chewy. No sugar is needed. Allow to cool. When serve, add ice cream (green tea or vanila), glass jelly (cut into cubes) and dried longan.
Believe it or not, this is a 100% homemade chicken chop – from scratch.
Chicken– deboned breast/ drumstick marinated with soy sauce, pepper and dark soy sauce. Pan fried.
Fries – peeled potatoes, cut into strips, deep fried twice.
Coleslaw – cabbage, carrot & celery with mixed with mayoinese sauce.
Corn- scrape from fresh corn and fried with onion and soy sauce.
ONLY my mom can do this!
What do you do if you have left-over shabu shabu pork after rounds of steamboat from CNY, and happen to have a bottle of Sake in the fridge? Buta no shogayaki (Japanese ginger pork).
What you need:-
We were pleasantly surprised by our latest breakfast joint at The Canopy. Nestled in the lush greeneries of Bishan Parks, it's a nice place for al fresco experience given the recent killing hot weather. The garden dining ambience gave us a ‘getaway’ feeling, as if we were out of Singapore, having a holiday somewhere...
Most of all, the food was pretty good. I was impressed by the Eggs Benedict with the nicely poached eggs and Hollandaise sauce to my liking – sourish, yums! The English muffin that came with it was crispy and toasted perfectly. The latte rounded off our meal on a perfect note.
Take a stroll after the meal... Hmmm...I could do this everyday...
We like mom’s Tau You Bak so much that we made her cook a big pot and portioned into small bags before she left for Penang. If a war breaks out now, we are covered for at least a week, surviving on the TYB! Her recipes are always simple yet yummilicious.
What you need:-
How:-
A few nights ago, I had a sudden crave for fried rice and felt like cooking. It’s been months since I last cooked! It was weird to not able to find a few things in my own kitchen as it’s been conquered by mom and confinement lady. I secretly felt like I’ve lost my sanctuary…
Simple fried rice with Chinese sausage and chicken but it was extra tastier after one-month of abstinence!
Note: 1st time in history, baby’s mom cooked for the hired confinement aunty!
Being a half-control freak, I was totally impressed by this claypot joint in Geylang.
Firstly they have their own website www.geylangclaypot.com, with instructions on how to place your order ahead to avoid long waiting time as each claypot takes about 25mins to prepare. Knowing that parking is an issue, the shop prepare A4-sized cardboards (to be picked up from them) with clear map and directions on how to get to the free parking lots located 3 minutes away. A guy is dedicated to sit at the counter to answer phone calls for bookings and take-away orders.
The place was not crowded, not dirty and more importantly it was well organized! It was as if they were operating on a supply chain management platform for tze-chars.
We ordered 2 side dishes- Thai style soft shell crab and and stir-fried French beans with shrimps. Our food arrived in 5 minutes!
The claypot was not bad for me, M preferred the one in ABC market. But both of us enjoyed the Thai-style soft-sell crab! According to Wl, the steamed Star Grouper is good as well.
Conclusion: I was sold for the orderliness then came the food.
Korean Shin Kim Chi noodles
