A Very Cool Cat

This is my neighbourhood buddy for the past few weeks, it always happen to be around when I end my day with a well-deserved break and I'll normally use that time to reflect on the day that passed. This cat is no little kitty, it appears well-fed & groomed as well. Our first meeting. You know sometimes that you just sit alone & feel something's missing, that was how I felt when Cool cat sashayed steadily right to where I was sitting, hopped into the seat & sat beside me as if it was doing that all his life. It just sat there & looked at me & brought a smile on my face. It made me feel human, that I'm not detestable (Weird thought but ya..). Cool cat has this "whatever-I-don't-care" look, maybe it's just born this way. I really envy Cool cat.
Some nights it'll get so irritated by my fumes that it will jump up & perch on the back rest of the seat (so it does get irritated, lol) but it'll just stay there until I'm ready to leave for the night.
I'm quite in love with Cool cat but I guess it's someone's darling so I'll be contented with it's nightly company. However something happened today and after some quiet consideration, I think I should not visit that spot too often & find another spot to take my breaks ( I wonder if I'm strong enough to do that)... Damn, I'll miss you Mr Cool cat.

Will you visit me if I manage to find a new spot?

Cool cat: "Hmm, let me think about it first..."

I Made Breakfast!

I woke up way too early today as I could not really sleep very well after what happened at work yesterday. Trouble seems to travel in packs like wolves, they never come alone. When I have more then enough to juggle, more crap comes along (and as usual, I'm alone to handle it. Never was he really around when I really really really need a shoulder to cry on). However I've thought things through carefully and decided on my next step to be taken. "May there be a brighter sunrise after every sunset", Mr Funshine told me this last night & I could only hope for the best.

With too much time on hand, I decided to make myself a simple breakfast. When was the last time I made one....I can't remember. However it turned out real good this time. I mixed minced meat, egg, salt, sugar & finely sliced fresh red chilli without any seeds (it cuts down the spicy factor tremendously) to make my lovely ommelette that went with my browned toast. I lightly stir-fried some thin slices of luncheon meat that when right on top of my ommelette. To complete the meal, I added a banana & made myself a nice cup of morning coffee.

I tried to snap a few good photos but I was too tempted so I started eating, that explains the not-so-great photos.

Ah...simple pleasures of life, it's great to be alive. Now that I feel comfy once again, I might as well head back in bed for another snooze. Meanwhile, happy feasting!

Union "Chee Pow Kai"! (Paper-Wrapped-Chicken)

Mr Funshine & his partner decided to pick me up after work so that we can have a wonderful dinner together. Everything was right on track: everyone's starving, weather's great. However I made a mistake & brought them "car-rounding" along Sunset Way as I thought there were some nice restaurants around. I was so wrong. If there's any restaurants, they must be so well-hidden or we were just too blind to spot one.




In the end we decided to drop by the closest eating place from where we were, along the stretch on Maju Road.

The entrance where cars are parked

We parked our car & strolled out into the cool night, Mr Funshine decided to have smoke first thus I went ahead to snap some photos (I was not a smoker at that point of time). There's one word that can describe this place ever so accurately: Kumpung! It's so rustic & homely, in fact I was half expecting some hens to be wandering among the greens.

The shop's signboard is surrounded by numerous awards & plaques

The dining area, nothing fancy

We order "Luo Han Guo" (http://www.drugs.com/npp/luo-han-guo.html), their bestselling drink & sat patiently waiting while our stomachs growl in unison.

The first dish served: Salted Fried Calamari was miserable. I felt as if I'm just snacking on chips.

The second dish: This is how "Chee Pow Kai" look like, all wrapped up in grease paper.

Me grabbing my "Chee Pow Kai" with my chopstick
Awwww...

This is one of those "comfort food" that sends one to Happyland. It's marinated with some seasoning & WINE. Yes, wine so aromatic that you just want to finish one piece, lick your fingers & start unwrapping another piece immediately. The meat is juicy tender & the sweetness well accentuated by the wine. It may be slightly messy as it is quite greasy, but it definitely worth the effort.

Bland noodle dish

My personal opinion, this noodle is too tasteless for my liking & the vegetable served on the dish was really tough, so much so that I'll gave up trying as I almost choked trying to swallow the "chewy strands". Finally the last dish was served. Drum roll~~~

Yummy Pipa Duck

Oh my lovely Pipa Duck was really so well marinated that the meat was all tender. The roasted skin was so crisp & the sauce that came with it was so full-bodied..yum yum yum.

Overall, this meal's not bad at all but this place closes quite early (last order 8.25pm). It's quite pricey in terms of the food we ordered & the "just-to-get food-to-your-table service" (I suspect it's a family-run place). Still, I love the "Chee Pow Kai" & Pipa Duck.

I was drafting this entry when my sister happen to see the photos & she asked "Don't you remember this place?". No, I have zero recollection & she reminded me that my parents used to bring us here when we were really young (I should be just around 6 year old) as we resided around the area then. My family was such a close-knitted one then. Things change, guess we all knows what happens as families mature with time, however we are still there for each other in times of need. I've met someone who's family has yet to "develop" to the point where conflicts & implications start to affect his family. That insensitive person called my family "abnormal". How rude & cruel when he was suppose to be next closest person in my life then. Well, you can't make a male specimen understand how a menstrual cramp feels but the least he can do is to respect that & be supportive. I truly believe that there will be one day he'll finally understand how hurting he was and if that does get to happens, it's really only for his own good.

Enough of my rambling. You may want to visit the below link for more reviews. Happy feasting!

http://www.hungrygowhere.com/singapore/union_farm_eating_house

My Christmas Island

I was not doing anything one night recently & was ask to join a friend of mine for a drive around. I hesitated but took up the invite as I vividly remember I really loved night rides but did not have much time for that in the past year.

After I hopped on, my friend updated that we'll go grab some yum yum before we head to a park to eat. Hmm, it's not really what I expected but we bought fries, apple pie & cinnamon bites from a fast food joint and headed off into the night. Cool wind in my hair, music in the background while we chatted. However I can't help but kept checked my yum yum, they are getting cool fast. Terrible me, worried about the wrong thing at the wrong time. I turned back to my friend as we were still not decided on where to go. I was offered, we will either head upwards (Kent Ridge) or seawards (Labrador). I felt like listening to the waves that night & reached Labrador Park after much detour.

We walked alittle & settled down on a bench right along the walkway next to the sea and started eating..cold fries = yucks, sweet cinnamon bites = yum. However it started to drizzle & we had to hide in the car. Luck was with us & ventured out after the short interim rain. The rain seemed to have cleared the skies, it transformed into a cool starry night & I could see the distant industrialized island so clearly opposite us. I was mesmerised for a moment & my imagination drifted.. I named the scenery I saw right at that moment, in my heart: My Christmas Island.

Pretty right?

Gastronomical Therapy Time: Bibimbap

This craving for bibimbap (비빔밥) has been nudging me for months & I've finally got a chance to get one for myself recently. The serving was huge, plus my miserable appetite nowadays, it's only natural that I could not finish it. I was lucky that my dinner partner helped out & spared me from feeling bad for wasting food. It was delicious & I did some research about this dish, it actually stands for Bibim: Mixed & Bap: Rice

It's actually easy to make, but it's a tedious procedure. The array of vegetables & meat have to be fresh or pre-prepared seperately, chopped into nice "sticks". When all is ready, place rice in a 돌솥 비빔밥, "dolsot" meaning "stone pot , arrange all your beautifully-prepared ingredients around the circumference of the rice with the meat placed right in the center. Break an egg on the meat, pile in some Korean chilli pepper paste & sprinkle sesame seeds over the top. Some may like to lightly drizzle some sesame oil and enjoy the aroma when it hits the sizzling hot pot. Mix well & dig in!

To me, this dish is somehow special. It is not just a rice dish. I do not know since when did I find this a very heart warming dish. It may be simple but whenever I have it, my nerves seem to calm down no matter how "stormy" I am feeling. It warms me from inside out. I may attempt to cook it one day but not now.. Happy feasting!

New Office Premises

There's numerous security doors like this from the lobby to my desk

A corner of the chill out pantry area

Wait till I shift all my stuff here...

Apologies if it upseted anyone, the Washroom! The night view outside my window.

Chicken Adobo!

I was watching Channel News Asia's Taste Matters when I saw this dish prepared in the program. For no reason, I got little excited...and decided I have to give it a try. I searched for information & various recipes of Chicken Adobo and found so many varieties of them. Apparently, each & every island & even household have their own recipe for this aromatic dish. It's suppose to be salty & sour, a refreshing combination suited for people who have not much of an appetite due to the unforgiving hot weather. I did a comparison and settled with 2 recipes in designerjones.com & Youtube (real funny man, must watch) as references while I re-create this Filipino dish. If you want to join me, let's start!

1 kg of of chicken pieces (chop whole chicken or purchase chicken thighs)
2 cloves of garlic (chopped, not too finely)
15 tablespoons of light soy sauce
9 tablespoons of white vinegar (which is adjustable to personal preference)

Marinate the above overnight.
When you are ready to cook, put the chicken together with the marinate into a wok/pot, add and pour
3 to 4 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon of black pepper
1/2 teaspoon of black peppercorn and
1 can of 7-up or Sprite.

Bring the above to boil, do not stir the mixture. Once it boils, lower down the heat & simmer for 20 to 25 minutes. You can flip the chicken at half-time. Add a little water if the sauce is reduced.

After simmering, remove the chicken & strain the sauce using a strainer.
After rinsing the wok/pot with water, heat up some oil and stir fry the solid ingredients that was previously separated from the sauce. Please be careful, do not burn them or let them get stuck to the bottom of the wok/pot or your dish will taste burnt and you have a "great time" washing up later.
When the garlic turns golden brown, lower the heat and put the chicken back in & fry for a few minutes.
Remove excess oil, let stir fry cool slightly before adding your sauce back in.
Bring it to boil. Once it starts boiling, you are done!
Serve the chicken on crisp salad lettuce with your steaming rice, you may like to sprinkle some finely chopped coriander leaves on the chicken, throw in some halved honey cherry tomatoes & finally a sweet banana to complete the plate & it's time to feast!

My first attempt was alright, my sisters reviewed that it is nice but they gave the addition of the banana a miss, I personally loved the how the sweetness of the banana provide a balance to the salty-with-a-tinge-of-sour-ness chicken dish. However I have to confess, I made it too salty with the additional teaspoon of salt I added as the recipe mentioned. My bad, I noted & already removed it from the above recipe. Overall, a lovely dish (my sisters asked for my recipe. Kekeke...) and I'll surely perfect this dish in time.

I now wish you luck, happy feasting!