Happy Birthday to ME!!!

Last night was totally awesome, WHY?
We had the chance to celebrate a double Bday at home.
Its been some time, since i saw dad in a playful mood like yesterday night.

This morning, me and Soya open our eyes at 5am. got ready and made our way to KL Central.
I was suppose to get on the 6am coach to LCCT, but there were non at sight. so i waited, and waited till it was 6.45am then the coach decides to move.... HOW CAN!!!!

I got to LCCT at 7.40am, run al the way to AIRASIA counter and they inform " sorry sir, the other passages are already boarded and i cannot give you a boarding pass" that means ( your late and you lost your ticket) OMG!!!!
I did my best to stay cool, i ask for the next plan to Penang, they then tell me, " sir the next plane to Penang is 11.30am ..."

"OK i will take it!" that's with a very happy tone of voice.....

"but sir, that flight is canceled, the next one you can get is the 1.40pm , you will be at Penang at 2.30pm" what the hell!!! they Potong STIM only ....

What to do, E+R=O, take it lor , Pay RM198 for the ticket and now i have to wait at the airport all alone till noon.

well, the harder you get some things in life, the more enjoyable it will be.

Oh, one more thing, as i was enjoying coffee @ Coffee bean, one guy ask if he can borrow my Laptop to make a online booking for his flight back to Surabaya. his story was almost similar to me but he traveled from China to KL then to Indonesia, but he book the wrong flight ..

and it help him.... I helped a guy in need!!!
COOL!!!!

dinner with Miss Hawaii

June 26

Dinner last Friday was at Orchids, one of the restaurants at the Halekulani, and my companion was the hotel's public relations director, Erika Kauffman.
Erika looks like a California blonde, but in fact she was born in Hawaii and grew up on the Big Island (in the Kona area), where she says they didn’t bother to pack lunch for school but simply plucked whatever produce was available from nearby trees.
I later learned that Erika is a former Miss Hawaii, but she didn’t discuss it herself. I mean, how could she?
“Hi, nice to meet you. I was a Miss Hawaii."
You just sound like an idiot if you do that.
Her colleague, food & beverage dirctor Sabine Glissmann, could have mentioned it, but why would she?
Before dinner, Sabine joined Erika and me for drinks at the House without a Key, which is what they call their mostly-outdoor beachside lounge. A band of ukuleles and a standing bass played surprisingly mellow music as a hula dancer performed and I drank a cocktail of gin and guava and snacked on big-eye tuna poke sliders (with nori, Japanese pickles and wasabi mayonnaise).
Erika was big on promoting Orchids’ newest feature, Table 1. It hasn’t been launched yet, but it will basically be a chef’s table in the middle of the restaurant. The hotel’s new executive chef, Vikram Garg, will come out and chat with guests at the table, determine their likes, dislikes and mood and prepare a tasting menu for them.
Vik came out after the meal and we chatted about trends (we think pork belly’s about done) and tropical fruit. I mentioned snake fruit, an obscure and completely unappetizing sounding thing that I had in Sumatra. Vik had never heard of it, which we agreed was weird. It’s kind of an uneven oblong about the size of a small plum, with a brown, scaly skin (hence the name). At first bite it’s completely unappetizing. It looks and has the texture of garlic. It tastes a little sweet, but mostly acrid, with a tendency to dry out the mouth, but it’s addictive on some level and actually a lot of fun to eat.

What I ate (chased down with glasses of Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc):

Pacific oyster and caviar shooters served in a ginger and mango cocktail
Kona crab cappuccino topped with truffle and coconut cream
Steamed onaga sizzled with sesame oil and garnished with shiitake mushrooms, green onions, ginger, cilantro and soy
Berries and sorbet


To view all the blog entries about my trip to O‘ahu, click here.

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Week 9 and 10

So week 10 has just passed and I have handed in my final recipes for our last day of cooking . It was hell trying to decided what to do in the end . But after many sleepless nights I made a decision and its done .

Roast Beetroot and goats cheese salad
*****
Poached Monk fish with Tomato and basil sauce.
Courgettes and new potatoes .
Green salad with a cider vinaigrette.
******
Homemade Ice Cream , Banana Bread and Carmel sauce.

Now all I have to worry about is doing it in 3 hours and doing it well . we will also be given a bread to make on the day too. But we wont know what that will be till the day before .
I have just over a week to practice . But before I can put my mind to it, I have to do my Wine exam. 100 multiple choice question about the wine course . This is a separate exam to the Ballymaloe Certificate.

I made a triangular Kimbab complete with Ballymaloe Kimchi.

Darina Using my Knife

Ox tongue

Monkfish

This week we did a lot on finger food . We cooked a whole lot of duck and made a lot of puff pastry . I am finding out pastry is probably not my thing . Last week we made a lot of Pasta all by hand which I loved . Back to studying for wine exam.
I have promised myself to stay quiet on this course so as and when I get a job and some money I am now really looking forward to a night out with friends .

mix up = let the song do it 4 me

Go ahead just leave, can't hold you, you're free
You take all these things, if they mean so much to you
I gave you your dreams, 'cause you meant the world
So did I deserve to be left here hurt?

I'd give it all up but I'm takin' back my love
I've given you too much but I'm takin' back my love

Where were you When everything was falling apart?
All my days Were spent by the telephone
It never rang And all I needed was a call

Hey ladies jangan mau di bilang lemah
Kita juga bisa menipu dan menduakan
Bila wanita sudah beraksi dunia hancur

Hey ladies sekarang cinta pakai otak
Jangan mau rugi hati dan juga rugi waktu
Bila dia merayumu ingat semuanya bohong

Memanglah tak semua laki-laki busuk
Namun ladies tetaplah harus waspada
Semogalah kita semua akhirnya
Mendapatkan cinta yang tulus

One more kiss could be the best thing.
But one more lie could be the worst
And all these thoughts are never resting.
And you're not something I deserve

You love me but you don't know who I am
I'm torn between this life I lead and where I stand
And you love me but you don't know who I am
So let me go. Let me go

I dream ahead to what I hope for
And I turn my back on loving you
How can this love be a good thing
When I know what I'm goin through

haa. 4 fav songs~! owh...suka lagu ini sejak sekian lame + ade yg baru dgr.
rasenye mesti sume da kenal lagu2 nih. faymes ames~ =P
semlm & hari ni. 1 hari d kolej. yup, semlm sampai almost 12am.
hari ni. nasib baik sampai kul 7 ptg je. uh-huh. blk kemas everything.
since these few days bz, so umah + bilik a lil bit messy. and i hate that.
esok. futsal d sport planet ampang. tlg itu anti-lola, nora.

ahad. sy rase sy perlukan masa. seorg.
klcc. ataw mid valley. ataw mane2. tnggu sy ok? hurm.
kalau tak. pandai2 la sy. umah pon jd. eh silap. katil. LOL~ XP


owh babe.
happy merdeka dr exam~!
and and. selamat pulang ke malaysia.
kuatkan semangat + i'm with u. =]

Fire up the grill!

It's officially summer in Tulsa, and I hear the north is getting a steady dose of summer heat, as well. Mom informed me last night that their air-conditioning has been running all week. Translation: it's blazin' in Chicago. And summertime surely means one thing: grilling, cookouts, barbecue, and so on!

There's a few grilling safety tips you should consider before enjoying your next nearly-charcoal burger, however. While grilling offers a quick and healthy cooking method, it can also produce carcinogenic foods (i.e. cancer-causing). You should avoid eating charred, blackened, or burned meats. The high temperatures of grilling can make cooking foods thoroughly a challenge, but the alternative just isn't safe.

These cancer-causing compounds come in two forms: HCA's and PAH's. Heterocyclic amines (HCA's) are produced when red meat, poultry, and fish are cooked at ultra-high temperatures. PAH's, or "polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons", are produced when fat drips from cooking meat into the grill producing a smoke. This smoke unsafely contaminates the food. These nasty PAH compounds are also produced when flames physically touch cooking food, causing it to blacken and char [1].
Some ways to make grilling safer and healthier include [1]:
- cooking leaner meats vs. high-fat and highly processed hot dogs, sausages, and bratwursts
- grill smaller cuts of meat to reduce cooking time and temperature
- remove all visible fat before grilling - this will cut down on the fat drippings which cause that harmful PAH compound production
- keep the grill grates and racks clean (you can use cooking spray to make cleaning easier)
- marinade meat before grilling -- the antioxidants in herbs and spices* which are found in marinades can reduce the production of HCA's
- red meat requires longer grilling time than poultry and fish, so opt for the latter
- use tin foil on grill grates and racks to provide a barrier between flames and food
- grill at lower temperatures and check internal temperatures for safety
- grill in the center of the grill, placing the charcoal on the edges of the grill to decrease PAH contamination
- remove charred and blackened portions of meat before eating
- add sauces at the end of grilling to avoid burning

And as always, vegetables come out on top. Grilling vegetables does not produce carcinogenic compounds...load up!

As pictured, shish-kabobs are a low-fat, balanced meal made on the grill. Marinade meat and vegetables (separately) in a teriyaki flavor, grill up, and serve over brown rice with low-sodium soy sauce. Delicious!

And for all you carnivores, choose red meat that is 93% lean or higher. My old timer parents made the switch so you can, too! For burgers, add chopped onion, seasoning salt, and pepper to your ground beef patties to enhance the flavor...sans the fat. I assure you, you'll love that burger more when you know it's a leaner choice!

P.S. Don't forget the 100% whole wheat buns!

* marindaes containing thyme, rosemary, oregano, basil and parsley are highest in antioxidants
[1] Bankard, Lisa. Monday Medical: Summer Calls for Health Grilling. Steamboat Pilot & Today. June 22, 2009.

Assiette de Tete de Porc or ‘How to turn a hog’s head into a delicate trio of starters’

[Scroll down for recipes]

Carnivorous detachment is something many of us are guilty of.



By that I mean there is a deliberate and tangible epistemic distance between product and animal. It’s one that we gloss over. Choose to ignore, and prefer to exist in a state of happy ignorance about where meat comes from.

Of course, when it really comes down to it we know that something, some thing, died so that we can consume the animal protein on our plate but there is a vast chasm between the casual awareness of this and the genuine hands on reality.

A few weeks back I went to a slaughterhouse. It was clean and quiet and had been shut down for the day. But the pervading atmosphere was one of death.

It was discernable not only in the smell, but in the walls, the floors, the shape of the pens and the grim actuality of the chains, hooks and instruments required to turn a cow (or in this case a water buffalo) into something the consumer is happy to eat.

There was no slaughter that day. But it wasn’t necessary to see it in order to have beliefs affirmed: that, for me, eating meat comes with a responsibility to appreciate the reality of husbandry, slaughter and butchery.

I’m not here to proselytise. Merely explain the position I’ve chosen to take and hopefully use that as a springboard for what follows.



Naturally there was a culinary dimension to cooking a pig’s head. It’s a challenge. A gastronomic gauntlet. A badge of honour, almost. But it also represents the face-to-face dimension of being a carnivore. Literally.

Where one can cook a steak with little thought to animal from which it came, a head doesn’t offer this luxury. It is clearly an animal, and one that we are familiar with. Looking at the apparent smile that seems to spread across the face of a dead pig one can’t help but think it is in a state of blissful ignorance as to its fate: the dinner plate.

I’d set myself the task of cooking a rather ambitious menu and then serving it up to brave diners who had kindly volunteered to accompany me on this little culinary journey. As a perfectionist, though, this wasn’t going to happen without a practice run.

The brain dish wasn’t a winner and certainly not worth the effort of cleaving open the head – a task which took close to three quarters of an hour. But the rest had potential.

So, here it is. A first draft anyway. Complete with recipes


Trio of Pig’s Head

[NB – The only element of this I had help with was asking the butcher to remove the eyes. I have a funny thing with eyes. I was 21 before I could consider the possibility of getting contact lenses.]

For this you will need one pig’s head. Remove the eyes and discard. Remove the ears close to the head and wash well. Use a boning knife to remove as much of the cheek meat as possible, cut into inch long pieces and set aside.

Cut off about an inch and a half to two inches of the snout and discard (a large saw is probably the best piece of equipment for this).

Place the head and ears into a large stockpot with a crude mirepoix of carrots, onion, celery, leeks and garlic. Cover the whole lot with water and bring it to a gentle boil. Let it simmer for half an hour, skimming off any scum that rises to the surface. After thirty minutes reduce the heat and let it bubble away very gently for three hours.

To confit the cheeks, finely chop some rosemary and bay leaf. Salt the cheeks and sprinkle over the herbs. Put the whole lot into a roasting tray and add enough duck or goose fat to come halfway up the cheek pieces. Cook in a cool oven – about 125 degrees C – for three hours. Turn the pieces every half hour or so. Once cooked leave to cool.

Remove the ears and head from the stock pot and let them cool. Strain the stock through a sieve and then a muslin cloth, bring it back to the boil and reduce it by about half. Remove about 250ml from the pot and add it to another saucepan. Reduce that by half. This will make the setting jelly for the brawn pâté. The rest of the stock can be used to make soup.

Once the head is cool enough to handle strip it of its meat, of which there should be plenty – about 300-400g. Set to one side and discard the bones.

Take a deep breath. You’re almost there.

Confit of pig’s cheek



Remove the meat from the duck or goose fat and slice off the skin (which can be used to make pork scratchings – bake ina moderate oven for about 20 minutes). Use two forks to shred it roughly, a little like making rillettes. Heat the leftover fat and strain through a sieve.

Season the meat with salt and black pepper then stuff it tightly into a sterilised jar. Pour over the liquid fat, screw on the lid and let it cool. This should keep for weeks and is great served with cornichons and fresh, crusty bread.


Brawn pâté



Brawn is a rough and ready item of charcuterie usually made with the entire head with chunks of meat set into jelly. This is a more delicate, refined version, much more similar to a pâté or rough sausage. The jelly is almost indiscernible and is used predominantly as a binding agent.

Finely chop the meat. Season it with salt and pepper then add some chopped sage, about six or seven leaves. In a mixing bowl add about 50ml of the reduced stock to the meat until it starts to come together then turn out onto a square of cling film or tin foil.

Roll the meat into a tight sausage and leave in the fridge overnight. Once set, slice the meat into circles, fry in a little olive oil for thirty seconds each side and serve with salad leaves.

Crispy fried pig’s ears



These are delicious. Not just passable or ‘OK. For an ear’, but really tasty. A little like calamari but slightly tougher.

Thinly slice the ear and coat in seasoned flour. Make up a batter (I used the ginger beer batter again – it works really well) and deep fry the battered ears for about two minutes. Drain on kitchen paper and serve with sea salt, a little lemon juice and some mayonnaise or sweet chilli sauce.