Bak Kut Teh Instant Noodles

Not the place where I was born but where I hang my hat is home.
~ African Proverb

We found Bah Kut Teh instant noodles in the shops not too long ago. Although BKT is a common dish in Malaysia served with steamed rice but we have never come across a BKT flavoured instant noodles.

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The instant noodles BKT costs 69 cents — not cheap as far as instant noodles goes. Unless you read Chinese, you will simply miss this on the store shelves. I mean, BKT should show a simmering pot on pork, shouldn’t it?

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Laksa

There is no love sincerer than the love of food
~ Geoffrey Neighor

Rachel gave us a box of Laksa paste and premixes which they brought for us all the way from Singapore. This was what is rightfully called Laksa Lemak because there are many varieties of Laksa. This version of Laksa is of Peranakan origin, that is, born of the intermarriage of Chinese and Malay cultures.

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Laksa lemak, also known as nonya laksa, is a type of laksa served in a rich coconut gravy. The presence of the coconut cream (the pressed “milk” of the grated flesh of a fresh coconut) which adds a distinctive richness to the dish. Laksa is traditionally garnished with laksa leaf, also known as Vietnamese coriander or Vietnamese mint.

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Here are the ingredients we use to prepare the Laksa for lunch.

Ingredient (3).0The Laksa box contained four pouches:(1) the Laksa Premix,
(2) the Laksa Paste,
(3) Sambal Chili and
(4) Dried Laksa Leaves.
Ingredient (2).0For noodles, we use the shanghai thin noodles.
Ingredient (1).0We also had some fried beancurd (tofu-pok).
Ingredient (4).0For meat, we use fishballs and prawns. Cilantro is used to garnish the dish.

The Laksa can be used to make two-three servings. (more…)

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Orville Redenbacher’s Popcorns

The truly rich are those who enjoy what they have.
~ Yiddish Proverb

It’s hockey night today. Nanzaro wanted to watch the Canucks game against our arch-rival, the Flames. He made popcorns for snack for the game.

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The popcorn we bought was a mouthful — it’s called the Orville Redenbacher’s Ultimate Theater Style Butter Flavour Popcorn. Each box costs $2.99 and comes with four separate packs.

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This brand is different from many other popcorns in that it comes with a separate pour-over flavour pouch. The flavour is made from real butter. That’s why they call it the Ultimate Theater Style.

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DQ’s Chocolate Dilly Bars

Life is like a box of chocolate …
~ Forest Gump

Believe it or not, last week I bought a total of 72 Dilly Bars! It is a good thing that Dairy Queen had a BOGO (buy-one-get-one) promotion or else it would have costs me quite a bit. I bought them as a treat for all the people in Best Buy who had so kindly paid for my farewell lunches. I think they all liked it.

This is my blog on the famous Dilly Bar from DQ.

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The Dilly Bar is a delicious vanilla ice milk dipped in chocolate flavoured coating. Did you know that the Dilly is celebrating it’s 50th anniversary this year. Yup, it was first made in the year 1955.

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Each box of Dilly Bars come with twelve 100ml bars. (more…)

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Vietnamese Coffee

Coffee should be black as Hell, strong as death, and sweet as love.
~ Turkish Proverb

It is cold and rainy today. I did not sleep too well last night and as such it’s a great time for coffee to keep me awake. Suanne made me Vietnamese Coffee which is also known as Cafe Sua Nong. Vietnamese Coffee is normally served in ice but I like it warm on a cold day like today.

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Vietnamese coffee can be made simply by mixing black coffee with a lot of condensed milk. It is traditionally made by brewing the coffee with a small drip percolator into a cup containing condensed milk. We bought the percolator some time back from the T&T Supermarket. We can’t recall exactly how much it costs but it’s pretty cheap … something like $5 or so.

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We use whole coffee beans and like to grind it just before we use it to ensure freshness. Coffee once ground deteriorates fast. Ignore the Folgers can on the picture below … we just used the can to store our coffee beans.

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This is how we made our Vietnamese Coffee: (more…)

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Casserole Sausage Rice

Everything has an end — except for a sausage which has two.
~ Danish Proverb

This was what Suanne made for dinner yesterday. She found the recipe from the internet. It has been one of the more frequently made dish at home. Suanne says that she likes to make this dish is because this is the only way she can make Nanzaro eat carrots. Here is how it looks like:

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It’s quite an easy meal to make. It will take about 1.5 hrs in all, including baking and preparation time. It’s has everything one needs for nutrition … vegetables, meat, carbohydrates … all in one pot. Cleaning is also easy because it’s just one casserole and dry plates to wash.  (more…)

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Myojo Ramen Char Mee 100

One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not eaten well.
~ Virginia Woolf

This is our favourite instant noodle — we call it the Myojo Pedas 100. No other instant noodles comes close in comparison and it has no peers in the spicy-ness department. Although we have found some other Myojo instant noodles in many shops we have not come across this specific type. So, everytime we hear someone coming over from Malaysia or Singapore, we would go on the carpet begging friends or family to bring over some. This latest consignment comes courtesy of Rachel, little Angela and little Gabriel … specially imported from Singapore. [Rachel, Angela and Gabriel, we dedicate this blog to you!] We now have precious 15 packets — got to ration really closely because it’ll be a long while before we get our next replenishment! BTW, this is a dry noodle and not the normal soup type. This is how it looks like:

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Of all the in family, Nanzaro is the one that goes ga-ga over this the most. For a small guy, he can really take spicy food. So, the honor of eating the first pack goes to him. He has kindly consented to showing the world how he prepares the noodle. KIDS, DO NOT TRY THIS YOURSELF AT HOME. ALWAYS REMEMBER, SAFETY FIRST AND GET AN ADULT TO SUPERVISE YOU.

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[Dad]: Over to you Nanzaro.

[Nanzaro]: Ahem. Hello everyone. You MUST first of all make sure you have all the utensils you need. You don’t want to start looking for it midway cooking or you might rush and cause little accidents. This is what you need: a plate, pair of chopsticks, a small cooking pot with cover, and a sieve.

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Char Siew Wonton Noodle (Without the Wonton)

My mother’s menu consisted of two choices: Take it or leave it.
~ Buddy Hackett

Suanne and I had a big debate over how to name this dish. I mean, how can one call this a wonton noodle where there is no wonton. Anyway, it’s her dish and she gets to call it what she wants. The star of this simple dinner is the CHAR SIEW (roasted red pork). Suanne made the Char Siew herself. To make perfect char siew, you need pork shoulder butt. Suanne used some Thai made seasoning mix. She can’t recall where she bought it but should be in one of the many Asian market along Kingsway or Metrotown area (we hang around that place a lot because there is where I work, Arkensen and Nanzaro’s chinese school and our church). Here is the picture of the Roast Red Pork Seasoning Mix:

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Anyway, to cut to the chase (i.e. without showing you the whole roasting process because we did not take pictures), below is what the char siew looks like. I really like it a bit charred but trust me, it taste really GREAT.

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Now, hear this. You do NOT eat char siew like STEAK! They are to be sliced in bite size, like below. Here is a secret from Suanne … leave the slicing until the end or else everyone in the family will munch it all before the noodles is ready. Go, jot it down.

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Steamboat

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Tell me what you eat, and I will tell you what you are.
~ Anthelme Brillat-Savarin (1755 – 1826)
~ French gourmet & lawyer

Suanne’s favourite show … oh, I mean to say, Suanne’s OTHER favourite show is the Iron Chef. She roots for Iron Chef Chinese Chen Kenichi. The Iron Chef show always starts with the above quote. So, with the words “Tell me what you eat, and I will tell you what you are”, here is Suanne’s first presentation. Suanne prepared a steamboat (better known as Hot Pot in Canada) for our January 1st, 2006 dinner. Her thoughts is only with Nanzaro and Arkensen and prepared what they like best (meatballs!). Here are the stuff she prepared for the pot: Marinated thinly sliced pork. Suanne says that her marinate is very complicated and cannot be described on the internet.

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This is Arkensen and Nanzaro’s favourites consisting of artificial crab stick, fish balls and pork balls:

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This one is for the resident daddy: fried tofu puff (tofu pok?) and enoki mushrooms.

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Then we have the staples: Suey Choy, and Vermicelli.

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