ayonecan-cook

The Star , a national newspaper, has in its supplement Startwo a two page spread on the first Monday of every month called 'Don't Call Me Chef' . They feature recipes based on a theme.  Starting September they intend to feature a food blogger each month as well. I felt quite pleased and very honoured when Ivy, the column's writer and editor of Youth , asked if I would like to be the first food blogger to be featured and to contribute a recipe. Ivy also has a food blog called The Hungry Caterpillar. My contribution to this column would give the link to my blog as well as appear on kuali.com on Star Online on the same day, that is today 6th September 2010. We met and I was asked a few expected questions. I spent a few minutes recounting my little blog story. Then I sat back and, somewhat apprehensively (it being my first ever interview), looked forward to seeing it in print. I think.  I saw the article this morning. Eagerly. The title made me gasp a little. And then I ...

I would finish a packet of this so fast and then hunger for more. But there really is no other way to enjoy this than to make your own because we all know that commercial varieties are deep fried in the same oil over and over again. Ick! I made this and it was oh! so delicious. It was sweet and spicy  clinging to crunchy. I was on high. The cassava root may appear quite intimidating because it looks very much like the trunk of a small tree with a very rough, dark and thick bark. It looks hard and heavy too. But once you get the skin off (which is actually not difficult to do) you'll find the inside flesh a smooth, silky, pristine white albeit very firm. I'm always amazed at the contrast.   These are sliced thinly and deep fried...very much like potato crisps ~ but they're not as fragile. Potato crisps almost break and dissolve the moment you put them into your mouth, without any effort at all, but these are more crunchy as opposed to crispy and slightly chewy. Lets just ...

 Warning : Healthy Recipe Ahead!  Don't be alarmed..... I'm not turning vegetarian or vegan. But I do enjoy some vegetarian food and sometimes I'm stunned how satisfying and lip smacking they can be.  I remember the the sambal tempe , the dhall curry , the spiced chickpeas , the kimchi , the chutney , the spring rolls ....Oh my god I counted and I actually have 20 vegetarian dishes on my blog!!  Perhaps I'm in the process of evolving into one. Perhaps.... I'm healthy! GASP. Divina of Sense and Serendipity has smitten me yet again with her fabulous and healthy recipes. It all started with the beautiful Mochi Chocolate truffles (well, ok, that's not exactly healthy. It's fabulous), then the sensational Tofu crusted in Bonito Flakes and now some fantastic Gluten free Korean pancakes. All from her beautiful and educational blog.  And the fact that she has the wonderful gift of making all her healthy food look unhealthy doesn't hurt either. Completely glu...

Ubi Kayu (Oo-bee Car-you)or cassava is one of the cheapest potatoes/roots around at 2 Ringgit (US 0.60) per kilo. It became a staple for many when rice became scarce during the second world war when our then Malaya fell under the Japanese occupation. It was a hard time for many. I did not come from that era but I've heard stories of how cassava or ubi kayu saved many from hunger. It was a poor man's food and still is in many parts of the developing world because it will grow in poor soil all year round and is starchy thus providing much energy for laborious work or to simply starve off hunger while living on meagre means and in poor conditions. It is a high energy food like rice because it is mainly starch from which tapioca flour is made. It is versatile. It can be created into delicious desserts, eaten plain, boiled, with curry sauce or dipped into a combo of grated coconut and sugar or slathered with palm sugar syrup or be sliced thinly, deep fried and turned into the most...

Kim Chi ~ Tell me how cute a name is that? Bimbim Bap ~ Tell me how cute a name is that? Soondooboo Jiigae ? Kimchi Bokeum Bap ? Have I made my point? And aren't those Korean actors and actresses just as cute too? I know my nieces definitely think they are. And as cute as the name may very well be....kimchi is not a photogenic food, like rendang . It took me all 2 days of sweat, sweat and sweat to come up with some decent photographs. After all it was simply cabbage on a plate and the other just a brown mash of meat. But like the Malaysian rendang there is nothing plain about the Korean kimchi. The spiciness from the chillie and the flavours from the garlic, grated ginger and a sweet edge from the fruit puree that I had used made it a fantastic appetizer. Plus I've had this craving for some kimchi-jeon (kimchi pancakes) ever since I saw photographs of my nieces enjoying a Korean meal in Korea with the said pancake in full view of my computer screen. I was told by a lady herb...

I am so inclined to whimsical food. Play food that is fun to make as it is to look at and to play with eat. These egg rolls filled my needs and are as pretty as a picture.  Tracie from Bittersweet Flavours is whom I have to thank. Thank you Tracie. Her wonderful mother obliges with food for her blog, Tracie herself is quite the accomplished baker and these egg rolls were made by her aunt and displayed on her blog. That is what I call teamwork. Which makes me wish I had a living breathing and an industrious team of little elves in my kitchen right now. However, these are what I made all by myself while my son hovered around the fringes. Waiting. And although the fish paste had little bubbles of air trapped inside I shall consider them not a failure but cute instead. But Perhaps I should have used white pepper instead of black. I had used the fish ball recipe that I had posted earlier on, here . I just added a sprinkle of finely chopped red chillies for colour. Then I made and 2 o...

When a warm tropical thunderstorm ceases I'm happy. I feel as fresh as a cold, squirmy fish soaking in a sharp, chilly lake in the lush, mountain jungles of Borneo. With a camera. Snapping cheerfully at my bowl of fish floss. Knees in a puddle, slipping about on wet leaves. It's the after rain feeling I'm having now. A little bouncy, blithe, light and gurgly. Its the ions. You know ~ the negetive ions~. And strangely enough my fish floss look almost like fish food. Fish food fit for a Fish King. Or for the Queen of Fish.  That's how gurgly I'm feeling right now..... ..pheash forgive me. Tuna is what I used. 3 whole tunas, filleted, skinned, poached and crumbled. And spiced up with some chillie, coriander seeds, onions, garlic, ginger and tumeric.  It's an appetizer, a side dish, a sandwich filler. It can be eaten as a topping for fried rice, with steamed glutinous rice or with bread for breakfast or as a snack. I love it. It's one of my favourite appetizers...