MCO 2.0 - Day 25

 Day 25 of Movement Control Order 2.0

3 December 2020

        I had a sobering chat with my favourite hawker, Ah Keong, today. Yesterday I had patronised his stall but today I was waiting for the pan mee lady to cook Mummy's noodles. It was rare to see Ah Keong not busy hovering over the cauldron. He turned and smiled shyly at me. So I approached him and asked him, "How's everything?" He confided in me that business has been terrible since the first lockdown. Ah Keong's stall had always enjoyed bustling business and usually by 10.30 a.m., all his goodies would have been sold out and he would be preparing to wrap up for the day. In sharp contrast, when I was talking to him today, it was actually past noon, and I could see he still had a long way to go. He went on to tell me that he was afflicted with the chikungunya virus recently but despite the intense aches that ensued, he had to return to work as he is the sole breadwinner of the family, with an old parent, sick wife, two college-going children and loans to shoulder. Although it was not my plan to buy anything from him today, I left with some extra dumplings and a silent vow to patronise his stall at least once a week during this Work From Home period.

        Ah Keong is not the only one adversely affected by this pandemic. Many have lost their jobs or suffered a drastic drop in earnings. The least we can do is to eat out from time to time. I still shun crowded eateries so I opt for a take-away at these places. And after today's chat, I will choose to do that more often, either for my breakfast or lunch.

        For dinner, I enjoy cooking for hubby. It's always heart-warming when you see your fruits of labour being delighted upon. Tonight's Sesame Oil Chicken ( 麻油鸡 ) is an aromatic and homey dinner, which takes very little effort and time to prepare. First, I fried some ginger strips in sesame oil till they were crispy. They were taken out and put aside for garnishing. I then fried garlic and ginger strips in the same pan before adding the marinated chicken cubes. After drizzling in a little dark soya sauce and sprinkling some sugar, I poured in some water, turned down the fire and allowed the chicken to simmer until the sauce thickened. Shaoxing wine was later added in and right after dribbling in more sesame oil, I turned off the fire and gave everything a good mix. This is definitely an ideal weeknight dinner!

Crispy ginger strips on my Sesame Oil Chicken

        

Stir-fried Angled Luffa with Prawns