Monday, 7 June 2021

MCO 4.0 - Day 07

 7 June 2021     Day 07 of Movement Control Order 4.0

        It feels like a Sunday today because it's a public holiday. Again, hubby and I cooked in tandem. This time I dealt with the meat while he was tasked with the vegetables.

Ginger and Scallion Fish Fillets

Stir-fried Long Beans with Belacan

Sunday, 6 June 2021

MCO 4.0 - Day 06

 6 June 2021     Day 06 of Movement Control Order 4.0

        When hubby asked what he should cook for me this long weekend, I was quick to reply, "Fried beehoon, please!"

        So tonight, we had Chef Derrick's Fried Beehoon. I merely assisted with the cutting and washing. As always, he fried an enormous portion, so that's tomorrow's breakfast settled too! Yayyy!


 

Saturday, 5 June 2021

MCO 4.0 - Day 05

 5 June 2021     Day 05 of Movement Control Order 4.0

        After a Zumba session during a stormy evening, dinner was cooked in tandem. Hubby got the short end of the stick : his job was to fry the fish. I had the better deal : stir-frying the vegetables was my task. Heheheheh!

Fried Indian Mackerel (Ikan Kembung) with a chilli dip

Stir-fried Choy Tam with garlic

Friday, 4 June 2021

MCO 4.0 - Day 04 (EMCO Day 14)

 4 June 2021     Day 04 of Movement Control Order 4.0

                            Day 14 of Enhanced Movement Control Order

        Ipoh's EMCO ends today and we'll follow the Standard Operating Procedures of the nationwide MCO starting from tomorrow. The obvious differences are two persons per household are allowed out, travel is permitted within a 10 km radius, and jogging is permitted from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

        Although I now shy away from tofu and anything made from soybeans because of my medical condition, I cannot deprive hubby of them. Today, I served him one of his favourites : Guangxi Stuffed Tofu Puffs. He had also requested for Steamed Okra with Sambal.

Steamed Okra with Sambal


My Minced Meat and Mushrooms sauce had made the Guangxi Stuffed Tofu Puffs dish a messy sight


so Mr. Photographer took a close-up shot of his lil Tofu Puff 😅

Ah Khay's Braised Pork Belly with Yam to share

Thursday, 3 June 2021

MCO 4.0 - Day 03 (EMCO Day 13)

 3 June 2021     Day 03 of Movement Control Order 4.0

                            Day 13 of Enhanced Movement Control Order

        Despite his wifey's predilection for pan mee, hubby tried once and never ordered it again. It boggles me because hubby loves all things porky, especially likes potato leaves and a soup made from ikan bilis stock should sit well with him. The only conclusion that I can come up with is he doesn't fancy the texture of the noodles.

        So today, I decided to make my own version of Chilli Pan Mee, or to be precise, Chilli Ramen. To make this dish a success, many components had to come together. First, I fried some ikan bilis. Then, I cooked the minced pork with shredded mushrooms. Next, I made the all-important chilli oil condiment. After that, I got ready a simple soup with some greens and strips of pork. Then, I cooked the ramen, careful to keep them al-dente. Finally, I poached the eggs. To be honest, it was the last component that was the trickiest as I'd never done it before.

        It may be a one-dish meal, but lots of labour was required. But the crux of the matter was would hubby like my Chilli Ramen?

Chilli Ramen for two

A close-up of hubby's Chilli Ramen

        Phew! My suspicions were confirmed. Indeed it's the texture of the pan mee that he doesn't like. Tonight, he loved my Chilli Ramen!

Wednesday, 2 June 2021

MCO 4.0 - Day 02 (EMCO Day 12)

 2 June 2021     Day 02 of Movement Control Order 4.0

                         Day 12 of Enhanced Movement Control Order

        When hubby gleefully showed me the lemongrass he had bought from the Zombie Farm last Friday, he added, "I really like your lemongrass chicken." 

        I knew which dish he was referring to so I hastened to correct him. "Not my lemongrass chicken. It's Marion's lemongrass chicken." To be precise, it's Marion's Balinese Coconut Turmeric Roast Chicken, which I always add chopped lemongrass to.

        Since last Friday, I'd used the lemongrass that hubby bought for Assam Pedas Fish and Ayam Masak Kuah Bunga Kantan. Though he had enjoyed both dishes tremendously, the poor man must be wondering when the Balinese Coconut Turmeric Roast Chicken would make its appearance.

        The aromatic smell of the chicken roasting in the oven must have wafted around the house. Hubby popped his head into the kitchen and triumphantly proclaimed, "You're cooking the lemongrass chicken!" Following my nod, he smugly left and proceeded to wait patiently for dinner to be served. And during dinner, he was one happy man.

Balinese Coconut Turmeric Roast Chicken with Lemongrass

Steamed Brinjals with Fried Shallots, which hubby enjoys

Fried Prawn Rolls


Tuesday, 1 June 2021

MCO 4.0 - Day 01 (EMCO Day 11)

 1 June 2021     Day 01 of Movement Control Order 4.0

                           Day 11 of Enhanced Movement Control Order

        Today, Malaysia enters the first day of a two-week full lockdown, whereby some have cleverly coined the acronym FMCO. Since 18 March last year, we have had a slew of acronyms in English and Bahasa Melayu...MCO, PKP, CMCO, PKPB, RMCO, PKPP, EMCO, PKPD, TEMCO, PKPDB...and now FMCO or SPP (Sekatan Pergerakan Penuh, as seen on Berita Harian). And the SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures) for each lockdown...ah...keeping up with which is which is enough to make me dizzy. Why can't the cordon sanitaire just be either a lockdown or a partial lockdown?

        For the purposes of this blog, I shall just ape New Straits Times and refer to this new period of lockdown as MCO 4.0. And oh yes, we were reminded that Ipoh is still under EMCO till 4 June. So apparently, the SOPs of MCO 4.0 don't apply to us. We have to adhere to the SOPs of EMCO! Saya betul-betul pening! The best SOP, to me, is STAY AT HOME!

        Taking advantage of my French oven, I cooked Shanghai-styled Braised Pork Belly ( çº¢çƒ§è‚‰ ). Aha! Truly an example of East meeting West. And hubby was enamoured with it, kept singing praises of it, "Mmm...very tasty...oooh...so tender...mmm...nice!" 

Shanghai-styled Braised Pork Belly

        I was quick to capitalise on his enchantment. "So now you are convinced of how good a Le Creuset pot is?" Hubby was too busy enjoying the luscious, fork-tender pieces of meat to answer me, so he merely nodded.

Radish Spare Ribs Soup


        Variations of the dish abound and there are tons of recipes on the Internet to refer to. I decided to follow the one shared by The Woks Of Life as it makes use of very basic ingredients. It also doesn't use spices like star anise and cinnamon, which I know are not favoured by hubby. I did, however, add aromatics like ginger, garlic and the pale ends of the spring onion.

Yummylicious!