Saturday, June 23, 2012

Idly Idling Idler

The question is:

To do something I absolutely detest for the sake of keeping the stagnant mind occupied;

To bide my time to demonstrate my abilities while letting the mind idle further; or

To have jam-packed days to keep the lazy mind busy while bidding my time to demonstrate my abilities?

The answer is crystal clear.

Photo credit: here

Friday, June 22, 2012

My default fried rice

Fried rice is one of my favourite comfort food. It is tasty yet easy to whip up. It is also my fallback dish when I run out of ideas for the next meal. I like my fried rice flavorful and spicy. Through countless (and failed!) attempts in the past years, I've somehow bastardized it into a fairly acceptable version which is a cross between Chinese and Malay flavours. Think Yangzhou fried rice and Nasi Goreng (I adapted loosely from here).

Unless I have leftover char siu ( barbecued pork) which is rarer than rare, I almost always only use ham (or luncheon meat but it's canned) because it is savoury and also juicy enough to add a little moisture to the otherwise dry dish. Other farmyard friends such as chicken or pork, I try to steer clear from as they tend to further lend an aridity which ensues in the seasoned rice tasting like sand. Okay, I exaggerate but you get my drift. While peas are a common sight in this stir fry, I find it a bully. Its sweetness too dominant. As replacement, green beans are roped in to provide that healthy extra crunch and I proudly announce they do their job damn pretty well.

The next ingredient is the backbone of this dish: sambal chilli paste. Blend fresh chilli, garlic, shallots, dried shrimps (only when I'm up to it to dash to the basement to grab a handful) and oil to get the blades moving. Stir fry the mixture over medium low heat, add a small amount of sugar to balance out the flavours and season with salt. The robust paste infuses such mouth-watering piquance into the rice that it's hard to stop at just one bowl of spicy fluffiness. The absence of it becomes unthinkable: the rice doesn't pack a punch and lacks layers of depth.

If you prefer a more fancy-pants and substantial kind of fried rice, add prawns. Its succulent and firm flesh adds a right amount of oomph that makes you go hmmmm.... Oh, and don't forget those eggs!