This would be my 4th time fasting in Dublin, and as I've mentioned it before, this year's Ramadhan falls during the summer, and if you are unfamiliar with summer, it means longer daylight. In a Muslim's fast, one is restrained from consuming food or liquid during the day until the sun starts to set, then you hungry fellas, will start gobbling the food on the table, downing soya bean and sirap ais.
But tomorrow, when you are seated at the dining table, waiting for the Azan, sit back and think about the anak-anak perantaun who are living abroad to make a decent living. How with very limited resources we try to create our own ambience to feel like we are actually breaking fast with our families, food readily spread on the table. Nevermind the fact that the kuih seri muka is not so berseri, and the kuih bakar has no sesame on it. Nevermind that in the process of preparing sambal tempe (fermented soya, that you bought all the way from Glasgow), you used
cili besar instead of
cili kering to make the sambal. And silently curse the poor tempe for making the sambal pahit. And the fact that 5 years back, when your mom is in the kitchen she would blend all the chilli and keep it in a tupperware and you try to be smart and follow her ways, but actually not realising it's the wrong chilli you've blended and used for all 3 different types of dishes.Again, cursing the chicken or whatever meat it was.
And now my dear friends, I can gladly say that is all in the past, and I have to admit that I actually enjoy cooking. I know I'm not one of the best cook in town, but I love trying out new dishes.Usually chicken dishes. I can't make the nasi of the nasi lemak perfect yet, and I can't make my own favourite gulai asam pedas, just yet. But I can cook a meal to serve 10 people in a short span of 2 hours. It's called Chicken Cordon Bleu in Secret Recipe. I call it Chicken Fast and Furious. I have many other Fast and Furious dishes as well, which usually is made of pasta and tuna.
I know it looks only like chicken chop, but it really isn't. Blame the photographer ok! Anyone wants the recipe can google it or you can actually ask me. But I took it off the net anyway.
Master Chef (moi!)and the Sous Chefs.
Proudly
gentel-ed by Jaja and Amna. Ondeh-ondeh Gula Dublin.
Every week I will try to cook something different than the usual. Be it the dessert or the main dish. So far the only thing with an outcome below par is the Kuih Seri Muka tak berseri.TSK.
Anyway, just a little more update on what I did last weekend when a friend came over from Galway, we brought him to Dun Laghoire (read:dan leeey reee) for the World Culture Festival. Sadly, there were no performance or representatives from Malaysia. Why oh why, the guys who can perform Silat Rimau or Kuda Kepang or Dikir Barat did not perform? And there were Indonesian and Thai stalls, but no Malaysian's. How??
Because we were more interested with the harbour/pier , we strolled along the pier and took pictures instead of watching the performances. Psst they were not all free performances lor..
Anyway, hope he had fun in Dun Laoghaire and we will visit you in Galway aight. I wonder what will we be doing tomorrow.....
