Lim is going to be faaaa-moooooos!

Teh:

As title suggests, Lim is going to famous soon! But will it be for the right reason?

Maybe I can do an interview with him soon. Here's what I imagine it'd be like: -

Teh: So Lim, tell me, how does it feel to be famous?
Lim: First you have to say it the right way. Its "Faaaa-mooooos!"
Teh: Ok let me try that again. How does it feel to be "faaa-moooos?"
Lim: No comments.
Teh: No comments?!?!?!

*Teh storms off to lim teh (drink tea)*

Stay tuned ;)

Out of the norm

Teh:

Lim and I will be doing something different and exciting tomorrow! But I cannot say what we are doing. It'll be good to get some blessings from our dear readers (spam bots included)!

I tell Lim we'll have a good laugh about it tomorrow. Already we had some laughs this afternoon while poking fun at it. I think we make very good script writers. Our dramas are always exciting and entertaining, in our head!

There was once i made a typo in my text message to Lim. Instead of "Good Luck", i typed "Good Lick" and sent it off. It has since became a private joke between us. Whenever we need some good luck, we send "good licks" instead.

So we need all the good licks we can get now! If you can't give us any good licks, its ok too. Have a good weekend ahead! Do something different for a change. Feel the excitement! Feel alive =)

10000 views!

Teh:

We hit 10000 views! From the start of this blog till now (at least a good 1.5 years), we managed to hit 10000 views. Amazing! We would like to thank you for your relentless clicking, your curiosity, your resilience and of course not forgetting the ever hardworking spam bots!

Not sure if you remember, but getting 10k hits was one of my resolution for this year. Now that it has been achieved, i need to set a new resolution. I was at a course recently and the trainer said we should set goals first, then think about how we can achieve them. Instead of setting realistic goals that we think we can achieve. So just a random figure off my head, how about 100 000 hits by the end of 2014? If those popular bloggers can get a few thousand hits a day, i think 100 000 hits by the end of 2014 should not be a problem for Lim and I? There i go again, setting a goal i think i can achieve =p Or 100 000 hits by end of 2013? Now how in the world are we going to achieve that? That'll be something to think about for a few days!

On a side note, i managed to catch the musical "The Phantom of the Opera" on Friday. Without giving too much away, i want to tell you i loved the sets. The singing was pitch perfect and frankly, quite amazing. You should try to go catch it if you can! 

On an even further side note, i still have a soft spot for "Wicked", especially the songs "For Good" and "Defying Gravity".

100 000 hits, here we come!

Hazy Haze

Teh:

Hi guys and girls, just thought i drop a note to remind everyone to drink more water and stay indoors! Yes the haze is back! Everyone is monitoring the PSI like the stock market exchange rate. I know i have no excuse for the lack of activity on this blog :x I have been busy wrapping bazhang (dumplings) and sun tanning at the beach. I have pictures to prove! But i doubt you are interested in them. No recipes, no reviews what-so-ever.

I'll try to post something good next week! Stay tuned!

Glutinous Rice Picture

Teh:

Here is the Glutinous rice i made yesterday.

Here is the glutinous rice and ang gu kueh i packed for my colleagues the next day. The lighting in this picture made the food look funny =( But i assure you the glutinous rice, cai por and fried shallots were popular!

Maybe i should post the recipe next? Yes i think i will =) Good things are meant to be shared!

Cooking or Assembling?

Teh:

We haven't had one of these random musing posts for a long time so i thought i should write one =)

Cooking or Assembling?

Of late, whenever i eat out, i feel like my food on the plate has been assembled rather than cooked. Do you get that feeling sometimes? Whether its fishball noodles, economic veg rice, char kway teow, fish and chips or whatever you are having, did the food feel tasteless? Like no thought was put into the preparation or cooking process. It's an assembly of ingredients and sauces. Even the food my mum cooks sometimes taste like an assembly (don't say i said that)! I know she is very busy and doesn't always have time to cook. I appreciate her tremendous effort in putting dinner on the table every night. Mummy is the BEST! Oops, i digressed.

Yes, back to cooking. I love cooking. I love the whole thought process of it and the actual event itself. I enjoy thinking about what i'm craving for, what new recipes to try, how i can tweak things i already know how to make, how to make it taste and look better. I feel excited just thinking about going to the supermarket to pick the fresh ingredients and be surrounded by endless possibilities! (Do you know why fresh ingredients taste better?  That's another story for another time) I think one of the BEST part of cooking is imagining how people's faces look like when they finally taste the food. "WOW SOoooo GOOD!" "How did you do this?" "When are you cooking this again?" Who isn't a sucker for compliments for the food they cooked? He/she is a liar ;)

Guess what i'm cooking tomorrow? Glutinous rice. You may be thinking it is such an easy dish. Initially i thought so too. Until i start thinking about how to make the dish better! I must fry my own peanuts because those bought outside just don't taste as good as freshly fried peanuts. I must fry my own shallots. Same reason as the peanuts. I suck at peeling shallots. It's going to be time consuming. I wish i had a microwave oven at home. They make speedy fried shallots. Almost effortless! But i don't so its back to the wok. I also must make my cai por! Because my family loves my cai por. I love my cai por on the glutinous rice. Cai por needs to be soaked and cooked. In order to serve it in time for lunch tomorrow, i have to start cooking it tonight and throw it into the slow cooker. It'll taste heavenly by tomorrow. Glutinous rice needs to be soaked overnight before i steam it in the morning. What else? We can't just be having glutinous rice right? So i made popiah filled with mango and nata de coco. I prepared those before hand on Sunday. Frozen and ready to be deep-fried tomorrow. I'm also toying with the idea of preparing a mixed vegetable dish. But i haven't had time to get the vegetables yet. Should i put garnish on the rice? Spring onion? Red cut chilli? So many decisions to make and things to do, just for the perfect dish! Or of course you can just buy cooked glutinous rice outside for $2 for the easy way out. Your pick.

So whats the big occasion tomorrow? My little nephew is coming to my house for lunch!

Happy Chinese New Year!

Teh:

Lim and I would like to wish all readers a very HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR! May the year of the snake bring you joy and happiness!

Speaking of chinese new year, Lim, where is my ang bao?

Merry Christmas 2012!

Dear All,

it is that time of the year again where we are thankful for the all the good things that happened to us and glad that we tide over the bad ones!

Lim and I would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas!

Whichever way you are celebrating Christmas, have a blast!

Le Creuset Family Sale Up To 70% Off @ Traders Hotel 25 – 27 Oct 2012

Teh:

Look what i found! -

Le Creuset Family Sale Up To 70% Off @ Traders Hotel 25 – 27 Oct 2012

aLe ObL9Creuset will be havingpn4T a FamilyW SaleF from 256Q October XEto 27bBJ g52October 2012, w6fx10am to 6pm at Traders Hotel (1A Cuscaden Road), PenangYVS Room Rwith up lto 70% off

ThesES sale Mifeatures OELe Creuset kitchenwareQot products going Uwhat up toh0sJ 70%WaEL off.qYmp No xAH delivery service is provided. WhileB stocks lasts!

Fifty Shades of Grey.... or something else

Teh:

When Jeanette Winterson asked why women need pain to enjoy sex, I couldn't help but pick up a copy to read. There is such a big woo-haa (mainly all the BDSM) going on with "Fifty Shades of Grey"! A few of my friends who are not in the habit of reading have actually heard about it. The power of BDSM! But really, there isn't much "kinky f**kery" (according to the book) so to speak of. To me, it is alot more like a romance novel (i have only ever read one when i was 12 years old) sprinkled with some "kinky" (in its loosest way) sex. But then again, what makes a good romance novel?

Let me break it down for you on whether you should read this book.

1. If you like romance novels, read it.
2. If you are a Twilight fan, read it. I heard it started off as a fanfic. "Tall, dark and handsome. Impossibly rich." Those are convenient premises to any woman (or man) off her feet.
3. If you are curious about mild kinky f**kery, read it.
4. If you are looking for hardcore kinky f**kery, don't read it.
5. If you are bored, don't read it. Take 50 shades of something else instead...

Ok. Back to cooking this weekend if i can find the elusive ingredients. For once, Sheng Siong doesn't have what i was looking for! May have to go Mustafa soon.

Singapore's first Olympics Medal (in an individual event) in 52 years! - Thank you Tianwei!

Teh:

Feng Tianwei clinched the bronze medal for Singapore last night! Singapore's first individual Olympics medal in 52 years!

Not sure if you watched the match between Feng Tianwei and Kasumi Ishikawa but Tianwei made it look rather effortless. Especially after her tough and thrilling match against Ding Ning the day before! Her match with Kasumi Ishikawa was not as fun to watch. I'm not complaining though!

Now i'm hoping for a team medal in table tennis from the ladies! Good luck!

Go Feng Tianwei!

Teh:

I watched the exciting table tennis semi-finals match (London Olympics 2012) between Feng Tianwei and Ding Ning last night! When i knew Tianwei was up against Ding Ning, my heart sank abit. Ding Ning is one tough nut to crack! Nevertheless, i hoped that some miracle will happen.

I read that our PM Lee was watching at home with his wife, cheering Tianwei on. Guess what? We were doing the same at home! All eyes were on the table and the players. We couldn't help but hold our breaths when there were long and intense rallies. We cheered for Tianwei wins and shouted encouragement when she lost points. It was definitely a world class performance from both players.

There were 2 occasions where the umpire awarded a point to Tianwei that left Ding Ning puzzled. It was something to do with concealing the ball from the opponent when she served. How did that happen? But anyway, concealed or not, those points were precious!

Tianwei became my heroine when she did not give up despite the score being 3-10, match point for Ding Ning! Tianwei fought for her point when the umpire did not see the ball touching the table. She managed to garner another 3 points before succumbing to the final score of 6-11.

I must say Ding Ning was very scary with her deathly stares. But Tianwei was unfazed! Maybe she is used to it. I can't imagine Tianwei with the same deathly stare. Can you?

I'm looking forward to Tianwei's next match! Hope she keeps up her performance and win a bronze medal!

Good Luck Team Singapore!

What would you rather be doing if not what you are doing now?

Teh:

Today at work, just for fun, i had the following conversation with my colleague.

Me: What would you want to do other than being a landlord? (My colleague wants to be a 包租婆).
Her: Owner of a book shop cum cafe.
Me: Because you like to read and drink coffee?
Her: Yes!

After considering her line of thoughts for awhile, i replied:

Me: I want to open a beach bar. Because i like to tan, drink and watch the sunset over the sea!

Maybe i can start with opening those small makeshift drink/ice cream stall at East Coast Beach? Slowly i can expand a few tables and chairs? Sell beer? After that i can sell food? And Voila! A Beach Bar is born!

Yes, random musing on a Monday afternoon....

Painting By Numbers

Teh:

A little sidetrack from the usual food and stuff. I attempted my very first painting by numbers piece! For those who do not know what it is, it's basically a painting, divided into numbered sections. You are supposed to paint these sections with the numbered paint allocated. I found the process to be quite peaceful because you don't think about anything else except to try to not paint beyond the allocated section. It also gave me a sense of creation and achievement at the end (for people with no artistic talent like me!).

This painting is called "Streets of Paris" (40cm x 50cm). The kit came with little containers of paint and 3 different sized brushes. You do not need to mix the paint with water. The paint doesn't drip. It dries very fast. Try not to expose the paint to the air often as it may dry up in the container! I picked this because it was the only painting that has a cafe theme (I recently saw another one even nicer!). Although the colours are not as vibrant as those seen in the original "money" shot, the combination and complexity of the colours still provided a WOW factor. I'm going to frame this painting up and put it in our future cafe.

If you are interested, i bought this online at this website - http://paintbynumbers.com.sg/

When i showed my friend this, she said i always find funny things to do. Here's my funny thing:

Streets of Paris

Bye bye Colin Goh's column...

Teh:

On Sunday, i read with disappointment that Colin Goh's sunday column on The Straits Times will be ending soon. I always look forward to his column. Before reading his latest column (and before knowing it was ending), i briefly thought Straits Times should give him the main column space. Yes i enjoy Sumiko Tan's column too but Colin Goh's is funnier. I will always be wondering what Baby Yazuki is doing...

Bye bye Colin Goh's column... RIP...

Absolute April

Teh: To my utmost horror, we haven't post anything in the month of April. Apologies to anyone who have been coming back here looking for signs of activities.

Congrats to Lim, 2nd time father! I helped him name his son, so to speak. He gave me 2 choices, i picked one, he picked the other. That's how his son's name came about - the name i didn't pick. lol.

I promise new and exciting recipes to come soon! I will be having access to a commercial kitchen. I'm sure a lot of goodies will come out from there. Plus, i have a new phone! Samsung Galaxy S2. It takes decent pictures! Watch this space for them!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Lim and I (Teh) wish everyone a Happy Valentine's Day!

We haven't been very active on the blog because Lim is perpetually busy and well, i haven't been cooking anything decent and worthy enough to blog about. And because i think we owe you a post, i'm going to talk about the 2 places i went to recently.

Johor Bahru (Malaysia)
On Lim's birthday (last week), we skipped work together and went to Johor Bahru! It was quite a lazy day. We watched "Underword - Awakening" (and drooled dutifully at Kate Beckinsale) for 7 ringgit @ KSL Shopping Mall! There were only 5 of us in the cinema. We had a good time laughing at some of effects and the incredible things vampires and the Lycans could do. It was enjoyable.

Lunch was a disappointing affair at Causeway Bay Hong Kong Cafe. Don't try the Coca-cola chicken. It tasted like the chicken was fried, left around to be cooled and then mixed with coke (or coke-wannabe). The dry beef hor fun i had was good. The ice lemon tea came in 0.5 litres size! We didn't know. Lim had no trouble finishing it.

The highlight of the day was the massage at the end. For 70 ringgit, we had an hour of foot reflexology and 30 minutes of back massage. The room was comfortable, there was a TV with Singapore channels. I can't remember ever watching "Ellen" (the talk show) in the middle of the afternoon. In between my quiet and discreet face contortions during foot reflexology, I caught whichever bits I could. The back massage which followed the foot reflexology was literally the back breaker. I knew my muscles were stiff but I didn't know it was that bad! But being the sadist I am, i thoroughly enjoyed the whole session. Poor Lim. He said his groans and protest of pain fell upon deaf ears. The guy who gave him the massage probably thought he was enjoying it. lol.


Azzura (Sentosa Beach)

If you like the sun and the beach, Azzura is the place for you! It is a beach club located on Sentosa. You can reach it via the sky train (from Vivo City). Just drop at the beach station and walk towards the beach. Azzura is 5 minutes away.

There are plenty of sun chairs, sun beds, swings and seats. You'll definitely find something you can to laze on while you soak up the sun. If it gets too hot for you, they have 2 pools available. We really felt like we were on a holiday. My friend had the Azzura Dragon Mojito. Its basically Mojito with dragon fruit inside. The drink turned out to be quite potent. No wonder it appeared to be the most frequently ordered drink! For $16.50++, it better not be weak. I had the Mango Frozen Margarita ($16.50++ too) which looked good but was weak on the alcohol side. It was refreshing nevertheless. But next time i'm going for the Mojito! We ate, drank and tanned the whole day. We order Pizza Azzura. It was good! The mixed platter we ordered was rather disappointing. The items on the platter did not justify the price ($34++) due to their small portion and poor quality. There were french fries, wedges, fried sweet potato stick (?), onion rings, calamari and chicken wings (3 parts only!). Pity the prices were not in ringgit.

Side note, plenty of eye candies at Azzura!

New Year Resolution 2012

Dear All,

Lim and I (Teh) would like to wish everyone a very happy 2012! What are your new year resolutions? I'll write some of mine here so i can check back again periodically and see if I've fulfilled them. The best way to make a resolution come true is to write it down and read it every day!

2012 Resolutions

1. To get 1000 hits at our blog (go spam bots!) before 2013.
2. To weigh 54kg by 29 Feb 2012.
3. To go  _ _ _    _ _ _ _ this year.

What's your's?

My first website - www.flyinghog.com.sg

Here is Flying Hog Cafe & Bar's website (http://www.flyinghog.com.sg/) i did for my friend. It is the one i was agonising over recently. It is finally up and running! It goes hand in hand with the menu i did for her! Now on to the next item on the list - their press kit. It's sort of done but i need the boss's approval first.

iphone 4S review - Coming soon lah!

Teh: Yesterday i had lunch with Lim. Guess what?! Lim said he will be getting the iphone 4S and he has promised to give us an iphone 4S review! I told him not to wait too many months before he starts writing the review.

Right Lim?

Lim said he read online about some of ways other users were testing Siri. (Siri is an artificially intelligent, voice controlled assistant. You talk to Siri and she talks back. She can do everything from set alarms and schedule appointments to answer reference questions and make you laugh. My voice controlled assistant will be affectionately called "Serene".) One of users was asking Siri for suitable places to hide a body. Reservoir was one of the top results. It was hilarious! I wonder what questions Lim will ask. Or rather what questions Lim will confess to asking Siri when he writes here.

I wait with bated breath for his review!