Boyfriend-brand dinner

Further to my boyfriend-brand lunchbox blog entry, my friend Down Under wanted to see what boyfriend-brand dinner looks like. See photos below from our dinner last Sunday.

[03-Nov-2013 Vegetarian version for me]

[03-Nov-2013 Fish for boyfriend]

Not only does DD cook and plate the food, he also cooks a vegetarian version for me if it is a meat-based dish. Btw, that's home-made pesto sauce on the fish and tau-hoo ［豆腐］。 DD loves cooking and sharing the product of his culinary skills. My role is to eat, appreciate and be happy!

[03-Nov-2013 The works behind home-made pesto]

Boyfriend-brand lunchbox

I brought boyfriend-brand lunchbox to work yesterday. It was leftover casserole from last Saturday's brunch cooked and packed by DD, specially for me.

[21-Oct-2013 Boyfriend-brand casserole lunchbox]

It is not the first time that DD had cooked and packed lunchbox for me. We often joked that since he posted photos of his exquisite food in the online dating website where we met, our "deal" was that he would cook, cuddle and pamper me for the rest of our lives. So far, DD has lived up to his end of the deal, he would either cook (DD really enjoys cooking) or we'll eat out (often we split the bill, but sometimes we treat each other). [In fact, my vegetable curry and rendang dishes for Thanksgiving were the first time that DD tried my cooking.]

For last Sunday's brunch, I was too lazy to head out. Thus, DD cooked the macaroni while I cooked the assam soup with ingredients to go with the macaroni. Happily, DD commented that the shrimps were nicely cooked by me (i.e. tender and juicy). [Note: I did not eat the shrimps given that I'm mostly vegetarian.]

I teased DD that our deal still holds, notwithstanding the compliments. He joked in return that he need to speak to his lawyers to re-negotiate for better terms. Funny thing is, DD really enjoys cooking, cuddling and pampering me. It is so refreshing to be totally pampered by a man. *Feeling blessed*

[20-Oct-2013 Boyfriend-brand home-made gourmet crackers]

Late Sunday afternoon, DD got inspired and made his own gourmet crackers. They were delicious! What a man!

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Click here for boyfriend-brand dinner.

Recipe: Creamy spaghetti

While I enjoy cooking for my friends (i.e. a group), when it comes to cooking for one, I have a tendency to be lazy. I would probably be eating instant noodles daily if not for the fact that I prevent myself from falling into that dietary rut by avoiding instant noodles on the supermarket shelves. [Note: To be honest, there were periods when I was eating instant noodles on a regular basis during my initial year in Canada.]

So I look into my refrigerator and food stock for quick-and-easy meals, that comes with a touch of finesse. Here's my recipe for quick-and-easy creamy spaghetti.

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Creamy spaghetti

Ingredients for a single serving (clockwise from top-left):

100ml white wine. Wine gives a unique twist to many common dishes. It is also good way to use up any leftover from an opened bottle after-the-party.

Pine nuts. Only a handful is needed (not the entire amount shown in the photo above). Note: Use only pine nuts (i.e. do not add walnuts) if you like a subtle flavour.

Spaghetti. I use wholewheat spaghettini because it is healthy, and it takes the less time to cook than regular spaghetti. In the photo above, the spaghettini is already cooked.

75g Spiced cream cheese. I use 1/2 packet of the Boursin "Garlic and Fine Herbs" flavour. My French friends use that brand too, so I guess it's decent cheese.

Walnuts. Use a handful of walnuts if you prefer a richer flavour or more colour. Note: Use only pine nuts (i.e. do not add walnuts) if you like a subtle flavour.

Frozen baby brussels sprouts

Not in photo: A tablespoon of olive oil, pinch of salt (optional) and some ground black pepper (optional).

1. Put water and salt (if using) into the slow-cooker and set it to steam for 8min (or whatever time it takes to cook your chosen spaghetti). Once the slow-cooker starts steaming, add a tablespoon of olive oil and the spaghetti into the pot. Note: You can use the stove for the same purpose. It is just that I am too lazy to watch over the fire. ［看火］

2. While the spaghetti is cooking, pour the wine into the microwavable bowl of brussels sprouts. Microwave on high for 2-3 minutes.

3. When the spaghetti is cooked, scoop into a bowl.

4. Add the cheese into the spaghetti.

5. Filter the wine (but not the brussels sprouts) into the spaghetti.

6. Stir. Microwave on high for 1 minute.

7. Garnish with nuts and brussels sprouts. Serve warm with a dash of ground black pepper.

Quick-and-easy creamy spaghetti

Recipe: Instant Rendang

Ok, this is the last of my quick-and-easy recipes for this season. For tips on sourcing ingredients, please refer to my previous post on "Recipe: Vegetable curry".

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Instant Rendang

Ingredients for 4-6 servings:

300g (or 2 packets) Vegetarian stewed mutton (mock meat)

180g (or 1 packet) Rendang sauce

1. Put all ingredients into a microwavable container.

2. Add water and stir to cover all the mock meat in the sauce.

3. Microwave on high for 1 to 2 min. Serve warm.

Note: Optional, garnish with cucumber slices.

Recipe: Vegetable curry

This is my quick-and-easy version of vegetable curry that I served at various potluck events recently.

• At the nursing unit where I did my preceptorship. They loved the curry and were surprised by the  realistic texture and flavours of the mock meat. That said, some of the Filipinos mentioned that they would prefer it spicier. Note to self: Can add more spice if cooking for Filipinos. 
• At my GNIE completion potluck. It was a popular dish. One instructor asked my classmate to ask me, "Is there any weed in the curry?" I looked at my classmate puzzled, after all I do use some uncommon Chinese fungus/mushrooms in some of my cooking. Then it occurred to me that they are asking about marijuana. I laughed and replied, "No, no weed!" I guess the legend of a special Singaporean curry ingredient did spread to my Canadian instructor somehow.
• At the Christmas eve dinner at my French friends home, the curry was not so popular. All except 3 (PY, PY's daughter and I) were French. 2 of the guests mentioned that the curry was too spicy for their taste. Note to self: Do not add so much spice and double the coconut milk if cooking for Europeans.
• At Christmas dinner, my Iranian friend liked the curry but did not eat much of it since there were several other dishes.
• Post-Christmas, I gave a box of the curry to my housemate AH. He said that his colleagues loved the fragrance when he heated up the curry using his office's microwave.

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A short note about sourcing the ingredients. If you live in Metro Vancouver, you will not have any issue getting the right ingredients. You can try Asian food shops like "Smart N Save" in Lansdowne Mall (Richmond), or Great One Supermarket in Richmond (and Vancouver branch), or Chong Lee Market in Vancouver, or T&T supermaket all over Metro Vancouver.

For the curry sauce, make sure you buy the "Made in Singapore" or "Made in Malaysia" curry. The next closest is "Made in Indonesia" curry. Other curry sauce such as the Thai, Japanese, etc, will not give you the authentic Singaporean curry flavour. In addition, amongst the various Singapore/Malaysia curries, I found that the "chicken curry" typically gave the best flavour. If you read the ingredients list, you will notice that most of the "chicken curry" sauce is suitable for vegetarians as there is no animal ingredient in many of the "chicken curry" package.

Vegetarian stewed mutton

Sometimes I add vegetarian mock meat to cater to the vegetarians and non-vegetarians alike. [Yeah, I am referring to those "meat-eaters" who swear that they would not eat anything without meat.] Using quality vegetarian meat is an easy way to reduce cholesterol intake in one's diet. [Note: I am mentioning this because at least 2 slim-and-healthy-looking persons in the above groups that I served the curry to actually told me personally that they have high-cholesterol levels.] I recommend the above "Made in Taiwan" soy-and-mushroom based mock meat which is sold as "vegetarian stewed mutton" at T&T. I found that the "Made in Taiwan" vegetarian mock meat products are generally of superior quality than the run-of-mill vegetarian mock meat products. Note: I avoid buying any "Made in China" vegetarian mock meat products. I just do not trust their quality control.

Lastly, if you have the time and patience, please feel free to use fresh ingredients. In addition, please feel free to add also fragrance like pandan leaf (a.k.a. bay thoy leaf) to the pot. My recipe uses pre-packed and/or frozen stuff to make it quick-and-easy for a fuss-free potluck dish.

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Vegetable curry

Ingredients for a large 2L pot of curry (clockwise from top-left):

400-600ml Coconut milk [Note: Use more if cooking for people who aren't used to spicy food.]

2 packets of Chicken Curry sauce [Note: Use only 1 packet if cooking for people who aren't used to spicy food.]

400g Small washed potatoes

160g Tou-fu puffs

750g California-style frozen mixed vegetables (i.e. broccoli, cauliflowers and carrots)

1. Wash and chop the small potatoes (halves or smaller depending on the amount of cooking time you have). Put them in the pot.

2. Pour the entire bag of mixed vegetables into the pot.

3. Add the curry sauce. Add water to cover all the ingredients.

4. Bring to a boil and cook until the vegetables are soft. It should take less than 20 min. [Note: If you're using slow-cooker like I sometimes do, you can set it to slow-cook and stop the cooking in around 30 to 45 min.]

5. Add coconut milk and tou-fu puffs. Stir and cook for 1-2 minutes. Serve hot with bread (French baguette is a good match) or plain rice.

Note: If the curry turns out to be too watery because you added too much water by mistake, fear not! Just stir peanut butter, or any nut butter, into the curry and it will add thickness and flavour to the curry.

Quick-and-easy curry,

ready for potluck!

Recipe: Flavoured rice 有味饭

I like all-in-one cooking because that means I don't have to "watch over several fires" ［看火］ nor do I have to wash multiple cooking pots. Here is one of my favourite all-in-one dishes. I served it to my French-Chinese exchange group during Mid-Autumn Festival ［中秋节］ and again to another friend for Christmas dinner.

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Flavoured rice 有味饭

Ingredients for 4-6 servings (clockwise from top-left):

6 tablespoons of Teriyaki sauce

2 small Yam. The purple-veined flesh type is preferred for its natural sweetness

3-6 Braised mushrooms

1 1/2 cup walnut pieces

1 square of smoked firm-tofu (around 100g)

A quarter of a small cabbage (on chopping board)

2 cups of rice (not in photo)

Note: All measures are approximate, add more/less as per your preference.

1. Peel and dice the yam.

2. Dice mushrooms and tofu.

3. Cut cabbage into thin slices.

4. Rinse the rice and add water to rice in the slow-cooker as per normal.

5. Add all the other ingredients and stir.

6. Turn-on the slow-cooker to "white rice" mode. When cooked, serve warm.

Note #1: No worries if you did not add enough Teriyaki sauce before cooking, you can always stir in more after the rice is cooked.

Note #2: If you eat meat, my mother traditionally uses 腊肠 [Chinese waxed sausage] and minced pork instead of walnut pieces and tofu.

All-in-one flavoured rice. Ta-da!

Recipe: 4 gods soup 四神汤

Recently while on my preceptorship, my preceptor mentioned that Chinese people knows how to eat to maintain their health and asked me what I usually eat. I told her that I grew up drinking soups since I am Cantonese. Thus, she asked me to share my recipes for nourishing soups.

On another occasion at dinner with my good friends in Canada, JX and PN were enthralled to hear my opinion that the duration of the menstrual cycle may be affected by the food we eat. I cited as an example that if I ate too much soy-products, I find my cycle shortened (even down to 3 weeks). Recently since I started drinking nourishing soups regularly, e.g. the "4 gods soup" ［四神汤］， my cycle returned to its usual 30 to 31 days duration. PN was especially interested in the recipe for the "4 gods soup" ［四神汤］ as it is known to have multiple benefits.

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"4 gods soup" ［四神汤］

This is my version of the "4 gods soup" ［四神汤］。 A chance discussion with a monk back in September reminded me of this nourishing soup. The recipe ingredients vary depending on who you ask, so my recipe is a combination of my mother's recipe and a common online recipe.

These are the actual amounts that I use in a pot of soup (serves 4-8). The ingredients clockwise, from top-left (clear rectangular container).

• Clear rectangular container [Top white rolls with brown edges]: 茯苓 (Wolfiporia cocos)
• Clear rectangular container [Bottom 2 white pieces]: 茯神 (Poria cocos, a.k.a. Indian Bread). Note: This ingredient is not in the usual "4 gods soup" ［四神汤］recipes, but my mother adds it regularly to hers. It is supposed counter insomnia, to calm mental anxiety ［宁心］ and soothes "one's nerves" ［安神］。
• Red bowl: 芡实 (Euryale ferox, a.k.a. Fox Nuts)
• Blue bowl: 枸杞 (Wolfberry Lycium). Note: This ingredient is not in the usual "4 gods soup" recipes, but I add it in because I like its taste and it is good for one's vision (eyes).
• Green bowl: 紅棗 (Red dates). Note: This ingredient is not in the usual "4 gods soup" ［四神汤］recipes, but I added it because it sweetens the soup naturally and it nourishes the blood.
• Black bowl (six white pieces): 淮山（山藥） (Dioscorea opposita, a.k.a. Chinese Yam)
• Clear round container: 蓮子 (Lotus seeds)
• Not displayed: Soya source added to taste

1. Rinse all the ingredients.

2. Optional step: De-seed the red dates.

3. Split open the lotus seeds. Remove and discard any green sapling growing at the core/centre.

4. Put all (except the 枸杞 Wolfberry Lycium) ingredients into the slow-cooker. Add water. Slow-cook for 2 to 3 hours.

5. At the final few minutes, add the 枸杞 Wolfberry Lycium. Also, add soya sauce to taste.

6. Serve warm.

"4 gods soup" ［四神汤］

Serve warm

Recipe: Peanuts and lotus roots soup 花生莲藕汤

I served this at a dinner at AA and EM's place last month for mid-Autumn festival ［中秋节］。 By now, you would probably realize that my style of cooking gives margins for errors and a step where you can adjust the flavours. Same goes for this soup.

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Lotus roots and peanuts soup 花生莲藕汤

Ingredients for about 6 servings:

1 to 2 segments of lotus roots 莲藕

3 cups of braised peanuts 焖花生

Water or some liquid from braising the peanuts.

Optional: A pinch of salt if using water above

Optional: 3-5 red dates. For subtle, natural sweetness.

Note: All measures are approximate, add more/less as per your preference.

1. Rinse the lotus roots 莲藕. Cut into cross-section slices. If in a time-crunch, slice thinly so that the lotus roots will cook faster. Put into the pot.

2. If using red dates, rinse them and remove the seed. Dice and add into the pot.

3. Add water to cover the lotus roots. Or if using the peanuts-flavoured liquid, add 2-3 tablespoons per serving and top-up with water to cover the lotus roots.

4. Slow-cook for 2 hours. If in a time-crunch, 1 hour is enough, just that the lotus roots flavour may not be so developed.

5. At the final 1 hour of cooking, add the braised peanuts.

6. Stir and taste the soup. Add soya-sauce, mushroom sauce, sugar, etc to adjust the flavour to your taste. Be careful not to overpower the lotus roots flavour. If the lotus roots flavour is not strong enough, boil for a longer period, or add more lotus roots and continue to boil. If the peanuts flavour is not strong enough, stir in 1-2 tablespoons of peanut butter (note: adding peanut butter will turn the soup cloudy).

Note: This soup starts-off as a clear soup. The longer it is boiled, the more the lotus roots and peanuts breakdown, and thus turning the soup cloudy (and more richly flavoured).

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There you have it. Simple, fail-safe peanuts and lotus roots soup 花生莲藕汤。Enjoy!

Recipe: Braised peanuts 焖花生

I served this at a dinner gathering at my place back in August. ZS was surprised that I cooked my own braised peanuts. EM asked me what I added into the peanuts to get them flavoured.

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Braised peanuts 焖花生

Ingredients:

A packet of raw peanuts 生花生

3-5 tablespoons of mushroom sauce, a.k.a. vegetarian oyster sauce 素豪油

1-2 tablespoons of soya sauce 酱清

1-2 flat teaspoons five-spice powder 五香粉. That is: Ground fennel, anise, ginger, cinnamon, cloves.

Optional: A few shakes of ground pepper 胡椒粉

Note: All measures are approximate, add more/less as per your preference.

1. Rinse the raw peanuts. Put into the cooking pot. Note: The peanuts will expand to about 3 times their original size, so do not overfill the pot.

2. Add water about 3-4 times the level of the peanuts. Note: Throughout cooking, check that the water level covers all the peanuts. Top-up with more water if needed.

3. Add the seasoning.

4. Cook on low-heat (or in a slow-cooker) until the peanuts are soft to the core. It may take up to 4 hours. To check, split open a peanut. The core should not be opaque (i.e. raw) but has a slight translucence (i.e. cooked).

5. Serve on its own or use as an ingredient in other recipes.

6. Do not waste the resultant peanut flavoured liquid. E.g. It can be used to cook soup or flavoured rice.

Note: You can see a photo of this dish in my other blog post "Dîner en couleurs [Dinner in colours]" here.

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Note: Dried shitake mushrooms 茶花菇 can be braised for 3 hours in the same manner, except that you would not need the mushroom sauce in this case.

Recipe: Stewed Pear (French version) 西式炖梨

This is an original recipe that I created while I was in France. I had some lovely pears but did not have the other ingredients to make a typical Chinese stewed pear dessert. So I did some substitution and came up with the following.

Note: Recipe is also known as "Poached Pear". It was served at my group's dinner theatre performance in B.C. in summer-2011.

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Stewed Pear (French version) 西式炖梨

Ingredients for about 4 servings:

375ml (1 bottle) of Malibu Caribbean Rum with Coconut Flavoured Liquor

400ml water

2 large pears Barlett, Peckham, Anjou or French Butter preferred.

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

50g dried cranberries or raisins or mixed

2-3 tablespoons honey

1. Wash and peel pears. Cut into chunks or cubes, approximately 2cm thick.

2. Put pears into a large pot. Add liquor and water into the pot. Add the spices. Cover with lid and bring to a boil.

3. When the liquids start to boil, lower the head and simmer. Add the dried fruits.

4. Slowly simmer until the pear cubes begin to show a translucent layer of shimmer.

5. Add honey to sweeten. Note: Do not add too much honey or it will overpower the unique sweetness of the pear and liquor.

6. Spoon into individual serving bowls and leave to cool. Refrigerate until ready-to-serve.

7. Serve chilled.

Recipe: Stewed Pear (Chinese version) 中式炖梨

This is a dessert that I cooked for a gathering at AA and EM's place. They all liked it; i.e. the 2 Japanese ladies, the Romanian, PY (my PRC GNIE classmate) and the French couple AA and EM. In addition, I shared some with HC (my Canadian friend who originate from Hong Kong) who liked it after added a bit of sugar to further sweeten the dessert.

Note: This dessert is supposedly good for coughs (thanks to the pears) and nourishes the complexion. It can be served hot or cold. Some like it hot, some like it cold.

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Stewed Pear (Chinese version) 中式炖梨

Ingredients for 10 servings:

5 pears. Barlett, Peckham, Anjou or French Butter preferred.

1 clump of Snow-Ear fungus 雪耳 Note: Snow-Ear fungus 雪耳 is preferred over white-wood-ear fungus 白木耳 because the folds are tighter and its texture is softer when cooked.

5 honeyed dates 蜜枣

Ground cinnamon.

Sugar or sweetener to taste. I used about 3-5 tablespoons of honey. Molasses can be used if preferred.

Snow-ear fungus

Ingredients in a pot, before cooking.

1. Wash the pears. Remove and discard the core. Chop into small chunks, e.g. 1.5cm x 1.5cm x 3cm. Put into the pot, with the skin on.

2. Rinse the snow-ear fungus. Chop into small chunks, e.g. 1cm x 1cm x 1cm. Add into the pot.

3. De-seed the honeyed dates. Dice and add into the put.

4. Add about half of the sweetener. Add a few shakes of cinnamon (do not add too much, or it would overpower the pears). Stir to mix.

5. Add around 5 bowls of water, enough to cover the ingredients with about 2-3cm extra. Slow-cook for around 2 hours. Shorten cooking time if the pears are very ripe; conversely cook for 3 hours if the pears are very raw. Ensure that the ingredients are covered by the water, top-up with more water if too much is boiled off.

6. When cooked, stir and taste a tablespoon of the dessert. If needed, add more sweetener and/or ground cinnamon. Be careful not to add too much sweetener/cinnamon that the subtle flavours of the pear is overpowered.

7. Serve hot. Or if preferred, scoop into a container. Leave to cool; and when cool, put into the refrigerator. Serve cold.

Stewed Pear (Chinese version)

-- ready to be served.

Recipe: Bamboo fungus with spinach soup 竹笙翡翠汤

I cooked this for a gathering at AA and EM's place 2 Saturdays ago. EM liked it very much and has been asking me for the recipe. Last Friday EM came over to my place earlier (before the start of our French-Chinese lesson) and I took the chance to show her how to cook this.

The "bamboo fungus with spinach soup" is inspired by the "braised spinach soup with bamboo fungus" from the Ling Zhi vegetarian restaurant in Singapore.

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Bamboo fungus with spinach soup 竹笙翡翠汤

Ingredients for 4-5 large individual servings:

Vegetable soup stock. We used miso paste instead, roughly 1 tablespoon of miso for each large individual bowl/serving of soup. Note: Do not use meat soup base, especially not beef stock because it will overpower the subtle flavour of the bamboo fungus.

10g of bamboo fungus 竹笙

8g-10g of black moss 发菜

80g of finely chopped spinach. We used the frozen chopped spinach.

1 small bundle of mung bean vermicelli 冬粉

100g enoki mushrooms

Salt or soya-sauce to flavour. Note: We skipped this since miso contains salt itself.

Optional: Sweetener, e.g. sugar, molasses, or honey. We used 1 tablespoon of pure liquid molasses. If using honey, control the amount so that it would not overpower the subtle flavour of the bamboo fungus.

Optional: 10 water-chestnuts, diced for additional crunch in the soup.

Note: All measures are approximate, add more/less as per your preference. As I explained to EM, Chinese cooking often do not rely on exact measures because so much is determined by the quality of the ingredients. If you have an excellent quality ingredient, you may want to add less; and conversely add more if the ingredient quality isn't so great; so as to maintain the overall harmony of the flavours.

Clockwise from top-left: Mung bean vermicelli, chopped spinach, enoki mushrooms, black moss.

Bamboo fungus and black moss

1. Rinse the bamboo fungus. Slow-cook it for 1-2 hours with about 5 bowls of water and the soup stock. The longer you cook, the more the flavour of the bamboo fungus will develop in the soup. [Note: If you're in a hurry, even 30min of cooking time is also ok, just that the exquisite flavour of the bamboo fungus will not be so developed.]

2. Rinse the other ingredients.

3. Chop and throw away the dirty roots of the enoki mushrooms. Chop into 3 approximately-equal segments lengthwise. Split the large clumps (lower end, near the roots) into smaller clumps about 1cm x 1cm thick.

4. If using frozen chopped spinach, defrost it in the microwave.

5. At the final 15min of cooking time, add the mung bean vermicelli into the slow-cooker. [Be careful of the steam when opening the slow-cooker.]

6. At the final 10min of cooking time, add the black moss into the slow-cooker. Stir to distribute the ingredients. Do not overcook the black moss or it will break apart into tiny 0.5cm strands. [Be careful of the steam when opening the slow-cooker.]

7. At the final 5min of cooking time, add the spinach, enoki mushrooms, and water chestnuts (if using). Stir the ingredients to distribute it. Taste a tablespoon of the soup and add sweetener to adjust the flavour.

8. Scoop into serving bowls and serve immediately. Do not let the soup sit around or the mung bean vermicelli will expand and absorb most of the liquid.

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Sorry, no final product photo. We were so happy eating that we forgot to take a photo of the completed dish again. :) If you need a sample, I recommend that you go to Ling Zhi vegetarian restaurant in Singapore to try the original "braised spinach soup with bamboo fungus".

Chatting with strangers

While doing my groceries shopping today, 2 strangers chatted with me. Strangers sometimes chat with each other in Metro Vancouver (more often than in Singapore) and it is considered normal and polite social interactions. E.g. While waiting for the bus, while seated next to each other on public transport, while waiting at a supermarket check-out queue, while hunting for bargains at a sale. That's why I find Canadians (of all ethnicity) friendly and sociable in general.

The first was a lady (customer) who saw me examining bowls on sale at a supermarket. She walked next to me, smiled, picked up a bowl and then put it down. Then she remarked to me that the bowl's too heavy. I replied that (the weight due to) the thickness of the bowl is to keep the food warm. She explained that it (i.e. the weight of the bowl) is ok for young people like me (ahem, I probably looked young to her) but the bowls are too heavy for the elderly.

The stranger spoke in Cantonese, looked Chinese and possibly in her 50's or 60's. Then it occurred to me that the Chinese traditionally hold the rice bowl to their lips to scoop/shove small rolls/bites of rice into their mouths with chopsticks. Thus, the weight of the bowls mattered to the elderly Chinese lady. 

Anyway, the stranger remarked further that she uses Corelle bowls. I agreed that those are light indeed, and easy-to-use (i.e. dishwater safe) and beautiful too; however they cost more -- several times more. [“Corelle 碗又轻，又好用，又靓；但咳贵咯！贵几倍。”] Thereafter the lady replied that, "Yes, they cost more. But it is light enough for the elderly to use." I smiled and agreed with her. I have learned something new -- it is important to consider how your target users use the dinnerware and cutlery when making a purchase. Fortunately for me, given my budget and my (rather youthful) target users, I can buy the cheap CAD1 bowls.

TCM ingredients distributor outlet 

opposite Richmond Real Canadian Superstore.

Wide range of products, good price, quality stock.

The second was also a lady (customer) who saw me browsing through the tea section of a Traditional Chinese Medicinal (TCM) ingredients distributor outlet. She also looks Chinese, possibly in her 50's and spoke to me in Cantonese. She was there to compare prices for a "5 flowers tea". She picked up a packet, checked the price, put it down and then remarked to me "Wow, the prices rise so fast. Anyway, there is a sale at the other shop (nearby)." I just smiled and told her that I don't know about the prices since it's my first time at that shop.

Then the lady walked over to the chrysanthemum tea, picked up a packet and told me, “我同你讲，呢个最直得买。裹边个店卖十个几。嘘！莫呸老板知道，呒咳他又起价。” ["I tell you what. This is the most worth buying. The other shop is selling it for CAD10+. Sssshh, don't let the shop owner know or they'll raise the prices."] It was only CAD7.80 at the shop we're at. Then she added, "It's good quality too!" She took a whiff of the smell and then offered it to me, “你闻一下。” ["You try smelling it."] I took a whiff of the smell -- yes, it was indeed fragrant. Then she proceed to explain to me how to re-pack and store the chrysanthemum so that it would last a longer period, which she claimed she learned from the shop owner. She explained that the big packets are compressed and often contained moisture, and thus easily turned mouldy before it is used up. The suggested method is to spread out the compressed chrysanthemum on a large piece of paper (e.g. newspaper) and let it air dry for while. Then repack them into sealable plastic bags (e.g. Ziploc bags) and store in the re-fridgerator shelf.

Big clumps of chrysanthemum tea

Spread out the chrysanthemum flowers

to allow the trapped moisture to evaporate

Then the stranger mentioned some ways to combine the chrysanthemum with other tea ingredients depending on the nature/state of my health. [Sorry, I cannot recall much of it.] I remarked that she seemed to know a lot about the herbs. She explained that she learned from experience. She stated that she was previously diagnosed with a terminal illness, and that at one stage, her pain was so bad that she needed injections that cost tens of thousands of dollars. [I don't know how true her story is, maybe she opted for treatment that is not covered under the province's approved medication list.] Anyway, her husband and herself were about to give up, but decided to give the TCM (traditional chinese medicine) approach a try. I remarked that it is great that it worked for her. She stated, “噻佐二几万银。” ["Used about CAD20+K."] I replied, “噻佐二几万银揭番条命都直得噶。” ["Spend about CAD20+K to regain one's life is still worth it."] She smiled and agreed. Then she joked that looking at me, dressed so "thickly"* that my health is possibly worse than hers despite my "youth". [“嘞供年轻，麽窘供多裳。可能嘞键康总比我差。”] I laughed and agreed. [*Note: I was prepared to be out until nightfall, and thus I wore my padded coat on my shoulders despite the nice afternoon weather because I was too lazy to carry it around. But then, I agree that my health is possibly worse than hers, given her somewhat radiant looks.]

Just before she left, the stranger shared another recipe -- combine handfuls of broad beans [扁豆], red beans [小红豆] and barley [薏米] and boil into a nutritious and delicious snack. Then she added, “今日的扁豆某靓，莫买！” ["Today's broad beans aren't good-looking, don't buy!"] And thus, I learned yet more new stuff from yet another stranger today.

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This morning, I had brunch with PN. We met as strangers chatting at a police station in Singapore. She is now one of my close, caring and reliable friends in Canada.

In the evening I went out for dinner with my friend HC. HC migrated from Hong Kong to Vancouver in her teens and she has been here for around 40 years now. As we chat, I learned more about the Canadian norms and her observations of her fellow Canadians. It is amazing that we were strangers too, just over 2 years ago when she responded to my email questions about a room-to-let.

p.s. Please excuse my poor Cantonese typing -- I have not figured out how to get the proper Cantonese words using my keyboard yet.

Turning white hair to black

An anonymous reader asked for the "Traditional Chinese Medicinal recipe for turning white hair to black" on my blog entry "My new slow cooker".

But first, the declaration and disclaimer.

DECLARATION AND DISCLAIMER: The following are personal opinions from me and my cousin's wife. Neither of us is a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioner, nor are we in any way trained in TCM. Thus any content from us shall be construed as a sharing of personal opinions, not health nor medical advice. We do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information provided by us. Under no circumstances will we or anyone related to this content be responsible for any loss or damage resulting from any reliance on the information or other content posted or linked herewith.

Just to share my cousin's wife's story. She had ovarian cancer and underwent the relevant (western) medical treatment and surgery. She suspected that some of her hair turned white related to the cancer and/or its treatment. Thus she went to get some TCM treatment at the Singapore Chung Hwa Medical Institution at its Toa Payoh HQ. What she shared is based on what worked for her.

Here's the recipe that my cousin's wife shared (with some editing for clarity).

1. Wash 10pcs of red dates [红枣]; 6 pcs black dates [南枣]; 2pcs honey dates [蜜枣]. 

2. Put the dates into your cooking pot. [*Note: Personally I prefer to de-seed the dates and chop them into fine pieces, but it is up to your personal preferences.] 

3a. Add 375ml of water (estimate with 1 1/2 usual drinking mugs) if using slow cooker where the water level remains about the same. [Note: This varies depending on your slow cooker. Mine pumps out lots of steam so I actually add about 1 litre of water.] 

3b. Add 750ml of water (estimate with 3 usual drinking mugs) if using cooking on the stove.  

4. Cook until only 250 ml of water is left, i.e. about 1 usual drinking mug of fluids. [For me, I usually slow cook it for 1 to 2 hours and I get about 500ml at the end.]

5. Drink the fluid and eat up all the dates as well.

6. Repeat steps 1-5 over 3 months, 2 times each week. 

IMPORTANT NOTES:

1. This recipe works only for those with about 5% white hair or 5% hair loss. For those with more than 20% hair loss or sudden increase in % white hair or a circle of white hair concentrated at the crown of one's head, please visit your doctor -- it may be a symptom of something serious.
2. My cousin's wife strongly recommends consulting a Traditional Chinese Medical practitioner before embarking on the above recipe or if you suspect any health issues or would like a health review. In addition, she suggests visiting an acupuncturist if you don't mind it. The Singapore Chung Hwa Medical Institution at its Toa Payoh HQ (located at Toa Payoh Central, near the Toa Payoh library) has acupuncturist sessions available, Monday to Friday 1pm-5pm. It used to cost only around SGD15 per session.

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Photos at the start of the experiment. Grey hair not dyed yet. My grey hair is not evenly distributed. The left side seems to have more than the right side.

16-Sep-2012

23-Sep-2012

23-Sep-2012

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[Update 10-Jan-2014] I fell ill in Oct-2012 and stopped the experiment. Thereafter, I did not continue, so I cannot vouch if this formula works or otherwise.

Building resistance against cold

Autumn equinox will arrive in about 2 weeks. Fall is already creeping in, the sun is rising later and setting earlier. While the daytime temperature still hits a high of 20degC, the night temperature dips down to a single digit low. People start wearing their jackets wherever they go.

My landlord has several rooms which he lets out to short-term tenants. I have a new house-mate today. He is a Buddhist monk from Taiwan. My landlord commented that the monk wears thinner layers of clothes than us, yet he does not seem to feel as cold as us. The monk then mentioned that there are some stuff we can eat to "fight away the cold" (i.e. building resistance against cold weather). So I asked him to share his secret. And here it is.

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• Thinly slice and shred a bit of ginger (老姜 old ginger preferred).
• Boil water. Brew some fresh red tea 红茶. [Note: It has to be red tea because the red tea has a specific function in this brew. Green tea will not do because green tea hurts the digestive track of vegetarians.]
• Add the ginger shreds into the red tea. Let it to steep for a while.
• Drink the above before 12 noon, or at least before 2pm* daily.

*Note: According to the monk, consuming the above brew any later than 2pm will have the opposite effect of the one intended.