Nowadays there are so many instant products that one can’t resist to know if it works the magic in the kitchen. Even if it’s not as good as the original cuisine, people tend to forgive them; saying, “with such low price, what do you expect?” How generous of all of us!
Yet, there are times manufacturers do work hard to make we consumers feel good. You and I are one of them, we work hard to achieve the goal our company sets. So does the food manufacturers in this case.
I found a tandoori chicken mix package. So I bought it and marinate and tried. Not bad! My, how fast I forgive myself!
Well, there are times where one need to taste something different when one is tired. This was one of those days.
This is very Chinese. I had this herbs chicken mix package from Malaysia, so I gave it a try at dinner.
Washed chicken, then marinate with the herbs. When it’s done, wrap it with plastic paper (provided) then with foil (also provided), and steam with simmer fire for 2 hours. I didn’t follow exactly, but still steamed for 1.5 hours.
The fat from the chicken mixed with the herbs and turned out to be yummy gravy.
Chinese cooking is still lots to learn.
Wanted to get tom yam paste but found Satay BBQ sauce at yamaya store. So I got one to give it a try. Yamaya has quite a good collection of authentic groceries. They even have Maggi chili sauce from Nestle.
It is hard to have BBQ at home. What we did was season chicken wings with Satay BBQ sauce for about 10 minutes, then put into the gas range. It came out okay, not as good as the hawker store satay though.
All these are for people who are away from home.
Like many Malaysian, I was brought up with having Hainan Chicken rice not only lunch, but quite often our main dinner was went to famous hawker stores to have a good eat with the whole family. It was a great meal always; the chicken, the smell, and the oily feel after dinner. I miss it now.
After come to Japan, the scene has changed for our Asian eating. Because we can’t have it here, so we started to cook ourselves. At the end, we find out our own new taste and new way of adaptation, for the dish and for our preference. This is how new cooking is born with a country name, when it left her country. Sometimes people prefer to keep the tradition sometimes circumstance doesn’t allow. I am more adaptive and think people are creative to come up something interesting in new environment that doesn’t need to tie down themselves to tradition in new environment.
My wife works at one Hainan chicken restaurant, she cooks Hainan at home too. But she uses breast.
I think I should give it a try with bones next time.
My wife and I ran a food store selling curry for lunch before. It started very sudden and ended sudden too. Not much fund and thorough plan were the reasons. Of course, there were other reasons too, the relationships with the landlord lady. Anyway. To do it again, I am preparing myself better this time. Worked at some restaurants to gain the feel of onsite experience. With more thoughts, more preparations, more real statistics, and, bigger vision.
It’s one of my dreams I have about having a small restaurant, to serve Malaysian curry.
I love chicken with bones. In Japan bones seem to be treated like evil, you don't get bones normally. Crunching bones in public is like barbarian that it has been eliminated from the eating culture.
Something interesting about the bone-allergic of Japanese. Watch them how they eat a fish with lots of bones with chopsticks compared to chicken or pork. Japanese can eat up all the meat of fish and leave you with ONLY tiny bones. Yet, they just don't know where all the essences of chicken meat, leaving all the yummy meats around the bones.
I love chicken with bones.
