我的试验室 My Lab

My mum cooked me sambal petai last week.  Wah, it was so good......

I also learnt a lesson from there - How to clean belacan

Undeniable, there is always lots of sand in belacan.  So, what my mum does is:

1. Slice the required amount of belacan.
2. Put them in a small bowl, then pour some hot water over them. 
3. Soak it until the belacan has melted.  (Note:  It looks rather ..... )
4. Roughly use your finger to press to break down the bigger piece.
5. Pour slowly into the dish during cooking until you see the 'solid'.
6. Throw away the 'solid'. 

I think it won't be 100% sand free, but can probably avoid 80% of the sandy bit?

I love prawn tempura.  I have been dying to try to make it.  Now that my mum is with me, I think we should be able to succeed!!

I come across this website just now. 

http://sushiday.com/archives/2007/01/30/how-to-make-tempura/

I am extremely interested in the tips of making a fried prawn straight.

I hope it will work out.

Let's see.....

Especially when it is charcoal black and rough to touch!!  I found a solution to it.  Try this.

Cleaning steps:

1. Wet that stained area with water.
2. Sprinkle washing soda on the stained area.
3. Pour white vinegar onto the washing soda.  It will bubble + very mild smoke !!
4. When it stop bubbling, the stain can be scrubbed off easily.

Hey, I am surprised I got the building license within 2 weeks.  That is absolutely fast.  Don't you think so?

Have a look at the progress of our Garden Shed to here....

The 1st 6 was the toughest, because there is no reference for the ground level

Next 7 slabs are alright since I found the reference already.

These 7 slabs are killing me as the thickness is about 4mm thicker than previous one.

These 10 are easy as the thickness are fairly consistent

I hope the thickness of the slabs in Bunnings will remain the same.  And, I also hope the weather will continue supporting me.  Don't get too hot too soon!

This can be a good and simple dinner choice for a hot summer night.

Ingredients:

• 2 packets or soba (cook as directed)
• 1 cucumber - cut into strips
• 10 stalks spring onion - slice thinly
• 1 tbsp toasted sesame seed
• 6 slice of Spam - chopped and fried
• Seaweed strips- as much as you like
• 5 tbsp of Katsuo Tsuyu (Add more if required)
• 3 tbsp of light soy sauce (Reduce light soy sauce if you add more Katsuo Tsuyu)

Picture of Katsuo Tsuyu

Procedure:

1. Mix all the above ingredients.
2. Garnish with some more fresh seaweed strips. 

Serve immediately with Wasabi.

When I think of Japanese food, I will think of sushi.  When I think of my home town food, I will think of sambal.  So, last Friday, I created 'Sambal Sushi' for dinner.  Ho Chiak! (Means delicious in Hokkien)

Ingredients:

• 3 cups sushi rice (I used Jasmine rice and cook in a little bit more water, it works for me)
• water for cooking rice
• 1/4 - 1/3 cup rice vinegar
• 2 - 3 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 6 sheets of seaweed
• 12 sticks of cucumber
• 12 slices Spam
• sambal - varies according to your own taste

Procedure:

1. Stir sugar and salt in vinegar until dissolved.
2. Pour it over fluffed cooked sushi rice and mix well.
3. Lay one seaweed on sushi mat. 
4. Add sushi rice, spread 3 tsp sambal at the middle and length wise on the rice, add 2 slices Spam and 2 cucumber stick.  Roll it into sushi log.
5. Repeat the rest.

Cut and serve.

This is what we have been busy with for months.  Yes, we are putting up a garden shed next year!!  Not a big deal actually, but, what if it is a DIY project?  :-p  Lots of preparation job to be carried out.

1.  Weeding
Ever since last Sept holidays, we have been busy weeding.  The grass and the roots were like wires, I just couldn't find a better description for that.

2.  Building Application to council
Just submitted on Monday.  If everything goes well, approval will be in 5 weeks time.  Keeping double fingers crossed for that.

3.  Laying the concrete slab
After weeding, we proceed to the next stage, which is laying the concrete slab.  Before laying it, we have to compact the ground. We don't hire a compactor, instead, I am the compactor!!  Pour the water over, then try to do a ' penguin walk' on the wet sand.  Good idea huh?

Once the ground is compact, we level the ground using a garden shovel and a garden fork, with the aid of an inclinometer (not sure if it is right, the ruler with 3 bubbles).  This is the most tedious job of all and it is our current task!!  When the ground is level, then the concrete slab is laid.

We need to lay 80 concrete slabs, and we are at 12th right now.  Gam ba te ne...

The weather has been good this week.  So, I am stealing my blogging time for this.

4.  Purchase a garden shed
This should be the easiest of all.  As we shall pay the garden shed assembly cost : )

Waiting anxiously for this day to come!!