今年端午的鹹肉粽子

Chinese rice dumplings are one of those things that I really like, but I don't want to eat a mountain of it. I only eat Hokkien rice dumplings for the savory intense flavors. It's hilarious when every year in May and June, when the Double Fifth Festival comes round, and I find a few rice dumplings in my freezer that are from the previous year. Hahahah 

But last year, I made concerted effort to eat them before this year. And I didn't anyhow stock too many. So this year, I only found two in the freezer before the new ones came in. Hahahaha. Two are fine; they're like psychological safety keepers in case I suddenly need food. Like how I always keep an unexpired can of spam in the larder. Heh.

This week was rough. The quarter is closing, and it's hectic for both the husband and I. Cleaning up Choya's liquid poop or taking her out to poop and seeing her in pain added to my stress. I told the husband to compartmentalize and let me handle it. He needs to expend more brain cells to sort out his work. He has been on calls till midnight, and up again at 7am. 

We needed easy and quick meals. We have sous vide chicken breasts frozen, and these are easy to thaw out to add to any meals. I steamed sweet potatoes and grilled pumpkin. So we have easy carbs too. And rice dumplings came to our rescue. I'm very lucky to have the friends' Papa Tan's rice dumplings again. It's a privilege to receive these homemade gifts when the friends' parents are still robust enough to make them. 

I also hopped in on the shipping when J ordered rice dumplings from Joo Chiat Kim Choo. They offered mini-sized dumplings too. Perfect. I can't eat that much glutinous rice! Got five pieces for myself. I generally don't need any additional sauces to go with rice dumplings. I'm conscious of sodium levels and such. But adding a dash of sambal or XO sauce is often fun. 

What Excellent Pieces of Soon Kueh!

Out of the blue, J said she was sending me soon kueh. I was like, what the. This woman knows my freezer space and such, and she got me small packs. I'm so thankful, but I feel so bad for the delivery fees for such a small volume.

I was super stoked when the packs of soon kueh arrived. Two frozen packs for the freezer, and one still-warm box for the fridge. It came on a day that I had a party to attend, and the soon kueh would fill my stomach better than any of the food on the buffet table. Yay.

It was just nice that my bottles of soy sauce from Mikaku No Tabi arrived. I had two cold-smoked flavors of course, one aged tsuru-bishio and one tamari. Both go well with soon kueh. This should also have a touch of chilli. Opted for the tangy garlic-chilli from Putien to match the delicate flavors of soon kueh. Sambal belachan will do, but it tends to overpower the filling.  

It's a super random gift, but I love soon kueh!!! Tehehehehe. But I'm also particular about them. These from One Kueh at a Time are excellent, done just the way I like them. I'm extra thankful for the small packs. Work has been a bit mad recently. So the soon kueh aren't just comfort food for my tummy, they are literally my emergency stash. I can make excellent jiao-zi and soon kueh, but with the arrival of a dog and a tiny open kitchen, there's just no way to make them without getting fur in each piece. These packs make it convenient for me to have a decent meal in the middle of a busy day, and they're so easy to heat up. 

Gifts of Food from the Heart

The friends decided to feed me. They knew I was having it rough these few weeks, and while it's not as rough as what some other people are going through, I'm grateful for their kindness and friendship. 

They didn't exactly ask me if it's convenient to deliver food — they knew I would be home worrying about Choya and not going anywhere. Hurhurhur. When friends are being 'presumptuous', I don't view it as over-stepping boundaries. I see their concern and their lovely hearts, and I'm soooo thankful. My dearest friends are truly angels. 

I got cakes! Two cakes and a tub of rice! There's a cake as a dessert, and a savory one for meals. Ahhh... these friends know. I'm not too opposed to cakes, but many cakes are simply too sweet and not worth the calories or me bouncing off the walls. I only eat cakes that friends bake, and even better if they go low on the sugar.  

Asian Turnip Cake and Glutinous Rice

J realized that it's super hard to find Asian turnip cake (蒸蘿蔔糕) and glutinous rice (糯米飯) to deliver to friends outside of the lunar new year festive period. Teheheheheh. She cleverly found these items at Pine Garden and sent it over.

These were delicious! They were honestly better than Crystal Jade's versions. The sizes were just nice too. There was nothing to portion for the freezer. The portions went to the fridge and we ate everything in 2.5 days. Even the husband didn't mind these carbs at lunch — he was blown away by how delicious they were.

I was very extra, of course, and added lupcheong and yuncheong plus braised baby abalones to the mix. I had plenty of XO sauce and chilli at home to sort out a delicious few meals. Absolutely satisfying and filled my tummy. 

Chocolate, Banana and Walnut Cake

Dear D baked a cake and sent it over still piping hot. It had to sit on my counter to cool. Woah. This cake came loaded with rum-soaked raisins. I can't even... ... Her bakes are the best. She went low on sugar and was generous with the ingredients. It's a dense and magnificent cake that we ain't getting at the commercial bakeries. 

This is one dessert I'm not throwing out and eating up all the crumbs. We froze half the cake. Sowly ate the other half over the next three days. Even the husband decided to inhale 40g and 150 calories once a day. Hahahaha. 

No regrets. I still have a frozen portion to savor for the next week. Wheeeeeee. 

Ah Di Durian at Dempsey

I can't seem to get away with durians this season. After being pranked at home to open durians and stank up the house (I had to air it for a whole day and a half), the friends also brought us gifts of food when they flew in over the weekend.

There's this old school bakery in Bangkok that I like — Tae Lao Chin Seng / แต้เล่าจิ้นเส็ง เบเกอรี่ / 郑老振盛饼家. Of course the friends know it, so they brought me stuff. I like their iteration of khanom pia / ขนมเปี๊ยะ. You know I like my things savory. However, the friends trolled me by including a version with durian in there. ARRRRGGGH. Granted, the durian bits weren't as pungent as feared. BUT STILL......

Then there was this durian stall at Dempsey! We always take friends to Dempsey because it's an easy and relaxing place to take the friends to for meals. That night after dinner, these people wanted a stroll to the open-air Ah Di Durian at the corner! OMG. Even the dog was stunned by the smells coming out of there. Stench, really. 

Now, neither the husband and I have visited this stall although we've seen it a thousand times. Tonight, we finally stopped by because some of the friends love durians, and really didn't mind trying our local fruit from Malaysia. 

They chose a small one. I didn't know how heavy, but it looked small enough. It couldn't have been more than 2kg since it was a $37 Mao Shan Wang. Of course they demolished it. It was manageable when this was dessert Part 2 and everyone took about two seeds or so.

Gorgeous Gifts of Zucchini, Tomatoes & Pesto!

We were soooo lucky to be blessed with so many gifts of food from our friends. We had so much things delivered over that would supply us for a few meals! Our friends came by to drop off a basket of items just flown in from Italy! 

There were oranges, grey zucchini (this species is also known as Lebanese squash or Mexican grey), cherry tomatoes and cooking tomatoes. Wow!

Then there was a big jar of homemade pesto all rich and thick from D and N. They grew so much basil at home that they made this huge batch of pesto and gave it to friends. We were lucky to be allocated a jar too. We love pesto, especially good iterations!!!

Roasted the zucchini and tomatoes. Easy prep for lunch. The husband had a tub of dal and prawn biryani, and those were heated up. The roasted tomatoes went well with the Indian spices. He had the roasted zucchini as a starter mixed with pesto. He loved lunch so much. 

There was plenty left and these would go into the fridge for the next two days. Gotta go get a slab of bread. Foccacia or ciabatta. The zucchini and tomatoes would go well with toasted bread and anchovies too. #ImpieCooks2026

I wasn't going to have biryani. Made a pasta for myself. I made orecchiette with pork sausages (salsiccia toscana) because these go so well with pesto. The zucchini and tomatoes went well with my pasta too. Mmmm. All right, I think did justice to the friends' gifts. These are precious and should never be wasted. 

Durians from Pahang!

The neighbors stopped by with durians for us. They don't know that I hate them. But well, the husband loves them. They gave us two durians. They said that the durians just arrived from Pahang this morning. I was like...... okaaay, obvious fuel shortages and inflated prices don't affect durian trucks coming into Singapore. 

I placed the durians outdoors on the patio and closed the doors. DAMN STINKY SIAL. What on earth do I do with two durians? They're totally unopened! I wasn't going to throw it away lah, what a waste. Didn't bother asking who would want unopened durians. The husband was really keen to taste them. 

As much as I hate durians, I can tell when they're a good batch. The husband has never opened a durian in his life. He wanted to watch a youtube clip and then try to follow it to open the durians. I rolled my eyes. Obviously I had to be the one to open them. He was incredulous. He has never seen me open a durian or even gut a fish.

Well, I can open durians easily, and I can open one in five seconds. It's one of those things I just know how to do. Okaaay, I've had plenty of practice as a kid. Give me a day or two to practice now, and I can open durians matching the speed of the crew at durian stalls .  

Now, I don't have those thick leather gloves used to hold durians. Neither do I have a parang. All I have at home is a Chinese cleaver, old tees to be thrown out, newspapers and plastic sheets. These would do I guess. With these make-do tools, instead of five seconds to open a durian, I took 12 seconds. Yes, I put on the timer. I'm competitive this way. LOLOLOL Not bad lah. I still can open a durian without breaking a sweat. 

We placed a few seeds in a box to share with other neighbors. Kept a nice 10 seeds for the husband. The fridge would stink, but nothing that coffee beans can't resolve. The husband declared that the durians were really good. We don’t know what type pf durians they are, but most certainly not the drier Mao Shan Wang. These are rich, wet, creamy and bittersweet. He loved it. 

お家ですき焼きは

The friends said it was time to celebrate our birthdays! A belated one for me and an advance toast for the husband. Yes, but we didn't want to put them out about the meal and proposed a to-go or delivery. We agreed on sukiyaki (すき焼き). Heh. There's no need to complicate it with additional seafood or whatever and turn it into a Chinese hotpot. Sukiyaki is meant to be fuss-free. 

The friends thoughtfully also got trays of non-wagyu beef. Donki supplied all ingredients, including negi and shungiku. We're not fans of tang-oh but as shungiku, it lends a nicer flavor to the soup, although I wouldn't eat it. But negi is LOVE. Heheheh. The kamaboko-chikuwa, tofu and mushrooms were all yummy. I was really happy with the udon too. In this manner, five strands of udon filled me up!

Dipping beef in hot stock worked nicely for everyone. We could control our done-ness. I simply love dipping beef and everything else in raw egg yolk. The husband didn't finish his dip (cholesterol lah), so I slurped it up for him.

We had a gorgeous bottle of champagne to go along. Crisp and beautiful. Totally loved catching up with the friends too. It's been a hectic quarter at work. Everyone's glad to have an easy night. Our friends' generosity made this evening truly enjoyable — the best gifts, truly. 

A Fun Lunch at Bishan Park!

We usually prefer outdoor tables, and the patio at Grub Pasta Kitchen works so well for us. It's got a good airflow and the sheltered patio is decently comfortable against the mid-day heat. The tables are set far apart enough for us not to feel geli when people cough or talk or sneeze.

There're some overhead fans, but these can be not too useful against the brutal heat. I brought extra fans to place at the table for a bit of extra breeze. Choya was extra stoked to be invited to lunch. She was pleased to have been allocated her favorite table and the spacious corner to chill out at.

There was a good crowd at lunch today. A few floofs too. Choya was not perturbed. All the floofs were happily chilling out at their respective tables. Although the two schnauzers at the other end went bonkers when servers got near. Those floofs couldn't deal with 'invasion' of space. They nip. Although the owners were quite vigilant about holding them back, I was a tad worried that the floofs' teeth would sink into an arm or a calf. That would not be good.

It was such a lovely afternoon. I've missed chatting with D and J in IRL. We do text fairly often, but it's not enough to finish talking about all that we wat to talk about. Heh. The ladies came bearing gifts! I came home with J's gorgeous handmade plate, and D's latest batch of homebaked granola.  

An Aesthetically Pleasing Plate

I was gifted a beautifully crafted Gotomaki Kigoromo plate from Gifu, curated by Artifactt. The texture and feel were splendid. It can be used on either side. Wow! The ladies put so much thought in selecting this plate for me. Absolutely gorgeous. I love it! Plates never have to come in pairs or be matching. I like singles. I have no issue with mismatched crockery and such. They look just fine to me.

I first used it to hold fruits — strawberries and mikan. Do they make my fruits taste sweeter? I dunno. Hehehe. I'm certainly happier eating them off of a nice holder rather than something perfunctory! When I'm really DGAF, I'll just eat fruits over the sink or off of the cutting board as I slice them up, say pears or apples.

Then I plated Choya's Lunar New Year food on it. It made for a pretty photo. And yes, my dear floof knows how to daintily eat off of such beautiful ceramic plates. She never makes a mess. She also loves tasting food served on different plates and bowls. Texture and aesthetics. I guarantee you both Ryo and Choya can discern fun bowls and such.

Choya has her own designated plates to use. However, I have no issues sharing some plates with her. I generally wash these plates by hand twice, then run it through the dishwasher. That whole batch of cutlery and utensils are cleansed at 65°C, which is effective for removing all bacteria. The floofs have a designated washing brush too. I don't bother with a separate flood-friendly dishwashing liquid, lol — that's pure marketing. My Seventh Generation bottles clean just fine for humans and floofs. 

Choya's dinner on said lovely plate.

Lunch Was Perfect

I'm touched to receive gifts of food this season. The dining table was piled full again. It hasn't quite emptied out since Christmas. When I don't bother hosting, I obviously use the dining table to place all sorts of gifts of food on it. 

However, I am so biased. I appreciate the salty and savory over sweets and sugary tarts or bakes. I don't have a habit of taking a cookie or anything sweet in the afternoons or with coffee. I'd consider a small salty dark chocolate cookie though. Heh. I like pineapple tarts, but it's very very very hard to find the ones I want. Nothing comes close to the tarts I have in mind, or that I have tasted and love. It's about the balance of butter vs a rich thick tart pineapple jam that isn't commercially made in big batches. 

That day, my lunch at home was made up of gifts and people's thoughts. Aunty J had given me her home-pickled belimbing and achar. M gave us two jars of her Mum's chilli. And that day, as I was wrapping up my visit, one of my old folks (on the roster) handed me a box of rice, pork chop and egg tofu. She cooked the batch for herself and the neighbors and saved me a portion by way of a Lunar New Year gift.

I heated up all these for lunch the next day. How lovely. I added all the gifted condiments to this heartfelt bowl of care. The achar is soooo good. It's very hard to taste good achar nowadays. I don't even know how many people get what good achar is. I'm so lucky to get this small precious jar.

The pickled belimbing, as always, is friggin sour. But that went well with M's mum's super hot chilli. I dunno if that's counted as sambal belachan because it tasted like super spicy chicken rice chilli to me. I don't like putting lime with any sort of chilli, but paired with belimbing, that was perfect. This chilli is likely too spicy for many people. But the husband and I are chilli fiends, so it's just right for us. 

Lunch was truly perfect. It made my stomach really happy. 

Carrot Cake :: 蘿蔔糕

I'm really that this season, nobody spent money to buy me cakes. I'm very vocal about my aversion to sugar and dessert. I've got no wish for anyone to waste money on sugary desserts for my birthday that I don't care for.

What J did was so clever. She picked a savory Asian-style carrot cake for me from Crystal Jade, and got it delivered. It arrived with no sauces and no condiments. Excellent. I totally appreciated this gift. J knew that I would have all the condiments required at home. Chillies, XO sauces, etc. 

I love it! I could have it steamed or fried. I chose to have it steamed for the first taste. I also added lupcheong to it. Teehehhehe. Lupcheong is everything to me! This is a precious stash from Yue Wo (裕和合記) in Sai Ying Pun, Hong Kong. 

Pineapple Tarts

As much as I'm not into festive goodies or sugar, it's inevitable that people would still gift some to me. They tend to lean towards savory. Whewwww. I stare at the big tub of belinjo crackers gifted by J and L, and I'm trying to resist decimating it so quickly. Hahahah. I don't care about hae bee hiam rolls, but the husband does, so he happily takes a small tub each season. 

M and E gifted us our first tub of pineapple tarts for the season. It's from a home baker they know — Jenny. Whether a batch of pineapple tarts or balls are good, that's completely subjective. Everyone has different preferences. I'm not fond of the Taiwanese pineapple tarts/cakes (鳳梨酥). I like our nyonya local versions. 

I like mine a tad... tart, thick and very full of pineapple and not thin and sugary. I like buttery ones, but the butter used must be top notch, and it mustn't over-power the pineapple filling. I'm not that fond of open-faced tarts. I like them as cute little balls. I won't bother going out to hunt down for pineapple tarts. I'm not that dedicated. If I come across a tub that is actually good, I appreciate it. I don't like the commercially prepped mass-produced pineapple jam. They're wayyy sweet. If the bakery doesn't add their own mashed pineapples to give it a twist, it doesn't work.

One tart holds like 100 calories and 7g (1.5 teaspoons) of sugar. *gulp The recommended intake is two tarts a day. HAHAHAHA. I've seen people inhale like five tarts at a go. I'll stick to one tart every two days. Luckily for me, it's not something I keep thinking about. Neither do I have this craving to 'must' have a pastry with coffee or as a mid-afternoon perk-me-up. 

Gorgeous Butter Cookies

There are some snacks I do it, especially when they're savory, like belinjo crackers. I generally skip sugar, although I'm quite fond of dark chocolate or butter cookies. When you add sea salt the mix, it's irresistible.

There're so many versions of butter cookies. It's subjective. I do not like those from Jenny or anything that's Kjeldsens or Danisa 'Danish butter cookies'. I like those closer to a galette. Oddly, this little brand called 'St Michel Galettes' which are easily available at the supermarkets, are to my taste. 

J gave me a box of butter cookies from Mon Gateau by Chef Then Chui Foong. Now, these are gorgeous. Great butter used, along with a delicate crunch. That smell of butter is heavenly and isn't nauseating the way cheap butter deteriorates into. They're not greasy and not that sweet. 

I love these butter cookies. They're crumbly, so I put them in fridge. I tend to put everything in the fridge anyway. I don't want them out on the counter in this heat and humidity. Once chilled, they're still melt-in-my-mouth, but not in one second. Heh. 

Here We Are, 2026.

No thanks to a mad 35-minute New Year's Eve fireworks display at Marina Bay with extra loud booms and the floofs being sus, I couldn't sleep before midnight. I was awake at the stroke of midnight on the last day of 2025. So I swopped out the calendar to a new year.

Yes I still have a use for calendars. They're aesthetically pleasing. I generally have three at home. One from the animal shelters, one Shiba-ken cut-out thingy from Hands, and one main calendar at the counter next to the dining table. These calendars have been supplied by J for the longest time. I love how she generously does that for me! And this is the one Christmas present I cherish. 

I looked at this new calendar. It's another gorgeous one. Here we are, 2026. The Gregorian calendar indicates that it's a new year. But I've always felt that time moves linearly. It doesn't really matter, all the festive fuss. Social constructs imply that one must celebrate all the things new.

I'm not bothered to do a 'wrap-up' post. The years go on. Every year is different. What you make of it is what you will. If you want to make fundamental changes to how you live, then you must change the way you are and what you do. If you don't, it's just going to be the same shit in the new year while hoping for it to be different. 

Time and the fates have a funny way of toying with humans. Depending on what religious beliefs you hold, you might have faith that all will be well, regardless. But mostly, we don't know what the future holds and we can only control it as much as we possibly can. And it shall be so. We move with time, hopefully anchored in common sense and kindness.

That said, I ain't bending over backwards to accommodate anyone who trespasses on my well-being and attempts to push my boundaries. Saying no is an excellent trait of mine and I intend to hold on tight to it. This is a privileged corner of the world I live in. I have no illusions about that. May we hold on to peace. 

A Pistachio, Kataifi and Chocolate Tart

Last month, we were gifted the most lovely compact six-inch pistachio, kataifi and chocolate tart from Little Favors. Slightly sweet and leaning towards savory. Totally my palate. 

Our friends are so smart — they know we might not be able to get to it that weekend, so they got us this tart that keeps well in the freezer. They were right. It went into the freezer for about a week before we thawed it out to eat.

The nature of the tart meant that it only needed like 20 minutes on the counter, and it was soft enough to be sliced and portioned. The man loved it. He really likes bakes from Little Favors. When we don't randomly order rose-flavored things, we are cool. I dislike rose-and-lavender-scented items rather intensely. 

This tart was meant to wish us a happy anniversary. So sweet lah. I don't bother telling people about our wedding anniversary. And we don't mark it in a big way. This year, everybody knew. LOL So this tart appeared as a gift. 

I make no secret that I'm incredibly fond of Ethel's cakes, financiers and tarts. There's something about the texture and the balance of sugar in her bakes. I'm hard-pressed to find something else similar. I imagine a home-baker could churn out something similar to what she does, but I'm not so into desserts to try them all to find out. I have a limited capacity and tolerance for sugar. 

ขนมไหว้พระจันทร์จากร้านอาหารเชียงการีลา

I stopped by for lunch at Shangarila Restaurant Thaniya (ภัตตาคารเชียงการีลา) on Silom Road in Bang Rak. It has been in operations for almost 60 years. The name kills me but it serves up super tasty Thai-Chinese-Cantonese cuisine. They've learnt to go easier on the salt and oil, and sugar, so their dishes have become wayyy better over the years. 

Their socials aren't super updated but give them a call before you go, and they should have a table for you, unless it's on weekends and the major holidays. It's right at Sala Daeng BTS, which means it's only a short distance for me if I'm staying in a hotel on Ploen Chit. From where I am at Central in Ladprao, it's about 30-minute journey via a car, and 1hr 45min ride via the MRT and a transfer to BTS to get to the Silom line. 

After lunch, we left with some more food. The friends bought us a small tin of two mooncakes from Shangarila to bring home to Singapore. Smart. It was small enough for me to appreciate. I'm not big on mooncakes. How could the husband and I finish four mooncakes (in a box) before they turn moldy? They either be super small or just two — I could just about do a nibble or so. 

Mid-Autumn Festival is also known in Thai as ไหว้พระจันทร์ (Wai Phra Chan). The Koreans call it Chuseok (they make songpyeon); Vietnam calls it a children's festival of lanterns as Tết Trung Thu. The Japanese make tsukimi dango and term it as 月見 (Tsukimi) or お月見 (Otsukimi), or if it's really formal — 中秋の名月 (Chushu no Meigetsu). Moon pastries differ from country to country.  

Thai mooncakes are called ขนมไหว้พระจันทร์, khanom wai phra chan, or following Teochew roots, khanom pia, ขนมเปี๊ยะ. I wasn't going to give this box to anyone. It's precious. I would eat it. So I did. Right on Mid-Autumn Festival. 

My khanom pia came with two fillings. One was filled with nuts, known as five-kernel mooncake. This one doesn't hold meat. It's crazy packed with nuts that it wasn't even sweet. Instead of maltose, the restaurant used glutinous rice flour to bind them together. Super crunchy and dense. The other was a standard filling of lotus seed paste and a single salted DUCK egg yolk. 

สุขสันต์ วันไหว้พระจันทร์

Kangaroo Medium-Rare

I was so tickled when S delivered a small pack of kangaroo meat in small cubes for Choya. Apparently she didn't pay for it. She was just having a regular chat with her usual butcher, stocking up on her meats and all for the home, and the dude decided to give her some lean cubes of kangaroo for the Choya. Ahahaha. 

The meat was fairly lean — they weren't off-cuts — they were good quality. I also had radish and some bell peppers and coriander. Alrighty. That would add loads of nutrients and flavors to the dog's meal. Yes, dogs can have bell peppers, perhaps not raw, but cooked, for sure. Heated up the pan to sear some roo for the dog. Took out four cubes; I seared them medium-rare. 

Choya doesn't fancy raw kangaroo for some reason. She doesn't mind it, but not as a daily base. She likes it seared for texture. Today, she had the roo as an afternoon snack. Wheeee. The rest of it would be added as a topper to her meal the next day. She loved it. She deigned to have a slice of radish and a bit of bell pepper. She slurped up the coriander. This girl loves coriander. 

Sent S a bunch of photos of Choya's meal and the prep. She was so so tickled too. She was like, 'WHUT — are you sure y'all not stealing her food?' Thank yooooou, S. Choya is such a blessed floof lah.

Bakzhang & Greens!

This is a quieter week for me, and I had loads of down-time. After gym that day, I didn't feel heading out for lunch. I went home. I'd rather rummage through the fridge and see what I have to eat. This method doesn't always work for the husband. He doesn't eat what I can eat for lunch. But today, he didn't mind.

There was freshly frozen bakzhang from last week. O's Dad made two batches of Hokkien bakzhang and saved me some from both. Awwww. I'm super touched that he would do this still, and while he would, I treasure it. He makes tasty bakzhang in the manner I like them. Stashed them into the fridge. I love freezing things. They do come in handy a few months down the road. Steamed up two cute bakzhang. While O's Dad's iterations are cuter and not as gigantic, the quantity of glutinous rice used is still enough for a carb bomb. 

I had greens that needed to be eaten. Stir-fried greens Asian style is always tasty.  Thawed out some scallops to go along with them. Yeah, the dog got a scallop too. She loves seared scallops. M had bought us giant fishballs, and we couldn't finish them all. There were three left; I sliced them up and threw them into the veggie mix. #ImpieCooks2025

There, that was lunch done. I really love bakzhang and dumplings. They keep well in the freezer and are so easy to heat up or cook. Today's lunch was all assembled rather quickly. Protein, fibre and carbs. 

漬物 :: キャベツの浅漬け

S gave us a pack of home-pickled tsukemono. I wasn't expecting it, so that was really lovely. It was cabbage /キャベツの浅漬け. Oh noms! I'm not a kimchi person, but I am all about tsukemono. 

It came at a perfect timing because I was kinda on a 'fake diet' before a scheduled medical. LOLOL So I couldn't do alcohol, and I was trying not to do so much spam and beef (steak) and such. Yet I didn't want to eat salads for my meals. Went easy on the carbs too. The tsukemono would add a crunch to my 'streamlined' meals. 

I didn't want to have it go to waste or dis-respect it. So I decided to cook a simple meal to go along with it. S laughed and said that my "kitchen exists because of Choya". She is not inaccurate. Hurhurhur.

Happiness is knowing that I have a frozen portion of fish bone broth. A few weeks back, I had used bones of hamachi, mackerel and threadfin to cook a pot for the dog, and froze a portion for the humans. That made meal prep so much easier. 

Hopped in to the supermarket to grab clams, prawns and ikan batang. The man would require more protein than just fish. Clams and prawns always hit a spot for him. Mine wouldn't hold the shellfish. Pan-seared the ingredients before adding them to the fish bone broth for a short boil. Ta-dahhhhh. The man had it with brown rice. I passed on the carbs. That was dinner. It was supremely satisfying. 

正月初一 :: 歲去年來新換舊，龍潛蛇舞景成春

Today is first day of the Lunar New Year of the Wood Snake. I started the day early with a long walk along East Coast Park. The floofs needed their walk. The weather was fantastic! It was cool and breezy. What a nice change from the usual heat and humidity during this period. It has been lovely, honestly. That's because I make an effort to draw strict boundaries and protect my mind space. My heart feels lighter, and there's nothing for me to be angsty over after 'obligatory' events since I didn't attend. Ha!

I have some duties to fulfil for the old folks on my roster. Those are fine. I'm happy doing them. I don't have a habit of receiving visitors at home for any reason, so it's certainly not a thing during this period either. I don't cook either, and have no interest in cooking, so it's not a thing to invite people to come taste my food. That tickles me so much. 

I'm not interested in dispensing angpows to 'relatives' and 'extended relatives' just because it's customary. I eschew certain traditions because it's discriminatory and levies social pressure and forces adherence to norms that I don't agree with. If I don't bother visiting, then I'm not going to allocate or prepare angpows for your numerous children since I've either never seen them, don't remember them and definitely don't know them. 

I'm not completely cantankerous. I do have little gifts of food and mandarin oranges prepped for friends that I do see regularly, and angpows prepped for the floofs and little tots that I know I would see over the two festive weekends.