wheeeee

Haha, its finally over. No more book-ins, no more regimentation, no more fears of arrows or screw-ups. Its really been an unforgettable experience, enjoyed myself, taken away quite alot with me, and its time to move on. To all those who I've got to know or work with, its been fuifilling. All the best to everyone, and for those who are still in there, your time will come!

Its been raining kittens and puppies recently, not heavy enough to prevent me from going out, yet its significant enough to stop many outdoor activities like swimming or window shopping. However, there's still cooking which I can do in the comforts of my own backyard, thankfully sheltered from whatever downpours out there.



The new oven in action. Sitting in there is a well-marinated chicken. Turn-spin is a wonderful tool to having a well-roasted chicken.



Nothing beats a nice bowl of hot soup on a rainy day like this. On a certain roadside stall in Bangkok, there were alot of spices sold, so I managed to buy a packet of tom yum spices in an attempt to make tom yum soup of my own.



Looks simple enough right? In case you don't know, there's kaffir lime, a certain variant of ginger, lotsa lemon grass and dried chilli padi. Even the instructions look so simple. However, its really nowhere near that.





The extra ingredients I threw into in mix. Tomatoes, onions, straw mushrooms.

Of cos, a vegetarian tom yum won't fill, and I love fish.



Beautiful raw batung.



Nicely passed through boiling water, coupled with a few prawns.

I realised fish sauce (or fish gravy some call it) is a favourite thai seasoning. Almost any thai dish that isn't sweet has got this thing in it. Happens to be my mum's substitute for light sauce in whatever she dips her food in. (and it is seriously not healthy)







Sadly, the packet of spices could not create that tom yum effect I love so much, so I had to resort to adding some tom yum paste, which I highly suspect contain alot of chilli, in order to give it that characteristic red, oily appearance. End product was still edible, though slightly sour and spicy. Not bad to go with rice on a rainy day, but more work needs to be done if I want the soup without any of the paste. Gladly appreciate anyone's help to get me a thai chef who could give me a tip or two.



Its seriously good to be doing nothing but eating, sleeping, playing, going out with friends, cooking, pooling, mahjonging. Looking forward to many of the up-coming meetings with friends, gatherings, and more cooking!