Cooking Like Jamie

*from my other blog at Dilla Speaks Out

I must say that I have been rather good at this cooking thingy. Seeing that I have quite a chronic case of the hangat-hangat tahi ayam syndrome (I am recovering, you know..) I was expected to be doing it for only a while before I get bored and move on to the next ‘thing’ I term as my passion. Seal the not-so-new Zanussi ZOE535 Electric Oven / Grill (refer if you have forgotten how it looked like ) and shelf the expansive cookbooks. However, I beg to differ in this particular case, my friends. By the way things are going, I can see that this ‘cooking’ thing will be a very frequent event in my life.

Most of my recipes hail from three main sources:

1. My Mak Langkawi : She is THE resource person back in the heydays when I started cooking - when I was a bachelor living amongst the Mat Salleh in the UK up until now as I have already become a mother of 2 kids. Her dishes are simple and she can make SOMETHING good out of whatever raw material taht is left in the fridge. She cooks a mean dish of Ayam Masak Cili Kering, Ikan Bawal Masak Halia and Pajeri Nenas. But of course, she can make just about anything under the sun. This lady doesn’t use measurements, "Bawang sikit.. halia sikit.." and PRESTO! The dish is done..

2. My Datin-boss : She LOVES to cook A LOT. (In terms of both frequency and quantity) My first tried and tested dish from her was the Steak with Mashed Potatoes and Buttered veges. I got raved reviews from hubby, so I decided to offer them to my siblings, in-laws and nieces. They also agreed. Since then, I have been referring to my Datin-boss for dishes such as : Daging & Ubi Kentang Oyster, Nasi Beriyani, and I am due to learn how to make my own Beef patties.

3. My Jamie Oliver’s cookbooks :I have two at the moment.Jamie’s Dinners and The Return of the Naked Chef (So you know what to get me for my next birthday :6.1.2007 *hint hint*) I love his books ‘coz there’s not much preparation that needs to be done and he just BASICALLY chucks things in and it gets cooked. The instructions are easy to follow too. Sure, he uses parts of ‘the animal’ that we can’t eat, but the is easily replaced with all the alternatives available in the market now. Case in point: streaky bacon with streaky beef bacon. I have to admit he uses a lot of ingredients that are not available / grown locally but you can find most of them at Bangsar Village’s Village Grocer or Jaya jusco Supermarket in One-Utama. The best part is it tastes really really good. And that’s what matters in the end, right?

Among my accoplishments so far:

From L to R: Scottish Pete’s Cheesy Steak Sandwich, Lambs with Chickpeas, Yoghurt and Tray-roasted veg, Roast Chicken with Lemon and Rosemary Roast Potatoes & Pesto.

Not in the pictures: Super Tasty Lamb Cutlet & Salmon and Couscous

Quite an impressive list, eh? heh heh heh

-dillz blogging out-