I Want More..

from Tamil movies.

I've been watching Indian (Tamil + Hindi) movies for decades now and I have to say, Tamil movies lately are a bit disappointing. No, not all of them, there are still some good ones that I have watched - but some of them really leave you feeling a bit silly for having watched the movie.

There's this formula that they have for some Tamil movies these days:

1. Hero is either a cop or a one man army.
2. Hero comes across baddie when he least expects it and gets into baddie's bad books.
3. The war begins with baddie and hero trying to outdo each other.
4. [Insert parallel romance storyline here]
5. Hero wins baddie and they live happily ever after.

Now this formula has been going on for at least 20 movies so far - and I am so tired of this. I wish people will make better movies and stop using this formula. I'm sure there are a lot of filmmakers out there with better ideas, right?

Disclaimer: This is just my personal opinion. I'm no movie critic, but I do watch a lot of movies :)

Chili Prawn Linguine

No, this blog is definitely not turning into a food blog - otherwise I'm going to be eating way too much :)

I just figured I'll share what I cook more often since I keep taking recipes from other people - time to give back.

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This is a really quick recipe, I got it from the Internet a long time ago. Can't really remember which site now. Serves 2 very hungry people ;)

Ingredients:

Prawns, approximately 500 grams
About 200 grams of linguine (I usually estimate half a packet)
Zest of half a lemon (according to taste)
1 or 2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
2-3 red chillies sliced (according to taste)
Salt, pepper, and parsley (according to taste)
Garnish with grated Parmesan (optional)

Method:

Boil linguine according to instructions on the packet.
In a separate frying pan, heat olive oil and fry garlic.
When the garlic is fragrant, add in prawns.
As the prawns start to go opaque and curl in, stir in chili slices for a minute or two. (Prawns cook very quickly so you'll have to watch closely.)
Once the prawns are done, switch off the stove.
Stir in the lemon rind.
Toss with linguine.
Season with salt, pepper, and parsley.
Top with grated Parmesan.

A Recurring Dish in my Kitchen

Somedays I am in a hurry after work to eat as quickly (but healthy) as possible, rest for a good 40-60 minutes and then head out to the gym. On these days I try to cook something that has some amount of good carbs but is not too heavy.

Recurring dishes are channa masala with wholewheat tortillas, pita bread with ham, tzatziki, cucumber slices and hummus, brown pasta with prawns, chili and lemon zest, etc.

The most recurring dish is actually Sushi Bowl.

Sushi bowl is effectively all sushi-like ingredients tossed in a bowl. The overall taste is similar to a sushi but you just don't have to wrap it. I've tried making sushi and not only is it time consuming, it is one of the most difficult to estimate recipes ever ;) It can be quite fun when done among friends though.

The original recipe is from Heidi Swanson, who never fails to amaze me with her wonderful recipes. Thank you very much for the recipe Heidi :)

I make a quick and lazy version (photo) and here's the recipe for two hungry people:

200 grams of smoked salmon - sliced into strips
1 large avocado - cubed
1 cup of rice - cooked
1 bunch of scallions - chopped
A handful of sesame seeds
2-3 sheets of seaweed - sliced into strips

For the sauce:
2 oranges
1 lemon
1-2 tablespoons of Japanese soya sauce
1-2 tablespoons of Japanese rice vinegar
1/2 tablespoon of sugar

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Method:

1. Cook rice your usual way. (You can use sushi rice or normal white rice. I use brown rice as I feel it does not go mushy when you pour the sauce on it.)

2. Boil juice of 2 oranges and 1 lemon with some orange and lemon zest. When the juice starts to bubble, add in soya sauce, rice vinegar and sugar. Stir quickly and switch off the stove. (The amount of soya sauce, rice vinegar and sugar is up to you. The mixture should be a slight brownish/orangish colour.)

3. Serve rice with a little bit of everything. Drizzle the sauce on the rice and sprinkle sesame seeds and seaweed strips.
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This dish is quite versatile in the sense that you can add a lot of other ingredients like cooked prawns, crab sticks, or fried tofu.

I Was Once Mistaken For a Boy

Today on Facebook I came across a friend being a tad miffed that a barista in a cafe called her "Madam" instead of "Miss". I realised that it was not so bad.

I've been mistaken for a boy so many times when I was a kid because I always had the Mushroom haircut :) It also didn't help that I was a bit of a tom boy. Okay maybe not "a bit"..it's "very much". I never liked girly stuff and definitely hated the colour pink. I never liked sleeveless T-shirts (still don't), skirts, dresses, etc.

Actually, I haven't worn a dress since I was 10 years old or something. That's 16 years ago..wow.

But I digress. My point is that I started to realize that maybe I should bother to look like a girl when I was 19 and in a small restaurant near my college, a waiter told me "Intha Thambi" and handed me my food.

That means "Here, little boy (or younger brother)". I kind of freaked out because I was 19 and I definitely looked like a girl. Let's just say my sisters and I will never need silicone enhancements ;)

A few people in the restaurant were smirking and chuckling in my direction. I was a little mortified.

That's when I decided - it is time to grow my hair. I never looked back since then .. though my hair is a lot shorter now than it used to be when I was a poor student in Australia who could not afford a hair cut - but that's for another day.

Saturday Breakfast

On Saturdays and Sundays, I sometimes crave warm breakfast - pancakes, scrambled eggs, toast, oatmeal porridge, etc.

Yesterday I saw this recipe Banana Almond Oatmeal Pancakes and decided to make it today.

It's quite a nice breakfast. I added the yoghurt and strawberries on top as I already had some in the fridge.

Have a nice weekend, everyone :)

Never Refuse an Expectant Mom

I bumped into a really cool person via blog hopping recently. Her name is Cas and she's demanded to see a photograph of my mediocre sago pudding I made last weekend.

I'm told never to refuse an expectant mom, so here you go Cas ;)

What a week it has been

It's been a tough week. There's been just so much to do that I had to bail out of cooking dinner for my Portuguese friends and attending a farewell dinner for my British friend.

I feel bad about it..but then again I always feel bad for everything :)

Work has picked up a lot with some events coming closer and requirements arising. I have so much of work to do - but it isn't really writing, a lot of it is mucking around with Illustrator and InDesign, attempting to make something useful.

I've started researching on language courses. If everything falls into place, I'll be taking another Norsk course this Summer. I hope it goes well. Time to grit my teeth and get to it I guess.

I'd rather go on a vacation ;) Hahaha, ironically the price of the course is equivalent to a trip to Greece...or Dublin...or Barcelona. Decisions, decisions :/

I made sago pudding on Friday night. It was yummy. It could have tasted better had I had some patience and let the sago chill longer in the fridge. But patience was never my middle name :) Impatience is.

Well, I hope this week goes better than last week...