I used to nuke a lot of “Asian marinated drumsticks” when I was in high school in Christchurch, NZ. It’s sold at Countdown (one of the largest hypermarket chain) and I just put it in the microwave when I felt like a snack. I set it for 1 minute on high for each drumstick and it tasted really good…well, as far as microwave food can taste.
Now, I got thinking about that good ol’ comfort food that helped me through the cold winters and I decided to make my own version. The “Asian marinate” is nothing more than soy sauce and I reckon I could make a far better version. I managed to come out with a delectable dish – it’s so good I’m drooling as I write this. 😀
You will need:
Whole chicken leg
Dark sweet soy sauce
Light salty soy sauce
Garlic
Sugar (a lot of it)
Chicken legs are an excellent cut for this dish. It has just enough of the fattier bits of the chicken for a whole meal. Now, when we cooked this for the first time we were both very hungry and didn’t feel like taking the time to marinate the chicken. That turned out to be an excellent decision. The no-marinade caramelized garlic chicken leg was born and here’s how it goes! 🙂
First, put the chicken leg inside the cooking pot and dump in the dark and light soy sauce. Add your 4 tablespoons (not teaspoons – tablespoons) of sugar and let the heat caramelize it for a bit.
Next, peel at least an entire bulb of garlic and put the cloves in whole. You need the entire chicken leg to be covered so add a bit of water if you need to. Let the chicken simmer in the pot for about 30 minutes.
It’s now ready to serve! Just take out the chicken leg and pour a bit of the sauce on top of it. Remember to spoon out all the garlic, it tastes heavenly with it.
This method of cooking the chicken tastes even better than marinating it. The slow simmering process tenderizes and allows all the flavors to be absorbed into the chicken. It’s absolutely fabulous – sweet and garlicky. It goes really well with steamed rice and the sauce is to die for.
Garlic fans would LOVE this. I can eat plates of rice with just the caramelized sauce and melt-in-your-mouth garlic cloves.
Just remember your breath mints after having this for dinner.
The United States Declaration of Independence has an oft quoted line – Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. It’s misunderstood by a lot of people. Your happiness is not guaranteed…the sentence is supposed to give you the basic unalienable human rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness (emphasis mine).
What is happiness? Well, it depends on the individual but it is your right to seek your own happiness. To me, happiness is a state of mind where you’re content with everything in your life.
Happiness is something money cannot buy. A lot of people are unhappy about their financial situation but I believe that’s an unnecessary worry. The Chinese has a proverb that goes “Money is something that you can always earn back when you lose it”. There’s another phrase that goes “There will be water if God wills it” but that comes from the less reputable and more modern Dark Tower series of books by Stephen King. 😉
Happiness is a state of mind that I always try to strive for. I’m happy when I’m doing the things I like such as travelling. It enriches me and makes me a more understanding and better person when I meet new people and learn about new cultures. I’m even happier when I’m spending quality time with loved ones – friends, family, my girlfriend.
It’s all too easy to get caught up in the rat race and forget about the simple things in life that lifts your mood:
Finding a parking space as soon as you enter a full car park
The smell of freshly cut grass
Laughing at corny jokes
Having a baby smile at you
A fellow commuter stopping to let you drive out of a particularly busy exit
Waking up and realizing it’s the weekend so you can sleep in
Watching a sweet TVC that makes you smile
These are all little things which makes yout day just that little bit brighter. It has a cumulative effect and happiness is highly contagious – it’s like laughter. It’s meant to be shared. 🙂
I watched the Cadbury TVC and repeated it twice coz it was just so sweet. I found it adorable – the simple sweet joy (pun not intended) that permeates the entire commercial. It has all the elements done right – the humor, the camaraderie of neighborhood love, and a dash of romance.
I took it upon myself to make a video similar to that. I was in Miri, Sarawak at that time to help my girlfriend move her stuff to KL. We spent a weekend in the Marriott Resort and Spa in Miri. It’s located right on the beach by the South China Sea and we booked a chalet facing the pool and sea.
You just need to open the sliding glass door to get out. There’s a balcony which is less than 10 meters from the pool – it’s almost like having a pool right at your doorstep!
I thought up the idea of having a series of unfortunate events much like the original TVC. The entire video was shot over a period of 2 days. I didn’t have a professional videographer so I had to think of how to get the scenes right.
I also wanted a “happy” vibe so everything is shot in daylight – it’s bright and sunny with no indoor scenes except the initial phone call. I’ll go through the more interesting bits to give you a behind-the-scenes peek at the making of the video. 🙂
The splash
The first mishap you see (the one where I exit the house just to get splashed by a wayward neighbor’s dirty mop water) is done using a tripod. The one holding the bucket is…*drumroll*…Jeanie herself. The bucket was too heavy for her and we had to do two takes. I ended up changing coz the first splash totally failed – she went into the scene, propelled by the momentum and weight of the bucket of water.
We filled it with less water in the second take. I didn’t want to use up the rapidly dwindling backpack of attire I brought along. 😡
The car not being able to start
You’ll see the same car in the next scene so I did an extreme close up so you won’t see the make, model or color of the car. 🙂
The accident scene
This one wasn’t too hard to do. It only required the two of us to pull it off. I filmed Jeanie driving towards me. I told her to put her foot on the gas and not worry about hitting me.
After that part was filmed, I passed the camera to her and she filmed me being caught like a deer in the headlights as the car (apparently) came barreling down on me.
The next scene was me twitching on the car bonnet after being “hit”. It took some video transitions to make it look comically realistic (without actually hitting me with the car).
It was originally longer but I thought the bit where I ended up wandering about dazed after being hit was a little too much so I cut it from the editing board. You can watch the full original scene here:
I spent a lot of time editing the videos – it’s a good learning process but it took me the better part of 3 days of almost continuous tweaking to get the timing and synchronization right. I’m a newbie in video production, thus the learning curve.
The sea
This is one of the scenes that I took out of the video as I thought it won’t contribute much to it. The beach walk also had to be sped up 4x so it won’t drag on.
The underwater scene
This is a bit of a retrofit. It was meant to be all fluff – a cool video taken underwater. I have a waterproof digicam and I figured it would be nifty to take a video underwater. I knew it won’t make much sense since I appear with my shirt on in the next scene…until I saw someone being escorted out by security.
The Marriott has a strict policy – only guests are allowed to use the resort facilities and The Proverbial Light Bulb (TM) came on. It shall be the scene where I evade the guards!
I put that in the caption (used the Confucius angle), and the rest, as they say, is history.
The end scene
After all those trials and tribulations, we finally shot the last scene beside the pool. There’s this comfy sofa and we enlisted the help of a kind lady from France who was more than obliged to help us film this scene. The inter-cuts you see at the end is filmed by us – I did her and she did me.
The chocolate
I swear this was the hardest part of the video – we went to several different shops in Miri but none of them had Cadbury Dairy Milk. They have others – the ones with nuts, Old Gold, and others…but not the original. It took us 2 hours before we stumbled upon a shop that sells it. I bought 5 x 75 gram bars.
I then realized that it was the old packaging when I chanced upon a shop with the new packaging. I bought more of it and re-shot some of the scenes again. I have a lot of chocolate now but I love Cadbury Dairy Milk so it’s all good. 😀
We actually did share it – there were a couple of kids running around in the resort and I passed them several bars. I thought their parents would balk – candy from strangers and all that, but they thanked us for it and one even bought us drinks from the poolside bar.
The kids loved it. One of them came up to me and she showed me her toy – a launcher she was playing with beside the pool that launches a baby dinosaur up into the air by pumping air into the tube. That was the highlight of doing the video – sharing the Cadbury chocolate and seeing the little ones enjoying it by the pool during their holiday. 🙂
My notebook’s 320 GB hard disk had a head crash yesterday. I had to scramble to Digital Mall and find a replacement HDD (500 GB Toshiba – cost me RM 175) and an el cheapo 2.5″ SATA external HDD enclosure (RM 18). I finally managed to reinstall Windows 7 and get most off my stuff up and running (except for the Wi-Fi and LCD drivers) today. I still need a couple of apps but at least it’s usable now.
The good news: I managed to recover the majority of my photos and documents using a disk recovery software so that’s a relief. I haven’t done a backup since last year so there were a lot of travel photos inside.
However, I lost a Word document which is a work in progress I’ve been writing on and off on. It was in the primary partition (which the data recovery application could hardly read at all without the dreaded clickety clack sound) and it has a couple of month’s worth of writing, from when I did my last backup. T_T
I can still remember what to write (generally) but it’s a lot of content and I’m SURE it won’t be the same anymore. I know I can’t possibly remember all the anecdotes and witty asides that I typed when inspiration striked and I opened up that document to quickly put it down in words.
Oh well…it could have been worse, but damn does a HDD failure hurt. >.<
I just went to the ESPN Star Sports launch of Castrol Football Crazy’s Longest Pass campaign in Malaysia yesterday. It was awesome! I got to talk to the legendary Steve McMahon – he’s the former England international and ex-Liverpool player extraordinaire.
Someone mentioned that Steve looks really tough and rough but he’s really a nice guy. Heh! I tend to agree – he’s a very affable fellow, with years of experience in playing real football behind him. We all had a wonderful time chatting with him.
Steve has an amazing record with 200+ matches under his belt, and he’s scored 50 goals altogether. He shared some really interesting insights about the Malaysian football scene in general how it can be better.
Anyway, back to the launch, it was at Bangsar Shopping Center and I saw Mark Ng (Marketing Director for Castrol Malaysia and Singapore) when I walked into the concourse. I’ve met him a number of times in the past and he’s really friendly despite his position. Awesome guy, it’s always a pleasure to bump into him. 🙂
There were two girls donned in the red and green colors of Castrol at the photo wall and we took a photo with them…or rather, we were ushered towards the wall to take a photo with them.
La Bodega had a couple of tables reserved for the event so while we were waiting for it to start, we got a couple of healthy shakes inside. That’s Jestina and Mimi in the background, looking through the menu and deciding what to order. I thought it was a rather artistic shot. *self praise
ESPN’s Castrol Football Crazy’s Longest Pass launch started with the hosts of the program (Adam, Patricia and Jason) introducing Steve McMahon and a local guy who can do AMAZING things with a football. He was on stage, basically dancing to a song with his football.
His control is impeccable – the football was on his neck and he somehow got it between his legs in a rapid twisting motion.
You’ve got to see it to believe it. I hear he’s the best freestylist in Malaysia.
The other thing that really impressed me was the neat trick they pulled off with Jason. Adam and Patricia were on stage, trying to find the missing Jason (word was he went to the toilet) when the TV came on.
It turns out that Jason wasn’t anywhere in bsc at all. It was a pre-recorded feed which syncs perfectly with the other two Castrol Football Crazy hosts. The banter went on and Jason kicked a ball from the TV (remember he’s not actually in bsc), which appeared on stage and Adam and Pat took the ball from there.
What can I say? I’m a sucker for nifty launch gimmicks.
…and that is what ESPN’s Castrol Football Crazy Longest Pass is all about! It involves all of us (yes, including YOU way at the back) making the longest pass in Asia. Just record a scene of you kicking a football to someone else off-screen and upload it!
The best videos will then be chosen and edited to make a seamless football pass throughout Asia! Imagine your kick going to someone in the Philippines and then to Japan etc etc – you’ll get the drift. I watched the promo commercial and it’s set to be an amazing campaign!
The ESPN people recorded us making football passes on stage and I had to do several takes coz I kept wanting to do something fancy but failed. T_T
I’ll be getting the video after they’re done with post-production and I’ll upload it for you all to see what it’s like. It was a lot of fun to be part of the Castrol Football Crazy’s Longest Pass campaign!
In the meantime, why don’t you record a video of you doing the same, upload it and send it to cfclongestpass@espnstar.com with your full name and country details? Just use anything – even a phone cam would do, and if your entry is good enough, you’ll be featured on TV across ESPN Star Sports’ network as well as on the Castrol Football Crazy Facebook page. 🙂
You’ll basically be in a video featuring a never-ending football pass throughout Asia! Find out more and be a part of this campaign by surfing over to the Castrol Football Crazy Facebook page.
I passed by the newly relocated KFC at KLCC with Jeanie a few days ago. I haven’t eaten for 24 hours prior to this (we were down with a bug) and was quite keen to get started. I noticed they have a new promotion going on – the KFC O.R. Chicken Chop with mushroom gravy.
The latest version!
I remember having KFC’s O.R. Chicken Chop back in 2006 so I was keen to check out the new and improved version. We both ordered it and this seems to be a whole different incarnation. The platter of the good stuff came with a chicken chop, some potato wedges, sweet corn kernels and mushroom sauce served on the side.
This is KFC’s ’06 varient – you can tell by the smaller photo – that was the standard size in my blog back then. 🙂
Chicken chop is a uniquely Malaysian dish – created by Hainanese cooks back when the British ruled the lands. However, it has become a standard feature in a lot of places now. KFC’s variant is slightly better – it’s also de-boned so you can eat the entire drumstick (chicken chop is always made with a drumstick) but it’s battered and fried in the tradition of KFC’s Original Recipe.
The KFC O.R. Chicken Chop (circa 2011) is very crispy on the outside and retains the tender chicken juices on the inside. The have also improved on the mushroom sauce this time around. I like how it’s served on the side so you can decide how much you want on your chicken chop.
However, the best part about the KFC O.R. Chicken Chop is the addition of sweet corn kernels. I love sweet corn and this provides a whole new dimension to the dish – there’s a sweet component when you shovel some of the corn into your mouth and it goes very well with the chicken chop – a very nice touch!
The KFC O.R. Chicken Chop with mushroom gravy combo retails for RM 9.90 with all of the above and a drink of Mountain Dew. It was so good we finished everything except for the potato wedges (my stomach has shrunk during the 24 hours without food).
The KFC O.R. Chicken Chop with mushroom gravy is a wonderful option when you pass by a KFC outlet the next time. It’s quite different from their 2006 incarnation and I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again…
Bulus is a fish that has become a staple in our kitchen. It’s commonly called silver whiting (sillago sihama) and it’s a wee little fish. The largest ones are not much bigger than a sausage. It’s easy to cook (always a plus point) but relatively expensive at RM 19.90 per kg.
Damn, I’m starting to sound domesticated aren’t I? Prices of fish indeed…
Anyway, I say relatively because there are a lot of other species of fish like catfish, kerisi, gelama etc which comes in under the RM 10 price point and this is double that. It comes up to about RM 1 per (small) fish. However, what bulus (silver whiting) has in its favor is that most of its weight is fish meat – there’s no large head or bones to take up excess weight.
The flesh of ikan bulus is also sweet and has an almost silky texture so it’s worth the price premium. 🙂
Silver whiting is best served marinated and deep fried with corn flour. It’s also wise to ask the hypermarket people to descale and gut the fish so you don’t have to do it yourself.
Our marinate sauce:
Light soy sauce
McCormick Season-All salt
Heinz brown sauce
Just marinate the bulus using the ingredients above (or change it depending on what you have in your kitchen cabinet) and sprinkle some finely chopped raw garlic on top. Leave this for about 30 minutes.
Anyway, have you noticed that all the garlic has disappeared in the photo below? No, we didn’t discard it, there’s a trick here that we use to make it taste better.
Stuff the raw chopped garlic into the (gutted) fish’s stomach right before you spoon the corn flour over the silver whiting. It’s a simple but neat touch that gives you a tasty surprise when you bite into it. 🙂
We use Brown & Polson corn flour (the ones that come in a rusty hued can) to coat the bulus. This is a product that goes back ages. I remember seeing cans of this in my grandma’s kitchen. Heh!
Slide the garlic stuffed fish into hot boiling oil and flip it once in a while. It only takes 3 minutes to cook due to the size and with that amount of cooking time, it’ll be crunchy enough to eat whole – bones, head and tail.
This is a recipe I remember eating a lot of during my first real relationship. My ex-girlfriend’s mother cooked this all the time and with a bit of effort I managed to replicate her recipe. I don’t eat a lot of vegetables but I like certain ones and this one is a hit. 🙂
Ladyfingers or okra is quite easy to work with – my parents usually just dunk it in hot water for a couple of minutes and eat it just like that. It’s very healthy.
However, this is a better tasting version that I picked up from an ex-girlfriend’s mom (who’s a great cook). It requires:
Lady’s fingers (okra)
Surimi (crab sticks)
Tomato sauce
Dark soy sauce
Brown sugar
What makes this slightly different is all in the sauce. This sauce is very delicious when used with lady’s fingers. You’ll want to mix tomato sauce and dark soy sauce in a 1:1 ratio. Pour another measure of brown sugar (2:1 to the existing sauce mix) on top to sweeten the entire thing.
Surimi is meant to be the “treasure” beneath the bed of ladyfingers. Put it into boiling water and take it out after a few seconds. Surimi (crab sticks) cooks really fast so get ready to fish it out when it floats to the top (to me this means that it’s cooked, I could be mistaken). 😉
Put the lady fingers into the boiling pot after that and wait for about 2 minutes. A spatula would be useful in speed cooking – just press the okra down into the hot water. Ladyfingers also doesn’t take long to cook – you want this to be slightly firm and crunchy on the outside.
While the ladyfingers are cooking, put a bit of hot water into the sauce mixture to melt the brown sugar. I just used the closest available one – straight from the pot. You just need a TINY (a bit of an oxymoron to use caps to emphasize moderation) amount so just sprinkle a little from the spatula you use for the lady fingers.
Take the lady fingers out, chop off the head, and slice it vertically using a very sharp knife – two slices down each one is optimal but if you come across a particularly small finger, just once slice would do. This releases the Gooey Stuff (TM) that’s so good about okra.
Just arrange the sliced lady fingers on top of the bed of surimi and pour the sauce over it. It’s now ready to eat! 😀
This dish cools really fast so it’s best if you cook it last.
Serve immediately and savor the texture and tastes of the messy goo mixed with sauce and surimi and the occasional crunch of lady’s fingers. 🙂
