The Almost Naked Chef (I cook in my PJs)

Warning: Bahasa Rojak coming right up!
I write this entry at the risk of getting my blog categorised in the "Bimbo Blog" category.

I was washing up the dishes in the sink one day last week when mama came home from her shopping expedition and asked me to make Nasi Sup Ayam.

I am not a cook. I can’t even make coffee and make it taste like coffee without it turning out like I put a teaspoon of ear wax in it.

‘Ma, I don’t know how to make Sup Ayam,’ I said, trying my hardest not to panic.

‘Oh it’s easy, Sya,’ mama said, looking rather annoyed. ‘Nanti kahwin macam mana lah anak mama sorang ni,’ she continued. ‘Kalau suami nak makan Nasi Sup esok-esok nanti takkanlah Aisya nak jawab “tak pandai lah, sayang”.’

Oopsie. Why’s mama talking about me being married already? Flippin’ ‘eck! I blushed dangerously before attempting to answer.

‘Kalau suami Aisya nak makan Nasi Sup, biarlah dia masak sendiri!’ I said.

After all, one of my mottos are ‘You Nak, You Buat Sendiri.’ And I’ve always believed married couples should share the workload… That includes taking turns to cook and do chores and stuff… I’m not going to end up a typical desperate housewife, NO SIR. You Nak, You Buatlah Sendiri! Or we could work together… *Imagines future husband and self baking apple pies together. Mmm…*

So anyway, mama ended up convincing me that making Nasi Sup Ayam isn’t hard. Plus, I’m all for learning how to cook, since knowing how to cook could be a serious advantage if ever I get stuck on a desert island with people who don’t know how to cook…So as I cooked up a storm in the kitchen, the wheels in my head began turning.

If I know how to make Nasi Sup, I can finally say I’m not so gastronomically retarded anymore! It’s not like I’m ENTIRELY hopeless at cooking either… Sure I can only cook a few dishes, but my few dishes RULE, since I always have my own little personal touches that I add into the recipe. Here’s my little list of things I can actually make.

List of Foods Aisya Can Actually Make.

1.Nasi Sup Ayam.
Yes. I can safely say I succeeded in preparing this one. Here’s the Shurfa recipe:
Some garlic, ginger, onions, water, a bit of oil, salt, that brown powdery thing, chicken, those things that look like small nuts but taste like toothpaste, vegetables of your choice.

2. Omelette.

Jenis-jenis omelette that I can make include vegetable omelette, potato omelette… erm… Really salty omelette… And… erm… that’s it. I’ll try cheese omelette later.

3. Nasi Goreng.

This was actually the first proper dish I learnt how to make. Ingredients include the three basics: Onions, garlic, ginger. Then you put in some chilli boh (I think that’s what it’s called) then you dump in the rice… then… I think you put in tomato sauce… or you could put in kicap… then when everything’s nice and brown and red or orange, you stick in some vegetables, like cabbages and carrots and stuff.. Voila! You got yourself a pot of Nasi Goreng. Mine usually ends up tasteless, but it’s the thought that counts…

4. French Toast.

I’m really excited about this one. I make a MEAN FRENCH TOAST. I’m really, really chuffed about my secret recipe to making the perfect French Toast. I’m not revealing that secret here, muahahahahahah. It’s highly classified information, but I’m willing to prepare some for you if you ask nicely. I think only Ashli knows my secret recipe… He’s my cooking partner. We like swapping recipes over the phone.

5. Pancakes.
Easy to make. Get dough, mix in some water, a dash of custard is what makes all the difference… then I think what you’re supposed to do is… pour a blob of the batter into a pan and wait till it cooks on one side before flipping it over… Serve with honey and butter… or jam… or tuna mixed with mayo and veggies! Yum.

6. Mee Goreng made out of Maggi Mee.
This started out as an experiment. I was craving for mee goreng, but we ran out of the nice magi mee goreng packets… So I took those regular mee maggis, boiled it, drained the water out, then mixed in some soy sauce into the noodles. Tastes gross, but it’s still food.

7. Apple Juice
Ok, so this isn’t exactly a meal, but HECK I found the secret to making home made apple juice taste like the ones brought from the supermarket. ADD VINEGAR, baby. Chop up apples, stick into blender, turn blender on, add some lemon juice, sugar then ADD A DASH OF VINEGAR. The vinegar gives it that kick it needs to make it taste absolutely (puts on Jamie Oliver voice) beauuuu’ful. Take heed though: You might end up with a soar throat after the second cup.

8. Fish that tastes like Smoked Salmon but isn’t really.
Yeah, I discovered how to make this just a few hours ago when mama told me to make lunch. I marinated the fish that I gutted earlier with that yellow powdery stuff called… kunyit (almost forgot what it was called just then) and salt. Then I put pepper in there and fried it. The end result? Ikan kembungs that taste like smoked salmon. Kinda. I served this with a fried cabbage-soup thing I made by frying onions first, adding water then dumping loads of cabbages into the mix. Oh, don’t forget the salt.

I think I’ve covered everything. I CAN ofcourse know how to make other stuff.. Like frying chips and stuff, but everyone knows how to do that, so I didnt bother mentioning that...

For more info on Shurfan Recipes, please contact me.
p/s: Try out these recipes at your own risk. Aisya Shurfa will not be responsible for any food poisoning caused by these meals.

Lots of love, hugs and French Toast from Me. :)