This was taken 1 week ago.

I enjoy good food… good company and good wine.

Here’s an example of the good food found at my boss’s restaurant down at Broadbeach, Gold Coast, Australia.

Here’s the menu at the Aubon Gateau.

We had the Barramundi.

The good company and good wine!

The guy in the middle is the young chef who prepared the food for us.

I’m still stuck in Australia and unable to join my family for reunion dinner in Singapore yesterday… So decided to cook my own dinner today.

At 4pm, i went out to the nearby super market and bought the ingredients.

- Chicken Breast
- Canned stir fry vegetables
- A can of button mushrooms
- Sesame oil
- 1 ginger

I wanted to try and make the stewed chicken with ginger and button mushrooms dish that my Grandma used to make.

Now this is significant cos i have never cooked at home before (other than rice and fried eggs that is).

First thing i did was scrap off the skin of the ginger. Boiled water and soaked the ginger in the water to make a broth.

Next i cut up the chicken. I was a little worried that the pieces were too big, which later turned out all right. I marinated the chicken in sesame oil and pepper. Then i threw the whole lot into the broth. (Nicole tells me i should have added flour to the marination process to  ensure the chickens remain tender. Thanks, Nicole)

I opened the canned mushrooms and vegetables and drained the fluids, washed the vegs and dumped the whole lot into the pot.

I added sesame oil into the broth… some milk to thicken it… and finally some oyster sauce when i felt the broth wasn’t thick enough.

It simmered for a long time. I suspect i don’t have the patience for cooking… ha ha…

I then steamed some rice.

Contemplated frying eggs… but decided against it. Needed black soy sauce for that. *adds to shopping list*

Here’s the final product:

With rice.

My apartment mate seems to love it.

Verdict: I love it. Its not salty at all. Just nice. The meat was a little tough… but its fine. The mushrooms and vegs were excellent and still retains its crunchiness.

Well, i couldn’t quite get the colour of the broth right - not brown enough.

Spoke to my dad on Skype just now and he recommended more oyster sauce. Ha ha… that was the secret ingredient… should have added more of that.

Hmm… what to cook tomorrow?

Got this is the email:

:: Schmap London Fourth Edition: Photo Inclusion

Hi Miccheng,

I am delighted to let you know that your two submitted
photos have been selected for inclusion in the newly
released fourth edition of our Schmap London Guide:

Hereford Arms
http://www.schmap.com/london/nightlife_kensingtonandchelsea/p=103618/i=103618.jpg

Baden-Powell House
http://www.schmap.com/london/sights_kensingtonandchelsea/p=62832/i=62832_3.jpg

If you like the guide and have a website, blog or personal
page, then please also check out the customizable
widgetized versions of our Schmap London Guide, complete
with your published photos:

http://www.schmap.com/guidewidgets/p=93336700N00/c=SF10012086

Thanks so much for letting us include your photos - please
enjoy the guide!

Best regards,

Emma Williams,
Managing Editor, Schmap Guides

Here’s the 2 photos:

Baden-Powell House

Hereford Arms

Back in the Gold Coast again. Here’s some pictures of my first week back.

My first meal back in Gold Coast - Spudzley & Snitchzel.

My colleague from New Zealand.

Home cooked meal - pork chop + instant soup (bacon & peas)

The cook

Went to Toowoomba for a meeting at University South Queensland. Stopped for lunch.

The Rendezvous - Lebanese Cuisine

The kitchen

They make good wraps.

Tony the chef (moonlights as a Radio DJ) with my Boss.

After the meeting, we visited the Japanese garden within the campus ground.

Me with Mr Elms.

Back at the apartment - i woke up one morning to find a surprise visitor…

Mr Iguana

Sunning himself on our veranda.

Veron’s Twitter reminded me of how bad drunkenness can be.

That got me thinking about my family. It seems that people in my household are prone to addictive behaviour. My grandfather was addicted to opium, he was a brilliant engineer who worked in the Singapore Bus Company, who smoked his inheritance and future away.

My father smokes (cigarettes) and drinks - oftentimes too much for his own good. He’ll come home drunk and slump asleep in the toilet seat - depriving us the use of our only toilet. I still can’t stand his smoking… but he’s my dad and i love him.

Myself? I have many vices - gambling, stealing, internet and work.

I remember as a secondary school kid (sec 1 or sec 2), i got into a little gambling game. We’ll each held a coin or dollar note in our clasped palms and guess how much is in the other person’s hand. The one who guessed correctly is the winner. And winner takes all.

I suspect the root of my additive behaviour was a desire to win at all cost. Winning is a very additive feeling - no one likes to lose. The prospect of winning at a guessing game drove me - staking my lunch money to pursue that feeling.

Eventually i started losing quite a lot. I remember one experience quite vividly.

I had lost quite a bit on a bout of betting. The kid i was playing against was winning all my money. I had to get it back. I staked my last 1 dollar note on the last bet. All our previous bets were in 10 cents and 20 cents denominations - never higher. So i was taking a big risk with my $1 bet.

I guessed that he was holding 50 cents in his hands. I looked straight into his eyes, anticipating a big win… he had frowned his brow in deep concentration…

“I guess…. $1 dollar!”

I couldn’t believe my ears! He won! (he only had 20 cents in his palm).

I remembered that i was close to tears. And i chased him down a corridor trying to get my dollar back. He wasn’t gonna give it back.

Life’s not like a game where we can press the “reset” button. What’s done can’t be undone.

I stopped gambling for money from that day forth.