Creamy Fusili with Sausages, Mushrooms & Baby Corn - Last Minute or Early Bird?

Change is still a hot topic here at Mochachocolata-Rita's.

I used to be an extreme Last Minute person. If I was not pressed for time, I wouldn't be able to produce anything at all. I never wanted to admit this before, but I generally performed best under extreme pressure. During my school/uni days (like a zillion years ago haha), I wouldn't start studying/doing assignments until the deadline punched me in the face and smacked me in the ass.

The last minute habit continued until I didn't know since when I slowly evolved from Ms. Last Minute to Ms. Early Bird/Nervous Wreck....

I guess it started when work life began...

When I thought I was already Ms. Last Minute, it was nothing compared to how a typical work place operates (applicable to any work place ^_* I am not talking about an organization in particular here hoho).
Examples:
- Customer's made to order items won't get done until he/she is screaming at your boss' boss
- Promotional materials won't get prepared until it almost could not get produced
- Payments won't get approved until vendors list your names in their little "do not entertain" book in red ink
- Visa application for business travel will not get processed until you get rejected to board the aircraft

All of the above caused serious emotional damages and turned me into a Ms. Early Bird - Nervous Wreck, which I just realized recently:
- I love going to the airport wayyyyyyyyy earlier than necessary (maybe this is an indication that I love shopping at duty free shops, therefore, not a proof of whether one's an early bird/a nervous wreck or not LOL)
- I love preparing things in advance, although in the end, everything still only gets done at the last minute (old habit is hard to shake off eh? haha)
- I love thinking about what sorta food I wanna make for food blogging events wayyy ahead, although I almost always fail to submit them due to missed deadlines (duh!)

...I guess I haven't changed much after all! WAHAHAHAHA...

But this time, the talented Kevin of Closet Cooking is hosting Presto Pasta Nights and I dun wanna miss the deadline, so here comes my submission EARLY *grin*

Creamy Fusili with Sausages, Mushrooms & Baby Corn

Recipe
(serves 2)
- Half packet of fusili, cook based on instructions on the packet
- 4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
- 1 packet of baby corn, halved and chopped into big chunks
- 1 packet of oyster mushrooms, wash and soak in hot water for a while
- 4 chicken franks, sliced
- olive oil, butter
- salt, black pepper, sugar
- 200 ml coconut milk (almost 1 cup) (or you can use cream)

Brown sausages in hot oil, then add garlic and saute until fragrant, add baby corns, cook until softened, add mushrooms, add coconut milk/cream, season with salt, pepper, sugar, add cooked pasta, mix well, add seasoning if necessary, garnish with fried shallot/freshly chopped corriander

I knew I still had an early bird in me! ^_^

Spicy & Beefy Beans & Zucchini

There are just too many food to avoid these days...let me scare you with some of these:
- Beef = mad cow
- Fish/seafood = mercury exposure
- Fried food = cancer
Recent Hong Kong food scare:
- Chicken = Avian Flu H5N1
- Tomato = salmonella

I can't believe it!!! Not my beloved, trusted, innocent TOMATOES!!!...Gosh, do I really need to consider going nothingarian? I bet I won't even five minutes being one...

...so...what the heck! I am already a mad cow anyway, let's have something beefy for dinner...and lemme throw in some tomatoes as well for a good measure LOL!!

Spicy & Beefy Beans & Zucchini
Recipe
- 0.5 pound beef brisket
- 3 zucchini (peel skin off, cut into chunky pieces)
- 1 can of kidney beans
- 1 can of tomato paste (ok! I chickened out!)
- half bulb of garlic, crushed
- 2 red chilli (I wanted it spicy, so I kept the seeds, just finely chop the chilli)
- olive oil, butter
- salt, black pepper, sugar, parsley

Boil beef brisket for a while to get rid of the excess fat, set aside. Saute garlic and chilli in olive oil and butter, add beef brisket, add tomato paste, cook for 1.5 hours. Add beans and zucchini, cook until zucchini's done but still crunchy. Season with salt, sugar, black pepper, sprinkle parsley, serve over rice/pasta.

PS. Beware of this failed-nothingarian mad cow. She bites.

Javanese Wet Fried Rice Noodles - Bihun Goreng Jawa Nyemek

My taste changed. A LOT. I am not sure why...(no, it is NOT because I am older - denial denial)

These are some of the things I used to absolutely HATE:
- Tomato ketchup: I wouldn't tolerate a drop of this on the side of my KFC chicken
- Spring onion, corriander, onion, beansprouts: I would really pick every single piece of these off my dish
- Bihun aka thin rice noodles: I always ordered egg noodles instead

...and now..I LOVE them:
- Tomato ketchup: I drizzle this (and lots of it) on anything, maybe the correct term would be, I could have anything drenched in ketchup
- Spring onion, corriander, onion, beansprouts: can't have enough of 'em now
- Bihun aka thin rice noodles: there were times when I had major Bihun cravings, just couldn't get it off my head, such as last night hehe

I kept picturing this street-side Mie Jowo (Javanese noodle) vendor's tent, my old self sitting in front of the vendor, harrassing him to give me a plate of dry fried egg noodles with absolutely NO GREENS. No veggie, no green garnish whatsoever. (I repeat, that was my old self)...and ironically now I fancy the exact opposite:

Javanese Wet Fried Rice Noodles - Bihun Goreng Jawa Nyemek

Recipe
(serves 4)
- 4 units of dried bihun (soak in hot water until softened before frying, do NOT boil)
- half pound thinly sliced beef (you can use any meat)
- a handful of fishballs or meatballs (I used cheap fish siu mai)
- 5 cloves of garlic, crushed or finely chopped
- 6 cloves of shallot, thinly sliced
- 1 cm ginger, crushed
- few stalks of spring onion, cut the base to about 5 cm long pieces, finely chop some for garnish
- 2 large tomatoes, cut into 8 parts each
- lettuce or cabbage, thinly sliced
- 4 red chilli, remove core and seeds, thinly sliced (adjust according to your heat tolerance)
- olive oil, sesame oil (optional)
- chicken stock (or vegetable stock or hot water)
- soy sauce, dark soy sauce, sweet soy sauce, oyster sauce

Saute aromatics, add beef, add tomatoes, add veggie (cos I like my veggie soft), add softened rice noodles, add sauces, stir well, add chicken/veggie stock or hot water, it should be a bit wet, you can even make it soupy (just like how my mom likes it), garnish with fried shallot/chopped spring onion/corriander.

Sharing this recipe with Presto Pasta Night Gang ^_^

I could picture my old self still picking each and every piece of lettuce and spring onion off the plate, while my new self had finished inhaling the whole plate in less than 3 minutes - HO HO HO!

Spam & Shrimps Virgin Colada for Dinner?!!

Where did the weird inspiration come from??!!

Based on transpacific discussion with my sis via yahoo messenger, there were some...

Dinner Ideas
1. Grilled Chicken in Sambal ABC Chilli Sauce
Brilliant idea, 100% yummy, but need to cook veggie separately

2. Long Beans and Tofu in Coconut Milk
Healthy, yummy, but my sis thought it's kinda blah

3. SPAM and Long Beans in Chilli and Coconut Milk
Sounded good in my head, but sounds like a lot of work, and Spam does not need a lot of work, it is superbly yummy as it is

4. SPAM and Beansprouts
Sis thought of this, sounds good, but I've tried it before and it was kinda blah

5. SPAM and Pineapples
Both of us went ...WHOA...this is it! Let's do it! (OK, I was gonna do it, and she's gonna get the report later to see if it sucked hehe)

6. SPAM + Shrimps + Pineapples + Coconut milk/cream + Lime Juice = My Mocktail Inspired Dinner LOL!!

Spam & Shrimps Virgin Colada

Recipe
- 1 large can of SPAM (luncheon meat), cut into cubes
- 0.5 lbs shrimps, remove shell and vein
- 1 canned pineapple (or you can use fresh)
- 3 cloves of garlic, crushed
- 4 cloves of shallot, thinly sliced
- 3 small red chilli, remove core and seeds, thinly sliced
- 1 cm ginger, crushed
- lime juice
- 1/2 cup coconut milk/cream (or more if you want more sauce)
- fish sauce, pepper
- olive oil
- fried shallot and corriander (optional for garnish)

I like to crisp the Spam a little (you can skip this step) by frying it in a bit of olive oil, then set aside. Saute garlic, shallot, chilli and ginger in olive oil, add pineapple chunks, add spam, add shrimps, add some water from the canned pineapple (depends on how much sauce you want), add lime juice, drizzle some fish sauce, add pepper, add coconut milk, cook for a bit, garnish with fried shallot and corriander, serve with steamed rice

The only thing missing was the tiny little colorful umbrella...oh and maybe the rum and the irritating drunk who won't stop hitting on you? ^_*

Quick & Easy Beef & 'Shrooms

Yesterday was super hectic, and the fact that Hong Kong has been looking like the picture below these last few days...did NOT help AT ALL.

That's how the IFC Two looked like when I got off work yesterday. Talk about a depressing mid week *sigh*

Juggling a laptop backpack, a handbag and an umbrella under a pouring rain, trying to prance over puddles of rain on Hong Kong's hazardous pavement walkways, in towering heels. Boy oh boy!!!

Hence, I am so proud to achieve the following despite the oh-so-gloomy evening:
- Bought mark six (lottery) tickets based on sous chef's instruction (as expected, those are no winning tickets, I didn't get even 1 number match! Should I start believing that I will win more?)
- Bought the exact materials I needed to cook dinner/packed lunch (the market was almost empty because of the rain, and I got two beautiful baskets of straw mushrooms hehe-SCORE!)
- Cooked and prepared the packed lunch
- Made it just in time to Body Combat class
- Retrieved my income tax form
- Watched 2 episodes of Grey's Anatomy


With such a powerful lazy spell casted over me, I surely didn't plan to make anything fancy, so here's my
Quick & Easy Beef & 'Shrooms

Recipe
- 2 small baskets (HKD10, about 4 cups) straw mushrooms, halved
- 0.5 pound thinly sliced, nicely marbled beef
- 3 cloves of garlic, crushed
- 0.5 cm ginger, crushed
- olive oil
- 1 tbsp corn starch diluted in 1/4 cup water
- soy sauce, dark soy sauce, shaoxing wine, sugar, pepper

Saute garlic and ginger in hot oil, add sliced beef, add mushrooms, add sauces, thicken with the diluted corn starch, serve with rice

In Hong Kong, we're either hoping for a bright sunny day tomorrow or for a black rain signal to be hoisted before 8:00 am (please forgive us...)