Day 21 and 102.5 kilos
So no blog yesterday - my apologies but I was busy making things as per one of my darling cousin Joanna's suggestions which I know she will be impressed and vaguely smug about. However she may be less impressed when she finds out that I have been making food - lots of it and it's pretty damned kick-ass food if I do say so myself. Which, being me, I do. I have discovered how to avoid boredom, learn something new, and enjoy my food porn, albeit vicariously, as well as keep the household very happy. All of this by simply getting off my large arse, scanning books and the Internet for recipes and suggestions, visiting the supermarket and getting stuck in. My cousin Jamie is staying with us at the moment and so with both Avinash and the chief, I have a captive audience of three to cook for.
Being the cheap, greedy and slightly ignorant pig that I used to be with a motto of "quantity not quality", I went shopping to the local supermarket a couple of months ago. At the meat counter I saw that the ribeye was $4.99 per 100 grams (welcome to Singapore) whereas there was something called "chuck tender" or something similar going for only $1.99 per 100 grams. This piece of meat (although I'd never heard of it) was, at first glance at least, a far superior type of steak looking delicious in every way - so I took a kilo. A quick jolt either side on our absurdly over-priced "le Creuset" griddle pan and our home was filled with the most delicious aromas. I then spirited these exquisite steaks to the table for supper, took one bite and was slightly surprised to find that it tasted like a butcher's slab and had the same consistency as the rubber sole of a Timberland boot (don't ask). The penny that represented the difference in price dropped convincingly. So what on earth was this inedible muck for? It seemed, after a good 30 seconds research on the Internet that it is in fact for stewing. Stews are not something that I have ever tried to make, not even when I was sailing so I felt, and we're still six weeks ago here, that I really ought to try and make an effort to learn how. The first effort wasn't awful but was overly salty, the second about 4 weeks ago was awful (apologies R S-O) and was cooked for only 3 hours and was too tough and gristly. The third effort however was made on Friday morning as soon as I was up. This time I made it up as I went along - what a great way of clearing the fridge of all of those things that are beginning to get old. Old celery sticks, radishes, open bottles of rubbish red wine, open tetrapaks of old stock, onions beginning to go bad, loose cloves of garlic that look tired and of course the de-frosted tender chuck. Everything thrown into a casserole pot brought to the boil and then bunged in the oven at 150 degrees. I left it in there stirring occasionally and a couple of tiny tastes (and they were tastes - nothing more) to find out the missing elements until I was happy - 9 hours it was in there! A very gratifying reaction from the recipients and apparently I have nailed how to make a rich and delicious beef stew - what euphoria! There was only one thing for it in my mind - if I was going to keep all three of my adoring public happy then all I could do was continue my magnificent performances which meant matinees as well as evenings.
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| beef stew served with Jamie's mash |
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| Prawn and Scallop Quiche |
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| What's left of the Salmon and Stilton Quiche, and Jamie's Onion Marmalade |
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| Chicken liver & port pate |
With Jamie here, I have been playing back court squash (this is not a euphemism) for exercise which, as you can see, has meant no change in the weight. Having said that it's still a decent work out that involves no serious running forwards and backwards and therefore leaves my knee safe. The truly great news is that I've been kicking his backside for him which frankly after the golf debacle of my stay in the UK, where he did the same to me, has come as something of a relief. However as he managed to trash his racket I'll be getting on the bicycle today.
Not smug at all, more depressed. I think you missed the point. I am glad you are occupied but 21 days later and still all you talk about is food. My readership is on the verge of retreating, it is all too disheartening. If you spend the whole 43 days thinking about food then what do you expect to happen when it is over? Plus tasting is definitely NOT within the rules of a fast- first step on a slippery slope? (That's a challenge to your weakening resolve). Come on Ben: address the cause not the outcome.
ReplyDeleteHow about making something that might last longer than it took to make? Learning a skill?
* Furniture making
* Draw a family tree
* Learn to wire a radio
* Re-upholster your sofa
* Tapestry (The chairs at Castle hill could do with being redone)
* Re-paint the downstairs bathroom into an Alice in Wonderland theme
* Walk from one end of Singapore to another, walk to Malaysia, walk to Russia (you could get some of this Fit Flops that have been proved not to work)
* Do something you would be proud to tell your grandchildren about (I'm not sure "Sonny, did I tell you about the time I perfected the chicken korma" is a lofty aspiration).
P.S. too much negative: the above should not in any way undermine the huge effort you have made over last 21 days and strength of resolve you have maintained. I am just thinking about life out of the fast lane (see what I did there?) x
ReplyDeleteoh no - don't be depressed Jo-ey darling! it's not as bad as you think it is.
ReplyDeleteOf course he's going to think about food. he's fasting because he wants to lose weight, as opposed to fasting for spiritual reasons. when i fast, i do it for different reasons - my motivation is not to lose weight (it's an added bonus if i do), so food is not a factor in my fasting. on the other hand, the "cause" of ben's fast is food (lose weight and not eat so as to achieve this), so it is inevitable that he thinks about food.
but, having said that - the "obsession" about food is a positive one right now. he is not thinking about his "next meal" (unlike the first few days). he is thinking about food, yes, but not about him eating it. he is channeling all that energy (and to be honest, i'm not sure where it's coming from) into doing something constructive about it. the cooking takes on an almost scientific approach. experimenting with and learning about the different techniques and the science of cooking - honestly, my spice cupboard has never looked so neat, organised and tidy!
and don't worry about the tasting either - i've been on him about it as well, but he really is just tasting - at the tip of his tongue. He's not eating. Don't worry, crazy asian tiger wife would have been down his throat like a shot if I thought he was cheating - himself. The way I see it - he doesn't have to do this. He has chosen to do it, so he has to do it properly.
And to be honest, I think he is - doing it properly. Don't be depressed. Have faith, and give him credit. I think it's due - he's doing well.
ps// also, i don't agree with you. what's wrong with telling your grandchildren you have perfected the chicken korma? i don't see why you shouldn't be proud of learning to cook and being able to cook well. if you are going to do something, then do it properly. and that must always be a lofty aspiration. i don't see why someone who can wire a radio should have the right to be more proud to his grandchildren than someone who can cook. a profession, or a skill, if it is honest, is always something to be proud of.
pps// Ben will say I am being grisly, pedantic and spoiling for a fight. I'm not. I understand what you're saying - but I am just saying - don't be depressed. His attitude is a positive one.
Much love from Mumbai!
A
You're an amazing wife, Mrs Bingham. I take on board all that you say and I am pleased that Ben is throwing himself into trying new things. But I am concerned that he has an unhealthy obsession with food, which must also be addressed. Distraction is a pretty good way of going about it and I am glad there is a quest for new activities. Perhaps that is something that should be explored in the blog- every day or so add a new and interesting activity/pursuit. Some thoughts:
ReplyDelete* a musical instrument (keyboard put on "bark" counts)
* write a haiku
* yoga
* learn to do the splits (stand with your legs apart, gravity should do the rest)
* pottery- a new piece of tableware every day. Soon you'll have a set!
* paint Asya's nails with jazzy designs http://www.bodycare.becomegorgeous.com/hands_and_nails/animal_print_nail_art_2011-3454.html
* grow a kitchen garden of herbs (for new cooking hobby)
you know what - if someone would grow me a garden of herbs, i would marry him...
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