Lunch with Mama
This morning, we went over to my grandma’s place. Jac helped trim my grandma’s money plant*, which was going gangbusters in the front garden bed. She also got rid of this weedy shrub thing (can you tell I’m not a gardener?!), turned the soil over to dig up and remove the weedy shrub thing’s roots (which were everywhere!) and then transferred two chilli plants from pots into the newly cleared garden bed. I helped her dump a few wheelbarrow loads of roots and crap into the bin (well, she pushed and unloaded the wheelbarrow, I held the bin lid up – the bin was like one of those dumpsters they find corpses – or just an ear or a hand – in, in TV shows like CSI). I also did little jobs like passing her her tools and getting her a drink of water. Gardening is really not my thing!
On our way there, we’d stopped by Bunnings to buy a few bags of potting mix for Mama (what we call my grandma). While we were there, we picked up a few other items: a new shower head (our current one is leaking), an exhaust fan for the bathroom (we don’t have one at present; we’ll be getting a sparky over to wire it up) and a new toilet seat (our current one is um, showing signs of wear). The last time, I installed the toilet seat myself (I’d completely forgotten about this until Jac reminded me today – I’m not particularly handy, but I have my moments). I hope to install the new seat this time too – when I get a chance – heh – it’s sitting in the hallway right now, in its plastic wrapping. Hopefully it won’t end up like that neglected heatsink and fan that are still sitting in the study waiting to be tinkered with.
Anyway, after the gardening was done and Jac had a quick wash, we all got in the car and went to Northbridge for lunch. Mama wanted to shout me (well, us) lunch because my birthday is coming up. We went to Win’s Cafe & Noodle House, which is at 375 William St. Apparently my Mum and Mama like to eat there on shopping expeditions on Mum’s Fridays off.
Jac ordered rice with seafood in sweetcorn sauce. She loved the sweetcorn sauce (which I presume would be easy enough to make with tinned creamed corn), and the seafood (squid, fish and prawns) was cooked perfectly.
Jac was also in the mood for soup, and her chicken and mushroom soup was really good too. There were chunks of chicken and big chinese mushrooms in it, as well as spring onion and sliced ginger. I had a couple of mouthfuls – it was delicious, very gingery. It tasted very healthy, sort of medicinal but not nasty-mediciney (oh dear, what was I saying last post about made-up words?). It was a nice clear change to those thick overly-corn-starched soups you usually get in chinese restaurants.
Mama ordered a plate of fried noodles. These were great – really saucy and the smell and taste of wok hei (“breath of wok”, that charry hot-wok-fried flavour), and loaded with lots of stuff – bursty prawns, squid, bok choy, straw mushrooms, chicken, beef and carrot. Mama couldn’t finish the noodles (apparently normally she and Mum share one serve between them) and had the leftovers put in a takeaway container – guess who got to take them home? ;-) I asked Mama if I could take a photo, and she said sure – but she promptly forgot, and when I had the camera pointed, just about to click the button, she started mixing the noodles up and digging in. This is why the noodles are in an action shot here. Heheheh. I did take another photo sans utensils but I kind of liked this picture.
I loooooooove garlicky food, and couldn’t resist ordering the rice with boneless chicken in garlic sauce (yes yes more boneless chicken!) The garlic sauce was AMAZING! I could smell it even before the dish was placed before me, before I stuck my face over the steaming plate and inhaled deeply. The chicken was moist, the vegetables (carrots and onions) crisp, and that sauce… sooooooo gooooooooood. I’d bottle that smell (or that sauce, to drink! Hahahaaa).
Ok, I have to go to bed now, so I’ll be well-rested for a full day of work tomorrow.
*I know people mostly know this plant as a jade plant, but I like the sound of money more than jade. Plus when I was a kid I first learned about this plant as “duit duit” (“duit” meaning “money” in Malay, like coins, like the plant’s round leaves).