I woke up this morning with a stiff shoulder. When I heard mum told Ana to cook Mi Hu Kuey as our breakfast, I was so excited and volunteered myself to assist as I wished to learn cooking Mi Hu Kuey.
Every time when my mum or Ana preparing Mi Hu Kuey, I would just stand aside, watch and write down the process. I had never tried to do it myself. Now, it is the time for me to do so. I believe if I can prepare it myself, for sure I will be able to write it out more realistically.
This time, Ana became my master. Firstly, she put in the flour, potato starch, oil, egg and some water. I was the one who knead the dough.
After adding in some water into the mixture, I knead the dough and found that it was so sticky. The mixture stuck within my fingers. Before this, I always felt that it was an easy task to knead the dough as every time Ana also able to knead it easily. But why I couldn’t do it well after kneading if for such a long time?
Finally, I had done with the kneading but the dough seemed too soft. Since Ana was experienced in cooking Mi Hu Kuey, she knew what’s wrong with the mixture. She said that too much water had been added into the mixture so she said must add some flour.
“If you want to remove those flour within your fingers, spread some flour onto palms and it will be removed together with those flour.” Now only I learn this new technique.
After adding in some extra flour, it was really easier to knead the dough. But my technique was still improper. Ana taught me to use my lower palm to knead the dough hard. This is to make sure that the mixture is kneaded evenly.
Finally, I saw the familiar look of the dough. But its surface still seemed uneven, didn’t look like what Ana told me. I started to feel doubt if I had missed any steps. There was still some flour stuck within the dough.
Ana told me there was no problem with the dough and we just need to put it aside for a while. Mum came and she also told me that there was no problem with the dough. Ana told me, if I wanted to know whether the dough was ready for cooking, I just need to take a piece of the dough and pull it. Fortunately, the dough was a success!
The dough was covered to avoid contacting the air as it would make the surface of the dough became stiff. I put it aside for a while. When I came back to see it, it really became smooth. From this experience, I had understood that some food need time to be prepared. I’m really an impatient person.
“I have no confident with your Mi Hu Kuey,” my younger sister said.
“If you really have not confident with my cooking, then just don’t eat it since no one force you to do so,” I told her.
“But I’m hungry now so no choice. When hungry, sure eat anything also will find it delicious,” she replied. It sounds so pity.
“Moreover, you need to wait until very hungry only eat it, right?” Both of us thought of the dialogue in “Trophobiont” last night. After that, we grinned to each other.
I and Ana pinched the Mi Hu Kuey into the boiling soup. She told me she only use 3 fingers to pinch the dough. She told me to pinch the dough into small pieces but every time I also pinched it so thickly.
“Let me tell all of you. You all need to eat Mi Hu Kuey for the next few weeks until I can cook it successfully. But I’m sure all of you will turn from loving it to hating eating it.Haha…”
I and younger sister had our Mi Hu Kuey at kaki lima, enjoying the wind blowing from the sea. I was very nervous when my sister started eating it. I asked for her opinion about my cooking.
“I feel the Mi Hu Kuey is so thick.” I told her my weakness first.
“Yes, it’s really a bit thick. I can also taste the uneven flour within the Mi Hu Kuey and it’s so irritating.” Last time I also faced the same problem. This time there’s some improvement.
This is the first time I cook Mi Hu Kuey, but I feel satisfied.
I want to improve myself next time in cooking Mi Hu Kuey. Thus, I need to involve in the making process from the start until the end in order to make sure that I could do the Mi Hu Kuey by myself.
For those housewives, cooking a Mi Hu Kuey is an easy task. But I like to see the progress of preparing Mi Hu Guey. It’s really wonderful when I could prepare food made by myself.
I hope I could cook a variety of food for my family. But please remember to eat something first before you come and taste my food. I won’t be responsible if you face with stomach problem. Haha …
After finished preparing Mi Hu Kuey, there’s no more stiffness on my both shoulders. It’s really so amazing!
You know why I’m writing so much here? This is because I have created my own column in
http://www.8egg.net/portal.php?mod=list&catid=20. It had been started since September. If you have the time, please click on this website and browse through my work.
Thank you!
30/10/2011
親身上陣樂趣多 ～ 麵粉粿
今早起身，昨天工作壓力造成的肩膀酸痛，依然殘留在體內作祟。聽老媽子叫工人做麵粉粿給我們做早餐，我卻毛遂自薦說自己要學做。
每次，都說在旁看人家做，我寫著當中的步驟，卻沒真正自己做過。而且，單單懂得用手寫，沒動手做，似乎還差了點真實感。
這次，安娜成了我的師傅。先是倒入麵粉、薯粉、油、雞蛋和水，就由我來把它搓成麵團。
那些麵粉，加入水後，隨著我的攪動，開始一團團往我五指上粘。總是覺得她很快就能把它搓成麵團，怎麼我搓了好一陣子，它依然是粉和水無法融洽相處？
好不容易有個眉目了，那麵團卻是軟綿綿的。經驗十足的工人看了一眼就說是水過多，要加麵粉進去。
“如果要把手上的粉團脫落，衹要加多點粉上去，它就會隨著粉落下來。”這個技巧，我還真是不懂。
加了麵粉，果然是好搓多了。可我的姿勢有點不對，她又教我得用手掌的下半部用力按麵團來搓，才能把藏在裏面的小粉頭搓散。
慢慢地，我終於看到熟悉的樣子出現。不過呢，麵團的表面凹凸不平，不似安娜說的“halus”。我又開始懷疑自己哪個步驟做錯了？似乎仍有許多搓不散的小粉頭藏在裏面。
安娜老神在在說沒問題，放一陣子就好了。老媽子過來看，也說是這樣子沒錯。
她說要知道這麵團好了沒，衹須捉出一小團，看能否拉出一片麵粉粿即知道。幸好，我尚算有點功夫的，不至於丟人現眼。
麵粉團蓋在盆內，避免和空氣接觸變硬。放了一段時間回來看，果然表面變滑。原來，有些東西，是要經過時間的發酵。到底，是自己太心急。
“我對妳沒信心。”老妹子殺出這句話。
“沒信心不要吃啦，沒人叫妳吃！”我堵回去。
“可是肚子餓沒辦法。肚子餓，吃什麼東西都好吃。”說到好像很委屈似的。
“而且還要最餓的時候吃，是嗎？”我們同時想起昨晚看的《食神》對白，忍俊不禁相視而笑。
我和安娜把麵粉粿拋進熱湯裏。她還告訴我，用三支手指就能搞定了。而且，要撕小片點。可學藝不精的我，怎麼都撕得很厚。
“我看你們接下來幾個星期都要吃麵粉粿了，直到我學精為止！”不過，我很肯定的是，它一定從大家最愛吃的小食，淪落為看到就想吐的食物，哈哈。。
煮熟的麵粉粿上桌後，我和老妹兩人各一碗，坐在五腳基前，邊享受海 邊品嚐美食。我頻頻瞄她是否開始吃第一片的麵粉粿，然後急著問她感覺如何？
“我是覺得有點厚。”我先報上自己的弱點。
“是有點厚，有些還吃到麵粉味，有點噁心。”嗯，上次我自己吃時，也有吃到同樣的情況。此次倒沒有，是有進步了。
整體而言，首次下手做麵粉粿到煮熟的過程，我是挺心滿意足的。下次，我要更上一層樓，包括下料、煮江魚仔湯，皆要親身上陣。
煮一碗麵粉粿，對許多家庭主婦，或許是輕而易舉、不值一提的事。但我喜歡這種學習做食物的過程。一樣食物在自己手中從無到有，是件美妙的事。
希望有一天，我真的能學會做出一桌的古早小食，給我最親愛的家人朋友吃。
但是，我先告訴你們的是，請別空腹來，否則餓出胃痛，本小姐不出醫藥費，哈哈。。。
也許，是做著自己喜歡的事，加上揉搓的運動，做完麵粉粿後，雙肩的酸痛，竟然消失無蹤，太神奇了！呵呵。。
還有還有，說了那麼多，我其實也是想向大家推薦我在另一個網站的 http://www.8egg.net/portal.php?mod=list&catid=20的《味蕾深處最古早的想念》專欄。已經開始一個月多，有機會的話，勞煩多多捧場咯！謝謝大家！
樂在廚房玩麵粉粿的海角@寫於貳零壹壹年拾月卅日
