Lesson 9: Making curries

Salam...

This is my first entry this week. Apologize for not keeping up with the promise. My schedule is so tight, plus my sinus is giving me problem again. I have been down with flu and fever for the last 2 months. Maybe high time for me to start re-look back at the way I am handling my everyday tasks.

Anyway, today let's get busy with curries recipes.
My earliest memory of making/learning to cook curry was when I was 12, Dec. school holiday. Atok at last asked me to prepare all the ingredients that needed for making fish curry by myself. Masa tu dah tak payah giling rempah dah since we had rempah cap tarbus (then switch to cap 'O'). Then she asked me to start tumis the curry by myself! I just followed her voice instructions and walla.... my very own cooked curry... of course Wan can distinguished that the curry was not Atok's air tangan, but he was up to it. The conclusion that I made was that it was not that difficult to make curry (maybe since I did not have to endure using the batu giling).I guess I cooked curries all my life, when I was at home(during my single years) and when I was overseas. Then when I married Abah pun he is one avid lover of curries.

So, let's share the recipes. Hanim dah pernah tengok ibu buat kari kan. Tak susah kan? Gunalah the resipi as guidelines. Lagipun, nowadays the packaging will come with the instructions to cook. The sky is the limit when it comes to improvise it to suits your taste!





Kari Ikan Kedah

Preparation and cooking time : 30 min
Serve 6 to 8
Per person : 24 g fat, 341 kcal (1426 kilojoules)



Ingredients:

½ cup cooking oil
A:
6 shallots, coarsely pounded
3 cloves garlic, coarsely pounded
3 sprigs curry leaves
1 tbsp mixed spices

3 tbsps curry powder
00 ml coconut milk, thin(you can omit this altogether and still taste great)
1 kg fish meat, cleaned
6 lady's fingers (okra), cut into halves
1 long brinjal (eggplant), cut into 2 cm pieces
2 tomatoes, cut ito 4 pieces
2 tbsps tamarind juice, thick
1 Ikan Bilis Stock Cube (Maggi ®)
Salt to taste

Directions:
1. In a saucepan, heat oil and stir fry ingredients A until aromatic.
2. Stir in curry powder and fry until fragrant(pecah minyak).
3. If you use coconut milk, Stir it in and bring to boil. If not, simply add water and bring it to boil.
4. Add fish meat, lady's finers, brinjal,and simmer for 10 minutes.
5. Stir in tamarinf juice, Ikan bilis stock cube and salt to taste.
6. Cook over slow heat until gravy slightly thickens.

The next recipe is very much Indian influenced.

Kari Ikan Ala India

Bahan-bahannya:-

1 ekor ikan tenggiri (anggaran 700g)

2 biji terung biru

8 - 10 batang kadang bendi

2 biji tomato

1/2 cawan pati santan

2 keping asam gelugor

2 camca besar rempah kari ikan "Babas"

Garam dan gula secukup rasa

Air secukupnya

Bahan-bahan dikisar halus:-

7 ulas bawang kecil merah

3 ulas bawang putih

2 inci halia1

inci kunyit hidup

1 hirisan nipis lengkuas

1 cm belacan

4 tangkai cili merah

Bahan-bahan tumis:-

3 ulas bawang merah, dihiris halus

1 ulas bawang putih, dihirts halus

2 tangkai daun kari

1 camca teh halba campur (terdiri daripada halba, biji sawi dan jintan kasar)

Cara membuatnya:-

1- Terung dipotong dua dan dibelah 2, belah setiap bahagian tapi jgn putus, rendam dgn air garam 5 minit. Toskan. Cuci bendi dan buang hujung dan pangkalnya sedikit, cuci dan toskan. Goreng kedua2 jenis sayur dalam minyak panas selama 20 saat. Angkat, toskan minyak dan ketepikan.

2- Panaskan kurang lebih 1/2 cawan minyak dalam periuk, tumis bahan2 tumis hingga wangi. Masukkan bahan2 kisar dan rempah kari, kacau goreng hingga wangi dan terbit minyak. Gunakan api sederhana.

3- Tuang air secukupnya (anggaran 500ml), masukkan garam dan sedikit gula. Biarkan mendidih. Masukkan ikan dan asam gelugor. Biar mendidih perlahan dan tuangkan santan pekat tadi sambil dikacau perlahan. Akhir sekali masukkan tomato, bendi dan terung yang telah digoreng tadi. Biar mendidih sekejap dan boleh dihidangkan.

Ibu will share other types of curry since to cook meat and chicken curry there is a slight difference in managing the spice.

That will come next....

Love,

Ibu.

Solat: What's your excuse

Dear Anak-anak:

You can perform your solat anywhere and everywhere. No excuse for not performing it (unless you tertidur, but you need to Qadar it ASAP)

Moga Allah masukkan kita kedalam hambaNya yang tidak pernah meninggalkan solat, InsyaAllah.

Ibu.

How do you know you marry the right person?

Dear Anak-anak,

Ibu stumbled upon this e-mail from a friend. Thought that it would be great to shere it with you guys..

Ibu.

**********************************************************************************
During one of our seminars, a woman asked a common question. She said, 'How do I know if I married the right person?' I noticed that there was a large man sitting next to her so I said, 'It depends. Is that your husband?' In all seriousness, she answered 'How do you know?'

Let me answer this question because the chances are good that it's weighing on your mind.

Here's the answer. EVERY relationship has a cycle. In the beginning, you fell in love with your spouse / partner . You anticipated their call, wanted their touch, and liked their idiosyncrasies (unconventional behavior/habit) .

Falling in love with your spouse wasn't hard. In fact, it was a completely natural and spontaneous experience. You didn't have to DO anything. That's why it's called 'falling' in love... Because it's happening TO YOU. People in love sometimes say, 'I was swept of my feet.' Think about the imagery of that __expression. It implies that you were just standing there; doing nothing, and then something came along and happened TO YOU. Falling in love is easy. It's a passive and spontaneous experience.

But after a few years of marriage, the euphoria (excitement) of love fades.

It's the natural cycle of EVERY relationship.

Slowly but surely, phone calls become a bother (if they come at all), touch is not always welcome (when it happens), and your spouse's idiosyncrasies, instead of being cute, drive you nuts.

The symptoms of this stage vary with every relationship, but if you think about your marriage, you will notice a dramatic difference between the initial stage when you were in love and a much duller or even angry subsequent stage.

At this point, you and/or your spouse might start asking, 'Did I marry the right person?' And as you and your spouse reflect on the euphoria of the love you once had, you may begin to desire that experience with someone else.

This is when marriages breakdown.

People blame their spouse for their unhappiness and look outside their marriage for fulfillment. Extramarital fulfillment comes in all shapes and sizes. Infidelity is the most obvious. But sometimes people turn to work, a hobby, a friendship, excessive TV, or abusive substances.

But the answer to this dilemma does NOT lie outside your marriage. It lies within it.

I'm not saying that you couldn't fall in love with someone else. You could. And TEMPORARILY you'd feel better.

But you'd be in the same situation a few years later.

Because (listen carefully to this): THE KEY TO SUCCEEDING IN MARRIAGE IS NOT FINDING THE RIGHT PERSON; IT'S LEARNING TO LOVE THE PERSON YOU FOUND.

SUSTAINING love is not a passive or spontaneous experience. It'll NEVER just happen to you. You can't 'find' LASTING love. You have to 'make' it day in and day out. That's why we have the __expression 'the labor of love.' Because it takes time, effort, and energy. And most importantly, it takes WISDOM. You have to know WHAT TO DO to make your marriage work. Make no mistake about it.

Love is NOT a mystery. There are specific things you can do (with or without your spouse) to succeed with your marriage. Just as there are physical laws of the universe (such as gravity), there are also laws for relationships. Just as the right diet and exercise program makes you physically stronger, certain habits in your relationship WILL make your marriage stronger.

It's a direct cause and effect. If you know and apply the laws, the results are predictable. .. You can 'make' love. Love in marriage is indeed a 'decision'.. . Not just a feeling.

Remember this always: 'God determines who walks into your life. It is up to you to decide who you let walk away, who you let stay, and who you refuse to let go.'

Tazkirah Remaja #1:Waktu mustajab berdoa

Anak-anak ku,

I decided that every Friday, I'll be posting something to feed our 'hati'. Diet to the 'hati' should be in parellel with the body, don't you agree? It's my responsibility to ensure that both 'rohani' and 'jasmani' is being feed to the fullest. Then only we are the Khalifah of Allah.

While browsing the newspaper, I stumbled upon a very good article/column that is very easy to understand. Here is an extract from Harian Metro for you to ponder. Semuga mendapat hidayahNya, InsyaAllah.

Ibu.

BERDOA adalah otak ibadat. Begitulah besarnya kedudukan doa. Lagi banyak kita minta, lagi disayangi Allah dan ia berbeza dengan manusia, lagi banyak kita minta, lagi banyak kita dimarahi, malah dimaki lagi, “tak ada kerja ke asyik minta saja.”

Doa adalah lambang perhambaan kita dan kita dicipta supaya menjadi hamba-Nya. Berdoa, doa juga, tetapi supaya mudah diterima, kita patut meneliti dan tahu waktu yang sangat mustajab berdoa antaranya:

- Waktu sepertiga malam, iaitu waktu terakhir, ketika orang lain nyenyak tidur. Allah s.w.t berfirman, maksudnya: “Mereka (para muttaqin) sedikit sekali tidur di waktu malam dan di akhir malam, mereka memohon ampun (kepada Allah).” (Adz-Dzariyat: 18-19)Rasulullah s.a.w bersabda, maksudnya: “Rabb (Tuhan) kita turun di setiap malam ke langit terendah, iaitu ketika sepertiga malam terakhir, lalu Dia berfirman: Siapa yang berdoa kepada-Ku, Aku kabulkan. Siapa yang meminta kepada-Ku, Aku berikan kepadanya dan siapa yang meminta ampun kepada-Ku, Aku ampunkan untuknya.” (Hadis riwayat al-Bukhari dan Muslim)

- Waktu antara azan dan iqamah, iaitu ketika menunggu solat berjemaah. Sayangnya waktu mustajab ini sering disalahgunakan sesetengah umat Islam yang kurang mengerti sunnah, sehingga diisi dengan hal tidak baik dan tidak dianjurkan Islam, membicarakan urusan dunia yang tidak bernilai ibadat.

- Pada waktu sujud. Iaitu sujud di dalam solat atau sujud lain yang diajarkan Islam seperti sujud syukur, sujud tilawah dan sujud sahwi. Dalilnya adalah hadis Abu Hurairah r.a, bahawasanya Rasulullah s.a.w bersabda, maksudnya: “Kedudukan hamba yang paling dekat dengan Tuhannya adalah ketika ia dalam keadaan sujud, maka perbanyaklah doa.” (Hadis riwayat Muslim)Hadis Ibnu Abbas r.a, dia berkata: “Rasulullah s.a.w membuka tabir (ketika baginda sakit), sementara orang ramai sedang berbaris (solat) di belakang Abu Bakar r.a, lalu Rasulullah s.a.w bersabda:“Wahai sekalian manusia, sesungguhnya tidak ada lagi daripada mubasysyirat nubuwwah (kabar gembira kenabian) kecuali mimpi baik yang dilihat oleh seorang Muslim atau diperlihatkan untuknya. Ingatlah bahawasanya aku dilarang untuk membaca al-Quran ketika rukuk atau ketika sujud. Adapun di dalam rukuk, agungkanlah Allah dan adapun di dalam sujud, bersungguhlah berdoa, sebab (hal itu) segera dikabulkan bagi kamu.” (Hadis riwayat Muslim)

- Selepas solat fardu. Iaitu selepas melaksanakan solat wajib lima waktu, termasuk selepas solat Jumaat. Allah berfirman, maksudnya:“Dan bertasbihlah kamu kepada-Nya di malam hari dan selesai solat.” (Qaaf: 40)Oleh kerana itu, Imam Syafie dan pengikutnya menjelaskan, dianjurkan bagi imam dan makmumnya serta orang yang solat sendirian memperbanyakkan zikir, wirid dan doa selepas selesai solat fardu. Dianjurkan membaca doa dengan perlahan kecuali jika makmum belum mengerti, imam boleh menguatkan bacaan agar makmum menirunya. Apabila mereka mengerti, kembalilah secara perlahan.

- Pada waktu khusus, tetapi tidak diketahui dengan pasti batasannya, iaitu satu detik pada setiap malam dan setiap hari Jumaat. Ini berdasarkan hadis Jabir r.a, dia berkata: “Saya mendengar Rasulullah s.a.w bersabda, maksudnya:“Sesungguhnya di malam hari ada satu saat (yang mustajab), tidak ada seorang Muslim pun yang bertepatan pada waktu itu meminta kepada Allah kebaikan urusan dunia dan akhirat melainkan Allah pasti memberi kepadanya.” (Hadis Riwayat Muslim).Hadis Abu Hurairah r.a, Rasulullah s.a.w pernah menyebut hari Jumaat, baginda bersabda:“Di dalamnya ada satu saat (yang mustajab), tidaklah seorang hamba Muslim yang kebetulan waktu itu sedang mendirikan solat (atau menunggu solat) dan memohon kepada Allah sesuatu (hajat) melainkan Allah pasti mengabulkan permohonannya.” Nabi s.a.w mengisyaratkan dengan tangannya akan sedikitnya saat mustajab itu. (Hadis riwayat al-Bukhari) Di dalam hadis Muslim dan Abu Daud dijelaskan: “Iaitu waktu antara duduknya imam (khatib) sehingga selesainya solat (Jumaat).” Inilah riwayat yang paling sahih dalam hal ini.

Sementara dalam hadis Abu Daud yang lain, Nabi s.a.w memerintahkan agar kita mencarinya di akhir waktu Asar.Waktu lain yang mustajab ialah sepertiga akhir malam, ketika hujan turun, waktu awal pagi ketika dengar ayam berkokok, ketika berpuasa, ketika bermusafir, bulan Ramadan dan pada 10 akhir Ramadan.

Lesson 8: Lasagna

Instant Lasagna with Meat Sauce
Serves 5

· 250g San Remo Instant Lasagna
· Meat Sauce
· 2 tablespoon vegetable oil
· 60g chicken-ham, finely chopped (optional)
· 1 can of Tomato Pueree & Veggies (carrot, celery etc)
· 1 clove garlic, crushed
· 500g beef mince
· 5 tablespoons tomato paste
· 375ml water
· 1 chicken stock cube
· salt, pepper and pinch of nutmeg
· Cheese Sauce
· 2 tablespoons butter
· 2 tablespoons plain flour
· 500ml milk
· salt, pepper
· 125g mozzarella cheese (cubed or grated)

Meat Sauce
Heat oil in a medium saucepan, add chicken ham and cook gently for 3 minutes. Add onion,
can tomato with veggies and garlic. Cook, stirring, until onion is soft. Add mince and cook stirring,
until brown.
Stir in tomato paste and water into which stock cube has been dissolved. Season
with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Cover and simmer gently for 20 minutes, stirring
occasionally.

Cheese Sauce
Melt butter in medium saucepan, stir in flour and cook for 2 minutes over gentle heat.
Remove from heat and gradually stir in milk. Return to heat and stir until thick and
smooth.
Season with salt and pepper, add mozzarella and stir over low heat until cheese melts.

Lasagna
Preheat oven to 180ºC.
Pour 125ml meat sauce into base of lightly greased baking dish. Alternate layers of
lasagna, meat and cheese sauces, ending with cheese sauce layer. Sprinkle top with
grated parmesan cheese if desired.
Bake in oven for 35 - 40 minutes. (Test by pricking with fork) Let stand 5 - 10 minutes
before serving.

* If you are too busy, you can straightly use the spaghetting sauce to make your meat sauce.
The result is simply delicious.

Lesson 7: Cinnamon Rolls

Last night while waiting for you guys to come home from your Kumon classes, I prepared Cinnamon Rolls with loads of cinnamon.

Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

3/4 cup Fresh Milk
1/4 cup Butter, room Temperature
3 1/4 cups Multi Purpose Flour
1/2 tsp yeast (Mauripan)
1/4 cup fine sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup water
1 Egg
*1 cup Brown Sugar
*1 tsp Cinnamon Powder
*1/4 cup Butter, room temperature
*1/2 cup Raisin (optional)
Method:
1. Simmer Fresh Milk, add butter and Salt. Stir and let it cool.
2. In big mixing bowl, add 21/4 cups of Flour, Yeast,Sugar and Salt. Then stir.
3. Add water,egg & milk mixture, beat it. Then add in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup by 1/2 cup then beat it well.
4. Roll it to dough, dash in some flour below and on top of the dough all around. Knead for 5 minutes till the dough texture is smooth. Dash some flour if it still soft and sticky ( in a bowl).
5. Close the bowl with damp cloth for 10 minutes. In the mean time mix all * ingredients tarely.
6. Flatten the dough to square shape, approx 12″ x 9 “. Spread with cinnamon powder and raisin.
7. Roll the dough,Pinch edges and ends together well to seal.
8. Using sharp serrated knife, slice dough into 12 slices and place side by side in a baking pan (leave space between the rolls as they will rise)
9. Allow to double in size in warm place for 30 minutes. Keep cover with damp towel so they won’t dry out.
10. Preheat oven to 325°F / 190 °C and bake for 20 - 30 minutes or until rolls are lightly golden. Serve them warm.

So... Hanim you can substitute raisin with dates or apricots...

Love,

Ibu.

Tinggal Kenangan: Part 3: 29/9/2008 Birthday Abang yg ke 9

Dear Anak2...
Here are the photos that Ibu managed to capture the night that we celebrated Abang's 9th birthday during the last Hari Raya break. Allahyarham Wan insisted that I used his money to buy you the cake. Anyway, lepas berbuka we put on the candles and start the cake cutting ceremony.

Pak Ngah with Farhan
The birthday cake

Abang with his cake

Hani is dancing while Wan looks on....

The birthday boy with Wan

(Wan dah tak berapa larat nak duduk lama2...)

Cake cutting

Ali on Wan's lap

Wan dan Atok, together with Pak Ngah and Farhan

Tinggal Kenangan: Part 2

Sarah dan Hanim dengan Atok dan Wan makan2 kat Tanjung Dawai late last year.

Sarah with her beloved Tok dan Wan

Hafiz dengan Allahyarham Wan tersayang...

Ali Junior dengan Ali Senior.... tinggal kenangan...

Masa ni bapak still boleh bangun dan jalan-jalan, tapi tak boleh travel jauh-jauh.

Again, Ali is seen here with Allahyarham Wan.

These were some of the photos that Ibu managed to capture when we were back in Kedah. Wan insisted that we went to Tanjung Dawai for lunch. Little that we knew that this trip will be the last for us with him.

May Allah bless his soul and tempatkan Wan bersama-sama para mujahidin. Amin.

Alfatihah: Kembalinya Bapak ke Rahmatullah

Tinggal Kenangan...

My dear children,





7/4/2009 will always be remembered.





Your Wan, my Bapak was called to meet his Creator at 10:30pm. We just came back from visiting him the last week-end and Ibu was discussing plan with Pak Teh and Pak Ngah of travelling back with them.





Alhamdulillah, jenazah allahyarham Wan selamat kita sempurnakan sebelum zuhur 8/4/2009 di tanah perkuburan masjid Penghulu Him SP. That was his wish... cepat-cepatkan pengkebumian dia.
He has been suffering for the last 2 years, bed-ridden for the last 6 months. My mum, your Atok was his constant companion. My brother yg no 7 (Pak Wan) and my sister yg no 8 (Tati)are at home with them. Yang lain (we are 9 in the family, and I'm the eldest) semuanya kerja and my youngest brother kat GMI, Bangi, still studying. He lost much of his weight, yg tinggal cuma isi dan tulang saja. We were back and forth the last couple of months, tak boleh nak concentrate kat work sesangat...
Ramai rakan2, sanak-saudara my father especially those yg berjuang with him. YB Ust Azizan and YB Mahfuz Omar ada juga bertandang menziarah jenazah pada sebelah malam selepas keputusan pilihanraya Bk Selambau diumumkan.



Anyway, thanks for all the takziah greeting that we received thru the SMS.

I really missed my chat with my dad. Sumuga Allah tempatkan Bapak dengan para2 mujahidin, Amin.

Al-fatihah: In loving memory Ali bin Shafie ( 9/10/1939 ~ 7/4/2009)

P/S: The photo above was taken during 2007 Raya with me and my children. Bapak dah mula sakit-sakit.

Doa Mohon Dihilangkan Rasa Berdebar-debar

Salam,

Hari ini ibu nak kongsikan doa yang dititipkan dari Darussyifa. Moga anak-anak ibu dapat menafaat dari posting ini.

Perasaan berdebar-debar, penyakit was was, risau dan sebagainya adalah penyakit hati yang disebabkan kerana cinta kepada dunia dan jauh dari Allah SWT.Ali bin Thalib pernah berkata: "Apabila hati seseorang telah dipenuhi dengan cinta dunia, ia akan terkena 3 penyakit:a) Rasa risau yang tidak berkesudahan.b) Rasa tamak yang berlebihan.c) Harapan yang berlebihan yang tidak pernah tercapai."Tidak ada jalan lain untuk menghilangkan penyakit tersebut melainkan dengan memperbanyak zikrullah.Firman Allah dalam Al-Qur'an [13:28] yang bermaksud, "(yaitu) orang-orang yang beriman dan hati mereka menjadi tenteram dengan mengingat Allah. Ingatlah, hanya dengan mengingat Allah-lah hati menjadi tenteram."Zikir kepada Allah ada 3:a) Mengenal Allah SWT dengan sifat dan asma'-Nyab) Menyebut dan membesarkan sifat dan asma' Allah, bertasbih, bertahmid, bertakbir, dan lain-lain dengan lisanc) Mempelajari hukum Allah untuk mengenal perintah-Nya, sehingga dijalankan atau mengenal larangan-Nya sehingga ditinggalkan.Zikir yang paling basic, ada seperti yang dinyatakan di bawah. Selain mengamalkan doa di atas, elok diamalkan zikir ini setiap kali habis sembahyang fardu.Dari Abu Hurairah r.a., dari Rasulullah SAW., sabdanya: "Siapa yang tasbih tiga puluh tiga kali, tahmid tiga puluh tiga kali, takbir tiga puluh tiga kali, jadi jumlahnya sembilan puluh sembilan kali, kemudian dicukupkannya seratus dengan membaca: "La ilaha illallahu wahdahu la syarikalahu lahul mulku wa lahul hamdu wa huwa 'ala kulli syai-in qadir. Maka diampuni Allah segala kesalahannya, walaupun sebanyak buih di lautan." (Hadis sahih Muslim)Semoga Allah SWT memelihara kita daripada penyakit hati.

Wassalam.

P/S: this posting was posted during lunch break.