Wednesday 9 September 2009

Special Dates and Berbuka Puasa

Nice date sequence today - 090909.

Next year's special date is 101010.

Have already told the older kids if any of them wants to get married, 101010 sounds like quite a nice date for a wedding.

One quipped "Everyone will be getting marrried on that date, poyor ler". Well then, 101110 looks nice too. The the next year someone else can get married on 111111, and the next 121212.

My first 3 kids were born in consecutive years 83, 84, 85 which makes then very eligible lah.

My parents were married on 040444. Nothing suey about that - they had me mah - plus 8 others. All of us are from the baby-boomer generation - the least oldest being 45 years of age, the eldest 63. I'm smack in the middle: 8 years older than the youngest and 8 years younger than the oldest. Just do the maths. Hint: My age is double-digit, with a repeating number which adds up to 10.

Not bad being in the middle - can manja with the older ones, and bossy with the younger ones. Not anymore lah, ever since the younger ones became cleverer than me.

Anyway since it is 090909, I'll make it special by posting a tazkirah ramadan on the subject of the breaking of fast. This seems to be a "hot" subject in other blogs which are filled with stories of food, menus and cooking for iftaar.

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Syarat untuk mendapat nikmat ketika berbuka puasa - iaitu mendapat kekenyangan dengan makanan yang sedikit:

1. Duduk menghadap makanan 2 hingga 5 minit sebelum berbuka untuk merangsang air liur. Air liur membantu dalam proses penghazaman makanan.

2. Berdoa sebelum berbuka - Ya Allah! Kerana Engkau aku berpuasa dan kepada Engkau aku beriman dan atas rezeki dari Engkau aku berbuka puasa dengan rahmat Engkau yang meliputi segala sesuatu.

3. Makan dengan mengguna tangan kanan.

4. Bermula dengan makanan yang paling hampir - jangan sampai terangkat punggung.

5. Kunyah makanan lembut sebanyak 11-20 kali dan makanan keras sebanyak 21-40 kali. Berhenti makan sebelum kenyang.

Dengan mengikut kaedah makan seperti tersebut di atas akan memastikan kesejahteraan perut yang harus kita isikan hanya sepertiga dengan makanan, sepertiga lagi untuk minuman dan sepertiga dibiarkan untuk nafas.

Wallahua'lam.

Tazkirah telah disampaikan oleh Ustaz Shihabuddin Muhaemin pada 020909.

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To really stimulate the salivary glands before the iftaar, I suggest the following video. It worked on my dear husband, especially the last 2 minutes. Enjoy!




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54 comments:

azeimcash said...

yg 88 x msk dlm kategori ke?

Saya... said...

First time I heard about stimulating the air liur thingy... ;)

Kalau terstimulate bila tgk Mutton Briyani la ni awai2 pagi camner??? Dah pulak terangsang acidic secretions...naya je tau! Heheh.

Lee said...

Hi Zendra, saya baru buka puasa, had my diiner and now got to do arithmetic, ha ha.
Love your humour, you have the style too.
Bet at parties you the one light the fireworks? Ha ha.
Have fun, Lee.
Pssst, senang datang.

Saya... said...

Hahaha...dramatic betui mamat ni...sampai menangis2 rasa briyani sendiri...

When i use saffron, tak jadik color tu...maybe kena letak banyak kot. I cant believe the lamb masak camtu jer...tak de air kan?

Nanti i nak try lah...tgk I menangis dak pas makan

Red Alfa said...

@azeim29

You would be 22(2010), 23(2011) & 24(2012). Your mother or I aren't expecting you to be in the category, yet! Or is it a wink that we just missed?

ARE YOU SAYING YOU ARE NOW ELIGIBLE?

Zendra-Maria said...

Red Alfa and Azeim dearests:

Not 'alf eligible yet - on a part-time janitor's income?

Dapat BACHELOR degree dululah Dek baru boleh jadi MASTER orang, dah kahwin nanti jadi People's Hubby n Daddy (PHD)

Kak Teh said...

Zendra, i have yet to watch that clip, but I will, after this.

I remember my then work mate now husband asking me, do you know that today is 7.7.77? and two years ago i wrote an entry about it. and now it is already 090909! How time flies.

okay am off to watch the video.

Kak Teh said...

zendra, he is so passionate about his cooking - so emotonal pulak tu! I dont really like beriani but am willing to try this for the family.

Zendra-Maria said...

Saya:

The air liur thingy was straight from the horse's mouth .... oops I mean THE USTAZ said it - BETUI! Something to do about the body being bereft of hydration at berbuka time, and so have to rangsang the process lah - as in for eg. warming up before exercise, plus other activities I don't think I should mention bulan puasa lah.

Hey, hang boleh try buat the briyani b4 the weekend tak, nanti cerita OK? weekend I can go grocery shopping with RA for the ingredients.

40 mins slow cooking boleh masak kot, use bottom heavy pan - very important. Was toying with using rice cooker for final process tu, but maybe not lah.

:)

Zendra-Maria said...

Lee, I just realised the maths doesn't work out lah. No wonder my late daddy didn't let me do accounting - the books would never have balanced haha

Parties??? What parties??? Those were many many MANY MANY decades ago. Wish I had had that last tango in Paris.....

Wow I visited your pondok just now. Aiseyyy I should mintak you a bouquet of orchids before I went - kasi jual mahal sikit. Ini like so senang-senang - CEH!! (pinjam itu Saya punya expression)

Saya... said...

Haiya,

my bottom is heavy but my pan is not!

How ah? Boleh try alas ngan another pan macam Chef "My Cooking Is Sooooo Good, It Makes Me Cry". This week ah, nanti I try...InsyaAllah, but with chicken. Kenot find good mutton.

Rice cooker bleh kot, tapi takut daging tu tak masak...sebab rice cooker tak sampai that long. I have pressure cooker, but I velly scared dia meletup, tak pakai (bodoh kan?)

They should change the name to "gentle" cooker...org dengar "Pressure" naik takut...kot macam Atomic Bomb berterabur lauk melotup sebab silap release pressure. No way. I don't wanna die making briyani.

Cry...maybe.

mamasita said...

Waah..nampak senang jugak..mula2 I ingat you nak cerita pasal special kurma..hehe

I rasa cook ni datang from very humble beginnings..jadi bila dia makan good food, hes brought down to memory lane and mesti nak nangis..agaknya lah..

I nak hentam try..after Raya..hehe
Tengah puasa2 ni takut tak menjadi kang niaya orang yang nak berbuka!

Unknown said...

Hi Kak Zendra

You really have a good sense of humor :-). Enjoyed reading your post and all the comments too!

Selamat berpuasa and may you continue to bring smiles to our faces.

Salam

Saya... said...

Yang saya tak reti tu, the 40 persen and 60 persen rice masak quantum...antything to do with Maths, I get brain freeze..atau Math anxiety, a bit like the performance anxiety (Alfa tau kot? Jive tak Bang? Know what I mean? Math-wise lah)

I got f9 for Add Math (dah berapa kali ulang kat internet...I hope none of the Jet Propulsion Lab people I applied job with read this)...aiyah...masak pun nak pakai Math?

Tak penah plak determine percentage intems of "doneness"....

See? Belum buat dah panik...ni semua pasal ade CALCULATION!

I never measure anything I cook....campak jer macam pro (perasan)...dah naik gigil pikir nak buat briani ni.

You buatlah dulu!

Zendra-Maria said...

Kak Teh what happened 070777? Surely something very romantico, orang lama kan pandai cari meaningful dates, like my late father chose 040444 to get married.

Actually that guy in the clip is quite a cutie and charming as well, plus comes across as very sincere to share his recipe. Manalah tak cair all the kitchen mama's and the not so kitchen-bound as well, want to try making his briyani. My hubby tengok terus mintak I buat hahaha

:)

Kak Teh said...

Zendra, like Saya, i pun tak faham yang 40 percent/60 percent cook tu. kena main agak-agaklah. I went to his website and actually woke this husband of mine to tell him about it. I think he's got his own style, this chef - very entertaining!

on 7777? oh well , nothing romantic laa sebab like i said he was just a work mate sitting right across me at the NST - and he looke dup and asked, do you know that today is 7777? I ingat laa semua tu sebab hati dah terpaut, lidah kelu tak terkata...Sigh! this is the effect of the beriani video!

Zendra-Maria said...

Saya,

Apalah belum apa-apa dah chicken out ni? Hang kan ada briyani punya roots - aiyoh. Use your flair for cooking lah. I wouldn't go 40% and 60% done, half-done can also work I'm sure! You try lah first - you've got the roooots man!

Zendra-Maria said...

mamasita, kita tengok Saya buat camne dulu. kalau dia punya jadik kita try lah, kalau tak jadik baik jangan Sebab Saya kan anak keturunan pembuat briyani juga - so kita tunggu dialah.

Actually LadyMarko (Self Re-invention blog)dah buat, dia kata confirm sedap. Dia yang kasi link tu. Harap2 dia jenguk sini to share any tips.

Zendra-Maria said...

Salam Paula, thanks for dropping by. Don't want to try making the briyani kah? I'm not sure whether my guinea pigs will laugh or cry when I'm done cooking it.

Zendra-Maria said...

Kak Teh, naughty-naughty you actually woke the old man up for this? Owhhh he forgot today's special date kah? Tsk tsk tsk....

Tommy Yewfigure said...

Hi Zenzibra,

Fancy u a number orientated person too, mata sepet 4 u not enuff kah (I know caused by smiling & laughing too much mah))” Now oso want to 168, 888 like a Taukeh Soh hahaha. My mummy used to always (without fail) refer to this big book (some sort of a Chinese almanac) to choose auspicious day for ALL occasions. It must have worked so far for me lah, thanks to her.

Hey, look like u r hinting to the kids to get hitched. Why lah u like that one, feeling the urge to nak pangkat to Tok Nenek oreadi kah? You r still young mah. And I dread to think how the grandkids going to fare under the care of a ‘Mother Know ALL’ granny..hehehe.

Good luck to you. Don’t be 5354, ok?

Tommy (11967 according to my buddie Kij).

P/S – Dei Sanjay (shaking my head as I speak), ur biryani looks some tempting, I must say :)

Tommy Yewfigure said...

Hey just heard this silly one about numbers;

Why is number 6 so terrified of number 7???
>
>
>
>

Becoz 7 8 9.... (7 ate 9)..muahaha.

Am I going crazy or what???

Tommy

Saya... said...

Zen,

My mummy's beehoon ayam briani special for eid ade i post kat blog dulu...wah...simply divine. To my taste buds lah...tapi nak kacau bihun sampai kering dan just flafy and dry tu macam nak putus tangan...ade almonds, kas-kas all the spices lah...cili hijau cam Chef Cry Coz Very Happy, tapi my cili ground up with almonds and a squeeze of limes...marinate for few hours dulu...then baru tumis spices and masukan ayam, ideal milk and masak sampai empuk ayam...then masuk bihun yg colored with saffron and kacau samapi rata and fluffy...bau satu kampung (maybe sebab to me sedap giler the bau pudina and fresh ketumbar chopped finely)...resepi mesti every Eid.

Kena dgn piping hot tea pagi raya...aiyo...almost or, or, or...organic? Healthy la, I mean. Bulan puasa, cannot mean anything else. BUt then its for pagi raya, so I guess its legal then.

Red Alfa said...

Now that Kak Teh has mentioned it!

7777 was indeed a date to remember for some of us old romantics, surely.

It was one of my last days in Ol' Blighty.

With the love that was to be lost the next year with memories of Cymru in a yellow Mini and going home to No 1,Barnard Road, B*****head, M****side.

Yes, I will always remember living this date!

Saya... said...

PS

(uh oh...Tommy...calm down!

...Zendra, Tommy sejak azali lagi, tak boleh encourage or tunjuk your affection sikit pun...he tend to be beside himself (I guess then you DO go crazy Tommy...out of body experience/beside yourself...gedit?...a bit like psychosis...kah kah kah...)


ps: jgn marah, Tommysan

Saya... said...

Btw Zen,

I do think that Chef was really passionate and sincere abt his cooking...heheh...saje je teasing him (in case he is reading, mana laaa tau...nanti dia menangis plak ingat I kutuk dia...)

Zendra-Maria said...

Hi Tommy,

Haiya I thought you would put up a new pic, really 11967 lah you.

I like main-main numbers only, not to count them, that's why my bank account show only 1 comma in the balance. I think its becos my mata tak cukup sepet - my chinese genes quite diluted already.

Like all ladies, I secretly don't wish to timang cucu so soon hehe. Well timang can but jaga - I don't want to masuk campurlah - children must bond with parents first of all, then grandparents.

But you know men lah (u r one what), RA, the father of my progenitors secretly desires to see the continuation of his line mah. So that's why have to hint-hint, short of ARRANGING one for next year (veiled threat for the kidz).

You keep well!

"Um-sap-um-seii"


7 ate 9? GAWD!!! roll-eyes

Why did Tarzan drive a mazda? because it can go tree-to-tree (323)

Zendra-Maria said...

Saya: have never in my life ate bee-hoon ayam briyani - sounds so tedious to whip up - but I believe you it's scrumpcilicious. AAAH so you CAN make briyani after all - no need to get inspired first like me. Buatlah, buatlah then tell us. Ambik gambar juga sekali OK?

Takpelah Tommy making the rounds haha. How else to spend his time before checking in to that first-class resort up in the highlands?

Zendra-Maria said...

Waah there goes Red Alfa again down memory lane.... Vroom,vroom

Zendra-Maria said...

Alamak Tommy, Um-SAM-um-seii, what it means ah, not-alive-not-dead?

Tommy Yewfigure said...

5354 literally means don't be obnoxious &/or do undesirable stuff, sumthing like that lah! Not Sum Ting Wong.

Why are kids so closed to their grandparents???
>
>
Becoz they've got a COMMON enemy...hahaha.

Tommy

Saya... said...

(Tommy you know I meant it in the most affectionate way...heheh)

Tommy always cracks me up la Zen...very funny guy. (dont get excited again ah, Unker)

Capt's Longhouse said...

Zendra/Saya and Ladies Oii !!

Senang saja buat nasi Berani, kena berani guna rice cooker-lah.
,,, just when the rice is 3/4 cooked, baru you buat lubang for the chicken or lamb which you have goreng setengah masak with ghee or butter together with the rempah berani with some saffron within each lubang dgn chicken or lamb, make sure garam secukup rasa already gaul with the cooked berani rempah-ya!!.
,,, daun ketumba buboh bila air nasi gelegah selepas tumis minyak bawah besar, halia dgn kulit kayu manis...air setengah dari normal and jangan kacau nasi dalam rice cooker after this !!
,,,Lets the cooker continue cooking,,,walla !!

,,,tutup mata pon boleh jadi Yeop Oii !!...the secret is only half amount of water from normal rice requirement so that nasi berani nya tak lembek dan jadi se biji biji o.k.

Chef Uban

Capt's Longhouse said...

Oooo jangan lupa buboh tomato puree yaa ! hahaha.

Chef Uban.

Saya... said...

Chef Uban,

Nasi Berani tu macam besi berani keraih ker...hehehe...Briyani ke Berani Mati?

Saje mengusik...wah boleh buat menantu Capt ni...pandai masak...semua dia pandai, ye dak Zen?

You can try his east recipe lah pakai cooker!

Saya... said...

Tapi Zen, I tgk resepi Crying Chef tadi kat video you, bukan main banyak garam dia letak!

Nanti Raya ni you datang lah rumah...I buatkan Beehoon Ayam Berani Mati (bak kata Uban)

Adoi...aku dok gelak sorang2 cam org giler...dah la! nak buat keje terbengakalai ni ha!

Capt's Longhouse said...

,,,dah tua bangka nee !!...siapa nak buat menantu Yeop Oii ??.. daddy gula boleh kot haha.!!

,,,made my nasi beraini last week for 20 houseguests wow !!..jilat pinggan mereka semua hehehe.

,,,pandai pandai tupai saja-lah tak sepandai Zebra escape dari hari2-mau ??. yoooo. haha melawak aja jgn marah yaa ?.


Tok Uban

Saya... said...

Chef Uban,

You I consider one of my dearest friends even tho belum jumpa walau penah singgah sepulau! You really make my day lah! With your comments, your support, your recipes...you are REAL lah...betui tak Zen...

Memang BERANI lah I cakap....you guys make me laugh every day! So glad to know you all.

Capt's Longhouse said...

tak kenal tak cinta
jgn terjumpa buat buta

hahaha !!

,,,remember that life is a journey for happiness, the moment to enjoy living is now, never for tomorrow bcos tomorrow never comes !.
,,,its all in the mind !..positive attitude brings happiness and joy.
,,,if negative i/we no friend you yoo !! haha... betul tak Zebra ya??,,,have you fed the hungry lion and cubs!!

.Selamat berbuka puasa.

Tommy Yewfigure said...

Hey ZZ, Saya,

That Kapitan fella sayings so true lah;

,,,remember that life is a journey for happiness, the moment to enjoy living is now, never for tomorrow bcos tomorrow never comes !.
,,,its all in the mind !..positive attitude brings happiness and joy. (sic)

But when he says;

“tak kenal tak cinta
jgn terjumpa buat buta”(sic)

Tommy sure ‘buat buta one leh, the sight of him like a sumseng Taikoh make me piss in my pants, yeah I wouldn’t want to meet him in any dark alley, boy he sure is one ugly looking dude…hehehe…sorry hah Kapital, full moon tonight lah! Oopsy guess I’m in hot soup now. Have mercy, I hope u r not he belasah type :)

Excuse me,

Tommy

P/S – Watching the 3rd. Pom v Oz 50/50 one day cricket now. Saw Mick Jagger with Lily Allen in the 2nd games at Lords. Good old pucker lips, never too old to rock.
PP/S - Hey guess what, my word verification for this comment is 'likeme' - very good omen.

Zendra-Maria said...

Armouris: nice name you have, good to prevent the germs from hinggap kat badan.

Nice informative blog too, and the adverts are "very interesting" hehe

Thanks for the link.

DrSam said...

Ha...ha...ha...syahdu betul chef tu. Terharu gue. that cooking show can win an award le...for the chef who used his tears to season the briyani :)

Madam Zen and kanda RA should by now start to distribute application forms - on behalf of Azeim. What you say madam?

Zendra-Maria said...

Capt:

Nasi Berani pun pandai masaklah Capt ni, patutlah tak takut duduk bertapa kat pulau.

Tapi terkejut juga bila baca kena tumis BAWAH besar dah tu buat lubang2 pulak - patut ler Saya tergelak sendirian.

BAWANG besar agaknye tu kan? Tomato puree bila pulak letak - bancuh dengan air ke? Ada orang kata letak tomato soup lagi terangkat lah Chef.

Zendra-Maria said...

Saya: betul lah macam sesenduk banyaknya garam, tapi dia masak nasi cara toskan air apabila setengah masak, and his lamb marinade tak ada garam langsung so I suppose it's OK. Dia pun pesan jangan takut pakai garam, nanti nasi tawar mak mentua kata tak pandai masak untuk anak dia hahaha

Kalau masak cara ni tak ada risiko nasi lembek macam cara Capt. Nanti jadi nasi berani tapi lembekkk hahahah

Ya Allah nak buat menantu Chef nasi BERANI???? Kesian anak aku... itu motility dah kureng kkikikiki

Zendra-Maria said...

Saya and Capt, memang belum jumpa tapi so mesra, takut bila jumpa lidah kelu tak terkata apa haha

But Tommy, You are so scared of Capt. the way he looks at you with those hawk-eyes you sudah kecut perut hahaha

Yalah you sudah kacau daun maaa - better you kasi dia satu peace pipe with cuban tobacco - dia pipe-smoking man tapi tak telan itu asap hahaha

Zendra-Maria said...

Dr Sam, mungkin dia yacting sajer lah sebab briyani dia dah terlalu masin sampai keluar air mata. Yang kita tengok pulak keluar air liur hahaha

Eh Azeim kena lah tunggu giliran - nanti banyak bendul kena dilangkah. Tapi kalau dah kepingin sangat, nak buat camne ye dok, Doc - baik direstukan sajer.

Saya... said...

Zendra,

Ya Allah...I didnt see the tumis BAWAH and the connection wth buat lobang (dalam bahasa era P Ramlee Uban)...Lucky Im wearing the maximum protection brand...I tergelak nak pecah perut!!!!! Hahahahaha!

Tommy, you are DEAD! DEAD! Uban will feed you to the sharks...he actually has some human bones in his collection....maybe yours will be next...lepas dia tumis BAWAH you, cincang halus2....HAHAHAHAHA....

Rosak posa saya...Adoi!!!!

Saya... said...

Zen,

Another one I was laughing to myself the other day reading Uban's blog and you brought it up again...smoke pipe tapi tak sedut asap....LOL!!!!!

Anak2 I ingat mak dia dah lost her marbles, ketawa tak henti2 sambil menaip nih ha....

Uban! How the heck is that possible? Hisap paip tak sedut asap???

Capt's Longhouse said...

,,,bila you tumis the spices i.e. briyani dah keluar minyak with the ayam/lamb (1/2 to 3/4 cooked) you add the tomato puree together, mixed and slot them into the spaces created in the 3/4 cooked rice.
,,,don't ever kacau the rice after that yaa, let the rice cooker do its job.
,,,the bawang besar, ginger, ketumba etc you fry them together first b4 you add in the beras on top.
,,,The ayam or lamb you fry them too with kunyit separately and add them to the briyani tumis o.k. ? plus add the tomato puree b4 you slot them into the 3/4 cooked rice in the cooker lah.
,,,its a process, step by step tak sama buat nasi biasa !!.. banyak tumis and frying and finally boiling/cooking in the rice cooker.
,,,tak susah, try it you will enjoy it-lah. haha !!
,,,susah susah pergi kedai beli saja hehe or invite me to do demo ?.
.......
itu-lah tak tengok my cooking lesson on TV 7 in July'09 -Jom Rasa.
don't worry, Astro just signed a deal today, for another shooting next month for Capt's Longhouse, Kapas Island - Lifestyle & Living !!
Capt's longhouse features about island hideaways in Zero Degrees July 2007 plus MAS booklet 2 or 3months back pun ada coverage of my joint !!.

,,,boleh tahan kan hehehe !! but my place is well known in France..and international travel mag. plus lonely planet..voted as the best restaurant on kapas too yoo..5 stars Yeop.

Saya... said...

Fuiyo...Michelin Stars berapa Yeop?

I thot Qimi Chalet best restaurant...hehe, sebab tak pi melencong around the jeti to your place.

Tak pa, lain kali ade rezeki bolehla pegi rasa briyani Capt (heheh...dah tukar "lubang" dengan "slot"...good choice Capt!)

Lagi satu stail, buat layers of lamb and rice and then bake...sedap gak...

Yang kat restoran mamak tu is Nasi Berminyak, bukan hak Berani.

Zendra-Maria said...

Wah Capten nak masuk program Astro kah? Nanti bila nak siarkan habaq kita K?

Anonymous said...

demo of ; special extra hot tommy yum lidah soup on the menu at capt's pleasure !
will indeed advise time and place in due time !!.
just wait o.k.??
(i never forgive or have enemies .......bcos ??)

Zendra-Maria said...

Aiyo Tommy punya lidah akan dijadikan Sop!!!!

Pirate no enenmies cos SEMUA SUDAH MATI hahahah

Saya... said...

Good one Capt...Hot Tommy Yum Sop....bull testicle sop?