tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60258492026-04-04T09:46:01.226+08:00The Delicious Appreciations of Pick YinPickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.comBlogger199125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-13863623767186076362015-11-23T11:56:00.002+08:002015-12-29T13:02:14.624+08:00

This cake is a touchy subject for those lucky enough to have been introduced to it. Some like it literally flooding, some like it just slightly oozing in the center. Others are easily happy with the drier edges. Recently another major fan admitted all she really cared about is the cake's crusty sugary cinnamon top. Every week it's a matter of calling dibs on that most promising piece according

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-83146376071561196282015-10-21T12:11:00.004+08:002015-10-21T12:51:15.153+08:00

Recently I've been asked, "Are you a chef?" "No, I'm just a cook. So what did you do in your previous place?" "Oh, I started in the cold section then moved to meat and the other sections. Soon after I was the sous and then eventually running the kitchen expediting. Do you know what's expediting? (without missing a beat) Expediting means I just call the dockets and do the final plating." ...

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-73998655202799817422015-08-11T11:40:00.003+08:002015-10-21T10:29:52.376+08:00

"Why is the soup called ABC?" I asked on Instagram and got all sorts of (some rather weird) answers. I don't remember asking my mother. I just know it remains as my all time favorite Chinese slow-cooked soup even now. Yes, it's up there with lotus root octopus, watercress duck or pig stomach but ultimately, I can have this soup every day, at any hour. Life in the food and beverage

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-32260809517550039732015-06-19T11:55:00.002+08:002015-06-19T12:50:12.257+08:00

We recently turned two. As another chapter will soon come to a close, this place, for which I gave up most of my kitchen time and energy, will tell a new story. It seems like it wasn't too long ago when I drew that pig, baked that coconut lime curd cake and worked Sundays not having a moment to stop for a breather. Was it only a few months ago I baked muffins exploding with chocolate and

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-34345861649084395632015-04-20T15:54:00.002+08:002015-04-20T16:00:54.977+08:00

For the past two weekends, I've been mostly home bound due to a knee injury. Just as well, as this gave me more than enough time to experiment with two things very Chinese - the pau and pork belly. Okay, let's cut to the chase and put it out there, I really wanted to eat pork belly pau - a piece of melt-in-your-mouth fatty pork belly wedged between one soft, fluffy, slight sweet steamed bun.

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-71047125451541445072015-03-24T10:12:00.001+08:002015-03-24T10:14:47.007+08:00

Although I am never a follower of any food blogs in particular (contrary to popular belief), I read with interest this piece at Lottie and Doof and its ensuing comments. It made me wonder if I'm boring and will you be so surprised to hear me tell you I find myself boring sometimes? Due to circumstances of course, because if we could all go play in my head, I'd assure you I'd be here way more

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-49823648493948149562015-01-21T15:48:00.002+08:002015-01-21T15:48:33.260+08:00

I have been frying eggs crispy since the day I was tall enough to reach the stove and all of a sudden it's currently a revolution. It's so hip it requires defence. It's so much talked about some find it quite difficult to master (what do I do with that mucus around the yolk?!), the perceived skill level required perhaps on par with what some chefs qualify as the perfect sunny side up and one

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-57070283725456845142014-10-03T09:15:00.003+08:002014-10-03T09:20:09.422+08:00

These days I find myself relearning the basics. Using fewer ingredients, keeping things simple. As the world goes on to demand much and more, I try not to forget how to choose fresh fish at the market, how to fillet it, make the best of its briny flesh and extract flavor from every last bits of its bones. I fry an egg, make it crispy around the edges and toss my favorite soy sauce

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-13652085812968474582014-06-25T09:16:00.000+08:002014-06-25T09:16:01.282+08:00

Growing up my mother used to tell me stories on how she grew up with raw eggs cracked over hot rice with just a dash of good soy sauce and a meal like that was awesome. Of course, the eggs were collected from grandma's chicken coops, still warm and freshness unparalleled by any eggs you get of third party vendors. The yolks were almost crimson and so aromatic, sometimes just a pinch of salt

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-32957215708444456952014-06-11T14:01:00.002+08:002014-06-11T14:10:05.968+08:00

How do I talk about this place? For a start, I thought I would write about it way much earlier. But as fate would have it, many reasons came to be, putting stop signs to those moments whenever I felt the urge to tell you something about it. This is not Henry Congressional version 2.0, although I think a little of Henry's spirit perseveres through our menu. There's the understated

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-45610647974773020782014-04-16T10:46:00.002+08:002014-04-16T10:48:27.133+08:00

I'm here to admit that I am a pie crust stealer. Especially if the crust is awesome. I know you may now think less of me but hey, that's the bit of the pie with all the 'bad' things in it; so how can it not be the star of the show? Rest assured though, I'm no pie crust snob. Having not grown up with pies, there's no inclination in my blood to go around trying out 20 crust recipes before

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-29908760605903485682014-04-04T11:38:00.001+08:002015-04-13T08:35:52.323+08:00

Comfort food, it provides a nostalgic or sentimental feeling to the person eating it. Wiki says many are flavorful. It doesn't solve problems but for that short moment while savoring its warmth, the heart feels fuzzy. Memories of being tucked away at our childhood dining table come flooding and we relish in this state of assurance that the worries of the world can wait. For you it may be your

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-22032111820405838412014-03-10T15:43:00.002+08:002014-03-10T15:43:30.523+08:00

I have been cooking, quite a fair bit. The weeklong Lunar New Year break was filled with my mother's hearty simplicities, a batch of compulsory pineapple tarts, my new favorite Japanese rice spread with a raw egg - Tamago Kake Gohan (卵かけご飯), and Vijay's undivided obsession in the form of Hakka stewed pork belly. Meanwhile, at the cafe, dinner service is getting busier during week nights

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-27822603350795265812014-01-07T11:53:00.003+08:002014-01-07T16:40:33.471+08:00

It's that time of the (new) year again where I would start losing sleep in mild panic. Just three weeks before the Lunar New Year and not long before my mother descends over the straits on me and my currently (rather) dire state of an apartment. With curtains to launder, hoarded mess to tuck away, windows to clean and only-God-knows-how-many other things associated with the annual grand spring

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-70350135729564520432013-12-12T12:06:00.003+08:002013-12-12T12:10:17.045+08:00

This morning one of my like-minded friend went on about how easy it is to make your own mayonnaise for an egg mayo sandwich. Said sandwich was so tempting he ate his packed lunch way before brunch hour. Now I'm reminded of this egg salad made quite a while ago by chance. Reading one of Heidi Swanson's many tried and tested recipes and voila, how refreshing it was to find a gem that uses yogurt

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-88136013780577459642013-12-06T10:39:00.001+08:002013-12-06T10:42:55.293+08:00

Taking things slow. Recently this seems to require more effort and thought than what I have in my reserve. The constant gaze at the clock, rushed deadlines at work, lack of quality sleep, downing lunch in front of the computer. I had to check myself when eating - take your time, savor the taste, feel the fullness. When reading, try not to skim through. When walking, avoid the hordes of

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-47080973957407294192013-11-11T13:02:00.002+08:002013-11-11T13:51:44.021+08:00

It seems like it was only yesterday we shared the Generra cake with lovely friends and the family from a cafe which is no longer. Alas, it has been a year since and the man's birthday again demanded something from my own hands. After a 23-day work marathon, I really wanted to just sit down and put up my legs. The dirty kitchen floor made things even less promising (when will someone invent

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-36494972609677268062013-10-15T18:32:00.000+08:002013-10-17T09:45:49.455+08:00

Yesterday I took leave from the day job, my first rest after a long, long time. Instead of kicking back with a book or a copy from that growing pile of unread food magazines to take it easy, I decided to make bread (one that requires careful nursing around a regimented schedule, not unlike feeding a baby no less). After spending so much time at work and the cafe's kitchen on Saturdays, my

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-63933265856320542272013-08-16T10:31:00.000+08:002013-10-15T19:10:37.637+08:00

If you've forgotten about me I don't blame you. I wish I could tell you the reason this space was neglected for over 2 months was because of my cookbook. But now I'm writing to remind all of us there's a right time and place in life for everything, and life caught up with me just to show me who is really in charge. There were major changes with the professional work, a new found opportunity

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-31877118149963263882013-06-12T12:18:00.002+08:002013-06-12T12:20:50.995+08:00

Some things in life are just worth the trouble. Things like chiffon cakes, for example. In reality, they are no trouble at all. There's no need to grease and flour the tin, no butter to soften and worry about over softening, no frosting to be fussed over after the cake is done. But the chiffon requires concentration nonetheless, for that business of separating nine eggs never fails to make me

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-22695249902194387392013-05-27T11:46:00.003+08:002013-06-03T12:34:58.328+08:00

Change, uncertainties, challenges. What is life without these? Falling into a prolonged period of complacency only makes one forget, weak and lazy. Tests in practical experiences are to be expected, and those who face them with patience shall be rewarded. "And it may be that you dislike a thing, which is good for you and that you like a thing, which is bad for you. God knows but you

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-87093005852335220152013-04-09T11:21:00.002+08:002013-04-10T06:25:02.923+08:00

I'm back! (Urghh... *groans* what now? Why's she suddenly so chirpy?) I hear some of you go. To tell you the truth, I just survived an hour long of knuckle press massage yesterday evening. After just two weeks into the book prep, I was rewarded with tight back muscles and restless sleeps. I need to sound like Tweety Bird and write about something yellow for a bit, just so some degree of

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-45278216736972897902013-04-01T19:25:00.000+08:002013-04-01T19:25:06.858+08:00

The past weeks have been a lot of learning, re-learning, observing, practicing and digging up those past experiences from the back of my mind. Hours were spent over minute details, trying to improve, attempting to achieve perfect imperfection. And we haven't even really started yet. Today I learned that Marco Pierre White's favorite mantra for those who aspire to be like him - "

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-13100278346369455032013-03-27T10:32:00.002+08:002013-03-27T10:41:59.508+08:00

Pretty often you hear people say "All things happen for a reason...". I'd like to dismiss this as yet another cliché but events in the past few years have put my (premature) scepticism in its rightful place. It all started in 2010 with a broken leg and a following house arrest right after I spent 3 months running 10km every fortnight and just signed up for a half marathon. Having nothing to

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6025849.post-82121600439621602702013-03-22T11:20:00.002+08:002013-03-22T11:24:54.774+08:00

I admit that I've always turned my nose up at the notion of cream pies. It's mostly cream, whipped with lots of sugar, flavored only with a small amount of whatever cream pie it's supposed to be. Why go through all that trouble? Then I watched Momofuku Milk Bar's Christina Tosi make this insane banana cream pie in the 'Rotten' episode of David Chang's The Mind of a Chef (which you must watch,

PickYinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08824124525130706818noreply@blogger.com16