loving food
My parents seemed to have instilled a love of good food in me, being exploratory and talented cooks themselves. As the first 10 years of my life were spent mostly in Malaysia and China, and later on based in Italy and Hongkong, my tastebuds were pretty experienced by the age of 5. In China I had a fixation for jiaozhe, (dumplings stuffed with pork belly and spring onion) which were almost a peasant's meal, eaten with a mixture of seseme oil, malt vinegar and soya sauce, with a lump of raw garlic too if you wanted. They are still my comfort food today. We used to have to spend hours making them, but now you can get perfectly good ones in the frozen section of the Chinese supermarkets here in London.
In Malaysia I discovered those tiny salty fishies, ikan bilis, and beef rendang, and we had papaya with lime for breakfast every morning. Nowadays, just slicing a lime transports me right back to age 5. In our garden, at number 7 Lorong Kuda, (now sadly knocked down to create way for those Petronas Towers) we grew bananas, rambutan, lychee, orchids and chickens. And I had durian-flavoured smarties once and they were disgusting.
In Rome later on, recent trauma could not dullen the excitement of mealtimes. Terracotta walls bled red in evening sunlight, church bells pealed, waiters flirted, art beckoned and architecture enthralled. With my father and younger brother I discovered the delights of polenta, risotto, rughetta (rocket) and pizzas in the colours of Italia Novanta World cup. I liked the way Italians mixed their ragu into the pasta in a big bowl, before serving it, rather than piling it in the middle and serving it with the pasta bare. I thought that was highly cool. (You have to remember that was in an era (late 80's) where all Britain had was the wonderful Pizza Express and the horrible Pizza Hut - not a very sophisticated market at all. Then all the Pizza Pastas and other chains started springing up and excrutiatingly slowly, Britain learned about Italian food. )
So a passion for food has accompanied or even fuelled me - around the world. Salmorejo in Spain (a thick tomato soup, more exciting than gazpacho), papas rellenas and ceviche in Peru, even rice and beans in Nicaragua. And still so much more to taste!
I'm a keen cook but I am by no means an expert and have no professional training whatsoever. I would so love to do a proper long-term cookery course, but for now I'll have to keep self-teaching. I still have to catch up skillwise with my extended family, the females of which are expert entertainers. This blog is for whatever comes into my head, but perhaps one day through this vehicle I will rediscover some of my mother and grandmother, remember some excellent meals, put out some of my own recipes, and get used to writing.
And there is also, of course, the growing of vegetables, the learning of permaculture, the discussion of films such as Fast Food Nation, all to talk about too...

