The soups of life blog has moved

I started too many blogs and I realized I cannot cope. I have decided to simplify my life and collapsed my blogs into a single one.

If you are interested to follow the soups of life blog, do subscribe to my consolidated blog at http://myfilingcabinet.wordpress.com

Thank you for your interest.

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More chinese vegetables

I started a series on chinese vegetables at my website in the beginning of the year.

2 more pages have now been added:

Chinese Spinach (苋菜）
Napa Cabbage （天津大白菜）


Chinese spinach in soup



Napa cabbage in a hotpot

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The Singapore Food Sampler

I did not know that tourists to Singapore can get 3 free treats with the Singapore Food Sampler offer.

The Singapore Food Festival website states,

Simply present your passport to receive your Singapore Food Sampler vouchers, and you could be enjoying a FREE portion of any three local delights. So head on down to any of our SVCs, and be treated to our Uniquely Singapore delicacies!

* Any tourists visiting or transiting in Singapore are eligible for this promotion


YUMMY!

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2 new pages added to homemade-chinese-soups.com

asian vegetables on parade

This is a brand new year and a brand new start.

To celebrate, I uploaded 2 spanking new pages to my chinese soups website.

They are the first 2 in a series on asian vegetables. Researching and writing these vegetables pages have not been easy but they were quite fulfilling.

My plan is to upload one page a week.

Here are the first 2:

Getting to know asian vegetables
Bok Choy: a celebrity amongst chinese vegetables

Wishing everyone a happy healthy new year!

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So you would come

It is the Christmas season. And as people celebrate and sing about Santa Claus, Christmas trees, the log cakes, the turkeys, the egg-nog, the snow and the spirit of giving, I ponder over the real reason for Christmas: the arrival of Jesus Christ.

So You Would Come by Hillsong

This video clip is a vivid reminder to me that Jesus came to pay an enormous price to make me acceptable to God again. The physical torture: the beating, the whipping, the nails & the 3 hours hanging under the scorching sun must be excruciatingly painful.

I think the most terrible part of it all must be the separation and rejection of God of His beloved Son so that I can return to God's loving embrace.

He came because He was the only acceptable sacrifice. One for all. Most importantly, once and for all.

It was not murder, Jesus came knowing that He will die for me.

He came so that I would come.

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The Chinese Soup Bowl E-zine #001

What's new

New recipes added in the month of October & November

New herbal soup recipe

Corn soup with pork ribs

Oxtail soup recipe

Borscht soup Hong Kong style

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Recent questions

Q: Can I use ground pork instead of ground beef in a vegetable soup recipe?

A: Of course. Make adjustments to the chinese soup recipe according to your preferences. The soup may taste slightly different because of the difference between beef and pork.


Q: I would like to know if you can recommend some soup recipe using old hen.

A: Old hens are usually used to make chicken soup stocks. You can replace the ingredients of any of the chicken soup stock recipes on my website.


Q: what flavors do maggi's bouillion come in?

A: In Singapore & Malaysia, Maggi boullion comes in:

• Chicken
  
• Ikan bilis (i.e. small anchovy)
  

There are differences with different countries. You should be able to find more information on the Maggi website. The US site is www.thetasteofasia.com

Q: Do you have a conversion table to fluids,ounces and pounds???? thanks

A: I don't have a conversion table on my site but you can use the conversion service at http://www.curezone.com/conversions.asp">http://www.curezone.com/conversions.asp

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Ideas for Thanksgiving leftovers

As a person who lives halfway across the globe from North America, I always had trouble pin-pointing the exact date of Thanksgiving. Well, this year, I decided to look it up, and I discover why the date seem elusive to me.

How can it not be when it is celebrated on the 4th Thursday of November in the United States of America and on the 2nd Monday of October in Canada?

Well, who am I to complain since the Lunar Chinese New Year dates are equally unfathomable to me. I know only when shops start preparing for it with ghastly decorations and festive songs.

Anyway, Thanksgiving is a time to celebrate and give thanks for the blessings in our lives. And it is also a good excuse to gather and eat.

I do not know much about preparing a thanksgiving meal but I do have a few great ideas for thanksgiving leftovers especially that turkey.


Idea #1

Make turkey wontons with recipes at turkey wonton recipes


Idea #2

Make turkey congee by replacing the chicken breast with turkey for Recipe 2 at Chicken porridge.

What could be better than a light nourishing rice porridge to compliment the over-eating of the previous evenings.Technorati Tags: turkey wontons, turkey congee, turkey porridge

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Bible Reading today

Galatians 3:13-14

Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree"), that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

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Beef soups series - Beef vegetable soup

Beef is considered a warming food by the chinese. It is therefore very suitable for winter dishes.

However, beef should be consumed in moderation. About once a week should be just right.

This is a thickened soup but with fewer ingredients. Most chinese thickened soups have quite a handful of ingredients. And most have to be chopped fairly finely. Fewer ingredients mean less to prepare.

If you are into chinese thickened soups, use this as a practice dish to master the technique of thickening soups using cornstarch or potato starch.

For full recipe, visit beef vegetable soup

Technorati Tags: beef soups, thickened soups

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Beef soups series - beef stock recipes

Beef is most commonly used as a stock ingredient by the Northern chinese. They are usually created for distinct dishes in comparison to chicken or pork stocks which can be used in a variety of food preparation.

Examples of dishes that use beef stocks are braised beef noodle soup and beef udon soup.

There are 5 very distinct beef stocks here.

Technorati Tags: beef soups, beef stocks

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beef soup series - Ox shin soup with chinese herbs

Beef is good for people who are weak and prone to fatigue, especially those who have just recovered from a major illness or are suffering from anaemia.

This recipe uses the uncommon ox shin. It can be substituted with a meat cut that you are familiar with. Other ingredients include huai shan (淮山) and dried tangerine peel (陈皮).

For full recipe and instructions, visit ox shin soup

Technorati Tags: beef soups

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beef soups series - beef soup recipe with chinese herbs

Beef is very popular meat cut in China, second only to pork. It is high in protein and low in fat. It also consists of many different types of amino acids which is good for building immunity, promote healthy growth and aiding recuperation.

This recipe uses beef sirloin and some common chinese herbs such as astragalus, huai shan (chinese yam), arrowroot, goji berries and red dates.

Get the entire recipe and instructions at beef soup recipe with beef sirloin and chinese herbsTechnorati Tags: beef soups

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Soup recipe of the week: Yam porridge

This week's recipe is the yam porridge.

It is a simple rice porridge recipe with just yam and celery. What more can I say.

Get the recipe at http://www.homemade-chinese-soups.com/yam-porridge.html

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Amazing wonton wrappers

Are you amazed at how soft and silky wonton wrappers become when they are boiled? How about how crispy they become when they are fried?

It is a mystery and I like it.

Cook and eat it on its own, in salads or as wontons; savoury or sweet. As a snack or a dessert.

Wrap banana and chocolate, banana and peanut butter, pork and shrimp, chicken, chopped vegetables, cheese and crab meat. So many variations, limited only by creativity.

Learn more about wonton wrappers

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The Library & Learning

The university librarian spoke to us this morning about library advocacy and how it relates to book collections.

He made a good point about how the role of the library and librarians is to help people learn.

I am a firm believer in serendipitous learning. I cannot remember how many times a key piece of information for my assignments (might I say turning points) came from a book I picked up while searching for something else on the shelves.

Not that serendipitous learning cannot take place online; in the digital space. But it is harder and takes more effort.

Have you noticed that digital resources almost always present you with a search box? What does the search box signify?

Does it not presuppose that you know what you are looking for via keywords? What if I do not know how to describe what I want? What if it is called by another name that I am unaware of? What if I do not know what I want?

Library shelf browsing does a lot for me, especially when I am wandering. Walking from shelf to shelf, I observe the development of a branch of knowledge. I note with interest how certain call numbers have a bigger collection. I recognize some titles and laugh at others (sorry!). I discover books on topics that I did not even know existed. I learned about diseases and latest diet plans. How about places of interest? Cities I have never been.

I believe in the physical collection. It is concrete and in the material space. I can concentrate, ponder and meditate with a book in hand, but not when I have to stare at the computer screen.

Yet the general trend seems to be for digital libraries at the expense of the physical. In many libraries abroad, and even in Singapore, book shelves are being relegated to the walls and under the staircases so as to make room for computers and furniture.

This is not a trend to be followed with relish, as if we are joining the big leagues. That is so sad. I hope my library can buck the trend. I hope we can cherish the books we have. When everyone else is hailing the digital, I hope we can guard the print.

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