The last time I made Spaghetti Aglo Oilio with Bacon and Mushrooms, chili flakes was sorely missing. My pasta was so lacking in kick. But guess what?
Found!! At Aeon. The much coveted chili flakes. In fact when I saw more at Green Mart, I bought another bottle.
One weekend, my partner came home early and wanted an early dinner. So what is quick? Not rice and dishes for sure. Pasta is always the speedy solution.
I had marinated three pieces of pork loin in advance to grill. These are great with rice or salads. While the meat was grilling, I boiled the spaghetti.
At the same time, I fried some bacon. And while that was going on, I sliced a big onion and a few cloves of garlic. Boy, was I multitasking while he was playing with his phone. LOL!
My partner knows jolly well not to come into the kitchen to kaypoh-kaypoh because when I am in the kitchen, nobody is allowed within a 3 metre radius.
My partner knows jolly well not to come into the kitchen to kaypoh-kaypoh because when I am in the kitchen, nobody is allowed within a 3 metre radius.
It was quite tricky playing with the timing. Must not burn the meat, must not burn the bacon, must not burn the onions and garlic and must not overcook the pasta. Somehow when the pasta was ready, so was my sauteed onions and garlic.
I drained the pasta and dumped the whole lot into the pan and tossed together with the fried bacon. I also sliced the pork loin and added to the pasta. And tossed some more.
I took out my partner's portion and went to town with the chili flakes. Shake, shake, shake. Oh, it was so nice with the chili flakes. Pedas! Sedap!
Pasta may be quick. But there was a lot to wash up. The pot used to boil the pasta. The colander used to drain the pasta. The grill rack and pan. The cutting board and knife. The frying pan and spatula.
Haiz....next time I'll just boil a pot of soup in advance hee..hee...
Haiz....next time I'll just boil a pot of soup in advance hee..hee...
He doesn't take pedas like you do?
ReplyDeleteYes, he cannot tahan pedas. That's why susah to eat at Thai restaurant hee..hee...
DeletePedas!!! I don't take too much spiciness in my food but I do love spicy food. Just that not too much for me.
ReplyDeleteYou have been cooking pasta lately huh?? It is a very easy to prepare meal.
Ya hor? I have been cooking and eating too much pasta :)
DeleteSigh, reading your multitasking makes me feel sad. Reminds me of the limitation I have with just one induction cooker. When I make pasta, I have to boil pasta, THEN grill/fry my stuff. Cannot do both at the same time. :(
ReplyDeleteMaybe you can try those one pot pasta recipes where the meat is cooked, then put in the sauce/liquids and pasta.
DeleteIf me cook, sure very slow and no presentation, no eye see...
ReplyDeleteAs long as can eat, ok liao.
DeleteI've gone looking for this chilli flakes at Aeon too and they're not easy to find (they usually have all the other spices except this one). I noticed you always seem to have bacon at your disposal. I, too, would like to have them at my disposal (when I want to whip up some quick pasta) but I usually finish eating them in the next few days coz they won't keep in the fridge. Do you freeze your bacon? I've not tried freezing them coz I don't know if they'll be compromised after freezing.
ReplyDeleteOh, yes I freeze my bacon. There is no discernible impairment to the taste or texture. I put them into a freezer bag. Or can use ordinary plastic bag and store in an airtight container. They defrost pretty quickly. Try it :)
DeleteOh? So hard to find chili flakes there? Dunno where my girl got hers, not a problem here, I think. I hate washing up - will wash every item one by one after use. My missus will dump all in the kitchen sink and wash all at one go - I can't tahan see all that, my OCD. LOL!!!
ReplyDeletehah..hah..I am like that too! Must wash up as and when there are dirty dishes. I'm worse, I don't like other people doing the washing.
Deletemost of my friends who can and do cook also say the cleaning up is their least favourite part ... though i find it amusing that many of them actually say they prefer preparing the food to actually eating it! :)
ReplyDeleteActually it is true, when you do the cooking, somehow you do not enjoy the food as much as the other people you are cooking it for. Strange, eh? I think it is due to the stress (hah..hah...) and the distraction of getting the dish right and all that washing up.
DeleteRG would love your porky pasta with pork loins and bacon with no (his hateful) greens in sight, hehehehehe. So delicious for him! You reminded me why I dislike cooking - because of the washing up!
ReplyDeletehah..hah..washing up can be a pain but if you do it as and when you go along, it is not that bad.
DeleteI thought for this meal, you were like an octopus multitasking to cook all the different components, did you still have time to wash up some items in between the cooking? Sometimes I wonder is it because of the washing up in between cooking different dishes that sometimes I can taste soap/washing liquid in my friend's homecooked dishes, LOL! Imagine wash the pot with hands full of soapy bubbles and then oh, the deep fried item is getting burnt so quickly jump to rescue that item with hands still full of bubbles, hahahaha.
DeleteWell, in this particular instance, I couldn't wash in between hah..hah..so there's was a big pile at the end of it :( Oh dear, taste soap? Maybe the plates/utensils were not thoroughly rinsed.
DeleteHi Phong Hong,
ReplyDeleteWell, you sure multi-tasking. I cannot tahan over-night dirty pots and pans ... must wash ... unless I'm too tired. This pasta of yours look so delish !
Hi Karen! Me too. I will make sure to wash everything up before I call it a day.
DeleteYou are making me hungry at this hour, I like the pork loin
ReplyDeleteIf I cook, I sure don't want my kitchen to look messy, I must cook and tidy at the same time, but I don't cook hee hee
hah..hah...then your kitchen will be forever clean :)
Delete