Something to "blog" about

August 23, 2007

All week last week we had wanted to eat sinigang. In the onslaught of the storms, alas! We weren’t able to get the ingredients for it, thus, leaving our cravings unsatisfied. When Friday came I took it upon myself to venture out in the storm from work to Shopwise in order to be able to get the stuff needed for the recipe (based on Kuya’s instructions ofcourse. If you must know I was never a cook to begin with. If a “green thumb” was for plants, as the opposite, I’d say I have a “purple thumb” when it comes to cooking—my siblings can attest to that. Haha).

So here I was chopping up all my vegetables & thawing the pork ready to take on the challenge of cooking my very first pork sinigang—EVER. I put on my trusty apron, set the pot on the stove, uttered a little chant to the void and readied myself for the point of no return. I turned on the ignition and…nothing happened. I flicked it again…and again…and again. Then it dawned upon me: We had just ran out of gas. Oh goody.

That was when everything started to go wrong.

I picked up the phone and there wasn’t any dialtone. Pen, my housemate, had to go to the Laundry shop across the street, amidst the rain, just to call up the gas company. Now here’s the kicker: they couldn’t deliver gas until the next day since they were already booked for the whole day. Bring it on mamon!

I couldn’t believe that was happening. My precious vegetables couldn’t one more day! And it was raining, the perfect time for a hot, steaming, bowl of chili pork sinigang. Suddenly, Nikki had what seemed at first like a not-so-feasible idea but which then turned out to be a brilliant one; Why not cook it using the rice cooker?

Not to be deterred I set forth with the task I was set out to do. I filled the rice cooker pot with water, plugged in the rice cooker, and waited for the water to boil. Miraculously (for me anyway) it did! And the rest followed.

Now this is the part when everything starts to go my way—bwahahaha…

It was as if I had been doing this all the time and that totally amused me. Ofcourse, I will not mention in this entry the ingredients I used to make my perfect sinigang. If you’re interested IM me.

When everything was all set I called everybody to the table for the much awaited pork sinigang concoction, save for Angeli who was still at work. Vinchy, our 6^th housemate (private joke), was also there to grace us with his presence.

Bottomline, it was a success. They told me we could already open a sinigangan in our place. Hehe. But what was priceless were their expressions while they ate it. Which got me to thinking, this might be the reason why some people like, if not love, cooking. They derive their satisfaction from the amazing reactions of the people who get to be a part of the wonder they create.

The best reaction though was that from Angeli, which is one that I will in no time soon forget. She said, “Oh my god, ang sarap!” (NOTE: Without bias ito :). But it was the facial expression that made me mighty proud of myself.

I am, admittedly, a terrible chef. I am a disgrace when it comes to cooking. I can burn boiled water per se. That is my talent. But on that day, at that moment, I was a cook. I had honor. I had the right.

But I can still fairly say that I haven’t completely embraced the joys of cooking. Sorry to disappoint. I’d rather wash the dishes. I’d still rather spend on travel rather than on food. I’d rather sleep than write any more on this blog. I still have work tomorrow and I leave for Dumaguete first thing Saturday. Woopiee!

Unfortunately, I can’t play against UST at Ateneo this Sunday coz I’ll still be home, but it’s a game I don’t mind missing. I’m sorry. Goodluck, Wang, Aging and the rest of the UST Tigers (thanks for adopting me occasionally)! Goodluck, Ngew and Ruthel! Goodluck, RP Team mutant kid teammates! Kick ass!

Goodnight void.