Haron Satay 55

Beef, Mutton Satay ($0.70 cents per stick), Lontong ($0.50)

How cool! When we don't eat on proper table and chairs; felt like a kid all over again. A sense of fun ignites as i sat by the beach and asked Ric to fetch some satay from the nearby East Coast Lagoon Food Village. The weather was amazing tonight.

He explained his buy from Haron - long queue and them being listed on the The Business Times & Knight Frank CEO's Hawker Guide. While i was most impressed with their deliberate use of aluminum foil wrapping to keep the satay warm! And the generous pack of sliced cucumber and onions that come with it.

The sizable satay was well marinated with spices, and deliciously aromatic after the barbecue! Eat it plain if you can, because we do suffer from their heavily salted peanut gravy.

Stall 21 @ East Coast Lagoon

Fried Oyster Omelet ($4)

The recent rainy weather makes it perfect for some meaty prime ribs and peppery broth from the Han's at the East Coast Lagoon Food Village. Also a good excuse for the sinfully crispy oyster omelet, right next door.

The stall next door came without a name, just a tiny stall number '21'. And you might not expect any good omelet from them as they also peddle a variety of many others - Hokkien noodle, char kway teow, carrot cake. Giving an impression of being Jack of all trades.

But they are quite exceptional. Bring back to mind the crispy fried oyster omelet from the Beng Hiang restaurant, albeit the oiliness. And our minimum order of $4 delivers 5 oysters. This is value.

Six Healing Sounds Qigong (六字诀）

Courtesy of 医学百科

I was prompted to pen this post after 2 recent ailments, when my knowledge of the 6 healing sounds truly alleviated my pain. I hope this sharing will benefit more people. So what is this 6 healing sounds?

As according to here, "Six Healing Sound Qigong was found circa 250 A.D. during the Chin dynasty in China. The earliest record of the six healing sound qigong was found in the book called "Nourish mind and longevity record" which was written by Tao Hong Jing (581-681), a famous ancient Chinese medicine doctor, thinker."

Now the 6 healing sound qigong has at least 1760 years of history. In 2003, the China Health Qigong Association officially recognised it as a form of health Qigong, and promotes it nationwide. A practice that uses sounds, breath and movements to improve energy (Qi) circulation to each of our respective organs. Each sound is associated with an internal organ system, and an external sense organ.

1. Liver, (eye) - Sound is “Xu” 嘘, pronounced “She eee”.
2. Heart, (tongue) - Sound is “Her” 呵, pronounced “Her rrr”.
3. Spleen, (mouth) - Sound is “Hu” 呼, pronounced “Who ooo”.
4. Lung, (nose) - Sound is “Si” 四, pronounced “Si ssssss”.
5. Kidney, (ear) - Sound is “Chui” 吹, pronounced “Chui aaa”.
6. Triple Burner Meridian - Sound is “Xi” 嘻, pronounced “See eee”.

No doubt, instructions suggest practicing in standing position with designed hands movement (video here) to guarantee efficiency, but i found it effective in all sitting and lying positions. Using the nose for inhaling and exhale through the mouth, uttering the word softly. Without any body movement.

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1. Heart Burn - After a heavy dinner, my pain came in the night, in bed. The agonizing pain came in waves and i curled up in pain, struggling to get back to sleep. Without a choice, i start deep breathing with the 'Hu' sound (thinking it's my gastric pain, as this is my first heart burn experience). It didn't work one bit. I'm still in pain. Then i tired the 'Her' sound for the heart, this time it worked! I continued breathing in, out for about 10 mins, and falling back to sleep. Then i was woken by a second wave of acid attack on the heart. Did my breathing again to subside the pain and got back to sleep.

2. Stomach Upset/ Diarrhea - After a day of discomfort and loose stools, my stomach flipped during the night, feeling of trapped gases. Did the 'Hu' sound for the digestive system for 5 mins, pain subsided and i manage to burp the gases out! Got out of bed to the toilet to discharge. Slept in, but was woken by a second waves of pain. Did the 'Hu' again, the pain subsided, and i managed a burp and a fart. Got back to peaceful sleep. Morning came, and i toilet to clear out a large load.

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Now if you can't remember all the 6 sounds, just remember those which your body is more susceptible to attack. In my case, i have a weak digestive system, so the 'Hu' and 'Her' are my life savior. If you commonly suffer from sore eye, then consider the 'Xu' sound. Or the practice of the 'Chui' sound to strengthen a weak kidney. 'Her' to soothe a tongue/ mouth blister, 'Si' to relieve flu symptoms. And 'Xi' to improve bowel movements.

Our body. It is this amazing.

Spanish Moss!

Tillandsia usneoides (Spanish Moss)

This is a gift from Sis when she visited the 41st Chiang Mai Flower Festival during the CNY. Pretty?

Named the Spanish moss, it is an epiphyte which absorbs nutrients and water through its leaves from the air and rainfall. Commonly known as an air plant. A semi-desert plant which loves plenty of sunshine, and requires minimum care.

We left 2 larger ones to hang naturally on the plants in the garden. (Pics below).

  

Boiled Cockles (See-Hums)!

Boiled Clams ($8)

Dinner was decided on Hua Kee BBQ Seafood as i wanted Ric to try their BBQ squids which i thought he might be fond of. But what really blew our minds tonight are the boiled cockles! Not our first time having them, but it was a long, long time since we last had. This is just bloody gratifying!

The minus point on ordering the clams is having the rest of our dishes served cold - we guess the server waited for us to finish cleaning up our bloody fingers, before serving up the mains...

BBQ Stingray ($12)

BBQ Squids ($15)

Chinatown Beef King, 牛车水牛腩王

Mixed Beef Noodle, Dry ($4)

We say this is closer to the Taiwanese beef noodle, served with pickled vegetables. In fact, the hawker speaks with an accent of a Taiwanese at his stall (#01-115) at the ABC Brickworks Food Centre.

Taste is great, without being overly salted. It was well balanced and appetizing. In fact, we were pleasantly surprised with the generous serving of ingredients - cow stomach, tender beef slices and tendons in our minimum order. Great value found today.

Beef Tendon Kway Teow, Soup ($5)

安溪肉丸, Anxi Meat Balls

Weeks nearing the CNY, and i suddenly have craving for the Hokkien meatballs, one which mum used to prepare for us to go with her signature Lor Mee (braised sauce noodle)! And she suddenly planned to do it today! I could saliva as i'm typing this.


INGREDIENTS:
500g Minced Meat
200g Water Chestnut, skinned and diced
3 pcs Onion, diced
1 pc Carrot, diced
1 raw Egg

SEASONING:
2 tbsp Flour
1/4 tsp Salt
2 dashes of White Pepper

STEPS:
1. Add minced meat to water chestnut, onion, carrot and seasoning. Top up with an egg. Mix well.
2. Form the meat balls with your hands. Then fry them in wok with oil till fragrant.