Saturday's BBQ @ Ming's
I met up with Ming a week ago to plan our Saturday BBQ. We had such grand plans…. I was meant to get the meats and main courses, I will whip up dessert…and Ming was gonna get some nice tuna and make a seared tuna salad for starters and some bread so that we could make nice sandwiches. In essence, that boy just had to get stuff for the salad and bread..not too tough.
Being a typical guy, he went to the supermarket before picking me up on Saturday, and he forgot to get his stuff. Men! *roll eyes*
The meats
Initially we were meant to have a gathering of about 7 of us….and well yes as usual I went over the top and bought too much. But it was worth it…surprisingly there wasn’t that much leftovers.
I purchased from Greengrocer a great huge piece of pre-marinated lamb leg, a small slab of chateaubriand and mascarpone cheese for the tiramisu. The lamb leg was HUGE! And it was less than SG$35 for the whole leg….def cheap and good. It did not have a gamey smell or taste to it, and oh so tender. I just slapped on a bit of salt and pepper on it. Stab the meat here and there, and stuffed it with garlic and rosemary for extra flavour. A good drizzle of olive oil and that is all I needed to do to the lamb. Too easy!
The nice cut of beef...with garlic and homegrown rosemary
Margaret River Salts
The mustard seed salt
All done!
The beef, I stabbed it again and stuffed it with rosemary and garlic. Give the outside a good rub of a flavoured salt from MargaretRiver. It was a yummy river salt flavoured with mustard seeds. PERFECT. Drizzled some olive oil on the outside and left it to sit for a couple of hours. This beef really didn’t need much help….it is such an excellent cut. So tender. It was the first time the boys tasted this cut of beef, and Ming in particular can be quite picky being a foodie/cook himself. Even he raved that the beef was excellent. He was asking if he could order another slab and if Greengrocer could deliver the very next day….hahahaha .
Searing the leg
Ming carving the first layer....
Perfect!
Back on the grill
We started off with the lamb cos that was going to take the longest time to cook. We seared the outside to seal the juices and then allowed it to slowly cook. We kept cutting thin slices off the outer layer and allowed it to slowly continue cook on the grill. This meant we constantly had nice hot yummy lamb…. .
On a whim, I whipped up a wasabi potato salad as an extra. It ended up being the only carbs at the bbq seeing Ming forgot the bread. Oh so artery cloggingly good…everyone loved it and liked the wasabi touch.
Kahlua Tiramisu
Want a bite?
For dessert….it was a nice cool kahlua tiramisu. I like my alcoholic dessert alcoholic. Too many times I try a alcoholic dessert in a restaurant…and you just can’t taste the liquor in it. The tiramisu went down a treat….after the bbq. Nice …cool… creamy. Great way to end off a decadent meal. I sure didn’t help fatty Ming. C commented that he might get stopped by the police on the way home and he won’t pass the breathalyzer, all thanks to my kahlua tiramisu. heheheehhe
"Fatty" Ming
Ming and his wife just did a health check recently. He has been told that he needs to lose 2.5kg of fat (cos he is overweight according to the report) and he has high cholesterol. I am not sure this meal helped him much….. hahahahaha.
Front Porch
The hammock
Dining area looking out to the gazebo
I want to hide in their pantry if there is a war
The house
Afternoon refreshment
C came straight from the airport
The backyard... (lovely day)
Typical shot of the boys
Can I just say I love their place…it doesn’t feel like Singapore at all. Absolutely quiet…lush greenery around…and so breezy. It is also the setup of the house…with a nice gazebo in the backyard…where we had our dinner…a nice hammock in the front to just chill and while away the time. It is such a great home to come back to after a crazy day working in the heart of the city. They spend their weekends tending to their garden if they are not off diving or fishing. Nice.
Tea set
Whatever chinese tea it was
We have entered a new chapter in our lives….we are now talking about health screenings, what our BMI was….what our cholesterol level is…our jobs…etc. No more crazy drinking sessions when we get together…slow and easy….wine and beers in moderate amounts….and Chinese tea! Yes! Chinese tea.
I was feeling sleepy around 11pm and wanted to call it a night…and got persuaded to stay a little longer. They have made their home a coffee free home because of the amount of coffee they drink during the weak.
Ming got all excited and insisted I try some of his Chinese tea….oh man…. Out came the special tea set and all. Instead of doing shots of tequila etc like wat we used to do…no he was making me drink shots of Chinese tea. He tried explaining to me the difference between the first brew, second and third brew of Chinese tea…the uniqueness of the tea pot…and how you can tell if it was a good tea set. He gave up after sometime when he realized I was mocking him. I just kept nodding and exclaimed at the appropriate moments a little too over the top. Hahahahahaha
It was such a nice chill evening with friends…. It is really good to see that we have all matured and it is nice to have been part of their journey.