Birth of the bonafide makcik.

It was our first raya away from our loved ones. In the many weeks leading up to it, I was practising very hard in the kitchen to make sure I could serve the complete set of dishes on raya morning. To chart my progress, I started an ig account: za.kitchenworks. I posted photos of my progress there and admired them twice a day (at least). For a girl who hardly cooked anything her whole life, this was quite an achievement. I also made it point to try out a new dish every week. Nasi lemak, mee soto, sambal goreng, rendang, ondeh ondeh, bubur kacang... you name it, my friend.

When we were back in sg, I never found the time to learn how to cook anything from my mama or my mak. Over here, I had to follow their instructions via videocalls (and they NEVER GIVE ACCURATE MEASUREMENTS), or look the recipes up on youtube and make my own adaptations. The constant practice in the kitchen is turning me into a bonafide makcik. Being in the kitchen doesn't scare me anymore. In fact, it is now MY SPACE.

This then led to an exciting new project. I wanted to share (and show off) my cooking so I started giving away my dishes to friends. When we received an invitation to a new friend's place for raya, I decided to bring them my shepherd's pie. They tried it, loved it and then suggested that we try selling the pies.

So... I sell pies now. Beef pies. Lamb pies. Chicken pies. Lasagne too. I had no idea how to make any of them until I came here. Now I know by heart exactly what goes into them and how to provide that extra kick for my customers. This whole experience has been simply amazing and inspiring. Shai has been nothing but supportive. He does everything from peeling the potatoes to washing up whatever mess I leave in the sink. From testing the food to driving us around for deliveries.

When folks back home asked me, "What are you going to do when you get there?" I often said jokingly, I will teach part-time and sell ice cream. Well, it's not ice cream, but... it's close enough. The past month or so has been nothing short of a whirlwind romance. It's swept me off my feet and gotten me all giddy from the love and support I've been getting from customers and food bloggers here.

Clearly the kitchen counters here aren't made for short malay girls cooking up their rendang and sambal goreng. Standing by the stove for 3-4 hours straight is serious stuff. Thank goodness for step ladder from kmart.