I can eat breakfast food all day long. When I was in college and could afford it, I had tapsilog noon, night, and midnight. But only rarely in the morning; my sleeping habits precluded me from doing so. It was not always obvious to me that breakfast food was best eaten at breakfast.
Another thing that eluded me back then was how my parents could wake up so early. This was more inconvenient than mystifying. Who wakes up at four in the morning? Well, my father does. By six he and Ma would be having breakfast while I tried to sneak into my room unnoticed. “Again?” Ma would say without bothering to look. Liquor makes you capable of a lot of things. Stealth is not one of them.
These days I am usually up by eight. It is what it is. I have arrived at that point my mother had warned me about. “You get to my age, then you’ll see,” went her mantra. I keep forgetting she had me relatively young; if I had kids at that age, the brats would be well out of college by now. The idea makes me cringe. One of these days Ma will be fixing breakfast for three. It’s only a matter of time.
Of course it is likelier it is I who will be prepping breakfast then. Thank heavens Ma gets by on coffee, toast, and butter/margarine. Pa prefers more substantial fare. It’s not like I do not know how to cook the basics. I even have a trick or two up my sleeve.
When making fried rice, save time by seasoning rice while still cold. This gives you greater control over the saltiness of the dish since it is easier to detect/taste salt at a lower temperature. Besides, you can always add more later. (Need a recipe? Try this.)
Canned corned beef already has enough grease in it to fry with. Pour contents into a cold pan and bring to a simmer over medium heat, at which point you can remove excess oil (if desired) before adding your spices.
To heat up sardines or pork and beans, leave can (or bottle) to stand in a bowl of hot water while you attend to something else.
For crispy bacon, try the microwave. Line a plate with paper towel and arrange rashers in a single row (no overlapping), then cover with another sheet of paper towel. Set microwave to high and nuke for a full minute per slice. Check bacon; if not crisp enough, zap in additional 15-second bursts, checking after each interval (bacon can go from crispy to burnt really fast).
Spam? Do me a favor and try it straight out of the can. No? Then stick the slices in an oven toaster and grill each side on high for a full cycle. Watch out for flare-ups; otherwise a bit of smoke is to be expected. If you have a turbo broiler, that does the job just as well. (Note: Classic Spam I find too salty, while Spam Lite I can’t abide. I like the flavored ones, especially bacon and garlic. Or you can get the Purefoods-brand luncheon meat instead. Trust me, it’s cheaper and just as good.)
As for dried fish — well, you got me there. Confidence deserts me all of a sudden. But there’s still time to learn before I join the parents at the breakfast table. I have started with this post.
And then there’s egg. I have done a few posts on cooking egg. We’re not much for the boiled kind in the morning, but this primer might serve you in good stead. For poached egg, try the microwave technique. Or crack egg into a hot oiled pan, cover with a lid sprinkled with a bit of water inside, turn off heat, and allow steam and residual heat to do the rest of the cooking. Works for scrambled egg as well. (And no — I haven’t tried making scrambled egg “in the shell” that’s all over Facebook. You need to scramble egg, use a fork, not a sock. Guess which is easier?)
I’m more of an omelette person. Making omelette is more involved and is not the walk in the park that is depicted in the clip below (those flicks of the pan aren’t as easy as they look). I cook omelette for the adventure of it. The combinations are endless. Too bad Ma and Pa do not share my enthusiasm. I don’t mind. I’m not hot on coffee either. Or porridge. I give myself a few more years for those. Life is all about the possible.
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