It was a random suggestion that came up when I was having dinner at my parents’ place on the first day of the Chinese New Year.
My brother casually mentioned that he couldn’t remember the last time I cooked him a meal, so my husband took up the challenge and invited my parents and brother over to our place for dinner that weekend. I thought it was a brilliant idea. I love to cook, and the last time I cooked a proper meal for my parents was at least 7 to 8 years ago. I have been blessed often by my mom’s wonderful home-cooked food, and it’s high time I do something nice for my folks.
It was a very special chance for me to appreciate my parents and brother, and let them know how much I love them as my family. I have never mentioned this on the blog before, but my father is sick. I don’t want to go into too much details for the sake of his privacy, but the past few months have not been an easy time for all of us, and especially for him. All the treatments that he had to go through were draining mentally, emotionally and physically. Yet, we are grateful that on this festive season, we can spend time together as a family, even over something as simple as a home-cooked meal. God has been very good to us, and we are holding on to His promises like never before. We are constantly reminded that nothing in life should be taken for granted.
I had 5 dishes on my menu that evening. It’s simple fare, but definitely filled with my love. =)
1. Onion Fried Eggs
2. Stir-fried French Beans & Broccoli With Minced Meat & Mushrooms
3. Tom Yum Beef Pot
4. Steamed Fish with Tomatoes, Chinese Mushrooms & Goji
5. Lotus Root Soup with Peanuts
This must be the reason why I love Chinese New Year so much. Having a family dinner is such a happy and heartwarming affair.
My mom, the gourmet, made a mountain of Lo Hei by adding ingredients such as pomelo, blanched prawns and mangoes. I already took out the biggest plate I have at home, but still, there was so much ingredients that it nearly overflowed from the edges. It was so delicious though, and it made us so full even before we started dinner proper!
It was certainly not a perfect meal – the tom yum was a tad too sour and the veggies was a tad too salty. But what matters most was the effort I put in to cook something for my loved ones. It made my Chinese New Year that much more meaningful and special.
Hope your Chinese New Year celebration was one filled with much love and smiles too. =)
P/S: Awesome photographs taken by awesome husband cos I was too busy cooking.
