RED DATE AND CHESTNUT CHICKEN

In another two weeks, I'll be able to do 5G, track the McNugget buying habits of Bill Gates and Hillary Clinton, and do other supermannish things. At least if Qanon and Alex Jones are to be believed. Because I got my second Covid booster. Microchips! X-ray vision!
Plus fraud and conspiracies!

See, my doctor had written out an order for a bloodtest (白血球 'paak huet kau'; leukocytes), and my praescriptions are almost due for refills so I wanted to check to see if that was in process. Plus they do walk-ins for boosters down at the same hospital where the clinic and pharmacy are. One stop shopping, as it were. What a complete blood test would do is indicate whether I have arthritis (節炎 'jit yim') of any type. Which I do.

The leukocyte jab-&-pull tests for bacteriological (細菌嘅 'sai kwan ge') stuff.

[Booster shot: 追加劑 'jeui gaa jai', 加強針 'gaa keung jam'. Get a second booster shot: 接种第二針加强劑 ('jip jung dai yi jam gaa keung jai'). X-ray vision: X光的視覺 ('eks gwong dik si gaau'). Typical red state voter: 偏執型癲佬 ('pin jap ying din lou').]

Not bad for a needle-phobic old boy.

Naturally, while I was in the neighborhood, I had lunch.


While waiting for the bus over the hill I saw a gentleman walking his pet duck on a leash.
Which is not connected in any way with the foregoing, but cute and charming, and the duck and his dog seemed to get along fine.


After lunch smoke:

Post tea time:

紅棗栗子雞

The title of this post comes from what I shall prepare for dinner sometime really soon: red date and chestnut chicken (紅棗栗子雞 'hung jou lut ji gai'). Soak a small handfull (6 - 10) of Chinese dried red dates (紅棗 'hung jou') in warm water for two hours. Slice them open and remove pits, put them back in the water. Shell, clean, and split a somewhat larger measure of fresh chestnuts. Chop half a chicken into bite size pieces. Rinse the chicken, then dust with a little cornflour, pinches of salt and sugar (massaged into the flesh). Let sit for ten minutes. Smash a few cloves garlic, stick-cut two or three scallions, cut three pieces of ginger.

Have in readiness a quarter cup stock or hot water, a quarter cup of rice wine or sherry, a brisk dash of soy sauce, and a dribble of oyster sauce.

Sautee the garlic and ginger till starting to gild, add the chicken pieces. Stir till turning colour, then add the soaked dates, and chestnut pieces. Stirfry over high heat until there is evidence that caramelization is starting to occur, add the sherry or ricewine to flame, then the water or stock plus soy sauce and oyster sauce. Then dump in the scallion segments. Cook quickly while stirring till everything is coated and glazed. Decant and serve.

As with everything, sambal, and chopped cucumbers.
Plus steamed rice.



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