195 replies to this topic

[yunnermeier]

Good morning! I guess no one guessed it was me ;) I just arrived from Paris and am now back home in Weesp (I have to work :( ) .

Let's get the introductions aside:

I'm Mei, 21 and am an au pair in the Netherlands. I am Malaysian (Baba& Nyonya from Melaka) but took a break from college to be an au pair here for one year. Of course being Malaysian automatically means I love food. So much so that I never lasted more than 7 hours on a diet in my entire life.

I never cooked simply because Mum did the cooking and the kitchen back home wasn't a erhm.. condusive enviroment but I really like the kitchen my host family has so I recently started baking and will be trying out some dishes this week (let's see if they turn out ok...).

Back home, my friends and I ate out a lot because we were probably better off than the average Malaysian teen (only because we worked and studied and they preferred to focus on academics!) but here , I eat home almost everyday. Not counting McDonalds and Chinese, I've probably only had dinner out 4-5 times! Oh , now I date a man who only ever eats things he's familiar with (like ham and cheese sandwich or babi panggang at a Chinese restaurant) which can be very very difficult ;)

So there you go! Here's where you can watch me fail or succeed with my cooking experiments! We'll also drive to Oberhausen (or maybe Dortmund or Keulen, my boyfriend and I haven't really decided) on Thursday or Friday and then it's off to Budapest at 7pm on Saturday!

After this: Pictures of Paris (I just came back this morning)!

Edited by yunnermeier, 29 October 2006 - 11:32 PM.

[yunnermeier]

Thank you, mizducky, for helping me with the pictures:)

Paris[SIZE=7]

I couldn't help but cheat by posting yesterday's pictures because
Paris was gorgeous! Truth be told , we didn't eat at any good
restaurant because I'm an au pair on a tiny budget and when we DID go
to a nice-looking cafe for lunch, we always end up ordering the wrong
thing (ie we pointed at some fancy-sounding French dish , only to get
boiled sausages on a bed of shoestring fries).

This chocolaterie is within walking distance to the Eiffle Tower. I
forgot to write the name down but I think it was Jacques something (
fat help ,that!)

I thought the bottled flavoured waters and liquors were beautiful. I
ended up only buying chocolat chestnut jam (preserve).



In the Netherlands, steak tartare is well..steak tartare, usually
grilled or fried but when I got this from the waitress, I asked her if
it was supposed to 'be like this' (I'm a country mouse). I must say
that it was very very good though! The herbs and the beef were very
fresh , even my friend who doesn't like raw meat, thought it was
delicious. Sorry about the bad picture, we were quite tipsy by then




Random pictures:

Edited by yunnermeier, 30 October 2006 - 12:31 AM.

[yunnermeier]

As you know, I am an au pair. I take care of a baby (he's 1 year old now) 4 days a week plus do light household chores. As you can imagine, life is a whole lot different from what I was used to back home but while it's something I wouldn't do again, I definitely do not regret going on this programme.

Sebastiaan (taken in the summer)




The house I lived in used to be a butcher shop from the late 1600s until August last year (when my host family bought over).

This is the kitchen just before it was demolished:



Kitchen (sorry about the mess, didn't have time to clean up)



The Dutch (of which I only know 3;) ) generally don't consider breakfast important. My host mum usually has muesli or cereal with plain yoghurt and my host dad gets coffee (and maybe something at work?). My boyfriend doesn't have breakfast but he does grab a sandwich or something at 10.00 or 11.00. When I first arrived, I'd eat sandwiches as soon as I woke up as that's what my mum used to prepare for me before college but I stoppped after a while because I thought my host family was giving me weird looks (OMG she's such a greedy pig! ) . Now, breakfast is usually instant noodles (my host family buys that for me), yoghurt, cookies or whatever is interesting. Today it was leftover mooncake.

OK I'm off !

[Lori in PA]

How nice to "meet" you, Mei. It will be lovely to spend a week with you, I'm sure. Your charge is adorable in the picture, but I'll bet he's not always smiling so sweetly. Be sure to tell us about your favorite and not-so-favorite food discoveries in your temporary hometown.

[Chufi]

Ooohh this is so exciting, a Dutch foodblog! (yes I know Paris, Oberhousen, and Budapest are in this blog, but I'm sure you'll understand that the Dutch part is particularly interesting to me )
Weesp is such a lovely little town! And that's a very cool kitchen!

Oh and I'd love to hear what you think about Dutch food.

[markemorse]

Hi Mei,

Always nice to see another eGulleter in Holland!

Though it sounds like eating out is not really your thing, I'm interested to know if there are any Malaysian restaurants in Weesp that you're aware of (I'm assuming no, because here in Amsterdam there are only two that I know of)....I'd love to know what a Malaysian person thought of the Dutch-Indonesian-Malaysian-Surinamese-Indian-Chinese hybrid food that is such a staple of restaurant/takeout eating here.

mark

ETA: You could almost hear Klary and I simultaneously pouncing on this blog!

Edited by markemorse, 30 October 2006 - 04:17 AM.

[Chufi]

ETA: You could almost hear Klary and I simultaneously pouncing on this blog!

it's just very nice to have a blog, for once, that takes place in my 'real time' !

Edited by Chufi, 30 October 2006 - 04:19 AM.

[yunnermeier]

Though it sounds like eating out is not really your thing, I'm interested to know if there are any Malaysian restaurants in Weesp that you're aware of (I'm assuming no, because here in Amsterdam there are only two that I know of)....I'd love to know what a Malaysian person thought of the Dutch-Indonesian-Malaysian-Surinamese-Indian-Chinese hybrid food that is such a staple of restaurant/takeout eating here.

There are no Malaysian restaurants in Weesp but I did remember seeing one in Amsterdam last week called "Wau". My best friend and I were thinking of trying it out but we couldn't bear to part with 14 euro for a bowl of laksa when back home it costs less than 1 euro . Mind you, we would be quite happy to pay 45 euro for steak but somehow paying 14e for laksa is just WRONG.

I despise Indonesian-Chinese restaurants here and I especially hate babi panggang. I noticed that 'Chinese' food here is a lot more 'starchy' than back home. Nam Kee is probably the most genuine Chinese food I've tasted here and cheap as well. What I cannot fathom is how people order just one dish and eat it all themselves (just babi panggang and rice for instance!) when back home, my dad would order at least 7 dishes when the 4 of us went out (2 veg, 1 pork,1 chicken, 1 squid, 1 fish and 1 tofu) . I also noticed that Chinese food is usually served with nasi (fried rice) or bami (fried noodles). Again, which I think is WRONG WRONG WRONG! That's just me I suppose! I did however, really like the oysters from Nam Kee

[Swisskaese]

Though it sounds like eating out is not really your thing, I'm interested to know if there are any Malaysian restaurants in Weesp that you're aware of (I'm assuming no, because here in Amsterdam there are only two that I know of)....I'd love to know what a Malaysian person thought of the Dutch-Indonesian-Malaysian-Surinamese-Indian-Chinese hybrid food that is such a staple of restaurant/takeout eating here.

There are no Malaysian restaurants in Weesp but I did remember seeing one in Amsterdam last week called "Wau". My best friend and I were thinking of trying it out but we couldn't bear to part with 14 euro for a bowl of laksa when back home it costs less than 1 euro . Mind you, we would be quite happy to pay 45 euro for steak but somehow paying 14e for laksa is just WRONG.

I despise Indonesian-Chinese restaurants here and I especially hate babi panggang. I noticed that 'Chinese' food here is a lot more 'starchy' than back home. Nam Kee is probably the most genuine Chinese food I've tasted here and cheap as well. What I cannot fathom is how people order just one dish and eat it all themselves (just babi panggang and rice for instance!) when back home, my dad would order at least 7 dishes when the 4 of us went out (2 veg, 1 pork,1 chicken, 1 squid, 1 fish and 1 tofu) . I also noticed that Chinese food is usually served with nasi (fried rice) or bami (fried noodles). Again, which I think is WRONG WRONG WRONG! That's just me I suppose! I did however, really like the oysters from Nam Kee

Happy blogging Mei.

I also found this very strange. I was used to ordering several dishes and every body shares them. They do the same thing in Germany and Switzerland.

Reistafel is good in Holland, but I am not crazy about the Chinese restaurants in most of Europe. They tend to be very expensive and very Europeanized. I did go to a decent Thai restaurant in Maastricht.

I don't understand the concept of the monster egg rolls. They tend to be very greasy. I prefer smaller egg rolls.

I love Dutch pastries. Is it hard for you to stay away from them?

Edited by Swisskaese, 30 October 2006 - 04:41 AM.

[Chufi]

Sharing is just not a very Dutch thing. People are not used to it and I think they find it confusing. Dinner is the food on your plate, period. Not somebody elses food..
This is ofcourse, like everything else, slowly changing with the rising popularity of tapas/mezze restaurants. There, it's much more common to order a bunch of dishes and share. But Chinese/Indonesian food has been around forever, and the people who eat there, are usually not the most adventurous eaters anyway, so they tend to stick to their old habits.

Edited by Chufi, 30 October 2006 - 04:46 AM.

[markemorse]

There are no Malaysian restaurants in Weesp but I did remember seeing one in Amsterdam last week called "Wau". My best friend and I were thinking of trying it out but we couldn't bear to part with 14 euro for a bowl of laksa when back home it costs less than 1 euro . Mind you, we would be quite happy to pay 45 euro for steak but somehow paying 14e for laksa is just WRONG.   

I think you were right in avoiding Wau...I ate there twice when I first moved to Amsterdam a few years ago, and while the first time was pretty good, the next time was more expensive and much less interesting. BUT: the dining experience there is definitely one of my top 10 most memorable, because the ambience is so, um...exotic?

The lights are extremely dim, it's actually quite beautiful inside, what you can see of it, but instead of music they play nighttime insect sounds (um...vs. "daytime insect sounds"? right.), very loud. I should mention that I actually have many CDs full of music that resembles insect sounds, so this in itself is not a problem. But the darkness combined with the unexpected volume and speaker placement led my dining companions and I to just kind of sit there in speechless amazement while the beetles, crickets, cicadas, and who knows what else crescendoed around us. We could barely hear each other talk (all of this is not really a complaint, either, it was just...odd. I can't imagine people without insect music in their CD collections enjoying themselves there...and how often do you get to say that about a restaurant?).

My point is: much better (and a bit cheaper) than Wau is Nyonya Malaysia Express on Kloveniersburgwal just south of Nieuwmarkt. You'll have to bring your own deafening cicadas though.

mem

Edited by markemorse, 31 October 2006 - 01:58 AM.

[yunnermeier]

People often laugh at Dutch cuisine (huhuhu what cuisine?!) but I must say that I do like the potatoes + meat combination. Stampot (mashed potatos, bacon bits, a giant sausage and farmer's cabbage is the usual ingredients but there's quite a variety) is one of my favourite foods but I find what the Dutch term 'lunch' a very disappointing affair.

Lunch is almost always bread. Bread (usually sliced dark bread) , cheese and some kind of cured meat. Or bread and one of those spreads (chicken and pesto or omelette etc) you get from the supermarket. Sometimes if I'm really lucky I get french toast or cream-filled buns but I must say that that doesn't happen often. Today we had toasties and for a special treat, I asked Maartje to get us something sweet because bread bores me senseless (my best friend who's living here only eats this boring bread + thinly sliced ham + cheese with plenty of ketchup) . She got us kersenflap ( cherry pastries?) from the bakery across the street (I love the pink cherry flavoured granulated sugar on top).



Fellow Dutch bloggers, please don't be mad if I poke fun at Dutch food or Dutch eating habits! I really do like Holland very much!

Edited by yunnermeier, 30 October 2006 - 05:06 AM.

[MarketStEl]

Hey, great -- a new voice! Welcome, and I'm all ready for the trip.

Sounds like you need to educate your hubby. This will require a lot of time and even more patience.

I have a couple of questions:

--Are your travels on your own time, or are these trips part of your duties as an au pair? Or both?

--What is that thing with the circular door in the kitchen next to the oven?

[yunnermeier]

Hey, great -- a new voice!  Welcome, and I'm all ready for the trip.

Sounds like you need to educate your hubby.  This will require a lot of time and even more patience.

I have a couple of questions:

--Are your travels on your own time, or are these trips part of your duties as an au pair?  Or both?

--What is that thing with the circular door in the kitchen next to the oven?

Heya! I enjoyed your blog:)

i) I don't usually travel (I'd only gone to Italy this year before this.. this week is action-packed)but I'd planned my weekend in Budapest in advance (before I knew I was doing this blog) and then 3 weeks ago, my best friend said she could come and visit me so we decided to go to Paris! Anyway, my host family were really nice about it and said I only have to work today and tomorrow and they'll ship Sebastiaan off to his grandparents on Tuesday night so that I can enjoy my week with my best friend (she goes home Thursday morning I think) .

The average au pair receives 2 weeks paid vacation a year but I get something like 5 (partly because my host family is generous and also because I work more hours than most au pairs).

ii) The circular door next to the oven is the steamer! I think it's very cool but not as useful as a microwave . We use it to steam vegetables, make baby food ,warm leftovers and to sterialised baby bottles.

Edited by yunnermeier, 30 October 2006 - 05:07 AM.

[Tepee]

Hey, Yunney...aunty TP here! Was surprised to see a msian name blogging. Syabas!

Where did you get your stash of mooncakes? Just a couple of days ago, I made fresh batches of mini shanghai ones as I still have ingredients left. Want some?

While you're still in mooncake mode, we're making open house rounds for Raya. Did you get your rendang, nasi himpit, lontong, nasi tomato, lemang etc...?

[yunnermeier]

I love Dutch pastries. Is it hard for you to stay away from them?

I love Dutch pastries too but I am slowly getting used to them. When I first arrived, I was in a state of gleeful shock. The pastries looked great, tasted great and was so cheap! I remember buying gevulde boterkoek once a week (at one stage, it was one entire boterkoek a day) and 100 grams of chocolate (it was something like 3 euros/100gram and in Malaysia, chocolate was 6-10 euro per 100 grams) . I ate A LOT (and subsequently put on 5 kg) , not just pastries but also patat ( fries),frikandellen (sausage) and vla (custard-ish dessert)

Hi Aunty Tepee! Nola , my friend is staying with me now mah so she brought a box over. No rendang, ketupat or ayam masak merah for me this year! I'd give anything for nasi lemak with sambal ikan bilis or better yet, nasi kandar (or asam laksa, ipoh sar hor fun, chicken rice, everything really)! Kesian

[scubadoo97]

Thanks for the blog yunnermeier.



Nice kitchen.
I have a question about the unit to the right of the wall oven. It looks like an autoclave. What is it?
I also like the beer tap next to the espresso machine. Nice.

Look forward to more of your blog.

[racheld]

It's going to be so nice to glimpse an adopted (if temporarily) country and cuisine through a visitor's eyes. And two other countries you'll be visiting and describing as well!! You WILL have a busy week.

The picture in the tease led me to believe that the living quarters were in a big lighted window space, with all the comings and goings open to passersby, but I see from a pic above that that was the BEFORE pic, pre-window-glazing and kitchen-adding. I can see the flowers and scale, now that I see them from another perspective. It's also good to know the family has some privacy, though only shoulder-high. What a lovely light must fill that kitchen!

Do go to the Dutch Cooking thread, with Chufi's glorious demonstrations and recipes and her amazing photography. It will teach you more about the cuisine of your adopted land than any three sets of lessons. You'll be amazed and delighted, and perhaps persuaded to give some of the dishes a try, whether at home or out and about. At least, it will help you know what you'd like to order, without any surprises. (Somebody PLEASE make a blue link)

Looking forward to the week. . .

[yunnermeier]

Thanks for the blog yunnermeier. 

Nice kitchen.
I have a question about the unit to the right of the wall oven.  It looks like an autoclave.  What is it? 
I also like the beer tap next to the espresso machine.  Nice.

Look forward to more of your blog.

That is a steamer. We do use it everyday, mostly to sterilise baby bottles and for vegetables /potatos (3 minutes at 120degrees is enough to make mashed potatos, much faster than boiling!)

Foo , am I tired or what. I decided to make Chufi's Dutch apple pie because we had some apples sitting around. It was Sebas' birthday a few weeks ago and they went to pick apples from his apple tree.

This didn't go as planned because I couldn't find the pie tin and I couldn't go out to buy one because Sebas was in bed , host dad went to the DIY shop (he's home this week to paint and do up the attic) and Jules had gone to Amsterdam (I was literally ready to cry). Finally I saw some disposable lasagna containers in the drawer and used that instead. I figured since it's already spoilt , I'm not going to bother following the recipe anymore so I 'seasoned' the apples to taste using mostof the ingredients from Chufi's recipe and added a bit more,namely vanilla sugar and I sprinkled granulated sugar on top of the pastry.

Surprisingly, it actually came out really good! My host dad ate HALF THE PIE . At least it was good for something (I served it with vanilla ice cream)! :D

Edited by yunnermeier, 30 October 2006 - 08:38 AM.

[yunnermeier]

The picture in the tease led me to believe that the living quarters were in a big lighted window space, with all the comings and goings open to passersby, but I see from a pic above that that was the BEFORE pic, pre-window-glazing and kitchen-adding.  I can see the flowers and scale, now that I see them from another perspective.  It's also good to know the family has some privacy, though only shoulder-high.  What a lovely light must fill that kitchen!

Do go to the Dutch Cooking thread, with Chufi's glorious demonstrations and recipes and her amazing photography.  It will teach you more about the cuisine of your adopted land than any three sets of lessons.  You'll be amazed and delighted, and perhaps persuaded to give some of the dishes a try, whether at home or out and about.  At least, it will help you know what you'd like to order, without any surprises.  (Somebody PLEASE make a blue link)

Looking forward to the week. . .

Hi Racheld! Yes, Chufi's Dutch cooking thread is one of my favourite threads (Chufi is practically my eGullet idol )though I've never tried anything until today (above apple pie)! One of these days I'm going to make Chufi's Frisian suikerbrood.

The huge window is a constant problem because passerbys WILL peep and look at us . It's funny because everyone tries to look in our kitchen and quickly turn away everytime I catch them (Looking into people's houses is a favourite Dutch passtime) . My host family and I don't really mind that, though as we are not really private people (we're also not allowed to change the design outside as the house is a monument).

ETA: obligatory picture of fridge and sauce cupboard. I didn't take a picture of the freezer and the larder because they're in 'drawer-style' (ie you can only see the top)

Edited by yunnermeier, 30 October 2006 - 09:15 AM.

[Kouign Aman]

Hi and thanks for blogging!

[Chufi]

Mei, that applepie looks great! It's a really good idea to sprinkle sugar on top.. I never do that because my husband doesn't like crunchy sugar
and the disposable piedish is very smart, less washing up that way..

Hi Racheld! Yes, Chufi's Dutch cooking thread is one of my favourite threads (Chufi is practically my eGullet idol )though I've never tried anything until today (above apple pie)! One of these days I'm going to make Chufi's Frisian suikerbrood.

now where is that blush smilie when you need it... ah there it is!

(rachel, the link to the Dutch Cooking thread is in my signature)

Edited by Chufi, 30 October 2006 - 09:32 AM.

[yunnermeier]

Hola! Almost time for dinner; we're just waiting for Walter to get back but in the meantime, I'll post some pictures

This is Maartje (my host mum) cooking. She's a lovely lady and one cannot ask for a nicer host mum.



Oh yes, I forgot to say that my host family made stofvlees (braised beef, you can get the recipe from Chufi's Dutch Cooking thread) yesterday. There's quite a bit leftover so we're eating hutspot tonight. Hutspot is the only stampot I don't care for ; thanks to the mashed carrots, it tastes a little too much like baby food (in my opinion).

It is said that stampot came to be when Leiden was attacked by the Spaniards a few hundred years ago (Dutchies, please correct me if I'm wrong). The mayor closed the gates and the locals ran out of food after a while. Finally, the Spanish army left . A little boy was so hungry that he climbed over a wall (or went through a hole in the wall or something like that) and found, still hot in a pot, what is today known as hutspot!



Hutspot with stofvlees



For dessert, we will have [/i]stofpeers (also leftovers from yesterday) with biterkoekje pudding. You'll notice that the top part of the pear is not red. This is because my host dad cheated by using the steamer.



Ok I'm going to go downstairs and wait with Maartje for Walter to be back! Toodles!

[/B]Next : A spacecake and a joint or two at one of Amsterdam's famous coffeeshops

Edited by yunnermeier, 30 October 2006 - 10:28 AM.

[ludja]

How much do you cook in that lovely kitchen? Do you typically help with the meals? The apple pie looks very nice... I also have to comment on the adorable photo of your little charge!

Also looking forward to your travels later in the week. I hope you get to try some nice pastries and cakes in Budapest. We recently were discussing Hungarian Chestnut Cream torte on this thread and it has whetted my appetite for Hungarian/Austrian desserts.

[Abra]

Hey Mei, cool! Amazingly, I still have a few of the Malaysian foods you sent me way back when we did our food exchange, so maybe I'll have to make something for you, just so you can see the picture and eat it vicariously.

This will be a really interesting blog, since you're in a "foreign" country to you, but we have members there to comment on your experiences with a native eye. I'm looking forward to this week!

[markemorse]

Next: A spacecake and a joint or two at one of Amsterdam's famous coffeeshops

You mean you're not going to make homemade spacecake? That would instantly propel this foodblog into the annals of eGullet legend!

mem

Edited by markemorse, 30 October 2006 - 10:59 AM.

[yunnermeier]

How much do you cook in that lovely kitchen?  Do you typically help with the meals?  The apple pie looks very nice... I also have to comment on the adorable photo of your little charge!

Also looking forward to your travels later in the week.  I hope you get to try some nice pastries and cakes in Budapest.  We recently were discussing Hungarian Chestnut Cream torte on this thread and it has whetted my appetite for Hungarian/Austrian desserts.

Cooking is not one of my duties but I do ocassionally cook. And yes, I do help prepare meals; nothing significant mind you- just potato-peeling or chopping onions that kind of thing.

Sebas is absolutely adorable, good natured but also high maintenance (in the good natured way)sometimes. He's the best!

Hiya Abra ! Did you try making anything at all? I remember that the instant ayam masak merah is not bad at all.

Markemorse , that is a very good idea I may just try it when I go to Arnhem later this week (baby+ marijuana = not a good idea). I am not a stoner and only tried weed twice in Amsterdam, more for the experience than anything else. I dislike smoking but I'm in Amsterdam, aren't I?! Now that Ju is here on a visit, it's time to do my duty as temporary Dutchie and take her (she requested it btw!) for a taste of some herbs

[mizducky]

Thank you, mizducky, for helping me with the pictures

You're welcome! You're off to a great start.

Next : A spacecake and a joint or two at one of Amsterdam's famous coffeeshops

Aha! I tried to persuade previous Dutch bloggers to give us a tour of this kind of establishment, but without success.

[Daniel]

Havent been to Amsterdam in 6 years or so but the 4 times I have gone, Grey Area and Amnesia where my favorites..

[KatieLoeb]

Awesome!! More peeks into our fellow Dutch Egullet compatriots lives and a tour of one of those infamous coffeeshops with spacecakes! Woo-hoo, this is going to be fun. Last time I had a spacecake (1985-ish) I woofed it down on a train beacause I'd forgotten I had it in my backpack and was crossing the border into Belgium. In my idiotic little mind, my bag was going to be searched and I was going to be thrown in jail. I simply had to destroy the evidence! Yeah! I was a mess for half a day afterward. What can I say? I was young and stupid...

Your little charge is criminally cute. What a great smile! I could almost hear him giggling...