This is wholesome classic Chinese food, definitely in my top 10 electric chair meals. I have a traditional clay pot that I always cook this dish in, I‟m sure any old casserole pan will do but for some reason this old friend seems to make the dish taste better. The pairing that makes this dish so fabulous are the meaty Chinese mushrooms (Shitake) and the dried beancurd. Both are unique and wonderful, the whole dish comes together in a melting pot of flavours that just knocks on the doors of those taste buds. Again, all these ingredients you can get from any Chinese supermarket. Simple stuff.

What

• Dried Chinese mushrooms, soaked and halved
• Dried tofu, soaked and halved
• Sliced onion
• Chicken pieces
• Whole garlic clove and piece of ginger
• Cinnamon stick
• Preserved tangerine peel
• Crushed Szechuan peppercorns
• Whole star anise
• Soy and oyster sauce
• Rice wine
• Sesame oil
• Chopped coriander
• Seasoning

How
Season and fry the chicken and onion until brown. Add all the spices, sauces, tangerine peel, garlic and ginger, stir for a bit, add the mushrooms and dried tofu, and top with water. Everything should be in underwater but only barely. Cook for an hour or so, at the end, add some chopped coriander and serve directly from the pot. Serve with steamed rice and Chinese greens.

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How cool is this! One day, I’m gonna open a cafe, not a restaurant (crap hours) but a coffee bar or cafe, surfing around this evening and I found this www.thecoffeecar.co.uk and they produced this little Smart Car with a coffee machine in the back.

I’ve see the Vespa Car mobile coffee franchises before but not one in a Smart Car. Going to do this corporate things for a few more years, get where I want to be, pay of the mortgage, stash away some money, retire early, then I would love to open a small cafe or perhaps buy one of these, park it up somewhere nice and serve coffee, smoothes, drink, croissants, homemade snacks all day and chat to the locals. Not much to ask is it?

Made a great salad dressing this evening. Seville orange marmalade (orange would work too), whole grain mustard, crushed garlic, white wine vinegar, chopped red chilli, black pepper, Maldon sea salt and extra virgin olive oil.

Whisk vigorously to emulsify the mixture and pour over your selected leaves or vegetables. It’s from a idea I’ve been experimenting with for a few weeks, but I think this is the final version, you know what, it tastes divine!

Had Leeann’s birthday BBQ yesterday, I was so busy during the day that I didn’t photograph, Tweet or blog any of the food I made and I made a hell of a lot. Started preparing at 10am, guests arrived between 12pm and 4pm and stayed to around 8pm.

That’s a solid 10 hours of cooking and entertaining, luckily not all 25-30 people came at the same time but throughout the day which made things easier but it also meant I was on BBQ duty all afternoon, in 28c heat!

Wont go through the entire menu but the T-Bone steaks (pictured) was a massive hit, they’re quite expensive, about £10 a slab but sliced thinly, they go far and are extremely tastily as they contain two great cuts, sirloin and fillet separated by bone.

Made a light rub out of dried tarragon, smoked paprika, onion powder, garlic, black pepper and salt. Rub all over, leave for a few hours and grill on the BBQ, medium rare, leave to rest, slice and serve, leaving the T-bone for the chef and Lola of course!

Got 30 friends and family coming round tomorrow for a BBQ. The end to Leeann’s birthday week. Here’s the menu that I’m going to make, all with homemade marinades.

Grilled on the BBQ

• Steak with tarragon, paprika and garlic.
• Lamb cutlets with garlic, thyme and rosemary.
• Selection of butchers sausages.
• Homepage burgers.
• Large prawns with soy, ginger and spring onion.

Slow cooked in the smoker with oak

• Whole Peri Peri chicken.
• Cajun rack or ribs.

Sides

• Greek salad
• Coleslaw.
• Mixed bean and new potato salad.
• Blanched vegetables salad.

Dips

• Hummus, yoghurt, olives and sumac.
• Tomato salsa.
• Green pesto.
• Red onion relish.
• Selection of breads

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Been a long day for the MSN team, building, sourcing and creating this full coverage on the death of the legend that is Michael Jackson.

We never appreciate what we have until it’s gone…RIP

I have had the most amazing evening learning about coffee and skills of barista. Our executive producer Peter organised it for us and it was brilliant. This bloke from Illy came down and gave us a talk about coffee, the company (which is a truly passionate company), the beans, processing, farmer (incuding the pros and cons of Fairtrade) and of course the art of barista, which is surprisingly difficult. He spoke for over an hour just on the subject of coffee and how to produce a decent cup and every part was just incredibly interesting.

I have an espresso maker but I never mastered the use of the steamer but I now know all the mistakes that I have been making. Had an half an hour lesson on coffee making, beautiful cappuccinos, which are not supposed to be full of froth (American style) but smooth and velvety, almost like gloss paint, it was just pure magic to watch, a true art form and of course a pleasure to make and drink.

You know what, I just want to start making beautiful coffees for myself. Need to buy myself a stainless steel jug and some decent coffee, apart from that, I’m good to go, will let you know how it goes!

Got out my Brinkman smoker today, had it for a few year now. Missus bought it for my birthday a few years back. It’s a brilliant contraption, like an outdoor oven. Charcoal goes in the bottom, pan of water (or beer) just above to moisten and of course a rack for the meat. There is a little door to add wet wood chips to smoke the food during the cooking process.

As you can see, it does a great job roasting but adding the wood chips, well, it delivers a flavour and taste that you just can’t get in a conventional BBQ or oven. Imaging the air in that smoker. Moist, hot, steamy and smoky. The meat is bound to taste good, and you know what, it was. Kicking back drinking a glass of bubbly with Leeann.

Sometime I do feel a bit sorry for Lola, being the younger sister, she always end up getting Taer’s hand me downs. Bought Taer a new bike at the weekend, so naturally Lola got her old bike once I put the stabilisers back on. While Lola doesn't have a care in the world in regards to second hand stuff, I do feel I’m always treating Taer to new things and not Lola. It’s only gonna get worse in their teenage years when clothes and make-up get added to the mix.

Did a morning of shopping with Leeann, bought a whole load of clothes and had Sushi at Yo’s., thank God for credit cards. Lola has just gone to ballet and Taer is at netball, I’m chilling with a cold glass of mango juice and going to light my smoker in a minute and cook a whole chicken for dinner.

Leeann’s at work tonight, so I’m in front of the PC watching Top Gear on BBC iPlayer, poured myself a draft Guinness, kicking back and writing my blog. Been a good day, had lunch with a friend of mine in Victoria and been a productive work day despite back to back meetings. Got tomorrow off, booked a holiday to take Leeann (and myself) out shopping for her birthday treat.

Got another poker night this Thursday, with another group of mates in London. Looking forward to another fleecing session. Gonna have a few take away pizzas and beers. Might take the bike out of a spin tomorrow afternoon before dinner, haven’t ridden my baby for over a week, now I have my new faring, need to try em out.

Took the missus out last night to Boisdales jazz and cigar bar restaurant. With a Scottish vibe, they serve great steaks, seafood and haggis as well as wonderful Scottish smoked salmon. But, the piste de resistance is their whiskeys and cigars, which you can drink and smoke on their covered outdoor heated roof terrace.

Leeann had scallops with haggis and pancetta for starters and the fish special for mains, cod with broad beans, asparagus, Jersey potatoes and a tomato reduction. Both extremely fresh, the cod in particular, a thick slice with crispy skin was perfectly done.

I had langoustines with garlic mayonnaise, which was lovely, even though I would have prefered them griddled, nothing can beat the smell of burnt and charred shell, that just reminds you of eating by the sea.  Of course for my main, I had to have the steak. Chose sirloin which unusually they served on the bone (half a T Bone) with béarnaise sauce and salad. Got it medium rare and it was, perfectly so and full of flavour.

Ordered a bottle of their own Champagne, Boisdales NV which I had before so I knew it was going to be fine, that lasted us the evening along with a bottle of mineral water.Popped upstairs to the roof terrace after our mains and before the jazz with our glasses of Champagne and a Petit Juliet cigar, tiny little number that was just perfect for me.

The only downside was the bloke in charge of the outdoor smoking area giving us the once over about having a outside reservation on the terrace and how long I was going to be smoking for, strange question to ask as surely this is nothing new, he sat us on a unreserved table so really not sure what the fuss was all about.

Finished the night with an amaretto for Leeann and a Irish coffee for myself, which, for some reason didn't taste quite right, even after the second one they made me. Not enough sugar and I think they forgot the whiskey in the first, I ended up leaving half of it, even though it cost me £6.50.

Anyway, tiny things. On the whole, as usual, Boisdales delivered a wonderful dining experience and considering what we got, great food, Champagne, live jazz, cigars and some drinks for the road, at £180 including service, it’s actually quite good value.

Another 8.30am start for Leeann and the neighbours. The exercise class is going really well, extra person joined in this weekend, Leeann got hold of some massive truck tyres to flip and roll and increased the intensity of the workout. I think it’s also generating a lovely sense of community in our little close.

Leeann’s birthday this week, so we’re going out tonight to Boisdales in Victoria, with live jazz this evening. Looking forward to some lovely food and wine, might sneak in a cigar too, they have an outdoor roof terrace. Going to visit the Goring Hotel for some pre dinner drinks first, it’s an amazing hotel an they have a fabulous bar for cocktails or champagne. We’re both gonna dress for the occasion.

Father’s day on Sunday, my day. Taking the family rock climbing in the morning, going to clean and fit the new fairing on my motorbike, go for a ride afterwards and come back and cook a bloody great Sunday dinner, might even make the missus cook it for me!

My sisters always tell me how poor we were when we were growing up, and if you were a poor Chinese family, you ate congee. They hate this dish, because it reminds them of the bad old days when they had to survive on nothing more than a bag of bread crusts from the local sandwich shop in Hong Kong or a bowl of thin congee – if they were lucky. I grew up making it often, though, because it’s easy and, done well, it's actually pretty good. Go to any restaurant in any Chinatown and they will do congee, which is like a rice based gruel with meat or fish. Since it requires very little rice, the dish goes very far. My fave is salted pork with preserved ducks eggs, but traditionally you add whatever leftovers you have from dinner.

What

• Rice
• Water
• Slice of ginger
• Seasoning
• Finely chopped ginger and spring onion
• Soy and sesame oil

How

Cook the same amount of rice as you normally would but add four times the amount of water. Rice goes pretty far in this dish so you never need much. Add a slice of ginger and season with salt and white pepper. Bring to a boil, then simmer. Now you can add your ingredients: here are some suggestions.

• Pork
• Chinese preserved ducks eggs
• Beef slices
• Chinese roast duck or roast pork
• Liver
• Chicken on the bone
• Prawns, squid and fish
• Chinese fish balls

Cook for 20 minutes until the rice and ingredients are cooked through. The consistency can be as thin or as thick as you like. Serve into a white bowl, top with finely chopped spring onion, slithers of ginger, soy sauce and sesame oil. It's basic peasant food, but don't let that put
you off; it's a great lunch, good for using leftovers and easy to make.

Tip: traditionally this is served with fried bread sticks called "Yau Ja Gwai", which you can buy from Chinese supermarkets.

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For the first time in just under three years of blogging and recently Tweeting, I've actually questioned what I'm doing with all this social networking stuff, the about of time spend on it and most importantly, the amount of detail I put about me and my family online.

I wouldn't say I'm getting worried about security as I am quite careful with the information I share but some of it is quite detailed. I think anyone who wants to find anyone or do something unkind can and will, regardless of how much information there is online, so its all about intent and even down my road there are far more interesting and richer people than me. Sitting outside a mansion and waiting for the owners to leave is far easier than going through blogs, Tweets and Facebook hoping for that nugget of information.

I often think, who cares how I'm feeling or why the kids are screaming or what holiday I'm taking or what I'm eating for breakfast. Social networking has created excellent tools for connection but has not taught people how to connect. Maybe I'm going though another online low point, need to spend more time offline than on.

Drove down to Hastings today, one, to get the kids running on the beach, two, to see Leeann’s grandparents. Granddad had a fall yesterday, he’s not in the best of health anyway but now he’s looking pretty frail, hopefully he should recover.

Spent the day on the beach and rides in Hastings old town, it’s a lovely place, great for kids and it has a pebble and sand beach. Had fish and chips at one of the many restaurant in the old town, pretty nice, simple batter, fresh cod and chips, what more do you need. Wanted to try some of the plentiful seafood stalls but was too full. There are some great fishmongers down there, set in the original fishermen huts, might have to go down there again just to sample them.

The only dark side of the day was being berated by a local on the beach, apparently, we set down too close to her and her kids (it’s a public beach!) and Taer and Lola unwittingly stepped on a stone and sand portrait of her,, which we didn't even notice, it was all an accident but she still went into one, it’s welcomes like that, that gives Hastings a bad name.

Lola went on a rollercoaster for the first time today and loved it. However, the moment of the day, the ghost train, normally they are pretty shit but this one was actually scary, Lola came out the other end balling her eyes out!

My mate Lloyd came round yesterday on his newly fixed Yamaha R1. Beautiful 1000cc motorbike. Been waiting months for him to get back on his motor due to a crash he had. Anyway, we cruised own to Brighton to see our friend Pat, who has a fab house on the seafront, we had a wicked ride down there and back. Only went for 3 hours in total but it was pure excitement and fun. Took the M23/A23 on the way there, which was quite scary, my first time on a long motorway run. But on he way back, we took the A23 and other B roads, it was brilliant, sun was out, breezy and empty roads, perfect.

Had a BBQ in the evening and sat in the garden eating, drinking, listening to iTune and chatting. Cooked sausages, rib eye steaks, lamb chops and chicken wings. Bought all the meat at our local farmers market in Wallington which I will talk more about later.

Anyway, heading down to the beach again today, Hastings with the kids. Laters!

I live in a little private close with about 25 houses in, it’s a lovely environment but because it’s new, there is not that much of a community spirit. However, Leeann has decided to start a Saturday morning fitness class, the first one today. She out back with about 5 of the neighbours doing an hour long fitness routine for £5 a go, bargain considering personal training is £30.

I’m indoors running the crèche! To be honest, the fact I’m sitting on my ass blogging means the girls are looking after themselves just fine. Hopefully we will get to know more of the neighbours and just maybe start a little community where we live, starting with a summer community BBQ!