Father's Day Series : Dads that C😋😋K (2/3)

In this series of articles, LocalHood volunteer @Sze Yeen, an avid cook herself, speaks to 3 fathers of the community that love to cook for their family. These are regular fathers, not professionally cooks or even working in the F&B sector just those who enjoy sharing their love for cooking with those they love most in their lives.

In this profile of our Father's Day Series, Sze speaks about food: The love for making a meal, the origin of the love for cooking with another dad named Eddie 😎👍🏻. Eddie shares with other LocalHooders, his family's way of making BLUE MUSSELS IN WHITE WINE & CREAM SAUCE. Read on!!!

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The aroma, the sight and the taste coupled with the conversation and laughter during each home cooked meal gives Eddie great fulfilment knowing the food he prepared help bring his extended family closer each time he hosts a family gathering. Eddie’s passion for cooking started 12 years ago when he realises the need to spend more quality time with his then growing son. Today, his 20 year old enjoys cooking occasionally and shares many great food memories with Eddie.

Pic 1: Eddie (front left) with his son, wife and extended family during May 2020 Mother’s Day celebration

Eddie cooks during weekends, holidays, birthdays, festive seasons and any other occasion that gives him the opportunity to de-stress in the kitchen. He enjoys analyzing and experimenting with recipes to suit individual tastes rather than following the instructions strictly. Growing up in a family of foodies, Eddie often helped out in the kitchen and would often discuss and analyze the use of ingredients in the food they ate with his cooking mentor, his mom. Eddie is inspired by his mom’s cooking passion and her patience coaching him along the way. He learnt to master many traditional Cantonese dishes with the usual dried oysters, dried mushrooms, water chestnut and etc from her. These days, Eddie still calls his mom for cooking ideas while he is her go-to person to clarify a new recipe she is trying out.

Pic 2: Eddie’s recent cooking adventure with a huge prawn he picked up from the local market.

As an adult, we often find ourselves reminiscing over our mom’s or grandma’s food. The same will apply to our children in their adult lives. It is Eddie’s hope that food nostalgia will bring his son home no matter where he might be in future. Eddie involved his son in his cooking journey as he sees cooking as a family as a great family bonding activity. To encourage aspiring cooking dads (and moms) to spend more time in the kitchen, here’s an easy recipe from Eddie:

Pic 3: Blue mussels in white wine and cream sauce

EDDIE's special recepie: BLUE MUSSELS IN WHITE WINE & CREAM SAUCE

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 shallots, finely chopped

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

Blue mussels (1kg) cleaned

1 cup dry white wine

1/2 cup heavy cream

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces

1/2 bunch fresh parsley, chopped

1 tablespoon of Sea salt, half table spoon of black pepper

Directions:

Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add shallots and garlic and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add mussels, wine, cream, butter, and parsley. Season well with salt and black pepper. Give it a good stir, cover the pot, and cook until mussels open and are cooked through, about 8 to 10 minutes.

For some cooking ideas, check out Eddie’s IG at papa_cooking.