Getting garlic cloves to peel off easily

We recently bought some garlic cloves for our cooking. It has been a long time since we had to peel and cut up our garlic. When we were staying at Whifords, our host family bought ready cut garlic and all we had to do was to scoop up the garlic from the jar and into the pan.

Anyway, we were faced with the task of cutting up the garlic cloves again after a long break of a few months. One problem which we always encountered was peeling the garlic cloves. The skin is always so clingy that it can take awhile to remove them completely. It was not until we heard that we could get the skin off easily just by soaking the cloves in water for 10 minutes. Apparently, the skin will slide off easily after the soaking.

Armed with this knowledge, we decided to try it out. However, due to time constrain, we soaked them for only a few minutes but hey they did seem easier to come off. We will try the full 10 minutes the next time.

What a take away to help ease the tensions of preparing a nice home cooked meal.

Getting rid of wrinkles on shirts

It was just a few days back that I was trying to iron my shirt for an important meeting with the Prof at the University. It has been folded and kept away for the longest time, since I was not working and plus the fact that I hardly wore shirts when I was working as a Research and Development Engineer at STMicroelectronics.


There were so many fold marks and wrinkles that I had a hard time getting rid of them. I remembered Angie mentioning before that I should spray some water on the area and run the iron through it to get rid of the folds and wrinkles. Unfortunately, I could not find any spray bottle in the house let alone attempt to try it out.


In the end, I spent so much time ironing the shirt that we were almost late leaving the house. Thank goodness the fold lines were not too obvious after all the time spent trying to iron it away...


Still I had to find another way. Later I found out that there is an easy way to get rid of wrinkles on the shirt. All it requires is a cube of ice wrapped within a cloth. Using this to apply over the wrinkled area before ironing and apparently it will go away.


Hmm, that shall be my next move to get those wrinkles away. I'm sure I will have no problems with getting a cube of ice and a cloth. Better keep those ice holders occupied...

Keeping Pesky Houseflies at bay

Just the other day we were happily preparing our meal and laying them out on the dining table before we dig in to eat when this pesky housefly sprang a surprise on us and on our food. It was about to plop itself down on our fragrant fish and crabmeat cooked with the platelet enticing XO sauce (Yum...) when Angie spotted it and swung her arms at it. Off it went to some corner of the house leaving us guessing its hideout. Throughout our dinner, we had to keep an eye out for it, lest it decides to join us at the table.


Thankfully it kept its distance and we had a relatively undisturbed meal together. Houseflies can be so irritating that sometimes we wish we could catch it with our chopsticks, just like Mr Miyagi did in The Karate Kid. Well, not all of us would have the skill to do that so the fly squatter would have to do.


There is a simpler way to keep the houseflies at bay though. We found out that houseflies detest the smell of sesame oil and pepper. All we need is a small bowl of sesame oil or pepper placed on the table and apparently the houseflies would be nowhere in sight. We'll be trying this method out, maybe you should too.

Toothpaste removes more than the stains on your teeth

We were just having a conversation with some friends and we were speaking about how dirt and grime is cleaned off from jewellery. It's Angie's new toy in the shop also... An ammonia bath solution is used to do the job. Seems like you can only do this at the jewellers but hey did you know that toothpaste can do an equally decent job as well?


One of our friends proudly showed us his wrist bracelet and commented that toothpaste was used to clean his precious possession and it even left a minty aftersmell! Which brings to mind the wonders of the old traditional "Darlie" or "Colgate"; which also helps to soothe burns and scalds, or so our parents used to share with us. Oh, the wonders of the simple things in life!  

A little salt goes a long way...

Salt is one of the most essential ingredients in cooking. I'm sure you'll agree with us. Can't imagine what life would be without it. It gives taste to our food, oh so important to us Singaporeans especially. This is not its only purpose though.


Have you ever thrown a perfectly usable cup away simply because it had stains in it? The probable culprit being the black tea that we enjoy in the morning, or should I say Teh-O... Use a bit of salt to scrub gently at the stains and... Waalah! It's as good as new. Bicarbonate soda works just as well too, if you can't bear to part with your precious salt...after all, food is still our main priority.    

Ants trouble with your jar of honey?

We remember vividly our parents telling us to always place rubber bands round our honey jar and we always asked why... "It's to keep the ants away." they would say.


Apparently, ants follow a trail and any obstacle in their way would cause them to detour.


Whoa! Cheem (profound) concept for us back then but it certainly keeps the ants away from our honey...