We had some delicious chocolate cake baked by one of Sarah’s friends for Ben's birthday. The night before, Ching conjured a complex shopping list to prepare some ‘authentic’ Chinese cuisines for Ben's birthday party. The exquisite menu included: Hand-made Pan Fried Dumplings, Singapore Mai Fun & Grandpa Chicken (a special recipe for General Tso's chicken created by Ching's dad).

I shook my head because Ching was not aware with what we’re dealing with here - THIS IS TAMWORTH!!! If the food shopping was done in Birmingham or London, it’d be possible, but Tamworth!?!?!? She was better off going to a local Chinese restaurant to obtain such ingredients!!

Sarah, Richard, Ben, Ching and I all headed over to ASDA and pick up some necessary items like Chinese ingredients (Aiyah!), fizzy pop (urp!), Ribena (lovely), alcohol (to die for), chocolates (*swoons*) and most importantly – tea!!! You absolutely can not leave England without some authentic PG Tips or in Ching’s case, Twining’s Earl Grey!

Little did Ching realize that purchasing meats, vegetables and sauces proved to be a daunting task. Like any area in the US boondocks, buying any sort of ethnic ingredient is never a simple assignment. I assumed Ching, who spent over 2 decades in the burbs, would be cognizant about this. Hmmm, I guess not.

UK / US
Napas / Bok Choy
Aubergine / Eggplant
Courgette / Zucchini
Creamer (or Heavy Cream) / Half & Half
Green Onions / Scallions

When we reached the meat section, we were dumbfounded. Because the minced pork was sold out, Ching and I had no idea which part we wanted as we accustomed to the Chinese butcher shops. Although Richard used to be a butcher, his explanations didn't help us any. We were familiar only with Chinese terms and cuts when we go shopping at home. Oh dear.

So we went ahead with the 2 for 1 sale. What the heck.

When we finally got the Asian section, Ching was appalled at the skimpy variety of Chinese ingredients (did ya really think it'd be there?) and the overwhelming amount of Indian selection. She needed Rice Noodles for the Mai Fun dish and compromised a whole ton of ingredients due to lack of its availability. The oyster sauce tasted like soy sauce and the soy sauce tasted more like oyster sauce. ROFL!

A good amount of time was spent deciding what chocolates to buy. Damn, everything appeared so luscious and wickedly good. I loaded up on some Cadbury Bubbly & Aero Mint bars 'cuz I didn't see any Wispas being sold. We were actually having a real blast going from one aisle to the next.

Because Ching was missing a few essential ingredients to her recipes, it was decided that we would head out to Morrison's the following day and check out their Asian section. No Tesco's here.

Next: Tears for Fears concert!!