I am not a Foodie, I am a Food Blogger

Have you seen penne casserole with sambal belacan tomato sauce and served with chilli padi?  That is the beauty of fusion food. My Quay Lo made this penne casserole with my sambal belacan tomato sauce and served it with chilli padi for me!  Even when we dine out at restaurants that serve Western cuisine, I am not shy to ask for chilli padi or even sambal belacan. I have received a blank look on some of the waiters or waitresses’ face but I don’t care what they think about me, I still want my chilli padi or sambal belacan! When I am lucky, some waiters or waitresses were kind enough to get the chilli padi or sambal belachan from the cafe or Chinese Restaurant in the hotel for me.  In that sense, Quay Po can never said to be a real foodie. To me, real foodies have brains in their taste buds. Normally, when they eat, they don’t add something like sauces that changes the taste of a dish. They are also very objective and won't let their judgement of food served to be influenced by how many Michelin stars a restaurant has, or how famous the celebrity chef is in the kitchen. From an article I have read, the author (forgot his name) said:

"Real foodies:
 don't indulge in pretentious smiles and nod bullshit based on how much something costs versus how it tastes.

Even when they are eating at a high end restaurant, they are objective about what is good versus what is mediocre rather than letting social halo effects override their biological response.

Don't eat at a restaurant primarily for the purpose of posting gastro vanity pictures just to show that they have been there.

Experiment with a lot of different places and foods from different cultures and geographies to develop a well calibrated sense of taste.

Pay very little attention to the service, decor or food presentation at a restaurant and emphasize food quality above everything else. They can appreciate good food at even a hole in the wall restaurant.

Don't eat at a restaurant out of obsessive compulsive completionism to be able to write an online review.

While I am not a foodie per se,  I do know if fusion food is done well.  Fusion cuisine truly can be excellent and innovative. Good fusion cuisine combines ingredients and cooking techniques from several cultures and creates a new fresh dish, even if the dish is simple like the one below that Quay Lo and I made together. All cultures have their own culinary traditions, and combining these cooking traditions can result in breath taking dishes. Fusion in the new modern cities of Asia is almost in a class of its own. Some of these creations, by bold and adventurous chefs, can be quite complex.  Still, somehow, I feel like Quay Lo and I are "down in the trenches" of this movement and doing so with simple dishes.

Fusion Penne Casserole

This recipe was featured on The Asian Food Channel (Official) 

Facebook page on 6 December 2012

Ingredients:

1-1/2 cups uncooked penne pasta

½ cup Quay Po fusion tomato sauce

2 cups (8 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese

1/2 cup grated Romano cheese

Method:

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain pasta; toss with Quay Po fusion tomato sauce. Spoon the mixture into a greased 2-qt. baking dish. Sprinkle with cheeses. Cover and bake at 350° for 30 minutes. Uncover; bake 15-20 minutes longer or until heated through. 

Quay Po fusion tomato sauce 

(click on the pic to get the recipe)