Category: Blog

Two Card Packs

  • February 27, 2021

Amongst many other wonderful things, SMC sent me two old packs of trading cards for Christmas. I opened them today!

These Jaws cards have been on the blog before, but they’re great so let’s feature them again. Released in 1983 these were 3D cards where every pack came with a tiny pair of red/blue 3D ‘glasses’!

Interestingly the gum stick was packaged between cards, but amazingly it didn’t adhere to any of them and slid right out without causing any damage. It was of course inedible and had the consistency of hard plastic.

The cards themselves have a remarkable good level of 3D when viewed through the glasses, and I imagine were a genuine treat for kids when they bought them back then. We all know the film is trash, but since Topps chose to use illustrations rather than movie stills they could have applied this 3D method to any other card set. 3D Star Wars cards in 1983 would have blown my mind!

The second pack she sent was quite special since I’d been looking for a pack of these for years. It’s another video game themed set from 1982, and as you can see is based on everyone’s favorite Puck Man!

The gum looked like this, and was absolutely caked in fine flour! This made the interior dusty, but at least meant it hadn’t stuck to a card. Obviously I didn’t eat it!

Each pack contains 3 sticker cards and three game cards. The above shows the front and back of a sticker card, and the art here is typical of the others: dreadful. But do they still stick? No they don’t, which is a shame since they would have been great on postcards 🙂

The scratch off cards are impressively designed, but no longer work. The scratchable material has concretized over the years and is irremovable without also removing the underlying card. No high score for me!

Back in 1982 I would have loved these. Scratch-offs were almost unknown in Australia in those days, and stickers are always fun. Did I ever see or buy a pack back then? I can’t recall.

Thanks Sue; these were great 🙂

Chicken a la Zoffé

  • February 16, 2021

Time for some more ‘lockdown cooking’! Today’s it’s an original recipe of my own creation. It’s a little complicated, but if you follow the instructions closely you can eat some too…

Start by throwing some chopped onions in a pan. Cook them on medium heat for a while.

When they’re somewhat cooked, add cubed chicken. The amount is up to you but for one portion I use two tenders. Salt liberally with kosher salt.

Walk away and forget you’re cooking until the onions start to burn, then add pineapple chunks. Cook for only about a minute longer just to brown the pineapple.

At this point the basmati rice you’ve been cooking in the background is ready, so it’s time to plate up and serve!

It’s a dish with a good mouth feel and a delightful mix of salty and sweet tastes. It also looks – as you can see – attractive on the table.

To increase the enjoyment, I recommend serving with Mt Dew.

As a bonus shot, here’s KLS’s paneer tikamasala she cooked alongside my Chicken Zoffè:

Which would you prefer?

Ramen 3: Return of Chicken!

  • February 9, 2021

You better believe I found some more chicken ramen, so let’s dive right in:

Dr McDougall’s Vegan Ramen (180 Calories, 1g fat, 680 mg sodium)

This was purchased from Whole Foods and as you can see is a healthy option for those that shun flesh. But could it be good with so little fat and sodium? The cup was strangely lightweight, and when I opened it I could hardly believe what I beheld: the so-called ‘ramen’ looked and felt much more like dried spaghetti! Preparation was the same as any other type of cup noodle, and even though I followed the instructions precisely the noodles remained almost completely solid. I was even more suspicious they weren’t ramen!! So I followed the additional instructions for those who desired softer noodles and microwaved it for 60 seconds…

It was, as you can see, a disaster! To make matters worse the noodles were still mostly uncooked! I tried it anyway and the taste was acceptable but that doesn’t forgive the fact this ‘ramen’ is a fraud marketed by criminals and if I ever see ‘Dr McDougall’ in my travels he can look forward to a strong lunge punch to his rectus abdominus! My review of this product: 0/10

Gefen Noodle Soup (300 Calories, 13g fat, 1200 mg sodium)

Another option for vegetarians, this is an unusual product that never calls itself ramen but most definitely is. It’s made in Singapore and has information about Australian importing on the back so the Ozlings reading this may want to watch for it.

The noodles were strangely white and the flavor/veggie packets were similar to others I’ve already tried with the exception of dried onion pieces being included. Once again preparation was as easy as steeping with boiling water for a few minutes.

And then I tried it. There’s not much more to say other than it’s hard to believe I’ll ever taste better! This is an absolutely exquisite cup noodle product, with a robust and slightly peppery chicken taste (despite containing no chook) and perfect noodles that tickle the cockles on their way down. If they serve ramen in heaven, surely it’s this brand. An easy 10/10!

Maruchan Bowl (420 Calories, 19g fat, 1640 mg sodium)

I’ve already written about the brick and normal cup noodle from this brand, so it was time for this giant-sized bowl product. And it’s not just more of the same, since the topping packet also contains dehydrated chicken pieces for that authentic chicken soup feeling. As usual, just pour in boiling water and wait patiently for three minutes before eating.

And the end result: better than both the brick and the normal cup! The taste was more robust than the others, and while I’m sure the chicken pieces were essentially flavorless they gave me an extra sense of satisfaction as I shoved the noodles down. But in the end this was perhaps a little too much food for a culinary dilettante like myself and I didn’t finish it. I think 8/10 is fair.

And that’s enough for the third installment in this now regular series! A quick glance in my cupboard confirms that there will indeed be (at least) a fourth set of reviews coming in due course, so watch this space 🙂