There is no better way to kick-start weekend festivities than with an early evening bite. Home-made sandwiches were a big part of every man’s upbringing. Our dear mums would prepare a hearty toasted sandwich and send us to school or picnics.
Nowadays, the art of custom sandwich-making is dead. Your local cafeteria will cover your craving for a simple sandwich, but it doesn’t taste the same. So the next time you feel like having a juicy grilled sandwich made with chicken, mayo and love, look anew at the sandwich maker. Of course, you would have to call your mum for the recipe.
While you’re ringing your mum, start on the snacks. Last month, interior designer and author Clifton Leung listed five of his favourite kitchen gadgets on lifestyleasia.com. The first appliance on the list? A sleek, black Philips Airfryer. This innovative gadget uses air to fry food, rather than calorie-laden oils. You will never find yourself sitting down with a group of friends saying, “Guys, from now on we should start eating healthy!” Instead of being picked on for years to come, try tricking them and yourself, with low cholesterol options such as chips, spring rolls, nuggets and fillets.
Another random yet edible option worth offering the boys on a game night is meatballs. We love to grill and we love meatballs. Put both together in an apparatus that combines the two and what more could men ask for? The Meatball Grill basket is an ingenious creation by Williams Sonoma that holds a dozen meatballs securely. The stainless steel basket has 12 perforated sections to cook the meatballs, allowing the excess fat to drip away.
Men now spend equal amounts of time in the kitchen as they do in the washroom. However, when you find a man in the kitchen, he isn’t just cooking. He’s creating a masterpiece that contains every ingredient he can get his hands on, never ending up with the same dish twice. This process can take a while. With or without another guy to keep him company, the kitchen could be quite a drabby place. That’s why every man should have a small music system to pass his time, while he toils away over a hot electric stove/grill.
Finally. The apartment is tidy, a play list has been queued up, and the beverages are on display. You have a few minutes before your guests arrive and you sit down to survey and appreciate your achievements. Then it hits you. The ice cube trays are empty. These never were a big part of our culinary training while growing up and adjusting to this new experience as bachelors takes some time. How many times have you scurried off to your local supermarket and paid more than Dh5 for a (very) small bag of frozen water? An icemaker is a mandatory requirement for bachelors and Crownline has a nice little number that can make ice cubes in three different sizes — which earns bonus points on the cool-o-metre.
