One of the things I associate with my own dad is the Chow Fan. His mix is never the same, but it always tasted great. He never really plans to make it, nor jdoes he buy any ingredients for one. It just appears one day, and when I grew up a little, I learned why.
Grocery shopping for the family often involves a lot of planning, and with the fickle nature both moms and kids, these plans almost never really come to fruition. Often times, you buy ingredients for a dish that eventually never gets made, simply because no one happens to be in the mood for it.
There are also times when you cook a really big serving of a dish, like adobo, or shanghai, and unfortunately, you end up with a bunch of leftovers. Not enough for the whole family to eat, but just enough for a solo meal. Maybe you'll eat it later, maybe you won't.
Sometimes, you end up buying too much of an ingredient, and end up with a small amount left in the fridge. Too small to be used for a family meal, but too lazy to make a meal just for yourself. (You almost completely forget how to cook just for yourself when you get married or become a parent). So it get's left in the fridge, patiently waiting.
These situations have happened my dad and in my own family as well. You get a lot of ingredients that are just sitting there. A couple of hotdogs, a few pieces of leftover chicken, some ground beef that is too small for a full serving, and some leftover veggies and shanghai fillings. In cases like this, my dad takes all of them, and works his magic: and so another impromptu Chow Fan is born.
In honor of my dad, who happens to be celebrating his birthday today, I also ended up making a delicious chow fan with some leftover butter, ground beef, chicken adobo, shanghai fillings, 1/8 of a cabbage, 2 eggs, and a single carrot. Voila! Here's my daddy inspired chow fan.
For the dads out there, if you notice a lot of ingredients in the fridge that are just sitting there, possibly doomed to rot, maybe it's time to put on the chef's hat and surprise your family with a huge helping of chow fan. Maybe your kids will remember you for it too, never making the same chow fan twice. I know I did, and I hope to pass this on to my kids one day!
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