Roomba 577

iRobot Roomba 577 is an automatic vacuum robot which can be programed to run on its own according to a set schedule of up to 7 times a week. I bought this for Jin as her birthday present but in fact, it's probably a present for both of us. Vacuuming has never been this fun since we adopted this little baby! It comes with a self-docking station for recharging and 2 "lighthouse/virtual wall" units which can be placed strategically around house to direct the Roomba where to vacuum and where not to. The units are crucial for the Roomba to find its way back to the docking station once it finishes vacuuming. The unit comes equipped with multiple sensors at the front to detect obstacles such as walls and furniture and to help it navigate around them. It is also clever enough to detect a ledge so it will not fall down a flight of stairs.

I have tested Roomba on carpet, rug and hard floor and it passes favourably. Because Roomba can adjust its height automatically, it has no problems going from one surface to another, and also unlikely to get bogged down by wires or uneven surfaces. I am absolutely amazed at how effective this little gadget is at the job and the sheer amount of dusts and hair it is capable of picking up.

More info can be found here. If you are sick of regular vacuuming, give this iRobot a go and you will not be disappointed!

BBQ Pork Buns

I have been wanting to share this recipe with you since our trip back home but I was just too lazy to do anything else apart from sitting on my ass every evening watching some Chinese dramas downloaded off the net :P For this recipe, I cheated by purchasing the ready made BBQ pork from a restaurant in Northbridge. You actually can achieve very similar result by marinating pork in Chinese BBQ sauce before cooking them, or even substitute the pork with chicken.

The following recipe with be enough to make about 12-15 buns.

For the dough:
500g plain flour
5 tbs white sugar
0.5 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1.5 tsp of instant yeast
1 tsp of melted butter
260mL of water

Mix the flour, sugar, salt and baking powder in a large bowl and make a center. Add the yeast and slowly mixing in the water with the yeast and work your way out from the center. Add in butter and knead the dough until smooth and set aside in a large bowl covered with damp cloth. Leave the dough for roughly 3 hours at room temperature or until at least double in size.

The filling:
200g of BBQ pork cut into small pieces
3 medium size mushrooms roughly diced
1 large brown onion diced
2 tbs cooking oil
1 tbs oyster sauce
1 tbs chilli sauce
1 tbs soy sauce
2 tbs tomato sauce
2 tsp sugar
small amount of water and starch mixture


Fry the onion with oil in a shallow pan until slightly brown. Add in mushroom and BBQ pork, fry the mixture for about a minute. Add in all the sauces and sugar. Lastly, add in just enough water and starch mixture to thicken the filling. Do not add too much water. Set aside to cool.

Remove the dough and knead it down again until smooth and you are ready. Roll a small amount of dough at a time using a rolling pin and gently fold the filling into the dough as shown in the below. Sit the bun onto a small round piece of baking paper to prevent it from sticking during steaming. Set aside for about 30 minutes at room temperature before steaming. Place the finished buns in a steaming tray and steam under boiling water for about 8 minutes.

Tip: Cooked buns can be frozen immediately once they cool down and can be kept in freezer for a few weeks or longer.