Salmon Teriyaki Don

What do you do with a princess who could not get up from bed in the morning?

The answer is quite simple actually. Either fry up a batch of bacon or cook a comforting bowl of salmon teriyaki don. Once you are done cooking, just leave the bedroom door ajar and let it do its magic. Who can resist the smell of smoky bacon or savoury-sweet soy sauce?

Princess was out of her room before her bowl even landed on the dining table.  

I put this dish together in under 30 minutes from start to finish. Easy right? Sure it is if you define finish as the bowl landing on the dining table. However, for most home cooks, finish including putting away the last rag/dish towel/cleaning cloth after you scrub down the whole kitchen. And for you information, teriyaki-anything is a messy affair. The sauce spits at you and splatters everywhere. Sometimes you get more sauce on your stove than on the pan. 

On this hot and humid island, the question I kept asking myself is why bother cooking when there are similar options out there?

Alternative #1: Pepper Lunch

Photo: from their website

For S$10.90! And without all the cleaning, what a deal! But I hate the stench of their food, especially when someone orders their salmon and rice dish. They need serious help. By the way, I had just found out that the original Pepper Lunch from Japan does not do this Frankenstein, because they mainly serving beef with their rice.

Alternative #2: Yoshinoya

Photo: from their website

I must absolutely share my new pastime watching this lady eat. In a YouTube video, she put away 10 bowls of Yoshinoya beef bowl. 10 bowls!! OMG! 

Ok, back to Alternative #2. Don't get me wrong, unlike Pepper Lunch, I love Yoshinoya. But just not their salmon bowl. This is another Frankenstein by the local franchisee. I mean, come on, does it even look appetising? Yoshinoya Japan does a much more decent job. At least the salmon is still in a recognisable form.

Photo: from their website

Alternative #3: Ichiban Boshi

Photo: from their website

Now, from this photo, you know this is a serious contender. The only reason why I don't visit them, or most Japanese restaurants, as often as I would like to for a simple reason - they don't serve enough vegetables, specifically kid-friendly vegetables. Look that those two perfectly cut red and yellow peppers. Try get kids to eat them. Good luck! Is that spring onion garnish considered vegetables? 

Yes, I am a very fussy when chosing food especially when it is food going into princess's stomach. Every bite counts and every meal counts. It is my way of teaching her to feed herself well and be more discerning about food. And for this choice, I will have to pay with time, effort, fishy smelling hair and clothes from the frying and major oil/sauce splatter cleanup after the frying. So is it really worth cooking at home?

Her instagram said it all.