Meanwhile, back at the ranch, our trusty men were trying to rustle up some grub on their own. Baird pulled out the frozen red bean and sesame buns I picked up in China Town a few weeks ago. He decided to microwave them rather than steam them. The instructions on the back of the package said to microwave the buns for 2-3 minutes.
If you're not familiar with these tasty treats, they can best be described as a delicate bread-like bun with a slightly sweet filling. To microwave them on HIGH for three minutes in our powerful microwave would be sheer folly. Please keep in mind that these little buns are made in China. The packaging is mostly in Chinese with what could be called English subtitles. I can't help but think the person who wrote in English to microwave these two- or three-bite treats may not have had a very good grasp of the English language or the powerful microwave. Or perhaps they meant that you could microwave the entire bag on lower power for two to three minutes. Clearly, something was lost in translation between reader and writer. My dear hubby hit the three-minute quick-cook button on the microwave and walked away.
Two-and-a-half minutes later, he smelled something a bit burned and walked back into kitchen. He was greeted by smoke billowing out of the microwave, and his poor snack had turned into sticky black liquid, which had fused quite stubbornly onto the plate on which it rested (in peace).
I knew something was wrong the minute I pulled up to the house. It's mid-February, and the kitchen windows were thrown wide open. My very first thought was, "What burned?" And as soon as I opened the back door my suspicions were confirmed: something burned, and burned badly. I was relieved to see the kitchen was still in one piece and the men of the house were no worse for wear. Baird told me what happened and I couldn't help but think, "Who microwaves tiny buns for 3 minutes?" Well, now I know.
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