KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 24 – Given how almost all my friends are either recent converts to the KonMari method thanks to the new show Tidying Up with Marie Kondo on Netflix or virulently disgusted by it, largely in part to the decluttering guru’s suggestion that we throw out books that don’t delight us, I have been hearing this question a lot:
“Does this spark joy?”
I haven’t been getting much practice with this inquiry though as I’m already obsessive-compulsively tidy, even without a tiny turquoise tome lecturing me. (As for my books, leave them alone, Marie Kondo. They all spark joy, so much so my bookcase is a veritable firework display.)
That is till I had brunch in a café last weekend and ordered avocado toast. It cost over RM20 and what arrived simply looked sad. It was literally some sliced avocado on barely toasted bread, made without love. Surely I wasn’t expecting more? Yet the thought arose, like bile up my throat:
“Does this avocado toast spark joy?”
It grieves me to say that it did not.
Marie Kondo might have shaken her head in dismay but I did not throw the avocado toast away. It might not have sparked joy but I paid good money for it and I was going to eat it, every last crumb of it.
I’m reminded of how, a couple years ago, an Australian property developer created a huge furore (and launched a million memes) when he reasoned that millennials couldn’t afford down payments on their first homes because they spent too much on avocado toast.
Dubious assertions of millennial excess aside, maybe we are spending far too much on lacklustre avocado toast when dining outside. Why not make our own at home (paid for with money saved on aforementioned avocado toast supposedly)? The ingredients are simple enough and the preparation would take hardly any time at all.
Will a homemade avocado toast spark joy? There’s no guarantee. It certainly won’t cost you a home, that’s for sure.
Of all the various titles that Meghan Markle has, perhaps the best one was conferred on her by an old friend recently: the Avocado Toast Whisperer. You can bet avocados spark joy for the Duchess of Sussex.
Marie Kondo would approve too, probably. Unless it’s a book about avocado toast (The Life-Changing Magic of Avocado Toast, maybe?), then all bets are off...
AVOCADO TOAST WITH BACON & SCRAMBLED EGGS
Does one really need a recipe for avocado toast? It appears simple enough but there must be a reason why most of us pay dear money for it outside rather than making our own.
Perhaps it’s less of the technique – sliced, cubed or smashed, enjoy your avocado however you like it – and more of the quality of ingredients you use.
The avocado ought to be ripe, of course, but don’t neglect the bread. A good sourdough has heft and flavour, to match the green manna you’ll be pairing it with. Stop there for a vegan version but I like mine best with some decadent proteins: crispy bacon and soft-scrambled eggs in plenty of butter are great.
For seasoning, nothing beats sea salt, a good olive oil and a fresh squeeze of lime juice. To add a deeper hit of umami, try a sauce made by thinning out a little Marmite with nam pla (Thai fish sauce). It’s divine.
Ingredients
2 thick slices of sourdough bread
1 avocado
Juice of 1 lime
1 tablespoon butter
6 rashers of bacon
3-4 fresh eggs
1 tablespoon of Greek yoghurt
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 dozen cherry tomatoes
Extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon Marmite
1 tablespoon nam pla (fish sauce)
Method
Slice the sourdough bread into thick pieces using a sharp bread knife. Butter generously, then toast the slices lightly, if desired. Set aside.
Cut the avocado into halves, removing the seed. Next cut the halves into slices or cubes, depending on your preference. Squeeze fresh lime juice over the avocado to prevent them from colouring.
Melt the butter in a large non-stick saucepan. Use medium heat. Add the rashers of bacon. Fry until they take on some nice colour. Remove the crispy bacon from the pan and set aside. Leave the rendered fat from the bacon to scramble the eggs next.
Whisk the eggs with the Greek yoghurt. When the mixture is well combined, add to the saucepan, again on medium heat. Scramble the eggs quickly and remove from the fire before they are about to set. Season with salt and pepper.
Plate the ingredients by layering the scrambled eggs on top of the slices of toast, followed by the bacon and finally the avocado on the very top. Place the cherry tomatoes on the side of the plate. Drizzle some extra virgin olive oil and the Marmite-nam pla mixture over the avocado toast and serve immediately.
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