Day In The Life Of A Chinese Revert (& Toddler Dad!) During Ramadan 2023

Flashback to 2016. The time is 5:10AM. I’m in the kitchen quietly getting ready for sahur. It’s not easy trying to be stealthy while putting together something to eat in the wee hours of the morning. ? It also wasn’t easy being the only Muslim in the house. Fast forward to present day Ramadan 2023, I’m still standing in the kitchen preparing meals - but they’re not just for myself this time. They’re for my family now! If you’ve ever wondered what a day in the life of a Chinese revert (and a toddler dad!) is like during Ramadan, let me share what it’s like preparing for our sahur and iftar meals. ?? 

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Waking up for sahur

Before I was married, sahur was a rather quiet and lonely part of my Ramadan, however, that’s not the case anymore. Interestingly now my wife, Suzana and I try to stay quiet for an entirely different reason - so as not to wake up our toddler although she has been waking up at odd hours because of teething. ? We’re on our tippy toes to get things done during sahur time and have a back-up plan of ready-to-eat food (eg. yoghurt, instant oats, bananas) in case she wakes up! Can any other parent relate to this? 

Anyone who knows me personally, knows that I am the chef at home! I’m in charge of the meal prep and I usually like to prepare our sahur meals fresh every morning. ? Some of our favourite sahur meals include scrambled egg wraps, croissants with eggs or tuna, and honey chicken wrap. Other foods we enjoy are overnight oats, milo, soy milk, fruits, and a couple pieces of dates in the morning! 

#HHWT Tip: Try to incorporate foods with more protein that can keep you fuller for longer like oats, yoghurt and eggs! These are breakfast foods anyway so just have a little more of them for sahur and you’ll be good to go.

It’s hard to stomach any food especially this early in the morning, so I usually look to prepare appetising meals (at least to us!). I don’t want to wake up too early to spend time cooking so we need meals that we can quickly prepare right after waking up. In fact, I even prepare my scrambled eggs mixture the night before! Having to wake up for sahur gives us less time to sleep and I’d say that lack of sleep is arguably as tough as not eating or drinking from dawn to dusk. ? 

#Meal Prep Idea: ‘Frozen’ Pancakes

If you’re pressed for time in the morning, here’s an easy and quick way to prepare your sahur meal! Simply prepare some pancake batter (you can also use premade pancake mix) and divide them into silicone ice trays and freeze overnight - you can add some fruits or chocolate chips at this step too. In the morning, you can just pop them out of the moulds and into a frying pan immediately. This saves lots of time and you’ll get fresh pancakes every time!

Time for work

Work fills a large part of my life. Alhamdulillah, HHWT is almost 8 years old this year. It has been a difficult journey especially with the curveballs that the pandemic has thrown at us all, but we've built an organisation with purpose. Every day is a new challenge, but at least we all know that we're making a difference to the Ummah.

Getting ready for iftar

Iftar for busy parents can be a struggle and I’m no exception with two working parents in the household. Commuting from the office to childcare to pick up my kid and heading back home is no easy feat. Fortunately, when Ramadan rolls around, I get the support of my dad (who’s a non-Muslim)! He helps me with iftar meal prep. ? It helps me save a lot of time especially with a toddler who’s usually cranky and wants dinner asap! 

P.S. My daughter was super excited to put up Raya lights this year and my dad even helped us with putting it up! Did you know that you can get Raya decorations from FairPrice? Well, if you didn’t know now you do! We usually put up our lights at the start of Ramadan and we have been reusing our ketupat lights. Putting them up early helps keep the mood festive in our home!

The meals we prepare for her are made using a baby cooker so it’s fast and efficient. She usually has grilled mushrooms, sweet potatoes, porridge, soup, fruits, and yoghurt!

When it’s time to break fast, we always start with eating some dates. As for meals, we have some rice with soupy dishes (for better hydration during Ramadan!). Typically, our family enjoys some fruits after prayers in the evening and we drink lots of water then too.

What we’re up to during the weekends

For busy people like Suzana and I, the weekends are the best time to get in some R & R also known as relaxation and recreation, though there isn’t actually a down time for parents with young children, is there? Since we’re fasting and we don’t want to exert too much energy, so we’ll go to the library with our toddler or visit an indoor playground. But we don’t exactly get to enjoy the full R & R experience because chasing a toddler around is already quite the workout!

The weekends are also when we’ll head to the nearest supermarket to get groceries before iftar. We often make weekly trips to FairPrice at Tampines Mall because we love the selection of groceries and products. It’s something we’ve been doing for years since we got married - we know exactly which aisle to go to for what we need (no getting side-tracked here!). Recently, we see a lot more halal international products during our grocery runs! There’s halal kimchi, gochujang, diced radish kimchi and many other Japanese and Thai ingredients. We love international food and it’s exciting to know that it’s all available at FairPrice and with wallet-friendly prices too. How convenient! 

Here’s something we bet you never knew! If you happen to be shopping at FairPrice close to break fast hours, there are dates, snacks and drinks given out in-store for you to break your fast while you shop, before going home for your long awaited iftar meal!

P.S. The halal beef counter is one of our favourite places in the store - did you know you can request to have the meat vacuum packed? That way it can last longer in the chiller, around 15 days! 

For iftar on the weekends, we usually have it with our extended family at home. For the 1st weekend of Ramadan this year, Suzana’s family came over and I cooked kimchi fried rice, baked veggies and grilled miso salmon on the side. ? Check out my recipe for kimchi fried rice here:

Ingredients (Serves 3)

• 3 bowls steamed rice
• 1 cup chopped kimchi
• ¼ cup kimchi juice (spicy red juice from the pack of kimchi)
• ¼ cup water
• 2-3 tablespoons gochujang
• 3 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
• 1 green onion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon roasted sesame seeds
• 1 sheet of seaweed, roasted and shredded into strips (optional)
• Shredded mozzarella (optional)
  
  For chicken:
• 2 pieces chicken breasts
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• 1 spring of fresh rosemary leaves
  
  

Instructions

1. Heat up a wide, flat pan or skillet. 
2. Add the vegetable oil.
3. Add the kimchi and stir fry for 1 minute over medium-high heat.
4. Add rice, kimchi juice, water, and gochujang. Stir all the ingredients well.
5. Add sesame oil and remove from the heat.
6. Garnish with sprinkled chopped green onion, roasted gim, and sesame seeds. Optional: Sprinkle the shredded mozzarella if you love cheese!
7. Portion out and serve hot!
   
   For chicken:
8. Cut up chicken breasts into smaller pieces and add into a bowl
9. Add vegetable oil, rosemary, salt and pepper to the bowl
10. Massage the chicken well to marinade
11. Heat up a pan 
12. Add chicken and cook well
13. Once the chicken is cooked, add it to the kimchi fried rice and mix well

It’s only natural that everyone is thirsty and craving something refreshing to break fast. Sometimes we go for coconut water or make our own drinks like sparkling Ribena! 

Celebrating Ramadan with family can make the experience even more meaningful and fulfilling. After all, one of the fundamental essences of Ramadan is getting closer to faith and family! Even with a hectic schedule, I’m able to enjoy mornings and evenings with my family and FairPrice has helped make that process smoother during Ramadan. With their big selection of halal international products, you’ll be able to prepare any cuisine of your (or your family’s) choice! You can even count on them for your Raya prep too - I know I will!

Shop Fairprice Ramadan & Raya necessities here!

This article was written in partnership with FairPrice.