Dr Siân Robyns
@drsian.bsky.social
PhD Literary Translation Studies; freelance editor; reader; occasional writer; translator, A Tale of Love/ Conte de l'amour bifrons by Linda Lê (Mākaro Press); knitter, mad, mad knitter.
#kai Tempeh Tuesday: tempeh triangles, steamed, then pan-fried and finished with an ad hoc sauce of soy, black sriracha, mirin and sesame oil. Served with avocado, mesclun, roasted capsicum and red onion, eggplant, parsnip and kūmara, and sprinkled with mixed seeds.
November 19, 2025 at 8:05 AM
#kai Tempeh Tuesday: tempeh triangles, steamed, then pan-fried and finished with an ad hoc sauce of soy, black sriracha, mirin and sesame oil. Served with avocado, mesclun, roasted capsicum and red onion, eggplant, parsnip and kūmara, and sprinkled with mixed seeds.
#kai dinner: last of the chicken livers and gluggy buckwheat-leek-asparagus thing, served with shiitake mushrooms and mesclun. Preceded by two excellent artichokes.
November 18, 2025 at 9:24 AM
#kai dinner: last of the chicken livers and gluggy buckwheat-leek-asparagus thing, served with shiitake mushrooms and mesclun. Preceded by two excellent artichokes.
I have a nickel allergy, so these days I only wear gold or sterling silver in my ears. But I do like to collect pretty pins and brooches in other materials, (ceramic, fabric, wood …). Here’s a sample from the collection.
November 18, 2025 at 8:53 AM
I have a nickel allergy, so these days I only wear gold or sterling silver in my ears. But I do like to collect pretty pins and brooches in other materials, (ceramic, fabric, wood …). Here’s a sample from the collection.
#kai. Dinner: teriyaki chicken liver and eggplant over a combination of buckwheat, asparagus and leeks. Good flavours, messy plating, gluggy buckwheat – will play again.
November 17, 2025 at 7:28 AM
#kai. Dinner: teriyaki chicken liver and eggplant over a combination of buckwheat, asparagus and leeks. Good flavours, messy plating, gluggy buckwheat – will play again.
#kai. I liked last week’s smoked fish salad so much that I made another, this time with kingfish. A dilly yoghurt dressing, asparagus, new potatoes, cucumber, radish and lettuce completed the picture.
November 16, 2025 at 7:43 AM
#kai. I liked last week’s smoked fish salad so much that I made another, this time with kingfish. A dilly yoghurt dressing, asparagus, new potatoes, cucumber, radish and lettuce completed the picture.
Excellent thread (giggle).You’ve explained the how and the why so clearly. Here’s my machined version of the same method. I use basting spray to secure patches.
November 15, 2025 at 8:15 PM
Excellent thread (giggle).You’ve explained the how and the why so clearly. Here’s my machined version of the same method. I use basting spray to secure patches.
#kai And to follow, a frittata-ish thing: cottage cheese, ricotta, chèvre, a tiny stub of Parmesan, ham, cauliflower and potato. Accompanied by kimchi.
November 14, 2025 at 7:47 AM
#kai And to follow, a frittata-ish thing: cottage cheese, ricotta, chèvre, a tiny stub of Parmesan, ham, cauliflower and potato. Accompanied by kimchi.
#kai Working my way through the letter ‘A’. Artichoke and asparagus with olive oil for dipping. I do not exaggerate when I say that that artichoke was the best I have ever eaten.
November 14, 2025 at 7:24 AM
#kai Working my way through the letter ‘A’. Artichoke and asparagus with olive oil for dipping. I do not exaggerate when I say that that artichoke was the best I have ever eaten.
#kai just a little snack: crust of Vogels bread, hummus with red capsicum, topped with cherry tomatoes and the magic that is chilli crisp.
November 13, 2025 at 4:22 AM
#kai just a little snack: crust of Vogels bread, hummus with red capsicum, topped with cherry tomatoes and the magic that is chilli crisp.
And I’m cool neighbour to these two: Tommy (l) and Molly (r). Siblings, three years old, they haunt our place, terrorising Ngeru, demanding games, and refusing to go home for dinner.
November 11, 2025 at 8:13 PM
And I’m cool neighbour to these two: Tommy (l) and Molly (r). Siblings, three years old, they haunt our place, terrorising Ngeru, demanding games, and refusing to go home for dinner.
#SecretSantaAoNZ I’m lucky enough to be companion person to these two young dudes: Ngeru the Handsome (black nose) and Buddy the Mini Chonk. They’re five years old and joined us from the SPCA at four months as tiny, frightened scraps. Happily, they warmed up!
November 11, 2025 at 8:05 PM
#SecretSantaAoNZ I’m lucky enough to be companion person to these two young dudes: Ngeru the Handsome (black nose) and Buddy the Mini Chonk. They’re five years old and joined us from the SPCA at four months as tiny, frightened scraps. Happily, they warmed up!
#kai mixed lettuces, asparagus, avocado, kūmara, cauliflower and tarakihi, dressed with olive oil and preserved lemon. Salty, citrusy, early-summery.
November 11, 2025 at 8:02 AM
#kai mixed lettuces, asparagus, avocado, kūmara, cauliflower and tarakihi, dressed with olive oil and preserved lemon. Salty, citrusy, early-summery.
#kai. Post-scope dinner: chicken and lemon risotto daubed with green herb pesto and steamed asparagus. Not pictured: the handful of grapes, the handful of cherry tomatoes and the bowl of fresh pineapple. (Result: apart from the boring, minor IBD, all is well.)
November 10, 2025 at 7:25 AM
#kai. Post-scope dinner: chicken and lemon risotto daubed with green herb pesto and steamed asparagus. Not pictured: the handful of grapes, the handful of cherry tomatoes and the bowl of fresh pineapple. (Result: apart from the boring, minor IBD, all is well.)
Scenes from an evening walk. Content warning: mythical animal abuse.
November 10, 2025 at 7:20 AM
Scenes from an evening walk. Content warning: mythical animal abuse.
#kai a day of pre-scope eating. Breakfast: rock melon, yoghurt, cashew butter, and a drop or two of maple syrup.
Lunch: supermarket‘baguette’, smoked kahawai salad, cos, and Gruyère.
Dinner: white pizza with ricotta, ham,
parmesan, and a sprinkle of basil; mixed lettuces and avocado.
Lunch: supermarket‘baguette’, smoked kahawai salad, cos, and Gruyère.
Dinner: white pizza with ricotta, ham,
parmesan, and a sprinkle of basil; mixed lettuces and avocado.
November 8, 2025 at 6:12 AM
#kai a day of pre-scope eating. Breakfast: rock melon, yoghurt, cashew butter, and a drop or two of maple syrup.
Lunch: supermarket‘baguette’, smoked kahawai salad, cos, and Gruyère.
Dinner: white pizza with ricotta, ham,
parmesan, and a sprinkle of basil; mixed lettuces and avocado.
Lunch: supermarket‘baguette’, smoked kahawai salad, cos, and Gruyère.
Dinner: white pizza with ricotta, ham,
parmesan, and a sprinkle of basil; mixed lettuces and avocado.
#kai Lemon chicken risotto as suggested by @swampy-kiwi.bsky.social and cauliflower with a herb and garlic pesto. Rather good and not too beige.
November 7, 2025 at 8:49 AM
#kai Lemon chicken risotto as suggested by @swampy-kiwi.bsky.social and cauliflower with a herb and garlic pesto. Rather good and not too beige.
#mokai Gremlin Molly from next door. A cute and dainty nuisance with the gait of an under-rehearsed pantomime horse. Here, she’s demanding I drop everything to play. She’s like one of those annoying little kids who won’t go home.
November 7, 2025 at 6:13 AM
#mokai Gremlin Molly from next door. A cute and dainty nuisance with the gait of an under-rehearsed pantomime horse. Here, she’s demanding I drop everything to play. She’s like one of those annoying little kids who won’t go home.
Wild and weedy but very pretty early in the morning.
November 6, 2025 at 6:46 PM
Wild and weedy but very pretty early in the morning.
#kai. The shop-the-freezer adventure continues. Discovered several packets of smoked fish, so tonight dinner was a salad of smoked fish, potato, asparagus, radish and fennel in a yoghurty dill dressing atop a pile of rocket.
November 6, 2025 at 9:41 AM
#kai. The shop-the-freezer adventure continues. Discovered several packets of smoked fish, so tonight dinner was a salad of smoked fish, potato, asparagus, radish and fennel in a yoghurty dill dressing atop a pile of rocket.
#kai Vegetable dumplings, chicken, shiitake and broccolini in peanutty, red curry broth lightened with lime. A few blobs of chilli crisp never go astray.
November 5, 2025 at 7:40 AM
#kai Vegetable dumplings, chicken, shiitake and broccolini in peanutty, red curry broth lightened with lime. A few blobs of chilli crisp never go astray.
Because tonight we celebrate while remaking alert to whatever comes next.
November 5, 2025 at 4:34 AM
Because tonight we celebrate while remaking alert to whatever comes next.
#kai Dinner: a chicken salad inspired by Newday, Newtown. Chicken breast, diced fennel and spring onion in a dressing of Greek-style yoghurt, mayo (a token squidgy of two, no more), dill and lemon. Served with rocket, baby spinach, radish, cucumber and kūmara. Needed more lemon. Will play again.
November 4, 2025 at 8:09 AM
#kai Dinner: a chicken salad inspired by Newday, Newtown. Chicken breast, diced fennel and spring onion in a dressing of Greek-style yoghurt, mayo (a token squidgy of two, no more), dill and lemon. Served with rocket, baby spinach, radish, cucumber and kūmara. Needed more lemon. Will play again.