I figured out how to cook really tasty rice in a thermal pot. In fact, I have been using the thermal pot quite a bit since it was bought. The pot was actually on sale at Giant Hypermarket for S$70 depends on the principle of heat conservation to cook your food. Instead of relying on direct sustained heat from the stove for cooking, the pot retains heat and uses it to sustain the high temperature so that food continues cooking the food slowly using the remainder heat.
In a way, this represents a saving in gas consumption. And it also does not let the food burn or boil over. Furthermore, you can leave the food inside the pot for as long as you want and even after 10 hours, the food is still warm enough that it tastes good without reheating.
For the really uninitiated, a thermal pot consists of an external insulation pot and an internal pot. Essentially, you will boil the stuff that you need to cook in the internal pot for no less than 10 minutes. Then you turn off the fire and transfer this internal pot to sit in the external insulation pot. The insulation maintains the high temperature for a long time and a few hours later, you'll actually have great stew.
The important thing is this: the food gets cooked, you save gas and you save time. It's been a good buy so far and most soups and desserts requiring extended boiling times are good when cooked this way.
The only minor adjustments that need to be done are to reduce the quantity of water and increase the quantity of ingredients. After all, the lack of evaporation will have some impact on your food.
Essentially, rice is simple. Boil the rice and the water in the internal pot for about 5 minutes (small amounts) and then lock it in the external pot for 3 hours. My goodness, when you look at those cooked, shiny glistening rice grains, tell me who's appetite won't be whetted.
Showing posts with label epicurism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label epicurism. Show all posts
Monday, March 02, 2009
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Chinese New Year Wet Blanket
There is no such thing as a celebration without good food. Good food, by commonsense definition, is food that is neither good for your heart (or for that matter, all your organs, except for taste) nor waistline. So here is what the newspaper supplement has to tell us about the goodies that we stuff our faces with during Chinese New Year. Of course, I'll tell you what I think!
Fried battered nian gao (55 g) - 224 Cal, 5.4 g fat.
Nian gao, the gooey, glutinous mass of sugared flour cake, is a must have for Chinese New Year. It signifies "progress with every step". If you love to eat it, go ahead and eat it. Otherwise, do what I do - I buy it, display it, mould it and dump it.
Roast duck 3 (paper thin) slices (60 g) - 143 Cal, 10 g fat.
I think this is a conspiracy. All other times, I bet you the whole roast duck is 143 Cal! Unfortunately, roast duck is a perennial favourite year round and if your waistline doesn't seem to be shrinking despite your trillion crunches a day, perhaps it is time to reconsider to duck the duck.
Braised dried oysters with mixed vegetables and fatt choy (60 g) - 50 Cal, 4 g fat.
Dietiticians of the world ought to be shot! And then shot and shot and shot and shot... you get the message. Can you imagine how small a 60 g portion of this delicacy is? I cannot imagine that this is... ok, 50 Cal. It's not as bad a 3 paper thin slices of roast duck. But still!
Tossed fish salad (100 g) - 145 Cal, 11 g fat.
The tossed fish salad represents brisk business and many people go through at least a good handful of meals featuring this Cantonese favourite. One way of reducing the fat and calorie content is to avoid adding all the oil into the salad. Ask for half or a third of the bowl of oil to be added. Each gram of fat less could help reduce the calorie count a little. Trust me, it ain't that bad with less oil.
Chicken curry with coconut milk (220 g) - 342 Cal, 28 g fat.
I have yet to figure why anyone would eat chicken curry (a dish typically served to visitors at wakes) during Chinese New Year. It is as though the "heat" and the overly rich foods aren't enough to overload your poor stomach that you need to add to its burden by drinking copious coconut milk! I mean, aren't we happier eating pineapple tarts, bak kwa, kueh lapis, love letters and other artery clogging items?
Pineapple tarts (20 g) - 82 Cal, 4 g fat.
Kueh lapis (50 g) - 247 Cal, 19 g fat.
Bak kwa aka jerky 3 coin pieces (45 g) - 180 Cal, 6 g fat.
Love letters 3 pieces (40 g) - 172 Cal, 5 g fat.
One cannot help but need to place these four items together because almost each household one visits during the Chinese New Year will bombard guests with versions of these. It is hard to accept that a pop a mouthful goodies can be so chockful of calories. 82 calories for a pineapple tart! My goodness you tart! What hedonistic abandon! A slice of two bite kueh lapis makes you go for another and before you know it, you probably have eaten three slices. That's about the calorific equivalent of a place of wanton noodles! The other culprit for the grow in your hips moment is bak kwa aka jerky. Trust me - there is absolutely no f**king way to stop at 45 g. I confess I could polish off five times of that without breaking into a sweat! Melt in your mouth love letters are another of your worst enemies. Many friends can easily clean out half a tin - that's a whopping 30 pieces! Now, with these wonderful food friends, who needs enemies?
Other food items to add more dampener to your already dripping wet blanket:
Peanuts (20 g, about 15 or a handful) - 120 Cal, 10 g fat.
Melon seeds (8 g, about 1 tbs) - 30 Cal, 3 g fat.
Mandarin orange (116 g, 1 whole) - 51 Cal, 0.3 g fat.
Kueh bangkit (18 g or 3 pieces) - 69 Cal, 2 g fat.
Sharksfin with crabmeat (295 g, half a bowl or better known as two mouthfuls) - 162 Cal, 7 g fat.
I wonder why our bodies NEVER adapt to the better world we are in and learn to burn more energy with less activity. I am sure there must be a genetic flaw.
Meanwhile, Happy Chinese New Year. I hear the new wardrobe calling.
Fried battered nian gao (55 g) - 224 Cal, 5.4 g fat.
Nian gao, the gooey, glutinous mass of sugared flour cake, is a must have for Chinese New Year. It signifies "progress with every step". If you love to eat it, go ahead and eat it. Otherwise, do what I do - I buy it, display it, mould it and dump it.
Roast duck 3 (paper thin) slices (60 g) - 143 Cal, 10 g fat.
I think this is a conspiracy. All other times, I bet you the whole roast duck is 143 Cal! Unfortunately, roast duck is a perennial favourite year round and if your waistline doesn't seem to be shrinking despite your trillion crunches a day, perhaps it is time to reconsider to duck the duck.
Braised dried oysters with mixed vegetables and fatt choy (60 g) - 50 Cal, 4 g fat.
Dietiticians of the world ought to be shot! And then shot and shot and shot and shot... you get the message. Can you imagine how small a 60 g portion of this delicacy is? I cannot imagine that this is... ok, 50 Cal. It's not as bad a 3 paper thin slices of roast duck. But still!
Tossed fish salad (100 g) - 145 Cal, 11 g fat.
The tossed fish salad represents brisk business and many people go through at least a good handful of meals featuring this Cantonese favourite. One way of reducing the fat and calorie content is to avoid adding all the oil into the salad. Ask for half or a third of the bowl of oil to be added. Each gram of fat less could help reduce the calorie count a little. Trust me, it ain't that bad with less oil.
Chicken curry with coconut milk (220 g) - 342 Cal, 28 g fat.
I have yet to figure why anyone would eat chicken curry (a dish typically served to visitors at wakes) during Chinese New Year. It is as though the "heat" and the overly rich foods aren't enough to overload your poor stomach that you need to add to its burden by drinking copious coconut milk! I mean, aren't we happier eating pineapple tarts, bak kwa, kueh lapis, love letters and other artery clogging items?
Pineapple tarts (20 g) - 82 Cal, 4 g fat.
Kueh lapis (50 g) - 247 Cal, 19 g fat.
Bak kwa aka jerky 3 coin pieces (45 g) - 180 Cal, 6 g fat.
Love letters 3 pieces (40 g) - 172 Cal, 5 g fat.
One cannot help but need to place these four items together because almost each household one visits during the Chinese New Year will bombard guests with versions of these. It is hard to accept that a pop a mouthful goodies can be so chockful of calories. 82 calories for a pineapple tart! My goodness you tart! What hedonistic abandon! A slice of two bite kueh lapis makes you go for another and before you know it, you probably have eaten three slices. That's about the calorific equivalent of a place of wanton noodles! The other culprit for the grow in your hips moment is bak kwa aka jerky. Trust me - there is absolutely no f**king way to stop at 45 g. I confess I could polish off five times of that without breaking into a sweat! Melt in your mouth love letters are another of your worst enemies. Many friends can easily clean out half a tin - that's a whopping 30 pieces! Now, with these wonderful food friends, who needs enemies?
Other food items to add more dampener to your already dripping wet blanket:
Peanuts (20 g, about 15 or a handful) - 120 Cal, 10 g fat.
Melon seeds (8 g, about 1 tbs) - 30 Cal, 3 g fat.
Mandarin orange (116 g, 1 whole) - 51 Cal, 0.3 g fat.
Kueh bangkit (18 g or 3 pieces) - 69 Cal, 2 g fat.
Sharksfin with crabmeat (295 g, half a bowl or better known as two mouthfuls) - 162 Cal, 7 g fat.
I wonder why our bodies NEVER adapt to the better world we are in and learn to burn more energy with less activity. I am sure there must be a genetic flaw.
Meanwhile, Happy Chinese New Year. I hear the new wardrobe calling.
Sunday, August 10, 2008
New Dish to my Culinary Repetoire
I made Rendang Lamb Shank yesterday.
It was the first time I cooked something like that and even though the rendang paste (rendang is a dry red curry) is from a packet, I managed to whip out shank meat that give to the bite, melt in the mouth and entirely devoid of the musk (or whatever you call that smell) that comes with the goat. I wish I had a picture but alas, the mouths moved faster than the feet to the camera.
Here's the recipe, if you are intending to try:
2 lamb shanks (1 kg)
500 ml plain yogurt
100 ml whipped cream (or replace with 100 ml yogurt)
200 ml water
1 onion sliced
1 carrot diced
2 tomatoes diced
Butter and cooking oil
1 packet rendang paste (for 1.3 kg meat)
Generous dash of port (optional)
Salt/sugar to taste
Juice from 1 lemon (optinal)
Lots of love and patience
1. Make sure that lamb shanks are defrosted when you start.
2. Clean lamb shanks and puncture the muscles with a knife. Make sure you get deep holes in the flesh where you can easily slide your index finger in totally.
3. Marinate the lamb shank with 300 ml yogurt. Massage the yogurt all over the outside and the deep scores of the meat for an hour.
4. Heat in a deep pot butter and oil and fry onion till transparent or lightly browned. Your pot should be just big enough to fit the two shanks, or you'll have to add a lot more water and yogurt to cook them.
5. Remove the lamb from the yogurt and squeeze dry. Add to the pot and brown all the sides. When both shanks are seared and the pot base is getting burnt, add port, all the water, and 200 ml of yogurt. Make sure you stir the mixture till the yogurt and water are well mixed. The liquids should just about cover the shanks. There may be some bits sticking out but that is fine. You need to turn the meat anyway.
6. Simmer over medium low heat and let the liquids reduce. Make sure you stir occasionally to prevent the base from sticking and turn the shanks to ensure even cooking.
7. After about 40 minutes, add the rendang mixture and the whipped cream/yogurt and combine into the liquids.
8. Continue simmering until the liquids reduce to half the amount where you started and the meat is ready to fall off the bone if lightly tugged at. Use a fork, if you really want to see how sinewy it still is. Before you turn off the fire, add seasonings to taste. I love my food slightly tart as the acids help cut through the grease. So I added the juice of one lemon.
9. Cool, skim the excess oil from the top of the pot and serve with hot plain rice and any salad. Lassi is recommended if you need to cut the spiciness.
Serves 2 - 4 people, depending on their appetites.
The beauty of this dish is that it allows you to decide how dry you want your curry base and how soft you want the meat. If you want more curry base, add more yogurt/milk. Water is ok but it dilutes the gravy. If you want firmer meat, remove meat when you are ok with the texture and do whatever you want to the gravy before you put back the meat to warm before you serve.
Be warned though - if curry is your stuff, you may go through a padi field by the time the meal is over.
Anyway, my next dinner party guests could be in luck!
It was the first time I cooked something like that and even though the rendang paste (rendang is a dry red curry) is from a packet, I managed to whip out shank meat that give to the bite, melt in the mouth and entirely devoid of the musk (or whatever you call that smell) that comes with the goat. I wish I had a picture but alas, the mouths moved faster than the feet to the camera.
Here's the recipe, if you are intending to try:
2 lamb shanks (1 kg)
500 ml plain yogurt
100 ml whipped cream (or replace with 100 ml yogurt)
200 ml water
1 onion sliced
1 carrot diced
2 tomatoes diced
Butter and cooking oil
1 packet rendang paste (for 1.3 kg meat)
Generous dash of port (optional)
Salt/sugar to taste
Juice from 1 lemon (optinal)
Lots of love and patience
1. Make sure that lamb shanks are defrosted when you start.
2. Clean lamb shanks and puncture the muscles with a knife. Make sure you get deep holes in the flesh where you can easily slide your index finger in totally.
3. Marinate the lamb shank with 300 ml yogurt. Massage the yogurt all over the outside and the deep scores of the meat for an hour.
4. Heat in a deep pot butter and oil and fry onion till transparent or lightly browned. Your pot should be just big enough to fit the two shanks, or you'll have to add a lot more water and yogurt to cook them.
5. Remove the lamb from the yogurt and squeeze dry. Add to the pot and brown all the sides. When both shanks are seared and the pot base is getting burnt, add port, all the water, and 200 ml of yogurt. Make sure you stir the mixture till the yogurt and water are well mixed. The liquids should just about cover the shanks. There may be some bits sticking out but that is fine. You need to turn the meat anyway.
6. Simmer over medium low heat and let the liquids reduce. Make sure you stir occasionally to prevent the base from sticking and turn the shanks to ensure even cooking.
7. After about 40 minutes, add the rendang mixture and the whipped cream/yogurt and combine into the liquids.
8. Continue simmering until the liquids reduce to half the amount where you started and the meat is ready to fall off the bone if lightly tugged at. Use a fork, if you really want to see how sinewy it still is. Before you turn off the fire, add seasonings to taste. I love my food slightly tart as the acids help cut through the grease. So I added the juice of one lemon.
9. Cool, skim the excess oil from the top of the pot and serve with hot plain rice and any salad. Lassi is recommended if you need to cut the spiciness.
Serves 2 - 4 people, depending on their appetites.
The beauty of this dish is that it allows you to decide how dry you want your curry base and how soft you want the meat. If you want more curry base, add more yogurt/milk. Water is ok but it dilutes the gravy. If you want firmer meat, remove meat when you are ok with the texture and do whatever you want to the gravy before you put back the meat to warm before you serve.
Be warned though - if curry is your stuff, you may go through a padi field by the time the meal is over.
Anyway, my next dinner party guests could be in luck!
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Improvisational Cooking
I have been watching too much AFC. (I am so shy to even tell you what it stands for. But what the heck - Asian Food Channel.) I have been watching the likes of famous chefs such as Jean-Christoph Nouvelli (usually on Saturday/Everyday Cooks), Michael Smith (Chef at Home/Chef at Large), Anna Olsen (Sugar), Gordon Ramsey (Hell's Kitchen/The F Word), Hugh Fernley-Whittingstall (River Cottage Series), Jamie Oliver (Jamie's own cooking series), Robert Rainford (License to Grill) etc. I know I would be accused of being silly to put Nigella Dawson here but hey, she whips up a mean supper (the Brits got it all wrong - supper's for late night; it's dinner). So challenge me!
And I must say that these great cooks have one thing in common: they are not sticklers of recipes.
There is no better teacher than experience. Cooking is about getting your hands dirty and finding out in the end if things work out.
If you are where I am at, things like parsnip and lamb and whatever you need in those "atas" (high class) cook books cost an arm and an leg. You are better off not following them than following them because you are going to be a couple of items short of the complete recipe. To acquire that missing item at the atas supermarket, that item's cost will probably be 50% or more of the remaining stuff you need. (I believe they call it the Pareto Principle - and it's for the cost and not for the taste.) People are worried about their food not turning out right. They are worried about not getting the correct flavour. They loathe to make replacements.
But these great chefs on TV keep emphasising one thing - whatever you already have at home can do the job well enough. I think I have benefited from their wisdom. I change my food preparation techniques so that I get my onions out in half the time I used to. I taste my marinades before I dump in the food. I taste my food before I serve. I throw in my seasonings without measurement. I know when a dollop of butter, a dash of olive oil, a splash of balsamic vinegar, a squirt of fish sauce, a touch of pepper, a sprinkling of sugar or a few twists of my miracle salt will do the trick.
And most importantly, you need a group of friends who are most adventurous and supportive of your culinary experiments. They should be people who tell you that there is no failed experiment. Cooked food is good food. And before you know it, you are off to even greater culinary heights.
PS. I am usually floored by simple dishes and small portions. I burnt a pot of quick cooking oats I prepared for two persons' breakfast yesterday. *Blush*
And I must say that these great cooks have one thing in common: they are not sticklers of recipes.
There is no better teacher than experience. Cooking is about getting your hands dirty and finding out in the end if things work out.
If you are where I am at, things like parsnip and lamb and whatever you need in those "atas" (high class) cook books cost an arm and an leg. You are better off not following them than following them because you are going to be a couple of items short of the complete recipe. To acquire that missing item at the atas supermarket, that item's cost will probably be 50% or more of the remaining stuff you need. (I believe they call it the Pareto Principle - and it's for the cost and not for the taste.) People are worried about their food not turning out right. They are worried about not getting the correct flavour. They loathe to make replacements.
But these great chefs on TV keep emphasising one thing - whatever you already have at home can do the job well enough. I think I have benefited from their wisdom. I change my food preparation techniques so that I get my onions out in half the time I used to. I taste my marinades before I dump in the food. I taste my food before I serve. I throw in my seasonings without measurement. I know when a dollop of butter, a dash of olive oil, a splash of balsamic vinegar, a squirt of fish sauce, a touch of pepper, a sprinkling of sugar or a few twists of my miracle salt will do the trick.
And most importantly, you need a group of friends who are most adventurous and supportive of your culinary experiments. They should be people who tell you that there is no failed experiment. Cooked food is good food. And before you know it, you are off to even greater culinary heights.
PS. I am usually floored by simple dishes and small portions. I burnt a pot of quick cooking oats I prepared for two persons' breakfast yesterday. *Blush*
"Leducing" Leftovers
(Ok, lame try at alliteration. Hahaha....)
Leftovers, leftovers, leftovers. What better than to pile everything together and bake bread pudding?
The Recipe
Foreword: This is a very healthy recipe. No oil is added. If you are feeling ascetic, you could even remove an egg or a yolk, reduce the sugar, omit the chocolate medallions, omit the nuts if you are nut-resistant and omit the honey. It is really a free for all recipe.
2 cups of milk (I used low fat, high calcium.)
2 eggs - 2nd egg or 2nd egg yolk optional
3 tablespoons of sugar (instead of 4, and there will be a variation to the typical bread pudding!)
Mix the liquids and the sugar together. Make sure that the sugar dissolves.
8 slices of stale bread
Dunk into milk-egg mixture and let it soak up the mixture.
1 tube of stale coarsely crushed chocolate chip cookies (there - here's the variation. This is where the fats and additional sugar come in!) - optional
1 large handful of raisins (I used organic this time.)
pinch of cinnamon powder
pinch of nutmeg powder - optional
pinch of ginger powder - optional
(or you can replace the 3 spices with a liberal dash of vanilla extract)
Add the other dry ingredients and fold them in. Do not pulverise the wet bread.
Pour one-third baking mixture into baking tin lined with wax paper (I hate washing. That's why the wax paper.)
3 handfuls of dark chocolate medallions - optional
At the top of this layer, add a layer of dark chocolate medallions (about 1.5 handful). Repeat with next one-third of mixture. Top up mixture with the final portion, making sure that all the mixture covers the second layer of medallions. If you are baking this in an oven, feel free to divide up the mixture into as many portions as you want and place in as many layers of chocolate medallions as your arteries could possibly accommodate.
Crushed walnuts - optional
Crushed almonds - optional
Honey - if you want to leave this out, then drizzle 2 tablespoons of soft brown sugar on top of the mixture before baking so that light caramelisation takes place
Scatter freshly crushed walnuts and almonds. Drizzle a liberal amount of honey over the nuts.
Bake at 160 deg C (fan assisted) for 50 minutes - forget about preheating. Turn up to max heat for last 5 minutes.
For those using a bread machine, pack in the baking mixture and add the medallions. You probably can have about 5 layers. Set it down to bake with the bake function. Let the machine do its work.
Now, I need to recipe for a custard sauce to go with this.
It's really an SOS!
Another shot of this wonderful bread pudding that was given away to a dear friend the next morning because, honestly, I am facing a food SOS. There is too much food left and I need to clear out, clear out....
What's that rumble in the background...?
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
Swan Valley
5 Feb
Swan Valley wine tasting self-drive.
Craziness. 32 km stretch of vineyards and wineries, melon and grape sellers, and shops peddling weird ware ranging from wine bottle stopper-dispensers, ceramic plates and cups, fine dining ware and what have you.
As usual, 3 hours ain't getting us to as many vineyards as we wished and as I am the "skipper" aka the driver plus I am not an alcohol drinker, I am not at all disappointed.
The drinker on the trip was also already quite worn out after tasting the umpteenth chenin blanc, the umpteenth verdehol, the umpteenth merlot, the umpteeth rose, the umpteenth shiraz (so crude, the shirazs!).
So we drove back and the navigator was understandably irritated by having to navigate with both alcohol in the veins and a street directory on her lap. Anyway, to cut the long story short, I drove back almost blind. And I made it. So, there goes.
It's scorching hot here and there is nothing more comfortable than standing under a jet of cool water in the shower. Go figure.
Swan Valley wine tasting self-drive.
Craziness. 32 km stretch of vineyards and wineries, melon and grape sellers, and shops peddling weird ware ranging from wine bottle stopper-dispensers, ceramic plates and cups, fine dining ware and what have you.
As usual, 3 hours ain't getting us to as many vineyards as we wished and as I am the "skipper" aka the driver plus I am not an alcohol drinker, I am not at all disappointed.
The drinker on the trip was also already quite worn out after tasting the umpteenth chenin blanc, the umpteenth verdehol, the umpteenth merlot, the umpteeth rose, the umpteenth shiraz (so crude, the shirazs!).
So we drove back and the navigator was understandably irritated by having to navigate with both alcohol in the veins and a street directory on her lap. Anyway, to cut the long story short, I drove back almost blind. And I made it. So, there goes.
It's scorching hot here and there is nothing more comfortable than standing under a jet of cool water in the shower. Go figure.
Monday, February 04, 2008
Oh man, you call that...
COFFEE?
This is... unacceptable. Well, the flat white had a little overzealous head - when it is supposed not to have much - and it sticks together quite well... like a mousse.
The coffee smells great but tastes far from great.
I need my harsh fix!
This is... unacceptable. Well, the flat white had a little overzealous head - when it is supposed not to have much - and it sticks together quite well... like a mousse.
The coffee smells great but tastes far from great.
I need my harsh fix!
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
What's wrong with meat?
So, it looks like the anti-meat lobby is gaining strength. They are beginning to openly speak ills of eating meat. They talk about the cruelty to the animals, the inefficiency of it all, the social and economic costs. They raise numerous issues which seem logical to the emotional folks but if you think carefully, what is the true underlying issue?
I would hazard a guess now and suggest politics.
I shall not delve way into the past where early man hunted animals for their meat and hides, and foraged for fruits and edible plants. Since time immemorial, mankind has been omnivorous. It is not something new. Our teeth allow us to chew on both meat and plant fibres. I would even think that in the past, fruits and vegetables were the exception rather than the norm. But as I said, I do not want to go there.
Meat was said to be a luxury item in the past and few could afford it. But now, almost everyone can. Why and how did the sudden change come about? The why might be easy. Ruling governments decided to make meat affordable by encouraging people to grow more lifestock to produce meat. And the how - people figured out that rearing animals for food was perhaps a more lucrative alternative to growing plants. So, meat farms are set up.
Remember in the movie below, Alec Baldwin explained how cows were neutered, their horns snipped off and repeated branded without the use of anaesthesia? Simply, this was because the politicians thought it necessary for the meat meant for human consumption to be free of extraneous chemicals. Think about it. Before anaesthesia was discovered, did man have any? And did we survive? We sure did. It is unfortunate that the animals had to be treated so cruelly but how could we have changed it? RFID tagging? No way. How many of you would like to bite into your rump steak only to take out a piece of radio frequency tag? Not me.
Did people ask for meat to be made so cheap and so readily available? I don't think so. But when you make meat affordable and accessible, what you get is a change in shopping patterns and eating habits. This is unavoidable. When people discovered edible gold foil, what happened? People started adding them to their food to make their meals more classy. Similarly, when meat became more economical, people began to add festivities to their meals with meat products. Can you blame people for eating meat and lifestock farmers for stoking this growth when it makes everyone feel good doing what they were born to do?
Politics also adopted liberal policies that allowed for excesses. Top politicians wanted to distinguish themselves from the common man. Some of them would like to eat "better food". Livestock farmers were then only too happy to oblige. What we get are fois gras - the fatty liver of geese, wagyu beef - marbled beef from cows fed on grains and sake and given regular massages, and what have you. These become prized exports and earn lots of good money to support the domestic economies and keep the politicians' pockets happy. Just like politics had made other things go sour, the meat industry is just one other statistic.
The bottomline is therefore this - there is nothing wrong with rearing lifestock or eating meat. Don't be misled by the emotional BS that some actors are accustomed to showing. What is needed is an overhaul and reconceptualisation of the meat industry. For instance, we have organic food now. Is it too far-fetched to introduce the concept of humanely bred meat into the food cycle? Sure, these meat will cost more and will re-elevate it to the ranks of expensive food all over again but if the animals reared for food needed to live in comfort and luxury and die palliatively, then there is no choice but to introduce such a category of meat. Meanwhile, slowly outlaw the meat farms that are churning out pigs that can't stand on their own legs beause they grew too fast and their muscles had atrophied due to crampled living conditions, (milk) cows which are to be killed at a fraction of their lifespans because they had been milked dry, and chickens which die of starvation because they overate initially and then their legs lost their ability to keep them standing and walk them to the food pan for further feeding.
So, there is nothing wrong with eating lots of meat. Just make sure that we offer a choice of happy meat and tortured meat, just like we have ordinary fruits and vegetables and organic ones (which, to me, are merely stunted ordinary stuff passed on as organic). With that, we should be able to know if eating that piece of meat is going to put me in the pilot seat of a supersonic version of the A380 speeding straight to animal hell. (By the way, what does one do when there?)
Hey, where is my tortured pork chop? And while you're still at it, could you add 4 pieces of abused lamb ribs medium rare?
I would hazard a guess now and suggest politics.
I shall not delve way into the past where early man hunted animals for their meat and hides, and foraged for fruits and edible plants. Since time immemorial, mankind has been omnivorous. It is not something new. Our teeth allow us to chew on both meat and plant fibres. I would even think that in the past, fruits and vegetables were the exception rather than the norm. But as I said, I do not want to go there.
Meat was said to be a luxury item in the past and few could afford it. But now, almost everyone can. Why and how did the sudden change come about? The why might be easy. Ruling governments decided to make meat affordable by encouraging people to grow more lifestock to produce meat. And the how - people figured out that rearing animals for food was perhaps a more lucrative alternative to growing plants. So, meat farms are set up.
Remember in the movie below, Alec Baldwin explained how cows were neutered, their horns snipped off and repeated branded without the use of anaesthesia? Simply, this was because the politicians thought it necessary for the meat meant for human consumption to be free of extraneous chemicals. Think about it. Before anaesthesia was discovered, did man have any? And did we survive? We sure did. It is unfortunate that the animals had to be treated so cruelly but how could we have changed it? RFID tagging? No way. How many of you would like to bite into your rump steak only to take out a piece of radio frequency tag? Not me.
Did people ask for meat to be made so cheap and so readily available? I don't think so. But when you make meat affordable and accessible, what you get is a change in shopping patterns and eating habits. This is unavoidable. When people discovered edible gold foil, what happened? People started adding them to their food to make their meals more classy. Similarly, when meat became more economical, people began to add festivities to their meals with meat products. Can you blame people for eating meat and lifestock farmers for stoking this growth when it makes everyone feel good doing what they were born to do?
Politics also adopted liberal policies that allowed for excesses. Top politicians wanted to distinguish themselves from the common man. Some of them would like to eat "better food". Livestock farmers were then only too happy to oblige. What we get are fois gras - the fatty liver of geese, wagyu beef - marbled beef from cows fed on grains and sake and given regular massages, and what have you. These become prized exports and earn lots of good money to support the domestic economies and keep the politicians' pockets happy. Just like politics had made other things go sour, the meat industry is just one other statistic.
The bottomline is therefore this - there is nothing wrong with rearing lifestock or eating meat. Don't be misled by the emotional BS that some actors are accustomed to showing. What is needed is an overhaul and reconceptualisation of the meat industry. For instance, we have organic food now. Is it too far-fetched to introduce the concept of humanely bred meat into the food cycle? Sure, these meat will cost more and will re-elevate it to the ranks of expensive food all over again but if the animals reared for food needed to live in comfort and luxury and die palliatively, then there is no choice but to introduce such a category of meat. Meanwhile, slowly outlaw the meat farms that are churning out pigs that can't stand on their own legs beause they grew too fast and their muscles had atrophied due to crampled living conditions, (milk) cows which are to be killed at a fraction of their lifespans because they had been milked dry, and chickens which die of starvation because they overate initially and then their legs lost their ability to keep them standing and walk them to the food pan for further feeding.
So, there is nothing wrong with eating lots of meat. Just make sure that we offer a choice of happy meat and tortured meat, just like we have ordinary fruits and vegetables and organic ones (which, to me, are merely stunted ordinary stuff passed on as organic). With that, we should be able to know if eating that piece of meat is going to put me in the pilot seat of a supersonic version of the A380 speeding straight to animal hell. (By the way, what does one do when there?)
Hey, where is my tortured pork chop? And while you're still at it, could you add 4 pieces of abused lamb ribs medium rare?
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Sunday, January 20, 2008
New York Pizza Dough
2 cups water
2 tablespoons yeast
1-2 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons olive oil
4 1/2 - 5 cups bread flour
Looks like this would work too.
2 tablespoons yeast
1-2 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons olive oil
4 1/2 - 5 cups bread flour
Looks like this would work too.
Fuss-free Pizza Dough
3 1/2 cups flour
1 1/6 cup water
1 tablespoon yeast
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
Put in bread machine, use Dough settings.
Dust table with flour and cut the dough into three portions.
Roll each portion into quarter-inch thick bases.
You have enough dough for three 30-cm pizzas.
(Place dough on parchment and bake in a 180 degree C oven for 10 minutes before adding the toppings. Then bake till golden brown or the cheese bubbles.)
The pizza base can be rolled very thin if you wish.
This could yield up to 6 pizza bases.
(Place dough on parchment, add the toppings and bake till golden brown in 180 degree C oven.)
NB: Pasta sauce make lousy pizza sauce bases. Too watery.
1 1/6 cup water
1 tablespoon yeast
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
Put in bread machine, use Dough settings.
Dust table with flour and cut the dough into three portions.
Roll each portion into quarter-inch thick bases.
You have enough dough for three 30-cm pizzas.
(Place dough on parchment and bake in a 180 degree C oven for 10 minutes before adding the toppings. Then bake till golden brown or the cheese bubbles.)
The pizza base can be rolled very thin if you wish.
This could yield up to 6 pizza bases.
(Place dough on parchment, add the toppings and bake till golden brown in 180 degree C oven.)
NB: Pasta sauce make lousy pizza sauce bases. Too watery.
Saturday, January 05, 2008
Waiting
Waiting now to cut the freshly harvested basil into the loaf of bread.
Could easily tear the basil leaves and dump them into the mixture but they would oxidise and turn brown. I don't think it'll be very nice in the bread after that.
So while I wait, I'll write a little.
Could easily tear the basil leaves and dump them into the mixture but they would oxidise and turn brown. I don't think it'll be very nice in the bread after that.
So while I wait, I'll write a little.
Amish Bread
I read a recipe for making Amish Bread and I tried it.
The sweet smelling, pretty, crusty loaf is now cooling down in the microwave oven.
I honestly do not know how long it is going to last but I'm sure it's going to be well-loved.
I'll be making a few more loaves.
The sweet smelling, pretty, crusty loaf is now cooling down in the microwave oven.
I honestly do not know how long it is going to last but I'm sure it's going to be well-loved.
I'll be making a few more loaves.
Friday, December 07, 2007
Friday, September 28, 2007
I gained it by eating...
Someone gave me some dates which Muslims ate before breaking fast.
They were ripe and crushed. And covered with some caramelly stuff. The dates were not too sweet and they were simply delectable and gorgeous.
I had so much joy eating it.
Then I was told this was from a royal farm in the middle east where, apparently, the royals ate such dates when they broke fast.
OMG!
I think I have earned the "Royal" part of my moniker His Royal Highnes The Supreme Bitch. At last!
They were ripe and crushed. And covered with some caramelly stuff. The dates were not too sweet and they were simply delectable and gorgeous.
I had so much joy eating it.
Then I was told this was from a royal farm in the middle east where, apparently, the royals ate such dates when they broke fast.
OMG!
I think I have earned the "Royal" part of my moniker His Royal Highnes The Supreme Bitch. At last!
Monday, September 24, 2007
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