OPERATION: Rice

Today was all about the reality check of cooking Tanzanian-style in our villages. Here are the seventeen steps to cooking rice.

Mission Possible? I’m not convinced…

Step moja: Procure charcoal from the market. (only sold in very large quantities, so this will be a process in and of itself)

Step mbili: Arrange charcoal in your small jiko. (basically a small cooking pit)

Step tatu: Visit your neighbor to see if they have any hot coals. If so, you’re in luck!  Take a few to light your own jiko. If not, have a pleasant conversation and good luck trying step nne instead.

Step nne: Without any hot coals, you must find newspaper, small wood shavings (get your mini-machete ready) and some matches. Hope for the best.

Step tano: Wait for the coals to get hot…say approximately 45 minutes.

Step sita: While you wait for the coals to get hot, take the rice you bought at the market and sift through it to get rid of the stones.

Step saba: Then, using a woven plate, shake out the excess particles from the rice.

Step nane: You’ll need to pre-wash the rice as well, so in a bowl full of water, soak the rice and then proceed to strain it with your hands into a dry bowl.

Step kumi: Hopefully by now your coals are hot enough to put a pot of water on to boil. (If not, I suppose there might still be some daylight to plan a lesson or something).

Step kumi na moja: Wait patiently for the water to boil. Continue planning your lesson. Perhaps get your kerosene lantern ready because it will be dark soon.

Step kumi na mbili: Once the water is boiling, add a little oil and salt for flavor.

Step kumi na tatu: Now you are finally ready to add the rice to your pot. Cover with a lid.

Step kumi na nne: Bring the rice to a boil and then remove pot from the coals. This part is tricky…reduce the heat. Meaning, remove a whole bunch of the coals for later use. Return the pot to the reduced heat, and place the extra coals on the lid to create an oven. *This step is very important in preventing burning the rice.

Step kumi na tano: Wait patiently for the rice to simmer. Usually 25 to 30 minutes.

Step kumi na sita: Once it has simmered long enough and it looks like real rice, carefully turn the rice with a wooden spoon.

Step kumi na saba: Hopefully your rice is ready at this point, so get out your candlesticks (since its quite dark by this point) and enjoy :) If not, then. Well. Perhaps you’ll be eating a banana or an avocado for dinner instead.  

So there you have it. Just when I thought that at the very least I would be able to have rice and beans for dinner this year, it seems as if the reality of it is that I will be lucky to even have the rice. We did learn how to make beans today too...but that was a 4 hour process, so I'll spare you the details. Just be thankful for the microwave in your kitchen!