Wednesday, April 17, 2013

A Bowl of Rice and a Cup of Tea

My style of cooking consists of digging through the fridge/pantry and throwing everything together. So fried rice is a go-to, all-in-one meal at my place. This time I made fried rice with bacon, shiitake, asparagus, and garlic.
 

Some Tips:
  • Day-old rice is best (it's not as moist so it won't get mushy on you)
  • Sautee everything separately since they cook at different speeds
  • Preheat the rice and fry with sesame oil and/or peanut oil
  • Add oyster sauce and soy sauce in conservative amounts to taste
  • Add a little chili oil at the end for a subtle kick or pickled veggies for a refreshing bite
  • Try white pepper instead of black
  • Pack the finished fried rice in a bowl, place a plate on top, flip it over, and top with a fried egg for a pretty presentation

My D.I.Y. approach is similar to my cooking style in that I rummage through accumulated odds and ends, throw something together, and hope it's palatable. As I was walking through SF Chinatown one rainy afternoon, I stumbled upon a little shop of crocheted oddities and various christening paraphernalia. I picked up two cotton doilies for $2.50. They sat in my fabric scrap bin until last night, when I realized I had been wearing the same blue, raw-edge sweater from Urban Outfitters for the last six years! Time for an update.

Instructions:
  1. Tea/coffee dye the doilies - This works best on 100% cotton or silk
    • Place the items in a small cup (like I did in my My Dear Darling mug)
    • Add multiple tea bags or satchels of coffee grinds wrapped in cheese cloth - Tea stains more orange and coffee stains more brown
    • Cover with boiling water and leave until satisfied with color
    • Rinse in cold water and dry
    • Note: The finished product will dry lighter
  2. Use pins to hold the doilies in place and sew by hand or on the machine (I just ran a simple stitch around each doily but let the scalloped edge creep into the neckline)
  3. Turn inside out and carefully cut away the sleeve to show a little bit of skin
What do you think? The manfriend was afraid I might look like a 1920's football player, but he approved of the finished project ;)

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