Chinese Fried Rice - A Step by Step Photo Guide - Recipes: Organic & Vegetarian

I'm often asked what "you people" eat when the subject of diet comes up. Not that I usually bring it up myself, mainly because of questions like that...

Cookery is the homier dance partner of Still Room work and a vital component of what we teach. Most of our research and experiments in reClaiming appropriate technology focus on ancient and medieval European writings and practices. However, trying to reCreate the diet can be problematic. Most of the writings focus on specialty items, feast days, high caste foods and other unusual or rare dishes. Though the European settlers were mostly peasants, the current standard North American diet is no help, either in reCreating diets of the past or an evolution of the future. It's largely a corruption of the meat intensive "rich man's" food, coveted by the non-Native peasantry that ended up here, altered by poverty as well the traditional native foods found in their new home. It's high fat, high salt, low quality, limited variety, and mismatched combinations are one of the primary sources of illness in this culture. To be healthy and to encourage health, the cornerstone must be diet. Studies have shown that the best way to achieve that is proper knowledge and practice of cookery. Although we do attempt authentic medieval dishes, there are much more available traditional sources to draw upon in our day-to-day living. As part of the Global Peasant movement, we specialize in traditional peasant cuisine from around the world. Traditional peasant foods are tasty, incredibly inexpensive, and can usually have most ingredients locally sourced. They are traditionally organic and much more nutritious. Traditional foods from mature cuisines have also been time-tested sometimes for thousands of years with the correct and appropriate food pairings - combining the proper proteins, carbohydrates, and other best nutrition factors. In most parts of the world, peasants do not have access to large amounts of meat, as it is usually a higher caste or price item, and therefore most peasant cookery is intrinsically vegetarian. They usually require less cooking time or prep from limited fuel supplies, and so have less vitamin degradation than more longer cooking dishes. It has very little, if any, waste. Cooking as a Global Peasant is therefore one of the healthiest, cheapest, easiest, and most eco-friendly practices available.

I have been focusing on specific Chinese and Indian regions for the past few years. To ensure proper food combinations, I never mix cuisines in any one meal, unless it's a traditional fusion. Like Indian/Chinese! Which I now have to study up on...

Here's one of the dishes we enjoy regularly. It's incredibly simple and can easily be converted to a vegan version. It makes use of pre-cooked rice from previous meals, as well as pre-cut veggies from others, so it's non-wasteful and budget-stretching.


Chinese Fried Rice

This is such an easy dish!  If you have rice in the freezer, and choose to microwave it to defrost, it can take you about 7 min. start to finish to build this tasty, nutritious creation! Less if you have some cut, raw veggies sitting around...

Like many Chinese dishes, many of the ingredients are cooked separately, and then combined just before finishing. According to Jeff Smith in The Frugal Gourmet Cooks in Three Ancient Cuisines: China, Greece, and Rome , "in order to bring each food product in a particular dish to its own point of fulfillment, you must cook several ingredients separately, and then join them together in the wok at the last moment. In this way you have contrast in both flavor and texture, all in the same dish."

I use a small carbon steel wok for this. It's just the right size, imparts some iron, is highly efficient, and needs very little oil to cook with.  One of the perfect Global Peasant cooking tools!  I use my wok for everything.  A small wok is one of the best kitchen investments you will ever make, if you don't have one already...

Don't forget to use a high heat cooking oil, like peanut, walnut, sunflower, or safflower.  Soy oil won't cut it, since it is completely non-nutritive.  Canola tastes weird, even when organic, and olive should never be cooked, as it degrades into transfats so quickly.

2-3 cups previously cooked rice, defrosted or partly dried
 
I use organic Jasmine rice with nearly all of my Chinese meals. The flavour is incomparable with any other type of Western or conventionally grown rice, as well as being more nutritious and eco-friendly. I usually steam extra for a meal, and put any we don't eat into the freezer. It's vital to this recipe that the rice sit overnight or is left in the freezer to dry out a bit. Wet or fresh rice will clump and not come out right.

1-2 fresh eggs

Feel free to leave these out if you are feeling vegany. I know that eggs often revolt me, but personally, this dish seems a bit incomplete without them. I haven't tried substituting tofu, though...  Again, organic, local eggs are the clear choice for so many reasons, not the least of which is that they are safer and healthier. The chickens are not constantly exposed to broad spectrum antibiotics, and organic eggs are seven times less likely to contain salmonella.

Start by cooking the eggs. Use very little oil.  I find too much makes the eggs a bit greasy. Stir fry. The effect you are looking for is a bit like scrambled eggs. Set aside.

frozen or fresh peas

I find peas to be integral to the dish. I can't even make it without them. If they are frozen, I put them in first for a minute or so. Then the remainder of the veggies. It's the only time I cut up carrots like those little cubed frozen ones. It's more fun, and rather like the take-out style. Same with the mushrooms, and sometimes the peppers. Onions, scallions, whatever you like! I often use pre-cut veggies from a previous meal, say from tacos or falafel. Anything we didn't use gets saved for a day or two, and goes into fried rice or omelets.

Veggies should be about the same size, for ease of cooking time and for the look of the dish.

This is the time to sprinkle in your seasonings.  Salt, pepper, and maybe some five-spice powder, fennel or anise. After a few minutes of cooking, set aside on the same plate as the eggs.
 

Defrosted jasmine rice in wok

Time for the rice!


Make sure it's pretty well thawed, and stir fry with a bit of oil to remove any clumps.  Add the soy sauce or tamari.  Again, only organic is recommended, since it is made with non-GMO soybeans, which should be avoided.  Just a little!  A tablespoon or two.  It's easy to overdo it, and your guests often add a bit more to their taste at the table.

 

Rice sprinkled with tamari

After cooking for a few minutes, it should be pretty cooked through and mixed with no lumps.

 

Rice stir fried.

   

Now add the rest of the ingredients. Stir fry for a few moments, reheating and distributing evenly.



Your dish is complete! I usually just serve it in the wok itself. Eat alone for satisfying lunch or snack, or as an accompaniment to a larger meal.

Now I'm all hungry...

Peak Oil and Climate Change: VIDEOS

Some of the most useful docs on the topics. (In english, or subtitles)



CLIMATE 101 from The Climate Reality Project on Vimeo.
A nice, easy to understand, entertaining, under 5 min. doc explaining climate change.  With experiments!  Even my 10 year old gets this one... 

300 Years of FOSSIL FUELS in 300 Seconds:

The Denial Machine (WATCH Video) investigates the roots of the campaign to negate the science and the threat of global warming. It tracks the activities of a group of scientists, some of whom previously consulted for Big Tobacco, and who are now receiving donations from major coal and oil companies. A short version of similar material is called DOUBT, shown here.


   

The Denial Machine shows how fossil fuel corporations have kept the global warming debate alive long after most scientists believed that global warming was real and had potentially catastrophic consequences. It shows that companies such as Exxon Mobil are working with top public relations firms and using many of the same tactics and personnel as those employed by Phillip Morris and RJ Reynolds to dispute the cigarette-cancer link in the 1990s. Exxon Mobil sought out those willing to question the science behind climate change, providing funding for some of them, their organizations and their studies.

The Denial Machine also explores how the arguments supported by oil companies were adopted by policymakers in both Canada and the US and helped form government policy.

The Ingenious Ways We Avoid Believing in Climate Change: In this highly entertaining and accessible presentation at the University of the West of England, George Marshall, founder of the Climate Outreach Information Network summarises some of our current understanding of the psychology of climate change- why it is so hard to accept and how can we help people to accept it?

In Part Three, the final Part he looks in details and the mechanisms by which we reject information on climate change and the images that express collective denial.

In this second part of three he looks at the story lines and imagery around climate change formed, how environmentalists and the imagery of polar bears have dominated the discourse, and asks why human rights organisations talk more about ice cream than climate change.

And now, the actual science!  How it works, what's behind the data, and what non-scientists need to know if they want to help understand and not hinder the process.

Andrew Nikiforuk's speech at IdeaCity, 2007

And the video of his speech THE COST OF OIL on MAY 10, 2011 IN TERRACE, BC

Statistics and pics specifically relating to the Alberta Tarsands, the environment surrounding it, the pollution, the method. Very useful for activists in BC, Alberta, and around the world.

Witness: To The Last Drop - The effects of the Alberta Tar sands on the earth, the political climate, and the citizens of Fort Chip.  Very first independant non-government assessments. Gov't still claiming toxins are naturally occuring.

Richard Heinberg's Peak Oil - Quick version and Peak Everything Part One.  Energy profits for humans and how that is essential to our civilizations.  What's happening now and predictions for the future.



The Power of Community: How Cuba Survived Peak Oil:
When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1990, Cuba's economy went into a tailspin. With imports of oil cut by more than half – and food by 80 percent – people were desperate. This film tells of the hardships and struggles as well as the community and creativity of the Cuban people during this difficult time. Cubans share how they transitioned from a highly mechanized, industrial agricultural system to one using organic methods of farming and local, urban gardens. It is an unusual look into the Cuban culture during this economic crisis, which they call "The Special Period." The film opens with a short history of Peak Oil, a term for the time in our history when world oil production will reach its all-time peak and begin to decline forever. Cuba, the only country that has faced such a crisis – the massive reduction of fossil fuels – is an example of options and hope.

Resilience (English) from LifeMosaic on Vimeo.

How aboriginal peoples around the world can use their traditional laws and culture to be more resilient to climate change.

Some Highlights of the Campaign Trail - 2011

This was my busiest campaign ever, and I was always out and about. I did so many interviews with the press, and yet there was almost no mention of me in any type of media. And there is only four of us! And I'm the only woman! They seemed to go out of their way not to even suggest there was a Green candidate running in this riding, much less my name or anything else about me. It certainly wasn't for lack of trying... The lack of coverage and acknowledgement was very disappointing, but I'm thrilled to represent the Greens in Edmonton East. Here are some of highlights, with links to more pics and info.

April 13 - BPW Women in Politics Night!

Business and Professional Women's Club of Edmonton - Women in Politics Night. Had a chance to network and chat after the Q&A, too! 20% of ticket sales donated to the YWCA's One Woman One Vote initiative.

April 18: Elizabeth May & Georges Laraque @ EcoBall!

Green Rally, Vegan Potluck, Earth Week EcoBall!  My full post on that visit is here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

April 21 - M.E. LaZerte Cultural Festival

Up to 1500 students and 120 staff members partake in this event. Among many groups of students, 17 countries are represented to prepare and serve ethnic food as well as cultural performances. I love Bollywood! All I can do is traditional bellydance, but I certainly felt like shakin' it...

All the candidates from Edmonton East were there, but only Goldring got to give a speech. Made up some excuse about his foreign work or something making his qualified to speak.. Then he left. Really, they were hoping to embarrass him into agreeing to a forum, which is why we all were came, but he doesn't *do* those, doncha know, and easily evaded that invitation...

April 25 - Wrecking Ball

Live theatre, with abundant use of the f-word and Harper roasting, Vote Rappers, and a forum! All packaged in a box.. I can see why Goldring only showed up for 10 min., pronounced it "disgusting" and left in a huff, though. It *was* pretty funny... I choose to think that absolutely no mention of Elizabeth means that everyone loves her and no one wants to make fun of her, especially since she was just in that very theatre the week before!

I was there all evening talking to constituents and watching the performances, and I was the only rep of Edmonton East on the forum, but the press chose not to mention the fact... It's enough to try one's patience. Though they gave Linda Duncan and Louis Cardinal lots of air time...

April 28 - Wave by on 118th. Ave

I love waving at the cars! So many wave back and honk their support. Really helps raise the spirits during a long campaign...

During a rainy, cold evening, too. Shoulda planned that a bit better...

 

 

 

April 30 - Edmonton Vote Mob



Captian Canuck!



Great energy!  About 100 ppl, even more than Calgary, I heard! We had lots of interest, and honking, and did we make some noise!

I and my campaign manager were there for the whole Vote Mob. We didn't get any press. Linda Duncan showed up to make a speech at the beginning, and got interviewed, then left. But they thanked her profusely for showing up... 

You can tell who's doing it for the Cause. Since we certainly aren't in this for the glamour and fame...   If we were, you can bet we'd be re-evaluating that strategy...

 

 

April 30 - Thrival Edmonton Festival

Organized by Make Poverty History and Dare to Care, featuring performers, bicycled-powered music (seen in the video), a clothing swap, and pay-it-forward food.  I need to get ahold of Music is a Weapon...

April 30 - Pride Centre Candidate Open House

It was originally scheduled as a forum, but Goldring wouldn't show up, through Con Laurie Hawn did... So we had an open house instead. The candidates and their people almost outnumbered the constituents! But a great time was had by all. I stayed 'til late, as usual...

Senator Tommy Banks: What Canadians have lost under this “Harper” Gov't. (Unabridged)

(Although I personally would not attibute "diabolically clever" to Mr. Harper. Ed.)

Tommy Banks,
Canadian conductor and pianist,
host of the CBC television’s “The Tommy Banks Show” for 15 years.

—– Original Message —–

Sent: Wednesday, April 13, 2011 11:33 PM
Subject: Tom Banks
A letter from my partner Tom Banks
by Sharman King on Wednesday, April 13, 2011 at 10:39am

I apologize for this long re-post, but I’d like to share with my friends this letter from my business partner and musical associate Senator Tommy Banks. It’s worth noting that Tom was a Conservative when he was appointed to the Senate. If you agree with this food for thought please feel free to send it to your friends of whatever political stripe. The bigger message here is how we want our government to behave, no matter who forms that government. Here’s Tom’s missive: (unedited)

"There is only one thing about the outcome of the May 2nd election on which Mr. Ignatieff and Mr. Harper agree. It is that one of them will be the Prime Minister of Canada. Mr. Layton, Mr. Duceppe and Ms. May are not in the running to form a government. They can't. It will be either Mr. Ignatieff or Mr. Harper.

That is the choice, and it is a very clear – in fact, stark choice. We will choose between openness or secrecy. Between listening or refusing to listen. Between someone who respects Parliament or someone who disdains it. Between things we can and will do now or things that, (provided of course that everything goes well), we might do in five or six years. Between someone who answers all questions from Canadians, or someone who won't accept any.

Between Mr. Harper who said “It’s past time the feds scrapped the Canada Health Act”, or Mr. Ignatieff who said “ . . . we don't want user fees. We want universal, accessible, free-at-the-point-of-service health care, paid out of general revenue. That’s just bottom line. Otherwise we get two-tiered”.

Between buying jets or helping vets. Between real early childhood learning and care or Saturday-night babysitting. Between respect for our great institutions or contempt for them. Between helping families or helping big corporations. Between the Canada that we think we have, or the way in which Mr. Harper has already changed it.

Over the past few years Mr. Harper’s government has quietly engineered so many changes that there are some ways in which our country is barely recognizable. Many of us don't yet realize the extent of those changes, because many of them have been brought about very carefully and gradually – almost imperceptibly in some cases.

This is diabolically clever. If these things had all been done at once, there would have been loud protests and reactions. But moving just one little brick at a time doesn't cause much fuss – until you realize that the whole house has been renovated. And we've hardly noticed.

These are changes that are at the very heart of who and what Canadians are. They are changes to the protections that used to exist against the tyranny of the majority – or against a single-minded my-way-or-the-highway autocrat. These changes are losses to our very Canadian-ness. Let me remind you of some of them:

The Law Commission of Canada was created by an Act of Parliament in 1997. It worked very well. It kept an eye in a sort-of avuncular way, on necessary reforms of the law, including election law. The Commission couldn't actually change law; but it was very good at letting governments and everybody else know when changes needed to be made and why. It was our legal Jiminy Cricket, and it performed a valuable service for Canada. The Commission was created by an Act of Parliament, and any government wanting to shut it down should have been up-front about it. It should have come to Parliament with a Bill to rescind The Law Commission of Canada Act. That’s what any of our 21 previous Prime Ministers would have done.

But to Mr. Harper, Parliament is an inconvenience. Somebody might ask “Why are you doing this?” But he didn't want to go through all that Parliamentary trouble; so, rather than proposing the abolition of the Commission (a proposal about which there would have been pretty fierce debate on all sides), they just eliminated all funding for it in the federal budget. Governments can do that. Poof – no Law Commission.

Nice and quiet. Just one little brick. Hardly noticed.

Then there was the Court Challenges Programme, set up in 1994, which was the means by which a bit of legal help could be provided to a private individual or small organization who didn't have a lot of money, and who was taking on, or being taken on by, the Government of Canada. It leveled the legal playing field a bit. It was a perfect example of fundamental Canadian fairness.

By convincing a tough panel of judges of the reasonableness of your cause, you could get a little help in paying for some lawyers to go up against the phalanx of legal beagles that could always, and forever, and at public expense, be brought to bear against you by the State. In other words, if you weren't rich, and if you were taking on or being taken on by the Feds, you might have had a chance. But Mr. Harper doesn't like being questioned, let alone challenged. It’s so inconvenient! Solution? Quietly announce that the Court Challenges Programme is being, er, discontinued. Poof – no Court Challenges Programme – no court challenges.

Hardly noticed.

The Coordination of Access to Information Request System (CAIRS) was created (by a Progressive-Conservative government) in 1989 so that departments of government could harmonize their responses to access-to-information requests that might need multi-departmental responses. It was efficient; it made sure that in most cases the left hand knew what the right hand was doing, or at least what they were saying; and it helped keep government open and accountable. Well, if you’re running a closed-door government, that’s not a good idea, is it? So, as a Treasury Board official explained to the Canadian Press, CAIRS was killed by the Harper government because “extensive” consultations showed it wasn't valued by government departments. I guess that means that the extensive consultations were all with government departments.

Wait! Wasn't there anybody else with whom to extensively consult? Wasn't there some other purpose and use for CAIRS? Didn't it have something to do with openness and accountability? I guess not. Robert Makichuk, speaking for Mr. Harper’s government, explained that “valuable resources currently being used to maintain CAIRS would be better used in the collection and analysis of improved statistical reporting”.

Right. In other words, CAIRS was an inconvenience to the government. So poof – it’s disappeared. And, except for investigative reporters and other people who might (horrors!) ask questions, its loss is hardly noticed.

And the bridge too far for me: Cutting the already-utterly-inadequate funding for the exposure of Canadian art and artists in other countries. That funding was, by any comparison, already laughably minuscule. Mr. Harper says that “ordinary” Canadians don't support the arts. He’s wrong. And his is now the only government of any significant country in the world that clearly just doesn't get it.

All these changes were done quietly, cleverly, and under the radar. No fuss. No outcry. Just one little brick at a time. But in these and other ways, our Canadian house is no longer the kind of place it once was. Nobody minds good renovations. Nobody even minds tearing something down, as long as we put up something better in its place. That’s not what has happened.

Mr. Harper fired the head of the Canadian Wheat Board because he was doing his job properly. He removed the head of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission because she wanted to make sure that the Chalk River nuclear reactor was safe.

Hardly noticed.

There are many more things that were hardly noticed: Cuts to funding for the Status of Women, Adult Learning and Literacy, Environmental Programs, museums funding, and more. All quietly, just one brick at a time.

Hardly noticed.

As to campaign promises, everybody in sight on every side is guilty of breaking those. Except the Federal NDP of course, who haven't yet had the opportunity. (It’s very easy to make promises that you know you will not likely have to keep).

But the government promised to end wait times in health care. They didn't. They promised to end, once and for all, the whining of some provinces about the non-existent “fiscal imbalance”. They didn't. They said they had brought final resolution to the softwood lumber problem with the U.S. They haven't. They promised to create thousands of new child-care spaces in Canada . They haven't. They promised not to tax income trusts (“We will NEVER do that!” they said). They taxed them. They promised to lower your income tax.

They raised it.

They said they had a good “made-in-Canada” plan to meet our obligations on climate change. They don't. Mr. Harper has said plainly that whatever the Americans do is what we'll do too.

They campaign on a platform of transparency and accountability; but they’re now trying to discredit the Parliamentary Budget Officer that they created, because he’s trying to do the job that they gave him. Mr. Harper said that our form of government, evolved over centuries from the 900-year-old British Westminster tradition, was all wrong. We had to have fixed election dates, because otherwise, democratic principles would be trampled. ”Fixed election dates”, he said, “stop leaders from trying to manipulate the calendar. They level the playing field for all parties”.

So Parliament (remember them?) at Mr. Harper’s insistence, passed a law requiring fixed election dates, which Mr. Harper promptly broke.

Somebody once said that we get the kind of government we deserve. What did we do to deserve Mr. Harper? He once said that we should all “Stand Up for Canada ”. Well, let’s do that. We just have to decide whether the present version of Canada is the one that we'll stand up for. Or stand for.

Thank you

Tommy Banks (an Alberta Senator.)"

Elizabeth May in Edmonton - Pics and Podcast - Green Party Rally, EcoBall, and Vegan Potluck

Podcast of Elizabeth's speech on fiscal responsibility and the New Economy:

When Elizabeth May, Leader of the Green Party of Canada, visits Edmonton, as she does more often than most party leaders, I usually have the very great privilege of organizing her events and rallies.
We got the call in this election to pull it off on fairly short notice, election timing being what it is, so we pulled some ideas out of our previously brainstormed grab bag to make it show-stopper!  It's already Earth Week, and to help encourage those green-minded folks who might want to check out a party rather than just a political rally, as well as to reach out to our younger population, we whipped up the EcoBall!

We rented the Avenue Theatre on 118th ave in my riding. It's the first time we used it, and it's a great little space, by the way.  Very reasonable for the capacity and facilities it provides, and the staff were more than helpful...  For refreshments, we brought in fair trade coffee, tea, and organic juice.

When we looked into food, however, it turned out that even the most inexpensive vegan caterer would cost more than the rest of the event put together!  Georges Laraque, our Deputy Leader and NHL sports star, is vegan and very publicy so.  In order to promote vegan menus and encourage creativity, we came up with a vegan potluck.  The door price was reduced to a pittance to those who brought a vegan dish for 10 people, and we had so many people taking advantage of our offer that two tables with filled with fantastic contributions.  Some even brought warming dishes to keep their creations toasty!



Setting up at the start of the evening

 The EcoBall is a new idea in Edmonton, so most came in street clothes, though the ones that came in costume certainly made up for it!

Christie in Green: the Creatrix and heart of Garbaganza - EcoCouture from dumpster diving!



Mother Earth from Garbaganza - Made from Astroturf!

 

More Garbaganza originals!





The Leader of the Pirate Party of Canada won our costume contest!

In the space of about a week and half, we got together at least three bands, as well as fillers to vamp if necessary, to entertain and liven up the crowd before Elizabeth's arrival. Which was a good thing, too, as her train was an hour late! Even I needed to pitch in, but it was so hectic that I forgot to tape my performance...

Local hot C&W band the Backstreet Affair.



Local busking celebrity piper, personal friend and Green Party supporter Glenn Eilers pitched in, too.



eticpo




We had a few ecovendors for interest. 



My booth - just to keep my hats straight, my apprentice got to keep all she made..



  

The Edmonton Bicycle Communters didn't return my emails.  I heard a rumour that it was because they were worried about becoming too political.  My answer to that, and to all NPO's trying to make a difference, is that to change laws, one must become politcal.  Laws are made by lawmakers.  Nearly always, lawmakers are politicans.  Therefore to be effective, if they haven't yet, activists must politicize.  I have found that the Greens, as the political arm of progessive activism, already make such a huge difference in the policies of other Parties and the dialog of the country, especially during an election!

There were swarms of press, too!  I've never seen so many reporters in one place.  Print, radio, and TV took up most of the lobby and some of the outside! 



Elizabeth, Georges, me (in the garb) and some of the Green Party candidates



Georges kept most of them busy from when he first showed up until Elizabeth arrived, so we jumped straight into her speech instead of his intro after she was mobbed by the media.  They both are always treated like rock stars...  And I admit that I am very pleased with my ability to get the word out.  Sometimes I need to pat myself on the head...

All in all, it was such a successful event that we are already thinking about next year!  Hundreds of people showed up, about 1/4 of them youth - there was fabulous food, great music, fun outfits, and much networking. I'm thrilled that it was so well-received and so well-attended.  Thanks so much to all our wonderful volunteers!  We couldn't have done it without you.  I'd also like to thank all the press for their professionalism and attendance, the techs for their hard work, and most especially Elizabeth and Georges for making this event one of the highlights of the election and Earth Week in Edmonton!