finally! Tastey Haitian White Rice

This week Arold made some yummy white rice, bean sauce, and chicken in sauce. It was delicious! The thing is that he always makes way more bean sauce than rice, so we have to make more rice or it goes bad. This week was no different. Last night I was looking for something Arold could pack in his lunch, and all I could find was bean sauce--which is not so appetizing on it's own. So I started a pot of rice, but the peanut gallery was not very supportive. I have been making "Haitian" rice for a few years now, but no matter how closely I follow the directions my husband gives me it is too sticky/wet or it doesn't taste right (code for it doesn't have enough salt). I don't think he was very optimistic about his lunch for today.

I carefully measured the water and rice. I made sure to add more salt than I thought was necessary. When it was time to put a little oil in the boiling water, I decided to use coconut oil instead of canola oil because I thought it would be healthier and maybe taste a little better. Probably most importantly, I was very careful about my lid placement while the rice was boiling. (Arold always leaves it a little bit cracked, letting some air out, as it simmers.) When my rice was finished I tasted it and was pretty proud of myself. I had made some pretty tasty white rice. Arold was still skeptical and didn't taste it before going to bed.

Well, all my hard word paid off! This morning Arold pronounced my rice was better than his. Finally, I have mastered making Haitian white rice!!!!

So here's my estimated recipe for Tastey Haitian White Rice

1. Start boiling a little less than 3 cups of water
2. Add some salt, then add a little more than you think is necessary
3. Add 2-3 teaspoons of coconut oil (maybe more)
   Optional: a handful of finely chopped leeks OR two dashes of onion powder, some garlic powder
4. When the water is boiling, add about 1 and 3/4 cups rice--stir so it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan
5. Bring the water back to boiling uncovered
6. Once it's boiling again, stir to be sure the rice is not sticking to the bottom. Then turn down the heat to a fast simmer and cover the pot (for not so sticky rice, leave the lid slightly cracked
7. Make sure the pot doesn't boil over or dry out (adjust lid to avoid both problems)
8. I occasionally stir/fluff the rice while it's cooking, but I know others avoid that.
9. When the rice is the desired tenderness, remove the lid to cook out all extra water.
10. Enjoy with some bean sauce or other delicious dish/sauce.

Things I didn't know I missed

I've been trying to menu plan since I returned to Haiti in July. It helps me stay motivated to cook every day, which I think I've mentioned before is not really my cup of tea, and it also helps me know what to buy at the grocery store. Sundays are our "Big Haitian Meal" day, but last week I found a piece of meat at the grocery store that looked like it could be a pot roast. So I bought it for our Sunday meal and cooked it in my pressure cooker with potatoes, onions, and carrots.

I. LOVED. EVERY. SINGLE. BITE. As we were eating I kept asking my husband what he thought and declaring it was "so, so good."

To be honest, it really wasn't an amazing pot roast. In fact it was just mediocre. It could have used some more seasoning or spices of some kind, but it did taste good and filled our stomachs. I guess I thought it was so great because it was a little taste of home that I didn't even know I was missing.

Rewind a couple of weeks to a cold and rainy night. Since I've been pregnant I have been HOT. Even at night when it cools down I typically want to turn the fan on to help cool off before I try to sleep. But a few weeks ago a storm rolled in and the temperature really dropped. It got down to less than 70* (I know that's not really cool for most of you, but around here it's quite unusual for this time of year). I was actually cold enough to put on long pants and a long sleeve shirt and even socks! I felt crazy wearing so many clothes in August in Haiti, but it was so refreshing to curl up with my husband on the couch and pretend it was fall!

Then I found a recipe online for pumpkin spice lattes. You better believe we will be drinking pumpkin spice lattes the next time I get my hands on a joumou (pumpkin)! I just used the last of the joumou I had baked,  pureed, and frozen to make pumpkin bread; otherwise we would have had some already.

I thought there was one other thing I realized I missed lately, but I can't think of it right now. I'm making white chili today, so I can pretend it's fall again.

Beans, the magical fruit

Beans are a staple of Haitian cooking. We make them pretty regularly at our house--always in the pressure cooker because they take FOREVER to cook otherwise. Normally we just eat beans with our rice, either mixed in or as bean sauce.

Recently I found a refried bean recipe for the pressure cooker. I had never made refried beans before, but the recipe looked pretty easy. I tried it, using fresh red beans. It was delicious. My husband said it was like eating really thick bean sauce (his favorite food). So, I put the recipe in my box to use again later. I think I've made it two or three times since I found it, and it's been awesome every time! Not only does it taste good, we always have a good amount left over for later in the week.

This weekend I decided to use the dried black beans we had to make the same recipe. Do you know what the difference between dried and fresh beans is? Dried beans are cheaper. Fresh beans cook faster. But those are not really all that important in this story. The difference to remember is that dried beans have shrunk from their normal size and will grow in the cooking process. This is important to remember when you are measuring them because once you put them in water to soak, they will suck it all up and get nice and plump. So when you think you have one ti mamit of beans, you really have about two ti mamit after they have been soaked...

which is double the amount of beans the recipe calls for...

which means you are going to have more bean sauce and refried beans than you have Tupperware space.

So if you're hungry, stop on by. We have some delicious bean sauce we'd love to share with you.