Tag: goals

Easy Rice Balls

~ Sophie ~ 19 Comments

Who likes rice balls? Better yet, have you ever tried making them? I have this endlessly long list of food I would like to try and these rice balls are not missing on the list. Don’t you think these would be awesome at a party? Although everyone has their own way of making rice balls, I think what matters in the end is the ability to retain flavor  and still be a crowd pleaser especially if you are making them for parties. I did achieve the desired flavor, so that is a win for me. You will be surprised at how easy they are to make.

What you will need

3 C. Rice, boiled

3 Medium Irish potatoes, boiled

1 Tbsp. Water

2 Eggs

1 C. Baking flour

1 Green pepper, finely chopped

1 Onion, finely chopped

½ C. Green onions, finely chopped

1 Tsp. Ground ginger

2 Garlic cloves, finely chopped

Salt

Chilli flakes (optional)

Oil for frying

Method

In a bowl, loosen the rice using a fork. In the rice bowl, add the green pepper, onions, ground ginger and garlic and mix together. Set aside. Mash boiled potatoes and add the tablespoon of water.  Add the mashed potatoes in the rice mix. The mashed potatoes act as a binder. Mix in the salt and chilli flakes. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs together while adding a pinch of salt. Using your hands, form bite-sized balls and dip them in the egg mix one by one. Dip the egg coated ball in the cup of flour till they are fully covered. Fry the balls till golden brown. The result is a super crunchy exterior and a flavorful interior.

Observations

  1. I recommend short grained rice that is slightly sticky (don’t use long grain rice as it tends to be too loose and dry)
  2. You may add more or less water in the mashed potatoes.

 

I would like to know, what dip/sauce would you eat these rice balls with? Please share in the comments below.

🙂

Sophie

A Kitchen In Uganda Plus A Free E-cookbook

~ Sophie ~ 5 Comments

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Click on image to download

These past two weeks I have been in the process of re-branding this blog for maximum effectiveness. Great thanks to Onyait who helped me have a smooth transition. This blog formerly known as Rare Beauty Blog is now called A Kitchen In Uganda. A name that I believe will better represent what goes on here. With that said, I have been working on a simple e-cookbook as a token of welcome to you all lovely readers. In this booklet, you will find 16 of the blog’s best tried and true recipes with clear directions. Don’t hesitate to grab one for yourself and get cooking. Again, thank you for reading and following me on this journey.

🙂

Sophie

Tea Masala Mango-Pear Pie

~ Sophie ~ 6 Comments

Its mango season y’all. You wont believe how exciting this time is for almost everyone. It is where kids damage things because the  stoning of the mangoes gets out of hand, where tree owners become protective of their mangoes stating that all children should wait till the mangoes are ripe. But what is the fun in that really? I personally have equal excitement when eating both raw and ripe mangoes except that the former is more fun(salt and piripiri anyone?).  So as the season slowly climaxes, generous neighbors are giving away mangoes because, well, if they don’t, they will rot and nobody wants that.

I have been searching far and wide(A.K.A Google) the meaning of ‘from scratch’. because I have always questioned the concept behind it.  Based on what I gathered and understood, cooking from scratch means cooking and  using  items or rather ingredients within your reach, your house or garden(and neighbors?!?).  In a  way this pie was made from scratch and you don’t need a lot of fancy ingredients really. Let me show you how.

What you’ll need:

Pie dough
2 C. Baking flour
½ C. Margarine (blue band)/ Butter
1/2 C. Cold water
2 Tsp. Sugar
½ Tsp. Salt

For the filling

2 Ripe mangoes

1/2 Pear

1/2 Tsp. Tea masala

1 Tbsp. Sugar

1/2 Tsp. Lemon Juice

Method

Sift flour in a bowl. Add salt and sugar. Mix well. Add margarine and using your hands mix it in the flour until the mixture becomes coarse. Next add the water, a tablespoon at a time, while mixing. Keep adding little water until a firm dough is formed. It should not be very wet and should not stick to your hands so much (you may need more or less water). After you have formed the dough, put it back in the bowl and keep it refrigerated for 15 minutes.

Peel and thinly slice the mangoes. Put in a bowl and set aside. Thinly slice the pear and add in bowl. Add the tea masala, sugar and lemon juice and mix well.

After 15 minutes, remove from the refrigerator and, on a floured surface, cut the dough into two equal parts. Using a floured rolling-pin or a glass bottle, roll the dough out till it is large enough (think chapatti size). Roll the second part of the dough too. Arrange the mango and pear slices on top center of the pie dough. Make sure you leave enough space for folding the dough. Fold the dough on top of the filling.

Bake in an oven until the crust starts to brown a little. This can take an approximation of 15 to 20 minutes depending on the oven you are using. I use an oven toaster(!).
Remove from the oven and let the pie cool and then serve.

Do you prefer raw or ripe mangoes?

Apart from juicing,  what do you plan on doing with the excess ripe mangoes?

Have a great week.

🙂

Sophie

PS: If you don’t fancy tea masala, you can substitute it for anything else like cinnamon.