Letter to Julia 20120822

In the name of Allah, most Gracious, most Merciful.

How are you feeling today, Julia?  I love you, my beautiful young bride.  I've been trying to slow down, after the hectic fasting month.  There was a lot of food, but there's so much I can't eat now that I'm old.  Well, I basically can't eat other people's cooking.  Even the simple foods, cakes and sweets give me gastritis.  Today's breakfast of ketupat (glutenous rice steamed in coconut leaves) and seronding (dried shredded beef) gave me problems until the next morning.  I just don't have a local stomach.  But I managed to quench the burn by slamming a whole wok full of fried rice.

Ah, fried rice!  Truly the poor man's meal, since it tastes better with leftovers.  The key to fried rice is the rice itself: it is best when the rice has cooled overnight in the cooler.  I've seen on TV some people make fried rice out of freshly steamed rice.  I guess you would have to be super skilled to make it come out unclumpy.  But cooled down and slightly dried up rice is the best.  Fried rice should taste light.  Which means that all seasonings and grease must not overpower the sweetness of the rice.  Meats should be precooked, and vegetables added at the end for a short time to maintain crispness.  I start by making a fond, maybe onions, garlic and carrots with light soy sauce in minimal oil.  When browned, part the center, and turn down the heat.  Add a little more oil to the empty space, let it heat up, then crack an egg in there.  Break the yolk, sprinkle some salt and pepper, then spread it around, and let it slightly harden.  Add the rice, increase the heat, and mix everything in, adding light soy sauce constantly to flavor.  Then add the precooked meats, and vegetables last.  Why is fried rice so complicated?  Because there are so many bad versions!