Chapter 17: Kitri

 

Unmistakably a good cook, nevertheless, Maria was learning something new today. Her teacher was a middle-aged woman from Norway, one of the many ladies from around the world who had heard of Judy and her mission in Cambodia. Beatrice was very happy to have Maria’s company. 

“So, how do you say that again?”

The two woman laughed as Maria tried several times to pronounce, asafoetida. “There, you said it perfectly.” Again the kitchen was filled with laughter.

“This is just one of the spices we are going to use. Kitri is a wonderful dish and the children love it, as long as we don’t forget the chilies. Believe me, these kids were born with a pepper in their mouth.” Again the kitchen was filled with laughter.

“OK—so you said that Kitri consists of rice and doll? How do you spell that?”

“d-h-a-l.  See, right here on the package.  They are little yellow mung beans that are split in half.   They make the best Kitri and we can add a wide variety of vegetable—whatever’s available to give it added nutrition.  We’ll also be making a little cuddy sauce to pour on top. See, that’s what Barbara is making over there.  OK, cut up these tomatoes while I cut up the squash.”

“Beatrice—I’m curious, is there an exact formula that you go by?”

“No my dear, that’s modern cooking.” Again the two started to laugh. “But yes, there are certain proportions that you need to pay attention to. But the vegetables—well, that depends on how many we are going to cook for. Sometimes we have a lot of visitors. Just remember that the basic ratio between the rice and the dhal and the water is always the same, but from there it’s just a matter of what’s available at the market.”

“That’s interesting. What’s the formula?”

“OK, what I use are equal parts of rice and beans.  I measure them both out until I get the amount of grains I need and then I rinse them off. Now I add a five to one ratio of water to grain, which is what I like to use. And then after it’s cooked a bit I’ll add some more water as it needs it.

“Next, in a little cup of cold water I’ll mix in different spices since they will easily dissolve that way. If I put the powdered spices in with the boiling Kitri, they tend to stay lumped up. How much extra water you’ll eventually use all depends on how its thickening up. But the one-to-five ratio will get you started. Most of us like it on the thick side.”

“Oh boy, I can see that I’m going to be learning a lot today. Here—my tomatoes are ready.  What kind of sauce did you say that Barbara is making?”