sunshine_messages | [OPEN] Questions about local flavors (backdated to mid-may)

Hello Embryon-san!

I tend to prefer my meal well spiced! Curry is an excellent example of this, though some cannot handle the really hot stuff. A cup full of rice also makes a perfect compliment to any plate as long as it is not the centerpiece of your dish already.

I hope I have managed to help you in some way!

-Rock Lee of Konoha

It does give us a place to start so thank you.

Now, what precisely do you mean by 'spiced?' The impression I get from your reply indicates it has something to do with heat, but I also feel like temperature is not what you are referring to, correct? We have never sampled curry before. What is in it, and how can it be made?

Secondly, you mention rice. We have encountered others eating something we have agreed must be rice since leaving our island, but we have not prepared it ourselves. How is rice cooked?

The Embryon

You are welcome!

Have you never had anything spicy before? I mean the spice you get when you use chilies and peppers! It sort of [a few inkspots from pentaps] tickles the taste buds! And they can make your body temperature rise, which means you burn more calories and flush out impurities through sweat!

I usually pick up my spices already mixed from the market but if you cannot do that for some reason, I checked the ingredients on the package. It says it includes turmeric, coriander, cumin, cardamon, black pepper, and cayenne! All the spices have been pulverized into a powder so I assume they were dried beforehand? I am not really certain, but it is a good mix! I like it a lot!

Rice is very popular in the Fire country! Most people eat it at every meal! I like to, but sometimes I like to have bread instead. Rice is easy to cook if you have a rice cooker! You just follow the instructions! But if you do not then you must boil water and simmer the rice in it while it is covered. It is quite easy however you do it, but with a rice cooker your rice will always come out perfectly!

I hope this helped, Embryon-san!

-Rock Lee

[The message takes a little longer than usual, and the reply when it comes is sealed specifically to Lee's scroll symbol.]

No, we have not. However, our food situation has been unique. Those who initially held control over our island provided only rations, all more or less of the same flavor and consistency, and since then we have been primarily hunting and fishing for meat. Our exposure to anything else is extremely limited; hence this missive.

I have written down the ingredients and will attempt to locate them. I would like to experience this tickle for myself. It seems that we will also need to acquire utensils as we currently have none. What do you recommend as most useful for general cooking?

That sounds like you had some awful overlords to force you to eat such a restricted diet. I hope things are better for your quality of life now!

From the sound of it you are also getting some fish in your diet. This is wonderful as they can be very healthy to eat! I would suggest squeezing some citrus fruit like lemons and limes over cooked fish, whether it is baked, fried or poached! Season well with salt and pepper and chili spice if you want an extra kick!

Ah, yes! Cooking tools are very important! When making curry pots are a must! And again, I would recommend a rice cooker for your rice if you can find a quality one! You will also need skillets, a set of cooking knives, spoons and forks for eating with, cutting boards, ladles for soups and sauces, and of course plates and bowls for serving. Optional items include a mixer for smoothies and shakes, steamer baskets for dumplings, a slow-cooker for one-pot meals, and a wok for stir-frying! You could also stir-fry things in skillet pans but woks are much more effective.

Where might the citrus fruit, salt, pepper and cooking utensils be found? We have none of the tools you have mentioned, though presumably kunai and our other blades could be substituted for cooking knives. The base of our captors may have some things, however, currently we are traveling, and a search will have to wait.

Cooking the fish does sound like it would be pleasant, however, so it is worth looking into.

Generally you can find all those ingredients and items at any marketplace! Unless the village you happen to visit is really, really small. Then you may have some trouble, but you can always ask a local where you might buy such things if you feel at a loss!

I would refrain from using kunai as knives unless you are sure to properly sanitize them before and after use. Raw meat can carry dangerous germs that can make you ill, so always be safe! You can boil the kunai in hot water to rid it of most of the bad germs if you do not have the proper cleaning detergents!

Fish can be served either raw or cooked, though a few fish are dangerous to eat raw as well! I would suggest asking a fisherman his thoughts on such things, however, as I am not well-versed in every type of available seafood out there! I know salmon, tuna, snapper, yellowtail... Several fish can be done either way!

And that is all just the beginning! If you have the funds you could look into buying some cook books as well! I would suggest delving into those for more complex dishes.

Perhaps that is the reason for occasional aches. Does cooking meat and fish improve the flavor?

[Because... they've always eaten it raw, and discovering cooking is very new.]

Occasional aches?!? Be sure to take care of yourselves! It seems you all will need a good sit-down lesson about cooking anytime you can get it!

But to answer, generally yes! Sushi often uses raw fish but it is still prepared in a very delicate fashion that enhances the flavor! Beef can be eaten raw just fine but you need to make sure you thorough cook most other types of meats to avoid getting sick!

Much of this would be too much for one person to explain on paper. I will need to send you a list of reference guides on beginning cooking and sanitary measures.

Some of them are likely from eating too much, or from consuming bones and other undigestibles. Yes, cooking is unfamiliar to us. Some may remember bits and pieces, but most of us do not.

That list will be helpful. Does cooking also preserve the meat for a longer period? We are having difficulties with storage, especially while on the move.

[That's pretty metal, Gale. Lee has to pause and think before he responds.]

Do not push yourselves to try anything too elaborate at first, then. Cooking skills build up from the basics. If you happen to stop in a town long enough, try to see if there is a way to take a class or two, and to get a place with a stove and oven could help! Cooking over a fire is more difficult than cooking on a range so understand that while on the move you are basically making things even harder on yourself from the get-go. Not much to do about it, so just take your victories where you can.

I will make sure to write out that list for you as soon as I can!

As for preserving, at this time your best option is smoking your meat, curing it, or dehydrating it. Smoking your meat usually requires a two-chambered instrument where you can trap the smoke in with the meat and use that to slow-cook it. The process takes some hours. Curing meat means placing it in a salt bath completely covered. This method does help keep the meat fresh and usable, but you must leave it in the bath for a long, long time, sometimes several months and that is a little out of your current needs range.

I think dehydrating it would be best for you. Just cut your meat into strips, brine it, then lay it across a rack over your fire. You do not want the flame touching your meat and burning it! In a sense, you are smoking your meat, but you leave it until it is very, very dry. This will keep your meat much longer, though jerky is quite tough to eat and will often not taste as good as you might wish. Still, it is generally a good ration to have in storage.

We cannot help that at the moment, as we are in the middle of a journey first to the shores of Fire Country, and we have been invited to visit Wind Country as well. To turn back or stay in one area for as long as lessons might take would delay our arrival more than is wise.

This information will prove very valuable for our clan, so thank you for taking the time to explain it for us.

Understandable. That means you will be visiting my country sometime soon before you head to Wind! That is exciting! Perhaps I will see you all on your journey and manage to teach you something in person!

I hope it did help somewhat. I am not the best cook, but I am good at the few things that I can make!

[He's actually a lot better than he thinks. Lee was meant to be a domestic.]

If you are still amenable and in the area when we arrive, we would welcome lessons. This seems like an area where watching and performing along with the activity will end with better learning.

Certainly! I generally learn best hands-on as well! It will be a lot of fun, and it will be a pleasure to meet you, Embryon-san!

Then we look forward to meeting with you.

My name is Gale, and my companion on this venture is Argilla.

The same could be said for me!

A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Gale-san! I hope to meet with you and Argilla-san soon! Just ask around for Rock Lee if you are ever in Konoha!

Until that time, then.

If you ever hit up the Land of Wind, you should try dried cactus. It's great.

The vendors uproot a cactus, slice it and soak it in a concoction that cancels out the natural hallucinagens it produces, then they dry it out and serve it with various toppings, or with some kind of bread.

Definitely a delicacy; it'd be an insult for you to refuse it if offered.

Cactus... That is a plant, correct? It has...

[What follows is a technical, if not very artistic rendering of the most common types of cacti that are edible, if only as a last resort, in Wind's desert.]

If those drawings are accurate to what you are talking about, I am aware of some varieties being useful for fluid and food, when away from an oasis, but I do not recall dried cactus. Wouldn't removing the moisture be counter to the purpose?

[But gee, foreigners usually don't know that about cacti and surviving the desert do they? How does this person know? Gale is actually asking himself the same question, but "cactus" definitely stirred some strong images and associated information in his head.]

You've obviously never wandered this far, then. You're missing a particular variety of cactus my village is prominent for cultivating.

I mentioned hallucinogens, right? That's our breed of cacti. They're poisonous, inedible, but treated and dried, they're served as sustenance. The moisture from these cacti is better used elsewhere, and you can't drink it neat for obvious reasons. The texture of Doraisaboten is what people crave.

Don't knock it till you try it.

Then if I get the chance to, I will try it. As long as it does not cause harm, experimenting with flavor is not an issue.

[OPEN] Questions about local flavors (backdated to mid-may)

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don't do it man, it's a trap

Gale... doesn't exactly know better whoops

he's adorable and kankuro is awful, i'm so sorry.

Kankuro needs to give it to him someday and be accidentally trolled in return