Rainbow coloured Chinese fried vegetable rice

This is not ‘Pilau Njeri’, in case you are wondering, but a skillfully prepared rice dish that will make ordinary rice look more glamourous. The mixture of colours in the rice should create a rainbow mosaic when served. This is one of the many ways in which the Chinese prepare their rice.

Ingredients

3 cups cooked and cooled rice

1/4 cup green onion sliced thinly  (green and white separated)

1/4 cup red bell pepper

1/2 cup green peas

1/4 cup green beans

1/4 cup carrots

1/4 cup cabbage

1/4 cup celery

2 tbsp soy sauce (or tamari) to taste

1 tbsp sesame oil

1 tbsp garlic (minced)

1 tbsp ginger, peeled and minced

Preparation

Heat a heavy wide pan (skillet) in high heat. Pour in the sesame oil, onion whites, ginger and garlic. Stir. Once you smell the aroma, add the rest of the vegetables. The veggies should be cooked, but still crunchy.

Add the rice and stir to mix.

Add the soy sauce and sesame oil (as well as chili sauce if using). Stir, but not too much, to avoid mashing the rice.

If it looks dry, sprinkle some water. You could also add some oil to give it a more restaurant look.

Garnish with green parts of the onions and serve with a side dish of your choice. It tastes best when hot.

Pressure cooker sponge cake

Believe it or not, you don’t need an oven to bake a cake. You can actually make all sorts of delicious cakes in a pressure cooker.

Ingredients:

3 eggs

1 cup (140 grams) of all-purpose flour/maida

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup (200 grams) of sugar

1/2 cup (120 ml) milk

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/4 cup (60ml) oil

Preparation:

Break the eggs into a bowl, then add sugar and vanilla essence. With an electric, or hand beater, mix the ingredients. The batter should be smooth and relatively thick.

Preheat the pressure cooker on medium heat for about 5 minutes.

Sieve the flour into the egg and sugar batter and gently fold the flour in. Fold the flour by sliding the spatula into the batter, then lifting it up (with the batter) and folding it over. Repeat until the ingredients are mixed to a smooth batter.

Place a piece of parchment paper at the bottom of the cooker and slowly pour in the cake batter. Cover the pressure cooker and reduce the heat to medium-low.

After 20 minutes, take a toothpick and stick it into the cake to see if it’s fully baked. If it comes out dry, the cake is ready. If it comes out wet, leave the cake in the cooker for another 5 minutes and then check again.

Turn off the heat and uncover the cooker, but leave the cake to cool for about 5 minutes. Cover your cooker with a plate and flip it.

Peel the parchment paper from the cake. Garnish with some powdered sugar and enjoy!