Fried Rice on the Fly

Yesterday, I did not have very much in the fridge. I had some eggs, rice and some onions, ginger and garlic. We made a meal. I said no eating out. Today's lesson - less is a lot.

You will notice that I used nothing else. No seasoning or fried rice mixes or food enhancers. My sons loved it!

What I had at home:

Rice  - cook some rice
Chopped fine onion, ginger and garlic (the garlic gives a good taste to the rice)
Some soy sauce
Eggs - fried

How to prepare - your older children can help you with this

Heat cooking oil
Add onion, ginger and garlic till it gets brownish or the aroma sets in
Mix in the cooked rice
Add soya sauce to taste
Mix in the eggs

And that's it. If you have chives or onion leaves, cut them fne and add towards the end.



Fried Rice - Simple and Nice

 Happy Cooking and Teaching!

Don't Waste - Fry!

What do you do with left over Kentucky Fried Chicken? We can re-heat. But there are other things as well. Here's what my boys told me to do today.

We prepared some fried rice. It takes 10 minutes to prepare and 10 minutes to cook.

Waste not want not!

Slice thinly some onions, ginger and garlic
Chop vegetables of choice - i like cabbage
Some chilly
Soya sauce
Chop or tear off the meat from the chicken - your kids can do it too.
Cooked rice (you can substitute with pasta of your choice or noodles)

Fry the onions, ginger and garlic
When light brown, add the vegetables and chilly
Add the chicken and rice
Mix in the soya sauce to taste

And there you have it.

Notice, that i have not used seasoning or other taste enhancers.

Its tasty and healthy and easy to prepare.

Happy Cooking and Teaching!

Breakfast on the Fly!

Breakfast recipes is a hot button. What do we eat in the mornings and what do we give our kids? Should we just skip breakfast – of course not. There is risk of kids later being overweight and developing other health issues. Skipping breakfast is like a car running out of gas – we lose energy and focus by mid morning risking our health and all the other things that we do.


There are all sorts of breakfast recipes. But here are some tips on quick ideas for busy days!

1. Stay away from sugary breakfast cereals and donuts in the morning

2. Have instant oatmeal – add hot milk. For adults, add hot water and a bit of honey

3. Keep a variety of whole grain cereals that are low in sugar

4. Sprinkle oat bran, wheat bran, psyllium husk, flax seed meal on cereal for extra fiber.

5. Cut up fruit with oats or cereals

6. Make cheese sandwiches, scrambled egg burritos and other finger foods that kids can eat quickly, sardine sandwiches. Using a sandwich maker quickens the process.

7. Cut up fruits and serve with yogurt or blend the fruit and yoghurt

8. Bread, butter and jam (BBJ as my kids call it) or peanut butter on toast

9. Boil, scramble, fry, or poach eggs - they're packed with nutrition and one a day is perfectly healthy

10. A glass of milk or coco with milk if they don't eat cereal or if everyone’s in a hurry

11. A bowl of baked beans or beans on toast - they're lo laded with protein

12. Have breakfast sitting down instead of on the go

13. Quick noodles – see some basic recipes on this blog.

14. Fried rice – keep it simple and basic – see recipe on this blog

Then when you have a little extra time on Saturday or Sunday morning, make a
good recipe with your kids.

Teach kids to have something in the morning. No junk food. Make it a rule.

Happy Cooking and Teaching!

Kids and Cooking

I followed Jamie Oliver's advice today. A five year old and a nine year old can learn how to cook in just 5 minutes. The results are immense.

My previous blog was about Jamie Oliver and what he tought about cooking and kids. It was a reminder.

Its Sunday today and my kids tell me they are bored and hungry. I told them to come into the kitchen and lets cook something.

Nine Year Old

I had some left over rice. I asked him if he wanted some some fried rice. 

I helped him chop up some onions, garlic and ginger.
And then some cabbage

Made him switch the stove and pour the oil and mix the ingridients in. He then put in the cooked rice and finished off with soya sauce.

That's it - 5 minutes  and less.


5 Year Old

He wanted some toasted bread. This time I asked him to do it himself with some help from me.

He placed 2 slices in the toaster. And buttered it himself. He does not like the sides and I let him use a butter knife to cut them.







And there were still hungry and asked for instant noodles. It was a good opportunity to teach my nine year old.

He cut out the noodles from the packets. And i said it would normall use one and half glasses of water for 1 packet and tested him on how much he would need since he is making 2 packets.

He placed three cups of water and he and his brother enjoyed a meal of instant noodles.

It was a good Sunday. It does not take long if the dish is simple. They learn lots

- self confidence

- take pride in their product

- they occupy themself

- they are learning a live skill

- they have fun

- they are with you building a family culture which they can take when they have kids

Parents, this is a short post to share my experience today and the joys and the importance of bring the kids into the kitchen. As NIKE says JUST DO IT!

Write in with your experience with your kids. And one more thing, dont nag them to clean up. There is plenty of time for that. Let them have fun and let them experiment.

Happy Cooking and Teaching!