Thoughts on Close Reading or The Importance of Careful Work or Why Does My Stir fry Taste Like Baked Bread?

I made stir fry tonight, combining fresh vegetables: earthy mushrooms, bright red bell peppers, bok choy, garlic and carrots. To start off, I put rice in the cooker right away and began chopping vegetables. Then I heated up the sesame oil and cooked the onions until opaque. The aroma of steamed rice wafted through the house and out the open windows. I added the vegetables in two stages and then began on the sauce. Since I made stir fry two weeks ago, I remembered my secret ingredient to add a more complex flavor profile to the dish. (Can you tell that I have been watching Top Chef?) Just before pouring the sauce over the vegetables, I remembered the cornstarch. Reaching up into the cabinet without looking, I reached for a round, tin container and added the white substance to the sauce.

As the sauce went into the pot, it began to bubble. I thought that was a bit strange. Two minutes later I checked the stir fry but the sauce hadn’t thickened one bit. Add more cornstarch! The dish once again bubbled up. I looked at the round container and realized….it was baking soda! My food was trying to rise in the pan. How could I have made this mistake? I added cornstarch to the mix, unaware of how to remove the baking soda. Hopefully the taste will disappear. Maybe my roommate will be too hungry to tell. Should I let her know?

Reading counts kids. If you don’t read carefully your food will taste very strange.