PAGE 1: How we will learn OVERVIEW ======== Cooking makes many foods soft, safe and pleasant to eat. In this sub-strand you will describe boiling and shallow frying, follow the steps to cook food by each method, work safely around heat and hot oil, and serve the food so that boiling and shallow frying become useful ways of preparing meals at home. ## Strand 2.0: Food Production Processes Sub-strand 2.5: Cooking Food Suggested lessons: 11 ## What this sub-strand covers • Boiling food • Shallow frying food ## Source • KICD Grade 4 Agriculture Curriculum Design (Revised 2024) — Strand 2.0 Food Production Processes, Sub-strand 2.5 Cooking Food ## Learning outcomes By the end of the sub-strand, the learner should be able to: a) describe methods of cooking food b) cook food using different methods c) embrace boiling and shallow frying in food production ## Key inquiry questions 1. How can we cook food using boiling and shallow frying methods? ## Learning experiences • watch video clip or demonstration on boiling and shallow frying methods of cooking • cook food using boiling and shallow frying methods • serve the boiled and shallow fried food to embrace the various methods of food production ## Core competencies • Learning to learn: organizing own learning as learners apply laid down procedure in boiling and shallow frying food. ## Values • Responsibility: observes care and safety when boiling and shallow frying food. ## Pertinent and contemporary issues • Safety of self and others to avoid accidents as they boil and fry food. ## Links to other learning areas • Learners relate handling of accidents to first aid skills learnt in Science and Technology. LESSON 1: WHY WE COOK FOOD ========================== ## What you will learn • Give reasons for cooking food. • Name boiling and shallow frying as methods of cooking. Curriculum outcomes: a) describe methods of cooking food ## Introduction Raw beans are hard and can make a person ill. After they have been cooked they are soft and ready to eat. Cooking changes food so that the body can use it. PAGE 2: Lesson 1: Why we cook food — Notes 3 ## Notes Cooking is heating food so that it becomes ready to eat. Not every food must be cooked. Many fruits, and some vegetables such as tomatoes and carrots, can be washed and eaten raw. Foods such as dried maize, beans, green grams, raw meat and raw eggs need cooking. We cook food for several reasons. Heat makes hard foods soft, so they are easier to chew and to digest. Heat kills many of the germs that may be on food. Cooking brings out flavour and smell, so the meal is more pleasant. Some foods, such as eggs, change texture and can be eaten in new ways. Cooking can also keep a meal warm until the family is ready to eat. There are many methods of cooking. In this sub-strand we learn two that are used every day at home: boiling and shallow frying. Boiling cooks food in bubbling water or another liquid. Shallow frying cooks food in a shallow pan with a little oil or fat. Other methods you may see at home, such as deep frying, roasting, steaming and stewing, are not our focus here, but you should know they exist so that you do not confuse them with the two methods we practise. The method you choose depends on the food and on what the meal needs. Eggs can be boiled or shallow fried. Green vegetables are often boiled in a little water, and they can also be shallow fried. Dried beans are boiled because they must soften in water. A thin fillet of fish fries quickly in a little oil. Whatever method you use, start with clean hands, clean utensils and fresh or well-stored food. Cooking cannot make spoiled food good again. Wash vegetables and fruits, sort grains, and throw away food that smells bad or is mouldy. PAGE 3: Lesson 1: Why we cook food — Answers to practice ## Key words • cooking — heating food to make it ready to eat • method of cooking — a particular way of heating food, such as boiling or shallow frying ## Worked examples ### Example 1 Give three reasons for cooking dried beans instead of eating them raw. Working: 1. Raw dried beans are too hard to chew. 2. Cooking makes them soft and easier to digest. 3. Boiling also kills germs and improves the taste. Answer: To soften them, to make them easier to digest, and to kill germs and improve flavour. ## Activity: Name the cooking methods you already know You will need: Exercise book, Chalkboard 1. In groups, list foods you eat cooked at home. 2. Say whether each food is usually boiled or fried. 3. Give one reason why that food is cooked. 4. Share two foods that can be eaten raw after washing. ## Practice 1. State three reasons for cooking food. 2. Name the two cooking methods you will learn in this sub-strand. 3. Name two foods that can be washed and eaten without cooking. ## Answers to practice 1. Any three: to soften it, to make it easier to digest, to kill germs, to improve flavour, to change the texture. 2. Boiling and shallow frying. 3. Any two fruits or raw vegetables, for example mango, orange, banana, tomato, carrot. PAGE 4: Lesson 2: What boiling means — Notes 2 ## Summary • Cooking softens food, kills many germs and improves flavour. • Boiling uses bubbling liquid. Shallow frying uses a little oil in a shallow pan. • Start with clean hands, clean utensils and food that is fit to eat. LESSON 2: WHAT BOILING MEANS ============================ ## What you will learn • Describe boiling as a method of cooking. • Name foods and equipment used for boiling. Curriculum outcomes: a) describe methods of cooking food ## Introduction When water in a sufuria rolls with bubbles and steam rises, the water is boiling. Food cooked in that water is being boiled. ## Notes Boiling is cooking food in water, milk or another liquid that has reached boiling point. At boiling point the liquid bubbles strongly and steam rises. Putting a lid on the sufuria keeps heat in and helps the food cook evenly. The food must stay in the liquid, or partly covered by it, until it is done. Many everyday foods are boiled. Eggs are boiled in their shells. Irish potatoes, sweet potatoes, cassava, arrowroots, green maize and green bananas are boiled until they are soft. Rice, maize meal for porridge, beans, peas and green grams are boiled. Green vegetables such as sukuma wiki are boiled in a little water for a short time. Tea is made by boiling water, and sometimes milk. The equipment is simple. You need a sufuria or pot, a well-fitting lid, a jiko, gas cooker or other cooker, a serving spoon, clean water, and a sieve or plate if water must be drained off. A cloth or pot holder protects the hands when you lift a hot sufuria. The sufuria should be big enough for the food and the water without boiling over. PAGE 5: Lesson 2: What boiling means — Notes 4 Boiling has clear advantages. It needs little or no fat. It softens hard foods. The high heat kills many germs. Several foods can be boiled for a family meal. The disadvantages are also real. Some vitamins from vegetables pass into the water or are lost if the vegetables are overcooked. Food can become tasteless if it is boiled for too long. The method uses fuel for as long as the pot stays on the fire, so dried beans, which take longer, need more fuel than eggs. Do not confuse boiling with merely warming food. Warm water does not cook beans or kill germs the way boiling water does. The bubbles and the time given to the food both matter. [DIAGRAM] TYPE: svg ALT: Boiling cooks food in water that is bubbling and giving off steam PAYLOAD: CAPTION: Boiling cooks food in water that is bubbling and giving off steam [/DIAGRAM] PAGE 6: Lesson 2: What boiling means — Answers to practice ## Key words • boiling — cooking food in a liquid that is bubbling and giving off steam • boiling point — the stage when a liquid bubbles strongly and turns to steam ## Worked examples ### Example 1 Which of these foods are suitable for boiling: dried beans, ripe mango, Irish potatoes, eggs? Working: 1. Dried beans, Irish potatoes and eggs are cooked in boiling water. 2. A ripe mango is washed and eaten raw. Answer: Dried beans, Irish potatoes and eggs. ## Activity: Watch boiling and name what you see You will need: Sufuria, Water, Cooker or jiko, Lid, Food samples or pictures 1. Watch a demonstration, or a short video clip if one is available, of water being brought to the boil. 2. Describe the bubbles, the steam and the use of the lid. 3. List five foods that are boiled in your home and the utensil used. 4. State one advantage of boiling. ## Practice 1. How can you tell that water is boiling? 2. Name four foods that are often boiled. 3. Give one advantage and one disadvantage of boiling. ## Answers to practice 1. It bubbles strongly and steam rises. 2. Any four: eggs, potatoes, sweet potatoes, rice, beans, green grams, maize, green vegetables. 3. Advantage: any one of little fat, softens food, kills many germs. Disadvantage: vegetables can lose goodness if overcooked, or food can become tasteless, or it uses fuel. PAGE 7: Lesson 3: Boiling eggs and root crops — Notes 1 ## Summary • Boiling cooks food in a bubbling liquid. • Eggs, roots, cereals, legumes and vegetables can be boiled. • A sufuria, lid, clean water and a safe cooker are the basic equipment. LESSON 3: BOILING EGGS AND ROOT CROPS ===================================== ## What you will learn • Boil an egg until it is hard. • Boil a root crop until it is soft. Curriculum outcomes: b) cook food using different methods ## Introduction An egg and a sweet potato can both be boiled in water, but they are handled differently. The egg stays in its shell. The root is washed, and sometimes peeled, before it goes into the pot. ## Notes Boiling an egg is a good first practice because the steps are short and the result is easy to judge. Wash your hands. Place the eggs gently into a sufuria of cold water, using a spoon so that the shells do not crack. The water should cover the eggs. Put the sufuria on the fire and bring it to the boil. For a hard-boiled egg, leave the eggs in the boiling water for about ten minutes. Lift them out with a spoon. Cool them in clean cold water so that the shells peel easily, then peel and serve. A soft egg needs less time, but a hard-boiled egg is safer and easier for learners to handle. PAGE 8: Lesson 3: Boiling eggs and root crops — Notes 3 If an egg cracks, a little white may leak into the water. Lowering the egg in gently and not crowding the sufuria helps to prevent this. An egg that floats in a bowl of water before cooking may be old. Do not cook an egg that smells bad when opened. Root crops such as Irish potatoes, sweet potatoes, cassava and arrowroots are boiled in a similar pot. Wash off the soil. Peel them if that is how your family eats them, and rinse again. Cut large pieces so that they cook in about the same time. Put them in a sufuria, cover them with clean water, add a little salt if you wish, cover, and boil until a clean fork or knife slides in easily. Drain the water. Do not leave a fork standing in the pot while it cooks, and do not test with your fingers. Cassava must be fully cooked. Do not taste a piece that is still hard in the centre. Serve the boiled roots hot, with a stew, vegetables or milk, so that the meal can be balanced. Wash the sufuria after the lesson. Hot water and soap remove starch and egg from the sides. ## Key words • hard-boiled egg — an egg cooked in boiling water until both the white and the yolk are firm • root crop — a crop whose swollen root is eaten, such as potato, cassava or arrowroot PAGE 9: Lesson 3: Boiling eggs and root crops — Boil eggs or a root crop ## Worked examples ### Example 1 The eggs were put into boiling water and left for about ten minutes. What result should you expect, and how do you cool them? Working: 1. About ten minutes of boiling makes the egg hard. 2. Cooling in clean cold water stops the cooking and loosens the shell. Answer: The white and yolk should be firm. Cool the eggs in clean cold water, then peel them. ## Activity: Boil eggs or a root crop You will need: Eggs or a root crop, Sufuria, Lid, Clean water, Spoon, Cooker, Salt, Pot holder, Plates 1. Wash your hands and the food. 2. With the teacher, boil eggs for about ten minutes, or boil pieces of potato, sweet potato or another root until soft. 3. Use a spoon and a pot holder. Do not touch the hot sufuria. 4. Drain or cool the food as taught, then taste a small piece and say whether it is fully cooked. ## Practice 1. Why are eggs lowered into the sufuria with a spoon? 2. How long should an egg boil to become hard-boiled? 3. How do you test that a boiled potato is ready? 4. Why must cassava be cooked until it is soft all the way through? ## Answers to practice 1. So that the shells do not crack. 2. About ten minutes. 3. A clean fork or knife slides into it easily. 4. Cassava that is still hard in the centre is not ready to eat. ## Summary • Cover eggs with water, boil for about ten minutes, cool, and peel. • Wash root crops, cut even pieces, and boil until a fork slides in. • Use a spoon and a pot holder, and never test hot food with your fingers. PAGE 10: Lesson 4: Boiling cereals, legumes and vegetables — Notes 3 LESSON 4: BOILING CEREALS, LEGUMES AND VEGETABLES ================================================= ## What you will learn • Describe how to boil a cereal or a legume. • Boil green vegetables for a short time. Curriculum outcomes: a) describe methods of cooking food; b) cook food using different methods ## Introduction Rice, beans and sukuma wiki are all boiled, but not in the same way. Rice and beans need enough water and time to soften. Leafy vegetables need only a little water and a short time. ## Notes Cereals such as rice and dried maize are sorted first. Remove stones, husks and broken grains, then wash the grain in clean water until the water runs clearer. Put the grain in a sufuria with clean water and a pinch of salt if wanted. Bring it to the boil, then let it cook until the grain is soft and the water is absorbed or can be drained. Stir rice once or twice so that it does not stick and burn at the bottom. Porridge is another boiled cereal dish: maize flour is stirred into boiling water until the porridge thickens. Legumes such as beans, peas and green grams are also sorted and washed. Dried legumes take longer to soften than fresh food. They are covered with water and boiled until they can be mashed easily between clean fingers after a piece has been cooled, or until they feel soft under a spoon. Do not add cooking soda unless a trusted adult says it is used at home. Keep the lid on to save fuel. If the water dries before the legumes are soft, add hot water, not a large splash of cold water that slows the cooking. Green vegetables are different. Wash them leaf by leaf in clean water. Chop them. Boil a small amount of water with a pinch of salt, add the vegetables, and cook briefly until they are tender but still green. Overcooking turns them dull and loses goodness. Save the vegetable water for a stew or soup when you can. A boiled meal still needs to be balanced. Boiled rice becomes a better meal with beans and a vegetable. Boiled maize and beans become githeri, and a serving of greens completes it. Fuel and water should not be wasted. Use a sufuria that matches the amount of food, keep the lid on, and put out the fire when the food is ready. PAGE 11: Lesson 4: Boiling cereals, legumes and vegetables — Example 1 ## Key words • legume — a dried or fresh seed such as a bean, pea or green gram • sort — to remove stones, bad grains and dirt before cooking ## Worked examples ### Example 1 Why is sukuma wiki boiled for a shorter time than dried beans? Working: 1. Leaves are already soft and only need to become tender. 2. Dried beans are hard and must absorb water and soften. 3. Long boiling also spoils the colour and some goodness of the leaves. Answer: Leaves cook quickly and should stay green. Dried beans need a long boil to become soft. ## Activity: Boil a vegetable or a grain You will need: Rice, maize or a green vegetable, Sufuria, Clean water, Knife, Chopping board, Spoon, Cooker, Plates 1. Sort or wash the food with clean hands. 2. Watch a demonstration, then help to boil the food using the method for that food. 3. For a green vegetable, use a little water and a short cooking time. 4. Serve a small portion and describe the colour, softness and taste. ## Practice 1. What do you remove when you sort rice or beans? 2. Why should dried beans be boiled longer than sukuma wiki? 3. What should green vegetables look like when boiling is done well? ## Answers to practice 1. Stones, husks, dirt and spoiled grains. 2. Dried beans are hard and need time to soften. Leaves only need a short time. 3. Tender but still bright green, not dull and overcooked. ## Summary • Sort and wash cereals and legumes, then boil them until soft. • Boil green vegetables briefly in a little water. • Keep the lid on and do not waste fuel or water. LESSON 5: WHAT SHALLOW FRYING MEANS =================================== ## What you will learn • Describe shallow frying. • Tell shallow frying apart from boiling and from deep frying. Curriculum outcomes: a) describe methods of cooking food ## Introduction A frying pan with a thin layer of oil, an egg slipped in, and a spoon ready to turn it: that is shallow frying. The oil does not cover the food. PAGE 12: Lesson 5: What shallow frying means — Notes 1 ## Notes Shallow frying is cooking food in a shallow pan with a small amount of cooking oil or fat. The pan may be a frying pan or a karai. The oil forms a thin layer. The food sits in the oil and cooks on one side, then it is turned so that the other side cooks. The food is not swimming in oil. Deep frying is different. In deep frying the food is covered by a lot of hot oil. Shallow frying uses less oil, so it is the method we learn here. Boiling is different again because the liquid is water or a watery stew, not oil, and the sign of readiness is softness in bubbles of water rather than a golden surface. Foods that shallow fry well include eggs, small pieces of fish, sausages, thin slices of potato or sweet potato, and vegetables such as cabbage or sukuma wiki when they are fried with a little onion. Pancakes are also shallow fried. Large tough pieces of meat are better cooked by other methods because shallow frying is fairly quick and suits foods that are already thin or tender. You need a shallow pan, a spoon or fish slice for turning, cooking oil, a plate, and a cooker. A clean cloth drains a little extra oil from the food after frying. An apron keeps oil off your clothes. The pan handle is turned to the side so that nobody knocks it. Shallow frying is fast and gives food a pleasant colour and taste. It uses less oil than deep frying. The cook must stay at the pan, because thin food burns quickly. If the oil is not hot enough, the food drinks up oil and becomes soggy. If the oil is smoking hard, the food burns outside before it cooks inside, and the smoke is unpleasant and unsafe. Oil and water do not mix safely in a hot pan. Adding wet food carelessly makes the oil spit. Dry fish or vegetable pieces with a clean cloth before they go into the oil. ## Key words • shallow frying — cooking food in a shallow pan with a little oil, turning it so both sides cook • deep frying — cooking food fully covered in a lot of hot oil ## Worked examples ### Example 1 A pan has enough oil to cover the food completely. Is this shallow frying? Working: 1. Shallow frying uses only a thin layer of oil. 2. Food covered by oil is being deep fried. Answer: No. It is deep frying because the oil covers the food. PAGE 13: Lesson 5: What shallow frying means — Answers to practice ## Activity: Compare boiling and shallow frying You will need: Pictures or a demonstration pan and sufuria, Exercise book 1. Watch a demonstration or a short video of shallow frying. 2. Note the amount of oil, the pan, and how the food is turned. 3. In pairs, list three differences between boiling and shallow frying. 4. Name two foods you would boil and two you would shallow fry, and give a reason for each. ## Practice 1. How much oil is used in shallow frying? 2. What is the difference between shallow frying and deep frying? 3. Why should wet food be dried before it is put into hot oil? 4. Name three foods that can be shallow fried. ## Answers to practice 1. A small amount that makes a thin layer and does not cover the food. 2. Shallow frying uses a little oil and the food is turned. Deep frying covers the food with a lot of oil. 3. Water makes hot oil spit, which can burn the cook. 4. Any three: eggs, fish, sausages, sliced potatoes, pancakes, cabbage, sukuma wiki. ## Summary • Shallow frying uses a thin layer of oil in a shallow pan. • The food is turned so both sides cook. • It is quicker than boiling many foods, but the cook must watch the pan. LESSON 6: SHALLOW FRYING EGGS, FISH AND VEGETABLES ================================================== ## What you will learn • Follow the steps for shallow frying. • Fry an egg, a piece of fish or a vegetable until it is cooked on both sides. Curriculum outcomes: b) cook food using different methods ## Introduction Shallow frying follows a set order: prepare the food, heat a little oil, add the food, turn it, then remove it before it burns. Skipping a step is how food sticks or breaks. PAGE 14: Lesson 6: Shallow frying eggs, fish and vegetables — Notes 3 ## Notes Prepare yourself and the food before the oil is heated. Wash your hands. Tie long hair back. Wear an apron if you have one. Crack an egg into a cup so that you can see it is fresh before it goes into the pan. If you are frying fish, clean it, wash it, and dry it. If you are frying vegetables, wash them, chop them, and drain off the water. Set the shallow pan on the cooker. Add just enough oil to cover the bottom in a thin layer. Heat the oil. It is ready when a tiny crumb of food sizzles gently. The oil should not be pouring smoke. Hold the cup close to the pan and slide the egg in, or lay the fish or vegetables in a single layer. Do not crowd the pan. Crowding cools the oil and makes the food steam instead of fry. Leave the food until the underside is set or lightly coloured. Slide a fish slice or a spoon under it and turn it once. Cook the second side. An egg is done when the white is firm. Fish is done when it flakes and is no longer glassy in the centre. Vegetables should be tender, not blackened. Lift the food onto a clean plate. A piece of clean absorbent paper, if you have it, can take off extra oil. Turn off the heat. Let the pan cool before you wash it. Do not pour hot oil into a plastic jug or into water. Taste and describe the result. The outside should be pleasant, not burnt, and the inside should be cooked. Fried food is still only one part of a meal. Serve the egg or fish with a staple and a vegetable, or fry the vegetable to go with a boiled staple. If the food sticks, the pan may have been too cold or not enough oil was used. If the food burns, the fire was too high or the food was left too long. Next time, change that one thing. PAGE 15: Lesson 6: Shallow frying eggs, fish and vegetables — Example 1 ## Key words • fish slice — a wide flat tool used to turn and lift food in a pan • sizzle — the sound food makes when it meets oil that is hot enough ## Worked examples ### Example 1 The egg white is still watery on top and brown underneath. What should the cook do? Working: 1. The underside has cooked but the top has not. 2. Turn the egg gently and cook the other side. 3. Remove it when the white is firm. Answer: Turn the egg and cook until the white is firm, then remove it. ## Activity: Shallow fry a simple food You will need: Eggs, fish or vegetables, Frying pan, Cooking oil, Fish slice or spoon, Cup, Plate, Apron, Cooker 1. Prepare the food and yourself. Wash hands and dry wet food. 2. Heat a thin layer of oil until a crumb sizzles, without letting the oil smoke hard. 3. Add the food in one layer, turn it once, and cook both sides. 4. Serve on a clean plate and say what you would add to make a balanced meal. ## Practice 1. How do you know the oil is hot enough for shallow frying? 2. Why is food arranged in a single layer? 3. When is a shallow-fried egg ready to remove? ## Answers to practice 1. A tiny crumb of food sizzles gently, and the oil is not pouring smoke. 2. Crowding cools the oil and the food steams instead of frying. 3. When the white is firm on both sides. ## Summary • Heat a little oil, add food in one layer, and turn it once. • Cook until the inside is done and the outside is not burnt. • Drain, serve, and let the pan cool before washing it. PAGE 16: Lesson 7: Safety when boiling and frying — Notes 1 LESSON 7: SAFETY WHEN BOILING AND FRYING ======================================== ## What you will learn • List safety rules for boiling and shallow frying. • State the first help to give for a small burn. Curriculum outcomes: b) cook food using different methods; c) embrace boiling and shallow frying in food production ## Introduction Hot water, steam and hot oil cause real burns. The rules for boiling and frying are there so that you, and the people near you, finish the meal without an injury. ## Notes Work with an adult or your teacher when you use a fire, a cooker, boiling water or hot oil. Grade 4 learners practise the steps. They do not cook alone. Keep the cooking place clear. Loose sleeves, long hair and dangling cloths can catch fire or dip into a pan. Tie hair back and wear an apron. Handles of sufurias and pans should point sideways, not out into the room where someone can knock them. Do not leave a boiling pot or a frying pan without a person watching it. Small children and pets should be kept away from the fire. Use a pot holder or a dry folded cloth to lift hot utensils. A wet cloth passes heat quickly and can scald your hand. Open a lid by tilting it away from your face so that steam does not burn you. Carry a hot sufuria with two hands and warn people by saying that you are passing with something hot. Oil needs extra care. Do not fill the pan with oil for shallow frying. Do not drop water or very wet food into hot oil, because the oil spits. If oil catches fire, do not pour water on it. Turn off the heat if you can do so safely, and cover the pan with a lid to cut off air. Call an adult at once. Do not try to carry a burning pan outside. PAGE 17: Lesson 7: Safety when boiling and frying — Example 1 If someone gets a small burn, first aid from Science and Technology is the right help. Move the person away from the heat. Cool the burn under clean running water. Do not rub on toothpaste, butter, oil or ash. Cover the burn with a clean cloth and tell an adult. A large burn, a burn on the face, or a burn that has broken the skin needs a health worker. After cooking, put out the fire or switch off the cooker. Place knives and hot pans where nobody will touch them by mistake. Wash your hands. Safety is part of learning to cook, not an extra rule for careless people only. ## Key words • scald — a burn caused by hot liquid or steam • pot holder — a thick dry cloth used to hold hot utensils • first aid — the first help given to an injured person before further care ## Worked examples ### Example 1 Hot oil in a pan has caught fire. What should you not do, and what should you do? Working: 1. Water makes an oil fire spread, so do not pour water on it. 2. Turn off the heat if it is safe, and cover the pan with a lid. 3. Call an adult. Answer: Do not pour water on the fire. Switch off the heat if safe, cover the pan, and call an adult. ## Activity: Practise safety rules beside a demonstration You will need: Pot holder, Apron, Lid, Sufuria of water for a teacher demonstration, Exercise book 1. Before cooking, check hair, sleeves, apron and the direction of the handles. 2. Watch the teacher open a lid safely and lift a sufuria with a dry pot holder. 3. Role-play the first aid for a small burn: cool with clean water, no toothpaste or oil, tell an adult. 4. Write five safety rules you will follow whenever food is boiled or fried. ## Practice 1. Why should pan handles point sideways? 2. What is the first help for a small burn? 3. Why do you open a lid away from your face? 4. What should you do if oil in a pan catches fire? ## Answers to practice 1. So that people do not knock the pan and spill hot food or oil. 2. Cool it under clean running water, cover it with a clean cloth, and tell an adult. Do not use toothpaste, butter or oil. 3. So that steam does not burn your face. 4. Do not use water. Turn off the heat if safe, cover the pan with a lid, and call an adult. PAGE 18: Lesson 8: Serving boiled and shallow-fried food ## Summary • Watch the pan, keep handles turned in, and use a dry pot holder. • Do not put water into hot oil or onto an oil fire. • Cool a small burn with clean running water and tell an adult. LESSON 8: SERVING BOILED AND SHALLOW-FRIED FOOD =============================================== ## What you will learn • Serve boiled and shallow-fried food in a clean, attractive way. • Explain why both methods are useful in the home. Curriculum outcomes: c) embrace boiling and shallow frying in food production ## Introduction Food that has been cooked carefully can still be spoiled at the table if it is served on a dirty plate, left uncovered in the dust, or eaten with unwashed hands. ## Notes Serving is part of cooking. Wash your hands. Use clean plates, cups and serving spoons. Do not touch the food with your fingers while you dish it out. Serve hot food hot, soon after it is cooked. Cover food if it must wait, so that dust and flies stay off it. A boiled food and a shallow-fried food can be on the same plate. Boiled ugali or rice can sit beside a shallow-fried egg or fish, with boiled or fried vegetables. This uses both methods and can still be a balanced meal. Drain fried food so that a pool of oil does not cover the plate. Do not pour the boiling water from the sufuria onto the plate. PAGE 19: Lesson 8: Serving boiled and shallow-fried food — Notes 3 Portion the food fairly. Each person needs a share of the staple, the body-building food and the protective food. The person serving takes care that the first plate is not the only plate with fish or egg. After the meal, leftovers that are still fresh can be cooled, covered and kept in a clean place, then reheated until hot before they are eaten again. Food that smells sour, looks slimy or has been uncovered among flies should be thrown away. Wash the utensils. Put out the fire. Leave the cooking place clean for the next person. Embracing boiling and shallow frying means you are willing to use both methods well. Boiling suits beans, grains, eggs and roots, uses little fat, and kills many germs. Shallow frying suits eggs, fish and thin vegetables when you want speed and a good taste, and it uses less oil than deep frying. A household that can do both can prepare more of the foods it grows and buys. That is food production at home: turning raw crops and animal products into meals people can eat safely. Thank the people you cooked with. Share the work of washing up. The skill belongs to the family, not only to one cook. PAGE 20: Lesson 8: Serving boiled and shallow-fried food — Serve the food you have cooked ## Key words • serve — to put cooked food onto clean plates for people to eat • leftovers — food that remains after a meal ## Worked examples ### Example 1 You have boiled rice and a shallow-fried egg. What else should you serve, and how should you dish the food? Working: 1. Rice is energy-giving and egg is body-building. 2. Add a protective food. 3. Use a clean plate and a serving spoon, and drain extra oil from the egg. Answer: Add a vegetable or fruit. Serve with clean utensils, without touching the food, and without a pool of oil on the plate. ## Activity: Serve the food you have cooked You will need: Boiled food, Shallow-fried food, Clean plates, Serving spoons, Covering cloth or lids, Water and soap for washing up 1. Wash hands and set out clean plates. 2. Serve the boiled food and the shallow-fried food in fair portions. 3. Add a protective food if it is not already there, then eat together. 4. Cover any leftovers that are still good, wash the utensils, and say which method you would use again at home and why. ## Practice 1. Give three rules for serving cooked food. 2. Why is it useful for a home to know both boiling and shallow frying? 3. What should be done with food that smells sour or was left open to flies? ## Answers to practice 1. Any three: wash hands, use clean plates and spoons, do not touch the food, serve it hot, cover it if it waits, share fairly. 2. Different foods suit different methods. Boiling softens foods such as beans with little fat. Shallow frying cooks thin foods quickly and tastes good, using less oil than deep frying. 3. It should be thrown away, not eaten. ## Summary • Serve on clean plates, with clean hands, and cover food that must wait. • Boiled and shallow-fried foods can share one balanced plate. • Both methods help a family turn raw food into safe meals. PAGE 21: Revision quiz REVISION QUIZ ============= Answer all the questions, then mark yourself on the Answers tab. 1. Which statement describes boiling? A. Food is cooked in a lot of oil that covers it B. Food is cooked in a bubbling liquid C. Food is cooked on a stick over an open flame only D. Food is eaten raw after washing 2. Which tool protects your hand when you lift a hot sufuria? A. A wet handkerchief B. A dry pot holder C. A plastic bag D. Your sleeve 3. About how long should an egg boil to become hard-boiled? A. About one minute B. About ten minutes C. About one hour D. All morning 4. Why are green vegetables boiled for a short time? 5. What shows that oil is ready for shallow frying? A. It is cold and thick B. A tiny crumb of food sizzles and the oil is not smoking hard C. It has filled the pan to the brim D. Water has been added to it 6. How is shallow frying different from deep frying? 7. What is the first help for a small burn? A. Spread butter on it B. Cool it under clean running water C. Cover it with toothpaste D. Rub it with ash 8. Why should you not pour water on burning oil? 9. Which pair can be served together as part of a balanced meal? A. Boiled rice and a shallow-fried egg, plus a vegetable B. Oil and sugar only C. Uncooked dry beans and raw cassava D. Sweets and a fizzy drink 10. Why should a family be able to boil and shallow fry food? PAGE 22: Quiz answers ANSWERS ======= 1. B. Food is cooked in a bubbling liquid Boiling uses water or another liquid at boiling point, with bubbles and steam. 2. B. A dry pot holder A dry pot holder insulates the hand. A wet cloth heats up quickly and can scald you. 3. B. About ten minutes About ten minutes in boiling water firms the white and the yolk. 4. So that they stay tender and green and do not lose as much goodness. Long boiling dulls the colour and can wash or destroy some vitamins. 5. B. A tiny crumb of food sizzles and the oil is not smoking hard The oil should be hot enough to sizzle but not smoking heavily. 6. Shallow frying uses a thin layer of oil and the food is turned. Deep frying covers the food with oil. The amount of oil is the main difference, and shallow-fried food must be turned. 7. B. Cool it under clean running water Clean running water cools the burn. Butter, toothpaste and ash are not first aid for burns. 8. Water makes an oil fire spread. Turn off the heat if it is safe, cover the pan with a lid, and call an adult. 9. A. Boiled rice and a shallow-fried egg, plus a vegetable Rice gives energy, egg builds the body and a vegetable protects. The foods use both cooking methods. 10. The two methods suit different foods and help the family turn raw food into safe, pleasant meals. Boiling softens foods such as beans with little fat. Shallow frying cooks foods such as eggs and fish quickly.