How to make flaming fire flakes from 'Avatar: The Last Airbender'
Avatar: The Last Airbender is an animated television series which ran from 2005 to 2008.
It tells the story of Aang who is an Avatar--someone who can "bend" or manipulate element. He is also the last survivor of his nation, the Air Nomads.
Aang and his friends go on a quest to stop the Fire Nation from waging war with other nations in the world.
Aside from its popularity with audiences, it also proved to be a success among critics.
It has won a Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation in 2007 and a Peabody Award in 2008 among many other accolades.
The series has also been praised for tackling concepts like war, genocide, and colonialism which are not often explored in televisions shows and other media intended for young audiences.
In one of the scenes in the series, Aang, Katara, and Sokka attend a festival in the Fire Colony where the encounter an interesting snack called flaming fire flakes.
Photo courtesy of Nickelodeon
Andrew Rea of Binging with Babish shared a recipe inspired by the flaming fire flakes from Avatar: The Last Airbender.
Here's how to make it.
Ingredients
100 grams of long grain white rice
400 grams of water
1/2 cinnamon stick
1/2 star anise
1 teaspoon of fennel seeds
2 tablespoons of Sichuan peppercorns
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
cooking oil
salt
Procedure
1. In a medium saucepan, cook long grain white rice in water for 15 minutes
2. Grind cinnamon stick, star anise, fennel seeds and Sichuan peppercorns into a fine powder then sift to remove large pieces
3. Mix in cayenne pepper and sweet paprika
4. Liquefy the cooked rice with few teaspoons of the spice mix
5. Pour onto a silicone liner then use a spatula to shape into a thin sheet
6. Put in a dehydrator under 122 degrees Fahrenheit for 2 hours
7. Peel off the sheet from the silicone liner and break off parts which are fully dehydrated
8. Put the still most parts back in dehydrator for 30 minutes
9. Break by hand into flakes
10. Deep fry in oil until puffed up then drain in paper towels to remove excess oil
11. Sprinkle with more of the spice mix and a bit of salt while warm
Watch how flaming fire flakes from Avatar: The Last Airbender are made here:
Despite the name, Sichuan pepper is not closely related to black pepper or chili pepper.
It creates a tingly numbness in the mouth and has slight lemony overtones.
How to make shrimp tempura donburi as seen in 'Spirited Away'
How to make vegetable soup as seen in 'The Secret World of Arrietty'