Day 4 on fenugreek. Titties feel even more full today, and my bra was definitely too small by a decent amount, they were spilling over the top. I actually had to pull my tits out in the bathroom at work and quietly suck on them for a bit because they were so needy.
Still no milk yet, but I've experimented with some double doses and a triple dose, so we'll see if that helps make a difference.
I don't know if it's just from excitement, but my libido has been consistently high and I've been wetter than usual lately
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The Process
Does anybody else enjoy doing things from scratch, even if you have absolutely no logical reason to?
Like, I enjoy making curries. Vindaloo, Biryani, Karahi, I've gone out of my way to make them as close to from scratch as I could. This is pretty straightforward, as you generally want to make your own masala to match your preferences and adapt to the different dishes.
Then came Japanese Curry.
Japanese Curry is based off of British Curry, which came in the form of Curry Powder, a pre-made spice blend. The Japanese company S&B made their own variation, which they made into a curry roux to melt into stews, leading to what we know as Japanese Curry, or Kari Raisu (literally just Curry Rice).
Now I've had Golden Curry before. It's pretty good, especially when spiced up. But, for some ungodly reason, I decided I wanted to make my own Japanese Curry Masala.
Now I dunno about y'all, but I typically get my recipes from one of three locations: Youtube, DuckDuckGo (formerly google), and cookbooks. And I need to tell you, there are barely any recipes for making Japanese-style curry powder. And for good reason; the standard stuff is cheaper in the short-term than buying the spices, and way easier than making the roux.
But I wanted to do it anyway.
The first place I found was JustOneCookbook's S&B imitation. It was quite detailed, but was a fair bit complex. I wanted to compare. Fortunately, now I knew S&B sold their curry powder in individual tins, so I googled the ingredients list. This gave me a decent start, but I still wasn't satisfied, so I browsed a few more links before heading to Youtube.
Eventually I came across Dia's Culinaria's video on it, which was noticeably different from the other recipes, but it did account for common additives, and it served as a nice baseline for what I would need.
A few ingredients stood out to me.
First, was fenugreek. This one was a bit of a wild goose chase. First off, when looking up Fenugreek, if you're in the states, you're likely to find a bunch of ads for overprice medicinal fenugreek supplement, which as far as I know, does nothing. Trying to narrow it down doesn't help much, as both the seeds and leaves are used in curries. Eventually, I figured out thanks to Wandercooks' recipe (one I had skipped over earlier) that it was the seeds generally ground and used. This didn't help obtaining it, however. As mentioned before, most fenugreek is sold medicinally for upwards of 40x the cost. I had to find it elsewhere. Eventually, my family made just enough money to head out of town to Winco for groceries. And lo and behold, there they were in the pour section: fenugreek seeds, for more than I'd normally want to spend, but in adjustable quantities, and far cheaper than the med stuff. We picked some up and now all I had to do was measure them out, toast them, and grind what I needed.
The next notable ingredient was Orange Peel. This wasn't on many, but the S&B/imitation style used it. I don't want to deal with dehydrating an orange peel, so I figured I'd zest an orange add that zest to the roux. Simple as.
That was when I remembered that I didn't know how to make the curry in the first place.
That led me to Youtube. Obviously, I could have turned the masala into a roux, and added it like I would a boxed style, but I had just made Gumbo, and was quite confident in my Roux-dimental skills (sorry). I wanted to do this properly (by my own, self-afflicted measure of proper which in no way applies to anybody else). So I looked for recipes. Most were as I remembered from my initial search: using the box and fancying it up. Eventually though, I found this adorable video. It didn't help too much, but y'all should watch it anyway. It's a great idea and the curry looks great.
Anyway, I eventually stumbled upon J.Kenji Lopez-Alt's video on the subject, which really helped. He decided to use H&B's curry powder, which was convenient since I had just made my spice blend all ready to-
I forgot to actually measure and make the masala.
Okay, so back to the spice recipes. Aside from Dia's, most recipes used the standard ratio of 1:1 turmeric:coriander, with fenugreek and cumin close behind. Using that, I loosely measured out the fenugreek and fennel seed, using a bit more than was listed since it would grind down to less, toasted them with a large-ish bay leaf and star anise. Mash them up in a mortar and pestle (please just use a spice grinder. My obstinance is not a roll model), add the other spices, and I'm good to go. That blend is in the pantry now, waiting.
So now I'm nearly there. I've got a carrot, two potatoes, two chicken breasts, an apple, an onion, a large quantity of garlic, the rest of my whole ginger, and some extra-spicy chili powder ready to go. Just need my mom to pick up an orange, and I'm good to make curry.
Well, I also need either my dad or brother to run the dishwasher so I can make rice in the pressure cooker, but that's pretty straightforward.
Anyway, I'll come back tomorrow evening with my results. May my semi-pointless labor bare fruit.
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"Fenugreek: A Spice with Secrets and Health Benefits"
"Fenugreek: A Spice with Secrets and Health Benefits"
https://amzn.to/3TR4BqN
Fenugreek: A Comprehensive Exploration
Fenugreek, scientifically known as Trigonella foenum-graecum, is a versatile herb with a rich history and a plethora of uses. This plant is native to the Mediterranean region, Western Asia, and Southern Europe but is now cultivated worldwide for its culinary, medicinal, and aromatic properties. In this exploration, we…
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Bengali-inspired Methi Mushroom Curry
[[MORE]]
1 tbsp butter-flavoured coconut oil
1 white onion, peeled and chopped
1 tbsp panch phoran (Bengali 5-Spice)
1 tsp garlic paste
4 cups roughly chopped fresh methi (fenugreek) leaves
4 cups chopped white mushrooms
a small handful of fresh curry leaves
1 can (400 ml) coconut milk
1 cup vegetable bouillon
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp chili paste
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 block extra-firm tofu, diced
1 tbsp cilantro paste
1 tbsp pure maple syrup
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp amchur (green mango) powder
1 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp hing (asafeotida)
1/2 cup chopped roasted cashews
Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. Sauté onion for several minutes. Stir in the panch phoran and garlic paste and cook for a few more minutes, stirring frequently.
Stir in the methi leaves, mushrooms and curry leaves and cook for another few minutes.
Stir in the; coconut milk, vegetable bouillon, cumin, coriander, chili paste, and turmeric. Turn heat to high and cover the pot. As soon as stew comes to a boil, reduce to low and simmer for about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the diced tofu and continue to cook for another two minutes. Turn heat off.
Stir in the; cilantro paste, maple syrup, garam masala, amchur, sea salt, black pepper, and hing. Fold in the cashews.
Ideal served over Turmeric Rice.
Turmeric Rice
1 tbsp butter-flavoured coconut oil
1 small white onion, peeled and diced
1 tsp garlic paste
2 cups basmati rice
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp turmeric
4 cups water
Heat olive oil in a medium-sized saucepan over low heat. Sauté onion for several minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for another minute or two. Turn heat off.
Stir in the; white rice, sea salt, turmeric, and water. Transfer to rice cooker and cook according to directions on your rice cooker.
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Some representative examples of seeds from eudicots and monocots are shown in Figure 18.1. (...) Instead, the perisperm and storage cotyledons serve as the main sources of nutrients during germination (see Figure 18.1). (...) Specialized embryonic structures peculiar to the grass family include the following (see Figure 18.1):
The single cotyledon has been modified by evolution to form an absorptive organ, the scutellum, which forms the interface between the embryo and the starchy endosperm tissue.
The basal sheath of the scutellum has elongated to form a coleoptile that covers and protects the first leaves while buried beneath the soil.
The base of the hypocotyl has elongated to form a protective sheath around the radicle called the coleorhiza.
In some species, such as maize, the upper hypocotyl has been modified to form a mesocotyl. During seedling development, the growth of the mesocotyl helps raise the leaves to the soil surface, especially in the case of deeply planted seeds.
"Plant Physiology and Development" int'l 6e - Taiz, L., Zeiger, E., Møller, I.M., Murphy, A.
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Day 5 on fenugreek. I've noticed that overall my skin has been feeling softer, especially on my thighs, but particularly on my chest, possibly from how engorged they feel for the latter. I wore my newest bra today and there's lines from where it was digging in at the top, so they've definitely expanded...
I've also just noticed that I feel generally... well? Like aside from my usual aches/pains, I've had more energy, my stomach is good, somehow the circles under my eyes are less dark even though I have been waking up through the night horny/have been taking the fenugreek when I do wake up.
Have had to reduce the time I use my breast pumps, since my nipples were getting sore more easily on the setting I normally use (the highest) but have been doing them more regularly and then using my hand to keep massaging/stimulating them in between or have been sucking on my own nipples, which is hard to do for long not because it's difficult physically but because it makes me too horny then I have to get off. I have gotten a kind of sweet taste a few times, but I don't think it's even colostrum at this point still.
But! Hoping there's more progress soon!
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