Cooking Bread Without an Oven

‘How can you live by eating only bread for meals?’ is a question that a Lao person would certainly ask a North American. It is commonly said here that bread cannot fill a person up; sticky rice must be part of every meal! In fact when you ask a person what they have eaten everyone assumes rice and thus questions of this nature are phrased, ‘What did you eat with your rice? (Kin khao kup nyang?). ’ Conversely, a North American would surely ask, ‘How can you live by eating only rice for every meal?’

Squash Bread

So how, (you might be wondering) are we fairing? Do you have bread to eat in addition to all the rice that is locally available? Since you don’t have an oven can you even make your own bread? These are all good questions, and we are now proud to say that bread has come to at least one kitchen in Tha Thom!

On our last visit to the capital, Vientiane, we managed to purchase flour in bulk (22kilos) and split it four ways with the other North American MCC’ers. We then found a large 20 liter pot with a lid at the market. Both of these supplies we lugged back to Tha Thom with high hopes of mouthwatering fresh baked bread!

The Setup

Since our only heat source for cooking is wood the first step was to build an oven. After getting a nice bed of coals we set the upside- down pot lid on top of the fire and placed two bricks on it. We then placed the bread pan full of dough on top of the bricks and then put the inverted pot over the entire pile! Our first loaf of sweet monkey bread turned out pretty well, other than raising a mile or so. Since this first attempt we have baked three more loaves with relative success!

A Small Loaf and English Muffins

Egg Sandwiches for Lunch

Having bread sure gives us more diversity in meals. We are very excited to have French toast and sandwiches back on the menu!

The Backyard

My horticulturist heart has wanted to write a blog about plants since I first stepped out of the airport and smelled the heavenly plumeria-perfumed air. This desire was only strengthened when we first cruised down the Nam San River to Tha Thom, and I spent six hours watching the jungle covered mountains glide past.Laos has a huge wealth of flora and most of them are completely new to this inexperienced Northwestern Minnesotan. I have found that the new and cool plants aren’t all in the jungle though; some are right in our back yard, even growing in the garden!

Here is a collection of some of the things growing in our yard. Some are strange new plants and some are just the same ‘ol good standby’s that grow anywhere!

With June comes rain… so we are preparing for the garden to get drenched, and are trying some things in pots! On the left of the picture are some ornamentals we brought from Vientiane and are trying to root. On the right is a pot of sweet basil (not a common Lao herb, but we found it in Vientiane) and spring onions.

Sunning on the Porch

We also have lots of flowers! Every time I walk from the house to our outdoor kitchen, I pass a little bed of zinnias, cleome and marigolds we made. It makes me smile, and I hope you, too!

A Zinnia in our Little Flower Garden

Roselle (or locally known as Som Po De, translated ‘the perfect sour’) is one plant we are really excited for! Jeffrey is already dreaming of making juices and jams with the fruit. Roselle is also eaten locally as a green. Thrown into fish soup it adds a delicious sour flavor, or should I say, ‘the perfect sour!’

Roselle

Jeffrey of the Jungle

 Here is Jeffrey hiding in our little jungle. On the left are the papaya trees. They have shot up 6-7 feet in three months! May 31st marked the first flower opening, and we are looking forward to some yummy fruit. Ripe papayas are sometimes eaten, but usually Lao people like to pick the fruit green and make it into their favorite snack, Dam Mak Hoong (‘Papaya Salad’). Green papaya is finely sliced and then lightly pounded together with fermented fish sauce, sugar, lemon juice, chili peppers, and maybe some tomatoes or local forest fruits. It’s scooped up and eaten with any green leafy vegetable available. It’s a good Lao snack, but we anticipate eating our papaya when it is sweet and ripe!

Papaya Canopy

On the right, we have cherry tomatoes growing on the trellis. We haven’t gotten much fruit from it, but enjoy the small handful of sweet-bursts-of-goodness we get every now and then. Since they were all volunteers anything we get is a bonus!

In the foreground of the picture are eggplants. We have two varieties in our garden, one white and another mottled green, though I’ve seen about five or more varieties for sale just here in the small Tha Thom market. Most eggplants are eaten young and quite hard. One delicious way to eat these otherwise bland fruit is the traditional Lao dish ‘Bone’ (Not sure how to translate the word, but it’s not at all related to the English word). Eggplants are boiled and pounded together with spices and ground meat. It’s wonderful to eat with sticky rice, and easy enough that I’ve been able to make it on my own.

White-Eggplant

Speckled Green Eggplant

We buy our potatoes from the large ‘city’ market in Paxan (two hours south of Tha Thom). We would love to grow our own, but most villagers I’ve asked shake their head and say you can’t grow them here. This little potato must not have heard them, because Jeffrey found him struggling in our compost pile and transplanted him into the garden. He is still struggling and we aren’t sure if he’ll produce much, but then again maybe he will!

Little Potato

One of our defensive players in the garden is the Mighty Marigold. They are growing like crazy (now pushing 5 feet tall!), and help keep away many of the pests that would like to munch on our plants. They are peppered throughout the garden, and because we had so much seed, also the whole yard!

"Stay out Bad Bugs!"

I always love seeing new, strange plants in the market, and a few we’ve tried to start in our own garden.

This plant is locally known as Pak Wan, ‘sweet vegetable,’ because it does have a sweet flavor. It’s a local favorite in soup.

Pak Wan - One sweet vegetable!

Pak Goh (sorry, no translation, and I’m not sure of an English name yet) is actually a weed and villagers will collect it in the rice paddy and on the edge of the forest. Our landlord laughed when he saw it in our garden. It has a really bitter taste, which most Lao people love, though Jeffrey isn’t too wild about it.

Vegetable Weed

This next plant isn’t edible, but is used as a pesticide and fertilizer. Khera Khao Ho (tianospora stem or quinine liana) is a great vine, and the villagers ferment it with sugar and green waste from their gardens to make a pesticide/fertilizer liquid they spray on the garden. I was excited to get a cutting to root, though sadly it takes three to five years to be large enough to harvest.

Local Medicine Vine

Pigeon pea actually has an edible fruit, but right now we have it in the garden as a cover crop. It is wonderful at adding nitrogen to the soil, something that is continually being washed away with our torrential rains.

Pigeon Pea

Some of the newest additions to our garden are:
Water chestnut is one of Jeffrey’s experiments. We bought a large bag while visiting Phonsavan. They should be grown in a wetter environment, but we don’t have anywhere better, so we will see if they do anything in the garden.

Water Chestnut

 It’s pineapple season in Tha Thom right now, so we saved a top to grow one of our own.

Baby Pineapple

Moringa. It seems that this plant is actually a new introduction to the area as none of the villagers we have asked know what it is. We received two pieces of trunk from CRWRC in Phonsavan and they both have rooted and are growing well! We were introduced to Moringa when we attended HEART Institute in Florida. It’s famed for its ‘miracle’ properties and is a great plant to promote in areas that suffer from malnutrition.

The Amazing Moringa

Behind our garden on the bank of the river is a beautiful trellis and terraces (terraces thanks to Jeffrey, trellis thanks to our Landlord’s younger brother). Some squash seeds we threw on the terraces and then forgot about, sprouted and are growing wildly! They offer a lovely shade in the hot sun and there are papaya, eggplants and pigeon peas happily growing in the cool shade underneath.

Terraces in the Shade

We were disheartened to return home after a week in Vientiane to ‘mowed’ sugar cane. Due to a recent law passed which requires all farmers to keep their livestock penned, we felt it was safe to move our sugar cane out of the garden to make room for other plants. Sadly, one cow who didn’t hear of the law, got out of her pen and had a nice snack before our landlord’s family chased it away. Despite the hard trimming, the sugar cane is coming back strong, and actually sending up even more shoots! So maybe we should also thank that silly old cow…

Sugar Cane with a Haircut

We also just received seed from ECHO Asia and have plans to add a variety of new plant to the garden including, okra, winged bean, pole bean, amaranth, mustard, luffa, corn and a variety of leguminous cover crops. If we have success we may even suggest that the MCC project use some varieties in the work in Tha Thom.

Tha Thom, A View From Space!

There are now ‘newish’ satellite photos of the Tha Thom area! The red marker is approximately were our house is!


View Larger Map

Giant Jars

Imagine yourself on a hill top overlooking a large rolling plain. It is covered in waving grass and the sporadic pine. The weather is cool which makes you wish you brought your jacket. “Am I really still in Laos,” you ask yourself?

Click Here for the full screen experience!

Phonsavan, the capital of Xieng Khouang province is located on a plain at the top of a 2000m (6500ft) plateau. It is 130kms north of Tha Thom and feels like a different world. Palms are replaced by pines and the people live differently. We came to Phonsavan to attend Vone’s wedding and also to learn and see what another INGO, CRWRC (Christian Reformed World Relief Committee) is doing in the area. After spending two days visiting various field locations we learned that CRWRC is doing many of the same actives that MCC is doing in Tha Thom. We hope to collaborate further in the future.

Today, we find ourselves playing tourist…and there is good reason since there is lots of history in the area! For the past few nights we have seen videos at MAG (Mines Advisory Group) about the war and the bombs that have left Laos and the plain around Phonsavan severely pock-marked. MAG is an international de-mining organization that has worked in Laos for many years to remove tons of UXO (unexploded ordinance). (Read more about the ‘secret war’ in Laos on our blog.)

Picnic Lunch by a Bomb Crater (Site #1)

Jar's in the Forest (Site #2)

Now we are at the historic Plain of Jars. Throughout this region of Laos giant (several ton) boulders were carved out and sculpted into jars. They are now found in clusters at more than 90 archeological sites in Laos. We visited three of these sites and were amazed at the strangeness of the spectacle!

Kaarina and the Biggest Jar (Site #1)

A Jarring Pose with Our Lao Friends (Site #2)

“Why jars,” you may ask? That is a very good question and one that isn’t really answerable. The most official answer, however, is that an ancient civilization carved these jars as giant urns in which they stored the cremated remains of their dead. Other local explanations include: the lost drinking mugs of giants, huge brewing vessels made for a large celebration, and basins to collect monsoon rains, supplying trade caravans with water in the dry season. While walking through the various sites we developed our own theories concerning the jars’ use ranging from giant flowerpots and fish tanks to defensive hideouts used to surprise an invading army. (No one would expect a bunch of soldiers to pop out of massive urns, would they?)

Plain of Jars (Site #1)

Soldier's View from Inside a Jar

Wedding season

Come join us as we attend the wedding of one of our co-workers, Vone and his bride, Tieng.

You can hop in the car with us as we drive a few miles out of Phonsavan, the capital of Xieng Khouang Province, (about a 4 hour drive from Tha Thom) to the bride’s home. We arrive at 9am, just in time to watch the groom finish getting ready in the lawn in front of the house. A female relative has just finished applying his make-up and he’s getting help tying his tie. People joke that now he looks ‘falang’ (white like a foreigner).

We stand around awhile and chat with co-workers and close family and friends. The afternoon ‘wedding reception’ is a large ordeal and often 300 or more guests are invited (sometimes over 1,000 for city weddings). However, the morning wedding bacci (ceremony) is only for a small number of close family and friends.

From the lawn were the groom sits a small blessing ceremony commences, chants are sang and the groom is escorted to the bride’s house by a procession of family and friends. We join in with singing and clapping (there would be a drum, but somebody forgot it)!

Waiting for his Bride

When we arrive at the home we are informed that the bride is not ready yet (though we all know she is sitting inside waiting), this apparently is tradition. As we wait the groom’s family presents many gifts of food and drink (symbolizing that everything is prepared for couple’s life after marriage). The waiting ends as the families share some beer and the bride’s family then decides that it is time to start the ceremony.

Now the wedding bacci begins. Bacci ceremonies all have a similar theme, but each area of Laos adds a special twist to the ceremony. As we take our seat on the floor, we are sure to sit near a MCC co-worker, that way we can ask some questions when we don’t understand the ceremony. Some aspects of the ceremony that are the most interesting are:

The bride and groom feeding each other boiled egg and sticky rice (not cake, but similar to Western custom)

The bride and groom’s wrists being tied together with a single piece of string, blessed and then broken into two pieces and wrapped on each of their wrists.

The bride and groom asking for forgiveness and blessings from the elders...

 ...and then offering gifts to them.

Tying Bacci Strings

There isn’t any kissing or ring exchange… but at the end of the ceremony, parents decorate the bride with gold jewelry and family and friends tie bacci strings on the bride and groom.

Click Here for the full screen experience!

The wedding bacci may last 2 or more hours. After it is all finished we join the party that’s starting down in the yard! Guests begin to arrive so the bride and groom, parents and a selected hosts and hostesses line at the entrance near the large decorated arbor (In the picture you will notice the twenty plus people lined under the tent).

Dropping the Gift in the Card Box

At this wedding they decided to use local pine trees to adorn the area, but at other weddings you may see palm branches, vines or Christmas lights. As guests enter under the arbor, they are offered a drink of whiskey and then drop their envelope of money into a special card box. Packages aren’t expected so there’s no gift table. Once a majority of the guests arrive and we’ve found a nice table to sit at, the eating and dancing begins!

Wedding Tent with Guests

Bride and Groom Visiting our Table

Wedding food doesn’t vary, you can count on having sticky rice, lap (chopped meat (usually cooked) with mint and spices), soup, salad, and a sweet snack or fruit. Some weddings may also serve ‘ragoo,’ a French influenced soup that is eaten with French bread. It’s really tasty, but this wedding isn’t serving any. The bride and groom are also making their way around to each table offering guests a shot of whiskey. You can take a quick shot if you want (but beware! It’s strong stuff!). Then give the couple a small gift of money for their new life together.

Saap, Saap (Delicious!)

The music has started now, and it’s loud! We can’t do much talking, but it’s fun to watch the dancing. In Laos they do not have the ‘father-daughter’ dance, but rather the bride and groom start it off by taking a turn together. I will warn you, if you are a foreigner you are guaranteed to be invited to dance at least once during the party! But don’t worry; Lao dancing is really easy, and fun!

Wedding Sound System

Wedding Party

Bride and Groom Dance

After all the eating, talking with friends, watching the dancing or possibly joining in with the dancing…whew…you are probably getting tired! It’s time to head back now, but we hope you have enjoyed a taste of a Lao wedding!

Happy Lao New Year!

From April 14th-16th the country of Laos (and neighboring Thailand, Myanmar and Cambodia) celebrated entering into year 2554 (Buddhist calendar year). Lao New Year (Pi Mai Lao) lasts roughly 10 days during which work in Laos slowed to a standstill as numerous parties and baccis are held nation-wide. The parties usually include exorbitant amounts of food, beer and loud music. To add to the party atmosphere, the throwing of water on the streets begins. In Vientiane and Luang Prabang specifically, water throwing can be quite torrential and baby powder is thrown and/or used liberally to cover the faces of passers-by. Gangs of teens, roam the streets riding in the back of trucks looking for anyone to splash. A massive city wide water fight soon commences between these roving trucks and groups on foot, who splash each other with buckets of water. Children line the roads with super soakers and water pistols at the ready. Music from parties saturate town as the whole city celebrates.

Ready, Aim...

Needless to say we were a little nervous to be in the big cities to experience our first Lao New Year. Since work in Tha Thom virtually halted we decided to forgo the village celebration and the chaos in Vientiane to visit southern Laos instead. In the south we soon realized that Pi Mai festivities are quite tame compared to the merriment of the north. While visiting three locations we enjoyed the soaking of several pitchers of water and the occasional spray from a water gun. Being doused while traveling isn’t too bad especially when the temperature is 90 plus during the day! The only thing to remember is to wrap anything you don’t want wet in plastic bags.

Soaked while Riding

Getting Refreshing Nam Oye (Sugar Cane Juice)

We traveled to the south via a night sleeper bus…which really was quite a novelty to us. Some of the busses in Thailand and Laos are certainly decked out as you can see in the pictures. Our bus was a double decker with beds instead of chairs. It was quite a comfortable way to travel…although probably not the safest!

Bed in Sleeping Bus

Our Night Bus

A Decked-Out Bus from Thailand

    While visiting the south we ventured to the 4000 Islands (not reminiscent of the salad dressing). These islands speckle the Mekong as it slows and widens prior to entering Cambodia. The remains of French colonial structures remain in this area.

Our Private Beach on the Mekong

The Speedy Turbo Delight!

Determining Our Next Move While Drinking Coconut

We also visited Wat Pu Champasak. These are ancient ceremonial ruins, built originally as a Hindu temple in the 11th and 12th centuries, and later converted to an important Buddhist site. The ruins were part of the Khmer Empire which stretched to the south (Cambodia) and includes the ruins of Angkor Wat (a famous sprawling ruined city and temple complex in Cambodia). The construction and symbols are notably Hindu with architecture reflecting that of India. During Lao New Year people often visit temples to wash the Buddha statues with perfumed water. This symbolizes purifying or cleansing ones' self for the coming year. It is custom to visit 7 temples, if possible, to perform this action thus ensuring good luck for the new year.

Wat Pu Champasak

Nice Stone Frame

Hibiscus Flower

Short Doorway

For Their Next Brochure

This a a 360 Pan from the top of level of Wat Pu. Click Here for the full screen experience! (It may take a while to load on slower connections)

We spent the last few days our Lao New Year on the Bolaven Plateau, a region in southern Laos over 1000 meters in elevation. The area is covered by nationally protected forest land and coffee plantations. We were eager to explore as it was our first time to hike the jungle paths of Laos. We were refreshed and rejuvenated by nature, the cool weather and the resort bungalow that we occupied for two days.

Tad Fane Waterfall