Could you Repeat that is natuarl ingredients

 While it is true that there is no official, U.S. governmentregulated definition for the term natural pertaining to the natural products industry, the FDA refers to natural ingredients as "ingredients extracted directly from plants or animal products as opposed to being produced synthetically."

The key word there is, "extracted directly". In the case of some ingredients, it's easy to see that they fit easily into this definition.

But what about raw materials that need to undergo someprocessing or chemical reaction in order to extract the ingredient from the natural raw material that is the source.Even distilling aromatic plants to produce essential oils sometimes results in the creation of chemicals that didn't exist in the raw material, but which are created by the actual distillation process alone!

 

 The USDA National Organic Program defines non-synthetic as "a substance that is derived from mineral, plant, or animal matter and does not undergo a synthetic process".  They define a synthetic as "a substance that is formulated or manufactured by a chemical process or by a process that chemically changes a substance extracted from naturally occurring plant, animal, or mineral sources, except that such term shall not apply to substances created by naturally occurring biological processes."

The Natural Ingredient Resource Center was founded to help consumers, manufacturers and retailers, focusing on natural products for the home and family, to learn more about the natural ingredients in the products they buy, make or sell. To encourage and provide an opportunity for manufacturers of these products to voluntarily show that they support "truth in labeling" and to provide a resource for education about natural ingredients. The NARC does not certify ingredients, products or police compliance. Visit our Pledge Members Links page for the best in products containing natural ingredients. Because natural matters!

How to Cook Brown Rice

 Many people have trouble cooking brown rice and having itturn out decently, since it can be more temperamental than white rice.  There are also many different ways to prepare it.

 Here’s the most efficient way I found to cook brown rice on a stove.  It takes about 35 minutes from when you start to when you’re eating (which is pretty good for brown rice).  This method works for both short grain and long grain brown rice.  I prefer long grain.  I’ve eaten hundreds of batches of brown rice using this method over the past 10 years.

    Put brown rice and water together in a pot with a lid.  Use the ratio of 1.5 cups water to 1 cup rice.  I normally make 3c rice with 4.5c water for a single batch.

    Set the heat to maximum, and bring the rice/water to a boil uncovered.  Then put the lid on the pot, and reduce the heat to low/simmer.  If your lid has a steam valve, keep it closed.  Let the rice simmer for 20 minutes.

    Turn off the heat, and let the rice sit in the covered pot for another 10 minutes.  It’s OK if you let the rice sit longer than 10 minutes (20 or 30 minutes is fine too), but don’t let it go any less.  I prefer my rice to be slightly chewy, not mushy, so I usually remove the lid after 10 minutes.

    Eat and enjoy.  Be careful when you remove the lid, since a lot of steam may escape when you do.

After the rice is cooked, I normally scoop some into a bowl, and mix it with a little tamari and 1-2 tablespoons of sesame seeds.  The sesame seeds add a lot of flavor to the rice.  Sometimes I’ll eat it with steamed veggies and blackened tempeh, both of which can be prepared while the rice is cooking.

I put the leftover rice in a plastic container in therefrigerator, which keeps well for several days.  Since I don’t use a microwave, I usually just eat the leftovers cold.  But when I’m not in the mood for cold rice, here’s another tasty dish I make from the leftover rice: