The Purpose Of This Packet Is Three: Fill & Download for Free

I once wondered the same thing, and the answer came to me under the most unlikely circumstances…Many years ago, sitting alone in my car in the wee hours of the morning in the parking lot of a Taco Bell, I was given the keys to the universe and I finally understood the cosmic significance of existence. I had just finished my first of three hard shell tacos. I was a bit agitated that the shell was quite soggy and the beef lukewarm, but I can’t complain too much because it was still DELICIOUS! I decided to spice things up a bit for the second taco. I ripped open a FIRE Taco Bell hot sauce packet with my teeth and as I was squeezing its contents over the cheese beef and lettuce of my taco, I noticed a message printed on its side. My vision wasn't so clear at the time, so I brought the packet closer to read it.“THE ROAD TO MEDIOCRITY IS LITTERED WITH EMPTY KETCHUP PACKETS”My jaw dropped and my taco fell from my limp hand into my lap. I realized that everything so far in my life had been leading up to this moment. I couldn't keep going on like that. Living in my parent’s basement, eating Taco Bell, playing Madden, smoking that dank ass weed was no kind of life. I sat there reading and rereading that hot sauce packet all night and into the morning until I could no longer bear the weight of my eyelids. When I came to it was almost 10 a.m. I got out of my car in my taco-stained pants and walked into Taco Bell without fear and without doubt. For once in my life I knew I was doing the right thing. When I got to the counter, I ordered a waffle taco and asked for a job application. I didn’t have a pen on me and didn’t want to ask for one so I brought the waffle taco and the application back to my car. I finished the waffle taco in two bites and then polished off the last taco from the previous night. Two months later, my dad found the Taco Bell application while he was cleaning my car. He filled it out for me and dropped it off at Taco Bell the same day.Fast-forward to today: I’m a night shift manager at Taco Bell and everyday I get to help the lost and weary discover their purpose in life through the wisdom of Taco Bell hot sauce packets.I’m sure the lesson in all of this is obvious to you by now. 1 empty ketchup packet times 100 empty ketchup packets times infinity will never mean anything.

The International Space Station (ISS) does not really have a “kitchen” as many of us here on Earth might relate too. But, there is an area called the “galley” which serves the purpose of allowing for food preparation and consumption. I believe the term “galley” comes from the military, and it was used specifically in the space shuttle program. I guess it carried over to the ISS.The Russian segment had the ONLY galley when I flew in 2007. There was a table for three, and the galley consisted of a water system —allowing us to hydrate our food packages (as needed) with warm (tepid) or hot (extremely) water— and a food warmer. The food warmer designed by the Russians was strictly used for their cans of food (about the size of a can of cat food in America). The U.S. developed a second food warmer (shaped like a briefcase) that we could use to heat the more “flexibly packaged” foodstuffs (packets) sent from America.Later in the ISS lifetime, a second galley area was provided in the U.S. segment. It is positioned in Node 1 (Unity) and a table is also available there for the astronauts dining pleasures. Apparently, it was added because of the increasing crew size experienced these days (6), to have more options. During my brief visit to ISS in 2010 (12 days or so) as a Discovery crewmember, I found the mealtimes to be much more segregated than when I spent five months on board. The Russians ate in the Russian segment. The shuttle astronauts ate in the shuttle. The US ISS astronauts ate in Node 1, but often at totally different times. While we did have a combined dinner in Node 1 during STS-131 (with the Expedition 23 crew), this is one of the perceived negatives of the “multiple-galley” scenario. My long duration stint on ISS was highlighted by the fact that Fyodor Yurchikin, Oleg Kotov, and I had every single meal together. The fellowship we —or at least I— experienced during those meals is something I will never, ever forget. We laughed, we argued, we celebrated, we mourned…, all around our zero-gravity “dinner table.” Awesome stuff!Keep lookin’ up!

While we were in USA, we used to prepare some quinoa dish at least once in a week. When returning from USA we brought lots of quinoa packets and pearl couscous.1. Quinoa and pearl couscous/poha kichidi: I learned this from my daughter-in-law. Pearl couscous is available in India too, but not in all grocery stores. It is available online.To know about pearl couscous read Ptitim - Wikipedia.Though I can call it as upma, I prefer calling it Kichidi because it tastes like ‘Sabudana Kichidi’ made in Maharashtra.Recipe:Ingredients:Cumin 1 teaspoonFinely chopped onions half cupFinely chopped green pepper as per your taste (I add one)Curry leaves 10Kasuri methi (processed dry fenugreek leaves) 1 teaspoonFinely chopped mixed vegetables like cauliflower, carrot, potato and capsicum-half cup,Green peas(if available) 1/4 cup.Quinoa-1 cup and pearl couscous/poha (flattened rice thin variety) half cup.Procedure:In a pan heat two table spoons oil and add cumin. After cumin splutters, add onion and green pepper. After onions turn transparent, add other vegetables, kasuri methi and saute for five minutes.Add three cups of water and salt. When water starts to boil add quinoa.When quinoa is 3/4 cooked(it will be of porridge consistency), add pearl couscous and mix well. The pearl couscous absorbs the extra water in quinoa within 5–10 minutes (depending on the quantity and the heat). The kichidi now becomes dry like saboodana kichidi and even tastes like it.Garnish with coriander leaves.The purpose of adding pearl couscous/poha is to enhance the taste and give it some Indian flavour.Optional: Sprinkle some lemon juice before serving.The final dish will look somewhat like this:This is pearl couscous:2. Quinoa Pongal : Boil one cup of quinoa with half cup moon dal (green gram dal). After it is 3/4 cooked, add salt. Cook till done.Heat one table spoons ghee (clarified butter) in a pan and fry 10–15 cashew nuts in it. After cashew nuts are removed add one teaspoon cumin and ten pepper corns (or as per your taste) in the ghee. Add little more ghee if required. After pepper starts spluttering add that tempering and cashew nuts to boiled quinoa+moong dal.Your quinoa pongal is ready.3. Quinoa salad: Please see the link:https://cookieandkate.com/2017/best-quinoa-salad-recipe/.4. South Indian style tomato quinoa: See the link below.https://www.archanaskitchen.com/south-indian-style-tomato-quinoa-recipe5. Black bean corn and Quinoa: See the link below.https://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/black-bean-corn-quinoa/6. Quinoa moong dal kichidi: See the link belowEdit: Millets like ragi, bajara, jowar etc are equally nutritious as quinoa. So all the above items can be made with Indian millets as well.