Tuesday, June 29, 2010

PLEASE NOTE

What is the difference between http and https?

Don't know how many of you are aware of this difference, but it is worth sending to those that may not.

The main difference between http:// and https:// is it's all about keeping you secure. HTTP stands for Hyper Text Transfer Protocol.

The S stands for "Secure". If you visit a Website or webpage, and look at the address in the web browser, it will likely begin with the following: http://.

This means that the website is talking to your browser using the regular 'unsecure' language. In other words, it is possible for someone to "eavesdrop" on your computer's conversation with the Website. If you fill out a form on the website, someone might see the information you send to that site.

This is why you never ever enter your debit/credit card number in an Http website. But, if the web address begins with https://, that basically means your computer is talking to the website in a Secure code that no one can eavesdrop on.

If a website ever asks you to enter your debit/credit card Information, you should automatically look to see if the web address begins with https://.

If it doesn't, you should NEVER enter sensitive information such as a debit/credit card number.

Friday, June 18, 2010

Quality Varity of Rices

1. AMBEMOHAR

Ambemohar is a rice variant from Maharashtra in India. The short cooked grains have a tendency to break easily and stick together. It is popular in Maharashtra due to its strong fragrance reminiscent of mango blossoms, which is noticeable when the rice is cooked. It is also similar to the Surti kolam variety from Gujarat, which is preferred there due to its prepared softness and easy chewability. In simple words it is a type of rice from MAHARASHTRA which will produce MANGO SMELL while cooking.
2. ARCOT KICHILI

It is coarse variety rice and cultivated in Arcot and near by paces like Ranipet, Timiri, and Kalavai etc. As I have experienced when cooked the rice is yellowish and very tasty. A variety called half boiled Kichili is preferred more. It is understood of late Arcot kichili is now rare and it has given way to IR8 and ponni due to yield being less in Kichili. I couldn't get any more details of my Kichili rice

3. BASMATI

I knew about Basmati rice and its special smell when served hot while I had been to ALTTC from 1991 for various trainings. Later I understood it was medium quality Basmati and high quality Basmati has still more fragrance. In my first trip being an attraction, I brought 4 Kg rice from Gazhiabad to Trivandrum. On those days Basmati was not available in Trivandrum. After distribution among family friends, we had hardly 1 Kg. I am going a little detail about Basmati.

Basmati is a variety of long grain rice grown in India and Pakistan, notable for its fragrance and delicate, nuance flavour. Its name means "the fragrant one" in Sanskrit, but it can also mean "the soft rice." India and Pakistan are the largest cultivators and exporters of this rice; it is primarily grown through paddy field farming in the Punjab region.

The grains of basmati rice are longer than most other types of rice. Cooked grains of Basmati rice are characteristically free flowing rather than sticky, as with most long-grain rice. COOKED BASMATI RICE CAN BE UNIQUELY IDENTIFIED BY ITS FRAGRANCE. Basmati rice is available in two varieties - white and brown. (In Brown is new information to me)

2.1Flavour

Basmati rice has a typical pandan-like (Pandanus amaryllifolius leaf) flavour caused by an aroma compound.

2.2 Varieties and hybrids

A number of varieties of basmati rice exist. Traditional types include Basmati-370, Basmati-385 and Basmati-Ranbir singh pura (R.S.Pura), while hybrid basmati varieties include Pusa Basmati 1 (also called 'Todal', because the flower has awns).

2.3 Pusa Basmati

Scientists at Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Delhi took the traditional basmati and genetically modified it to produce a hybrid which had most of the good features of traditional basmati (grain elongation, fragrance, alkali content) and the plant was a semi-dwarf type. This basmati was called Pusa Basmati-1. PB1 crop yield is higher than the traditional varieties (up to twice as much).

2.4List of approved varieties

Punjab, Kernel Basmati (Pakistan), Dehradun, Safidon, Haryana, Super basmati, Kasturi (Baran, Rajasthan), Basmati 198, basmati 217, basmati 370, basmati 385, basmati 386, Bihar, Kasturi, Mahi Suganda, Pusa, Ranbir, Taraori.

Some non-traditional aromatic crosses with basmati characteristics are marketed under a Sugandh designation.

2.5 Detection of adulterated strains

Difficulty in differentiating genuine traditional basmati from pretenders and the significant price difference between them has led fraudulent traders to adulterate traditional basmati. To protect the interests of consumers and trade, a PCR-based assay similar to DNA fingerprinting in humans allows for the detection of adulterated and non-basmati strains. Its detection limit for adulteration is from 1% upwards with an error rate of ±1.5%.

Exporters of basmati rice use 'purity certificates' based on DNA tests for their basmati rice consignments. Two protocols are there. Based on this protocol, which was developed at the Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics, Labindia, an Indian company has released kits to detect basmati adulteration. (New information)

2.6 Glycemic index

According to the Canadian Diabetes Association, basmati rice has a "medium" glycemic index (between 56 and 69), thus making it more suitable for diabetics as compared to certain other grains and products made from white flour. So we (diabetics) can opt for Basmati? WHAT ABOUT THE COST INVOLVED?….

2.7 Aromatic rice

I have put Aromatic rice under basmati for the reason Basmati is an aromatic rice

Aromatic is one of the major types of rice, it is a medium to long-grained rice. It is known for its nut-like aroma and taste, which is said to be caused by the chemical compound 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline. Varieties of aromatic rice include: basmati, jasmine, Texmati, Wehani, and wild pecan rice. When cooked, the grains have a light and fluffy texture. So aromatic rice is a common name for Basmati, Jasmine, and Texmati etc.

5.BHUTANESE RED RICE
Bhutanese RED RICE is a medium-grain rice grown in the Kingdom of Bhutan in the eastern Himalayas. It is the staple rice of the Bhutanese people.
Bhutanese red rice is a red japonica rice. It is semi-milled — some of the reddish bran is left on the rice. Because of this, it cooks somewhat faster than an unmilled brown rice. When cooked, the rice is pale pink, soft and slightly sticky.
This rice became available in the United States in the mid 1990s.
6.BLACK RICE

Black rice is one of several black-coloured heirloom plants producing rice variants such as Indonesian Black Rice, Forbidden Rice. High in nutritional value, black rice is rich in iron. Unlike other black rice from Asia, it is not glutinous or rough. This grain is high in fibre and has a deep, nutty taste.

BLACK "FORBIDDEN RICE"-SO NAMED ORIGINALLY BECAUSE IT WAS CONSIDERED THE EMPEROR'S RICE AND WAS LITERALLY FORBIDDEN FOR ANYONE ELSE TO EAT IT. ( I was thinking why it is named so)

It is a deep black colour and turns deep purple when cooked. Its dark purple colour is primarily due to its high anthocyanin content .It has a relatively high mineral content (including iron) and, like most rice, supplies several important amino acids.

In China, noodles made from black rice have recently begun being produced. At least one United States bread company has also begun producing "Chinese Black Rice" bread. It shares the deep tyrian colour of cooked black rice.

It is our practice if we find black rice in white variety to pick it and throwaway feeling it is defective rice. From this reading I am to understand it is not harmful.

7.BROWN RICE
Brown rice (or "hulled rice") is unmilled or partly milled rice, a kind of whole, natural grain. It has a mild nutty flavor, is chewier and more nutritious than white rice, and becomes rancid much more quickly. Any rice, including long-grain, short-grain, or sticky rice, may be eaten as brown rice.
In much of Asia, brown rice is associated with poverty and wartime shortages, and in the past was rarely eaten except by the sick, the elderly and as a cure for constipation. This traditionally denigrated kind of rice is now more expensive than common white rice, partly due to its relatively low supply and difficulty of storage and transport.
7.1White rice comparison
Brown rice and white rice have similar amounts of calories, carbohydrates, and protein. The main differences between the two forms of rice lie in processing and nutritional content.
When only the outermost layer of a grain of rice (the husk) is removed, brown rice is produced. To produce white rice, the next layers underneath the husk (the bran layer and the germ) are removed, leaving mostly the starchy endosperm.
Several vitamins and dietary minerals are lost in this removal and the subsequent polishing process. A part of these missing nutrients, such as vitamin B1, vitamin B3, and iron are sometimes added back into the white rice making it "enriched", as food suppliers in the US are required to do by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
One mineral not added back into white rice is magnesium; one cup (195 grams) of cooked long grain brown rice contains 84 mg of magnesium while one cup of white rice contains 19 mg.
When the bran layer is removed to make white rice, the oil in the bran is also removed. Rice bran oil may help lower LDL cholesterol.
Among other key sources of nutrition lost are small amounts of fatty acids and fiber.
In addition to having greater nutritional value, brown rice is also said to be less constipating than white rice.
7.2 Cooking and preparation
A nutritionally superior method of preparation using GABA rice or germinated brown rice (GBR) (also known as Hatsuga genmai in Japan), developed during the International Year of Rice, may be used.[3] This involves soaking washed brown rice for 20 HOURS in warm water (38 °C or 100 °F) prior to cooking it. This process stimulates germination, which activates various enzymes in the rice. By this method, it is possible to obtain a more complete amino acid profile, including GABA.
7.3 Storage and preservation
Brown rice can remain in storage for months under normal conditions, but hermetic storage and freezing can significantly extend its lifetime. Freezing, even periodically, can also help control infestations of Indian meal moths.
In Kerala maximum availability is brown rice different varities. Raw rice is available only on request in restaurents. The raw rice nrmally do not meet the quality of Tamilnadu. Ration shops supply boiled rice which is brownish yellow in colur. Raw rice is used for sraadha by Brahmins. Otherwise Brhamins too conssume Brown rice. Un like Tamilnadu ration rice is avialble for all in Kerala.
The karai rice cmmonly available in Tamilnadu and used for iddali dosai mavu I think can be a low quality variety of Brown rice. I couldnot get details of it.
The brown Kanji raw rice available in Chennai is different from this and is made from high quality varity rice.

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Very Funny

Dear Friends,

We live in a country where…..


Where Pizza reaches home faster than Ambulance, Fire Engine or Police help.


Where you get car loan @ 5%, but education loan @ 12%.

Where rice is Rs.40/ kg, but sim-card is free.

Where a millionaire will buy a cricket team, but don't donate to charity.

Where the footwear and innerwear are sold in AC showrooms, but vegetables and fruits are sold at footpath.

Where everybody wants to be famous, but nobody wants to follow the right path to be famous.

Where lemon juice is made with artificial flavour, but dish wash stuff is made with real lemon.


Do give this a thought!

Cheers