I made a yummy dish several weeks ago . . .

. . . .  mainly because I wanted to try out my new Tropical Traditions Red Palm Oil.

What is Red Palm Oil?  Well, I wasn’t real sure at first – but one thing that I did know was that a lot of people I knew used it. 

Important facts:  palm oil is not from the coconut tree . . . it is from the tropical palm tree (elaeis guineensis) found and made originally in Africa.  It can be used for basically ANY cooking endeavor in your kitchen.  It is, in fact, the most “heavily consumed” oil in the world, following soybean oil.  Red palm oil is stable at high temperatures and has a plethora of tocols (Vitamin E) which make it a powerful antioxidant.  Its color comes from the high concentration of carotenoids, which give it the orange-red color.  (FYI, carotenes are what our body needs to convert Vitamin A into something viable for our body to use.)

I was impressed with this oil . . . but I will need an adventurous spirit in using it.  The color is intense, but I love how it is filled with powerful nutrients for our bodies. 

Here is the recipe you can try out with your red palm oil.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups brown rice
• 3 cups water
• 3 tablespoons red palm oil
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or to taste
• 3 cups water
• 1 cube vegetable bouillon
• 1 1/2 cups red lentils (I only had green on hand.)
• 4 eggs

Directions

1. Bring brown rice and 3 cups of water to a boil in a saucepan over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the rice is tender, 45 to 50 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, heat the palm oil over medium heat. Stir in the curry powder and red pepper flakes. Cook for a few seconds until fragrant. Pour in the remaining 3 cups of water, bouillon cube, and lentils. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the lentils are nearly tender, about 15 minutes.
3. Make four shallow indentations in the cooked lentils with the back of a spoon, and crack a whole egg into each indentation.
4. Recover, and continue cooking until the eggs have cooked to your desired degree of doneness, about 5 minutes for medium-well.
5. Serve over the brown rice.

Want to win some Tropical Traditions Red Palm Oil?

RULES
Please, please, please . . .do not put more than one entry per comment. I will be using www.random.org to pick the winners. So if you would like for your comments to count, leave individual comments ON THE BLOG (click on that link), NOT FACEBOOK.

Make sure you are logged in to Disqus or please leave your email address in your comment.

All options are worth 1 entry, unless otherwise stated. My real-life friends can enter this giveaway.

1. (Mandatory) Click on the link and subscribe to the Tropical Traditions Newsletter.
2. Become one of my fans through Google Connect if you aren’t already! (It’s over there on your right . . . see all of the little people?)
3. Tell me where Tropical Traditions Red Palm Oil is from. 
4. Buy something from Tropical Traditions. When they ask you how you heard about Tropical Traditions, list my sponsor id (5498794). I won’t make any money off of this . . . but I will get a coupon for other Tropical Traditions products.) 
5. Tweet or blog about the giveaway and then come back and leave me the link.

Remember, only #1 is mandatory. The rest of the entries are optional, but you MUST comment separately for each one.

The Fine Print: I will email you when you have won. You must respond within 48 hours.

Contest ends 08/05/10 at Midnight

Author’s Note: I was given this product to review from Tropical Traditions, and I do not have to return the product to the vendor. I was not paid for this post. All opinions expressed in this post are mine unless otherwise noted.

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