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Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe

  Crispy, tangy, and just the right amount of sweet—this sweet and sour chicken is a family favorite that’s easy to make at home. Ingredients For the Sauce: 1 cup pineapple juice ½ cup distilled white vinegar ½ cup sugar 3 tablespoons ketchup 2 tablespoons soy sauce ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes 1½ tablespoons cornstarch For the Chicken: ½ cup all-purpose flour ½ cup cornstarch 1 teaspoon baking powder ¼ teaspoon baking soda 1 heaping teaspoon salt ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper ⅔ cup water 1½ tablespoons vegetable oil (plus more for cooking) 1 pound chicken tenderloins or boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed and cut into 1-inch (2.5 cm) chunks For Finishing the Dish: 1 tablespoon vegetable oil 2 red bell peppers, cut into 1-inch (2.5 cm) pieces 1 small red onion, cut into 1-inch (2.5 cm) chunks Instructions Make the Sauce: In a medium saucepan over medium heat, whisk together pineapple juice, vinegar, sugar, ketchup, soy sauce, and red pepper flakes. Bring to...

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Johannesburg Faces Unprecedented Water Crisis: Taps Run Dry

 

For the past two weeks, Tsholofelo Moloi has stood in line with thousands of South Africans, waiting for water. Johannesburg, the country’s largest city, is grappling with an unprecedented collapse of its water system, affecting millions of people. This crisis has left residents, both rich and poor, facing a shortage of severity they’ve never witnessed before.

Several factors have converged to create this dire situation. First, hot weather has led to shrinking reservoirs. But the real culprit lies in decades of neglect and crumbling infrastructure. Johannesburg’s water system has suffered from lack of maintenance, exacerbating the crisis.

South Africa, already familiar with hours-long electricity shortages, is now adopting a term called “watershedding”. Just as loadshedding refers to power outages, watershedding means going without water. Moloi, a Soweto resident, expresses the stress her community faces: “We need to cook, children must attend school, and we need water to wash their clothes. It’s very stressful.”

Over the weekend, water management authorities warned that failure to reduce water consumption could lead to a total collapse of the water system. Reservoirs might drop below 10% capacity, necessitating shutdowns for replenishment. Imagine weeks without water from taps, especially as demand remains high due to scorching weather.

As World Water Day approaches, activists and residents are outraged. They see this as a crisis that has been brewing for years. The ruling African National Congress faces a serious challenge in this year’s election, with public frustration reaching dangerous levels.

Johannesburg, once accustomed to localized water shortages, now grapples with a citywide drought. The arrival of winter is weeks away, and no official drought declaration has been made. Residents are urged to conserve water, but for many, the cost of a 1.3-gallon bottle of water is steep in a country where over 32% of the population is unemployed.

The taps have run dry, and Johannesburg’s water crisis demands urgent attention. 

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