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I remember watching the TV sci-fi series “Time Trax” when it was first aired in 1993. Back then, I thought it was great. It lasted for two seasons, about 40 episodes. The plot line involved a cop (played by Dale Midkiff) from the year 2193 who travels back in time, pursuing criminals from his own period who escaped into the past using a time machine built by an evil scientist. His job is to send them “back” to 2193.

Recently, I watched the series again, and was struck by how silly it was. I got to thinking about how attitudes change with time. Of course, I was much younger when I saw the original TV broadcasts. But I didn’t think my tastes had changed that much. I remain, as I was back in 1993, a great fan of science fiction.

Upon reflection, I can understand why I liked it so much back then. The theme, while not original, is still interesting — how someone from the future would live in and adapt to a world he only knows from history books. I’ve thought about this myself, because of my own fascination with history. Humans haven’t changed fundamentally in thousands of years; they still have the same desires and needs, feel the same emotions, and relate to each other in much the same ways. But social norms can change dramatically over time. If we try to put ourselves in the mindset of an age not so long ago when slavery was accepted, there was marked social stratification, and church doctrine dictated what was considered normal and acceptable, we feel a disconnect. Such a society would be at the same time familiar, and very unfamiliar.

So this was one of the things that appealed to me about the show, especially since the series didn’t get bogged down in the nitty-gritty sci-fi details of time travel or temporal paradoxes. Instead, it blithely ignored them and was mainly an entertainment vehicle, focusing on social issues and action. The other thing I really liked was the protagonist’s computer. This was a device that looked like a credit card, but was really an incredible AI with a very human personality. The computer could present itself as a person (a holographic projection, played by Elizabeth Alexander), and was a far more interesting personality than Dale Midkiff, the hero of the series.

Other than that, it was light hearted entertainment. Lots of action, chases, some romance as the hero flirts with various women he meets in different episodes (all very chaste and G-rated). Nothing special, but pretty good fun.

So I was surprised when I watched it again, 16 years later. The plot line is still interesting, though less novel for having been rehashed dozens of times over the years. The computer is still great. Dale Midkiff, on the other hand, stands the test of time very poorly. He now appears bumbling, inept, and somewhat stupid. He appears to get through each episode largely as a matter of luck. He talks too much, sometimes at inopportune moments, when he should really be shooting the villain rather than pausing to make a speech. His emotional self-control is about par with that of an adolescent. His arguments with Elizabeth Alexander (the computer) become too monotonous and repetitive (the same emotion versus logic stuff that was overdone by Kirk and Spock over dozens of episodes of Star Trek).

To be honest, he doesn’t start out that way. In the pilot and the first couple of episodes, he is much darker, sterner. However, as the series proceeds, his personality changes into basically an overly-politically-correct, cliché-mouthing, self-indulgent, relentlessly upbeat caricature of his early self. Sometimes you just have to look away from the screen for a moment, he is so annoying.

Some episodes were particularly enlightening. “Beautiful Songbird” was basically unwatchable for me. It’s about an up and coming country singer (played by Kassie Wesley/DePaiva, who is a soap actress these days), who is destined for greatness. She acquires an admirer from the future (who knows her future), one of the fugitives that Dale Midkiff must send back to the future to face his crimes. This was unwatchable for several reasons, but mostly because I am unable to tolerate country music anymore. The episode spends a lot of time just showing her singing. I had to mute those segments just to get by.

I didn’t know I hated country music that much. I mean, I can watch Johnny Cash or Willie Nelson at times. I don’t throw up; I actually enjoy some of their songs, though it’s probably partly because I only listen to them very infrequently. But aside from these very few and specific instances, I guess I have lost my tolerance for whiny, waily voices.

The special effects were about par with Star Trek, which was a good 20+ years earlier. Overall, it had the feel of a cheaply made TV show. In many ways, it lost the initial magic it had for me. But it brought home one point. Sci-Fi shouldn’t have to self-consciously focus on the sci-fi aspect of itself. Sometimes it’s best when the sci-fi parts are purely incidental, and the show is really about the characters. It reminds me of Firefly, another of my favorite sci-fi TV shows. Yes, there were spaceships, but for the most part, those guys still used 20^th century firearms, moved through recognizable landscapes rather than super-futuristic cities, and even rode horses and covered wagons. It was the actors that made the show, the focus on how people might relate among themselves, in societies with very different rules from those we are used to. Their society is kind of a fragmented anarchy, similar to the frontier in the old west. People migrating fast enough that you can’t impose any uniformity of law or culture on them, fragmenting according to their beliefs into very different and interesting societies.

Time Trax is nowhere near as complex or entertaining as Firefly, but it has some of the same attraction of seeing someone explore a place or time foreign to his own, discover new societies which may seem strange to him, some small sense of wonder at the diversity of it all.

Black beans, or turtle beans as they are sometimes called, are my favorite kind of beans. I was in Miami for a while, and ate a lot of Cuban black beans and rice, which is delicious. I like the beans + rice combination, since it’s a great protein source, and the beans and rice complement each other in terms of providing all the essential amino acids. Also, it makes a change from my usual high-meat diet. If you are vegetarian, this could be one of your main sources of protein.

Eventually, I learned to cook them at home. Since I like my food a lot spicier, I adapted the recipe to use a mix of Indian spices. This is a bit odd, because black beans are not common in India. But it’s very tasty.

Ingredients

• dry black beans: 0.5 pound
• chopped onions: 1 cup (you can increase this to 1.5 or 2 cups)
• garlic: 4-5 small cloves, crushed
• diced tomatoes: 0.5 cup (canned is fine)
• crushed, dried red pepper flakes: 1 tablespoon (or more, if you like)
• salt: to taste (I would add about 1.5 teaspoons)
• coriander powder: 1.5 teaspoons
• cumin powder: 1 teaspoon
• turmeric powder: 1 teaspoon
• asafoetida: a pinch (about 1/8 teaspoon or a bit less)
• dried green mango powder (amchoor): 1 teaspoon
• vegetable oil: about 1/3 cup (I use canola oil)
• chopped fresh cilantro leaves (optional)

Please note that “teaspoon” or “tablespoon” mean a level teaspoon or tablespoon. Don’t leave it partially empty and don’t heap it.

Method

Soak the beans overnight. This is very important, not optional. Use at least 8 cups of water for the half pound of dry beans in this recipe. Overnight means at least 8 hours, though 10-12 hours would be better. If your kitchen is very hot, you can put the soaking beans in the lowest compartment of your refrigerator to prevent fermentation. For average temperatures (around 75 F), this is not necessary, just cover it and leave it at room temperature overnight.

After they have soaked, wash the beans several times in cold water. You’ll notice that the water comes out black. This is stuff you want to wash away, so wash the beans in at least 5-6 changes of water to get rid of the black stuff. Or you can just pour them in a large sieve or colander and run fresh cold water through them for a few minutes, while stirring with a finger.

Put the beans together with half the chopped onions, salt, turmeric, dried green mango powder, garlic, diced tomatoes and 6 cups of fresh cold water in a pot. Cover the pot with a well-fitting lid, bring it to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to low and let it simmer for at least 2 – 2.5 hours, until the beans are thoroughly cooked.

When the beans are almost done, heat the oil in a large frying pan or wok – it doesn’t matter what sort of pan you use so long as it’s big enough to hold the cooked beans, which you will add later. Toss in a pinch of asfoetida and the remaining half of the chopped onion. Fry the onion until golden brown. Add the crushed red pepper, coriander and cumin, and continue to fry over medium heat for 1 minute longer. Pour the cooked beans (including all the cooking liquid in the pot) into the frying pan. Turn the heat to low, mix everything together thoroughly. At this point, you can add the chopped cilantro leaves if you’re using them. Some people hate cilantro, so it’s optional. Continue stirring for a minute or two, then cover the frying pan and turn off the heat. Let it sit for at least 5-10 minutes over the still-warm stove before serving.

Prepare the rice separately. I prefer Indian style Basmati rice. Here’s how to cook Basmati rice. Serve the beans over a bed of rice.

Notes

Most cookbooks say that you shouldn’t cook beans with salt or acids, because salt and acids increase the cooking time. This recipe calls for both (salt, acid in the diced tomatoes). I personally think that adding the salt and diced tomato at the beginning improves the flavor, and I don’t mind cooking the beans for 2.5 hours instead of 1 hour, to compensate. If you want, you can leave out the salt and diced tomatoes. Cook the beans until tender (will probably take 1 to 1.15 hours), then add the salt and diced tomatoes and cook for another 15 minutes to let the flavors mix in.

You can get all the spices used in this recipe at an Indian grocery. The “dried green mango powder” is known as “amchoor”. This is used for giving the food a slightly acidic taste. It’s not the same as adding lime juice: it’s a bit sweeter and has a richer flavor. You can use either amchoor or imli powder (imli is dried tamarind pods, also used for the same purpose as amchoor, and also found in Indian groceries). If there’s no Indian grocery handy, you can leave out the amchoor and asfoetida. The beans won’t taste exactly the same, but they will still be delicious. The rest of the spices are easily found at any grocery.

If you are in a hurry, you can also use canned black beans, or use the quick soak method. Canned beans do not require soaking: just drain the liquid, wash the beans thoroughly in cold water, then add the other ingredients and start cooking. You might want to reduce the amount of water from 6 cups to 5 cups. Other than that, recipe is the same. Canned beans are not as tasty as dry beans that have been soaked. For the quick soak method, take the dry beans and add 8 cups of cold water. Put it on the stove and bring to a boil. Let it boil for 2 minutes (don’t walk away at this point, you have to be near the stove to make sure you don’t boil for longer than 2 minutes). Then turn off the heat, cover the pot, and let it sit for 2 hours. Then you can wash the beans in cold water and proceed with the rest of the recipe unchanged.

Variations

For a change, you can add other ingredients to the black beans. Two things that go specially well with black beans are potatoes and spinach. This is how I would add them:

1. Potatoes: I use low-starch potatoes that hold their shape while cooking. This means any kind of white or red potatoes, or perhaps Yukon Golds. You can peel them if you want. I don’t usually peel them, but I scrub them well in running water. Then chop them up into small pieces, about quarter inch cubes. You can add them directly to the beans during the last 45 minutes of cooking. Just turn the stove back to high, while stirring, and wait for everything to come to a boil again after adding the potatoes. Then turn the heat back down to simmer and continue cooking. An alternative is to pat the cubed potatoes dry, put them on a plate and microwave on high for about 2 – 3 minutes before adding them to the beans. This ensures that they are hot (and partially cooked), so the beans continue to simmer even after addition of the potatoes. In this case, I’d add them a bit later, perhaps 30 minutes before the beans are done.

2. Spinach: I would use a pound of chopped spinach. If it’s frozen, turn up the heat on the beans when there are 45 minutes left on the cooking time, and add the frozen spinach. Bring it to a quick boil, turn the heat back down to simmer, and continue cooking for the remainder of the time.

There are probably other things you could also add in place of potatoes or spinach, though in my experience, those two are best. Avoid green peas or corn or carrots, or anything with a sweet taste — it doesn’t blend with the other flavors. Chopped zucchini is good, so are cauliflower florets. Just add them at the appropriate time to ensure that they are properly cooked, erring on the side of slightly overcooking. Indian style vegetables are not supposed to be crunchy. You sort of want them to hold shape and not fall apart, but otherwise they should be quite soft.