Everything About World Cuisines

Seasonal Harmony  By Ellasara   “The wise nourish life by flowing with the four seasons and adapting to cold or heat, by harmonizing joy and anger in a tranquil dwelling, by balancing yin and yang, and what is hard and soft. ”  The Neijing  The more we practice Qigong/taiji, the more we experientially understand that we are energy beings connected to the vast energy network of the Universal. As related to food, all foods are also energy. The energy of each food has a “message” for our bodies. Each food substance has its own Qi value that can be understood through Five Element Theory. (In western naturopathic terms, the message of each food can be found through understanding the Doctrine of Signatures. ) According to TCM, the foods that are natural to a particular season carry strong messages of Qi balancing and tonifying for that season.   Food energy is supportive and complementary to our energy, especially at certain times in certain ways. That last is where it becomes a deeper study. This can be approached in a variety of styles. One way is to study tables of foods for seasons, meridians, organ systems, yin/yang, hot/cold, etc. Learning and mechanically applying this information can have great value.   Another is to listen carefully to our bodies’ messages and what we are being told. Then, relate these messages to TCM Five Element Theory and learn what it is our body is asking us for at that time. After we sort it out, give ourselves that food or combination of foods. This will develop our intuition about food and our deeper intuition in general. And, in a natural learning process, we will learn what foods work for ourselves for what conditions under what circumstances. Over time this becomes natural and we just know what we need. Usually, this intuitive style leads to more of the first style, wherein we want to study more about Five Element Theory. At least this has been my experience in observing people over the past 15 years or so.  Learning basics about each season, foods and having basic seasonal recipes become foundations from which we can easily incorporate more information and fall back upon when we have simple questions.   For example, last week an elderly friend of mine got a chill and couldn’t get warm. When I went over to her home with my “ginger tea kit” her fingers were like ice cubes.   I made her basic ginger tea, (recipe below) and before she finished her first cup, she felt warm and the circulation had returned to her fingers. Ginger is a yang food that aids digestion and generally balances the forces in your body.      Basic Ginger Tea  1” fresh ginger – sliced, chopped 4-5 scallions – whites only Rind of one dried tangerine 4 cups of water Rock/Brown sugar/honey to taste  Add all the ingredients together and bring to a boil  Simmer for no more than 5 minutes as it will get bitter.   Remove the foods.   Drink hot.   Additionally, I want to mention that every culture has food cures and food combinations for increasing health.   Often, the purposes for these foods have been forgotten, even when the custom has been retained.   For example, the parents of a friend of mine are from Poland and her mother makes bone marrow soup in the winter simply because “it is good for you to eat in the winter. ”  When we consult Five Element Theory, we see that bone marrow soup is an excellent winter energy soup that supports the Kidney function (recipe below).  Basic Bone Marrow Soup  Ingredients 1 lb marrow bones 1-1/2 quarts water 2” sliced ginger 6 scallion whites 1 bay leaf  Part 2 1 diced carrot 1 diced stalk celery 1 quartered plum tomato Salt and pepper to taste ¼ cup cilantro/;parsley  Directions Put the marrow bones, bay leaf, ginger, and scallions in the water and bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for at least 3 hours Let cool–Poke marrow out of bones and discard everything except water.   You should now have about 3 cups of broth. Add veggies, cover and cook till veggies are done. add salt and pepper to taste. . . serve and  sprinkle with cilantro   To this basic recipe you can add other root vegetables, such as turnip, or green vegetables such as kale.   Adjust this to your own taste.   Bone marrow soup is considered to be a strengthening soup that is good for prevention and also if someone has been ill.  Further, it is helpful to have seasonal guildelines. Things that are particularly good to do or pay attention to in a given season.   Often, they remind me of things my Mom said when I was growing up.   Simple things such as, eat a good warm breakfast, especially in the winter. Winter Energy Cereal Ingredients 1/2 cup of rice 6 cups of water ½ cup toasted black sesame seeds ½ cup TB toasted crushed walnuts 3 TB honey ½ tsp salt  Directions Cover the rice in 2 cups of water and soak for 2 hours. Toast the walnuts and crush.   A simple crushing method is to place the walnuts in a plastic bag and roll with a rolling pin. Toast the black sesame seeds. Drain the excess water off the rice. Place all the ingredients in a saucepan and mix. Add 4 cups of water and bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until the rice is thoroughly cooked and all the water has been absorbed.   Stir the cereal frequently as it is cooking.   The texture of the cereal at this stage is like a thick porridge or cornmeal mush.   The rice is creamy and the sesame seeds are still slightly crunchy.  To make into a breakfast cereal:  add ½ cup boiling water to ½ cup of cereal – optional: a touch of cinnamon  Yield: 4 cups Serving size ½ cup  Basic Congee  1 cup of white rice (or ½ cup short grain rice and ½ cup of long grain rice) 8-10 cups of water Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a low simmer for about 3 hours.   This makes a basic rice porridge which is very easy to digest and which can be eaten at any time of year. To it, you can add shredded ginger, chopped scallion whites, lightly steamed vegetables, pieces of fish, pickled vegetables, etc.     A few other winter guidelines that are in accord with TCM/Five Element Theory are: Raw foods are cooling and should be avoided in the winter when warming foods are best emphasized, such as eating warming, hearty soups*, cooked whole grains, root vegetables and toasted nuts. These kinds of foods warm the center of the body and their heat stays with you longer. Since winter energy is about storing and rest, it is good to go to bed earlier and get very restful sleep, lighten one’s activities list, if possible and spend more time in contemplation and meditation.  *Kidney Bean, Tomato &  Winter Squash Soup   Ingredients:  2TB walnut oil 1 medium red onion 4 cloves of garlic – slivered ½ cup chopped celery ½ cup chopped parsnip ½ cup chopped yam 14 oz can of plum tomatoes ½ tsp rosemary 3 half dollar slices of ginger 2 small dried hot red peppers (or to personal taste) 1 15 oz can of kidney beans 5 cups of water 3 cups of Kombachu or butternut or hubbard squash, diced into 1 inch cubes Salt to taste, ground pepper Chopped cilantro/parsley garnish   Directions  Heat the oil in a saucepan/wok/dutch oven and add the onion. . . cook until it is just softened.   Add the garlic, parsnip, yam and cook for about 3 minutes over medium heat. Add the tomatoes, rosemary, ginger, peppers, beans and water Bring to a soft boil, reduce heat, cover and let simmer for about 1/2 hour – stir occasionally Add squash and simmer for about 1 hour until squash is tender.   Check liquid levels, add water if necessary and don’t forget to stir occasionally. Add salt and ground pepper, adjust seasonings to personal taste. Garnish each bowl with a sprig of cilantro or parsley     Viewing the above chart, we can easily identify some of the major relationships that are part of the Winter season. The Winter/Kidney season has now mutated from Fall (see last season’s chart) and will continue to change until it is Spring/Liver season.   Autumn, which we are leaving, is a time of harvest, reaping the benefits of our year’s work. Then it slowly mutates to Winter when we save/store energy so that this deep rest will give our Springtime the most optimal opportunity to come forward with abundant health.  Some Foods That Harmonize With Winter  Black Beans, Black Mushrooms, Blackberry, Black sesame seeds and oil,  Black soybeans, Blueberry, Bone marrow, Cabbages, Celery, Chard, Cranberry, Ginger, Job’s tears, Kale, Kidney beans, Kohlrabi, Longan, Lotus seed, Miso, Mulberry, Mutton, Ocean Perch, Parsley, Pine nuts, Raspberry, Rutabaga, Seaweed, Shrimp/Prawns, Soy Sauce, String beans, Turnips, Walnuts, Wood ear mushrooms.   For more information on food/health/Chinese medicine/Qigong/taiji Visit:, www. taoofhealing. com; www. abodetao. com;

Websites that offer free soul food recipes continue to respond to customer demands. With so much talk of healthier eating, balanced diets and weight watching, many traditional recipes are slowly making adjustments. Soul food recipes are no exception to this rule. The southern comfort food with the long reputation for robust tasting food and plenty of it, has also been infamous for high calorie foods as well. Along with the reputation for food that taste so good it brings tears of joy to most peoples eyes and tastbuds, the health concerns of  have often done the same thing for health professionals. Many fears of health professionals are slowly fading away with healthier cooking and preparation techniques on many free soul food recipes sites. To the delight of nutritionist, dieticians and other health professionals, you can find healthier recipes in more southern cuisine cooking than ever before. The public continues to demand it and the industry continues to respond. by offering healthier choices. For example, you’ll find more natural ingredients used to season the dishes than in the past.   For example, pork products,  like fatback and ham hocks, used in most traditional soul food cooking the past, is slowly fading away.   Most restaurants, cookbooks and online recipe sites have all but eliminated using pork products, which contains large amounts of fat, salt and calories. By eliminating these high risk ingredients  incidence of high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity and other health ailments can be reduced, especially in the  African American communities. This and of course the profit motive have been the driving forces in the  healthier menu movement on more and more free soul food recipe websites. More recipe publishers are beginning to realize they’ll have to adjust to this movement or be left behind.   The primary changes taking  place now is healthier ingredients. Healthier seasonings that are more natural. For example, herbs like rosemary, thyme, garlic powder, fresh garlic, basil and more. You can also find many health conscious cooks ditching the salt and marinating meats, chicken and fish to give it flavor and moistness. You’ll also finding less frying and more baking, roasting and grilling.   The more creative cooks are using cooking techniques not normally associated with traditional soul food recipes. For example, Chinese cooking techniques such as stir frying. An a healthy quick cooking technique that  preserves up to 80% of a foods nutrients compared to boiling or other frying techniques. With the healthy eating trend in full swing, you can expect to see more changes in the free soul food recipes industry. Positive customer feedback continues to grow as the industry adapts from the traditional to the healthier. Stay tuned for future updates.

The Italians do not eat to live. . . The Italians live to eat! Once you have a taste of the cuisine, you’ll know why. Many people mistakenly believe that the cuisine of Italy, which consists of just pizza and spaghetti. Nothing could be further from the truth! Italian cuisine is very diverse and highly regionalized. That’s one of the beautiful things about Italy is that the visit to each region is almost like visiting a new country. The kitchen in Bologna (Emilia-Romagna region) is very different from what you would find in Sicily. There are many different types of eating establishments in Italy. I recommend you try as many as you can. Meal times are usually around 2pm for lunch and around 8 pm dinner. Dinner can even begin later in the south around Naples and Palermo. A complete Italian meal (without breakfast) usually range from: * Antipasti – Appetizers * Primo piatto (first course, usually pasta or rice) * Piatto Secondo (second course – usually meat, fish or chicken) * Contorni – Vegetables * Salad – Salad * Dolci – Desserts Consequently, a meal ( “dinner”) may last several hours. You always have to ask for your check at an Italian restaurant. A good Italian waiter (or waitress) will never bring the check without you asked for it (unless the closing time). With this in mind, it’s usually very carefully crafted with the finest ingredients. They do not rush things. If you hurry, do not want to eat at an Italian restaurant. But since you’re here on holiday, just relax and try to enjoy “La Dolce Vita”, or the good life, that Italians are experts at making. Tipping: Normally, the restaurant includes the “servizio” on the bill. However, it is not uncommon to leave some change on the table (or even 1 per person) if the service was exceptionally good. In a bar, it is customary to leave 10 or 20 cents on the counter after it is finished. In Italian households, (lunch “pranzo”) is usually the main meal of the day begins around 1 or 2 PM. However, in the industrialized northern cities like Rome and Milan, the meal ( “dinner”) is becoming the most important meal of the day for working families. Italian breakfast (the “colazione”) are generally not much to brag about. . . . will start the day with a coffee and a croissant-type pastry called “cornetto”. You will have a hard time finding a breakfast of eggs and pancakes in Italy, as you would in the United States or Canada or even Britain. Now, of course, not forgetting the famous Italian wine. Italy is the world’s largest producer of wine. Not only produce and export more than any other country, but also offers the greatest variety of types, colors and flavors. Some of the vineyards around Rome have been producing wine for centuries. But the art of wine-making dates back thousands of years in Italy. However, it was not until the 1960s that a nationwide program that regulates the industry was enacted by the Italian government. An indication of the DOCG (Controlled Origin and Denonominazione Garantita) ensure that the wine has passed the most stringent government standards. However, the flavors of wine are very subjective, and that label does not always guarantee the best tasting wine. Many of the table or house wine ( “vino di casa”) served by restaurants is also very good. I suggest you try the wines as possible. And, of course, not drinking and driving in Italy. They also have strict laws. And when it comes to ice cream, or “ice”, Italy has some of the best you have to offer. You can enjoy almost any fruit, flavor combination in “frozen” form. So there you have it. . . . tips on eating in Italy. There is generally a good idea to start a diet when you visit the beautiful country of Italy. But it is a unique opportunity to savor some of the best cuisines in the world. And if you eat sensibly and use their feet as a form of transportation, you can return from Italy and step on the scale and a pleasant surprise.