Chef Jacobs - To your Good Health

To your Good Health

I’m not a doctor (and I don’t play one on TV), so the tips I’ve written in this section don’t come from medical knowledge, but from good common sense, from extensive reading and asking lots of questions of experts in the fields of nutrition and food safety.

The topics covered in this chapter reflect frequently asked questions in my cooking classes, as well as nutritional information I’ve gathered over many years of being concerned about the value of the food I put into my mouth.

To me eating healthy is not about being a vegetarian, but about eating lower on the food chain in general, and about moderation.  Throughout this book you will find some of my favorite recipes for delicious alternatives to meat, and others where meat is used as a flavoring.  In fact, the Vegetables and Grains section contains more than merely accompaniments.  If you have never tried preparing meatless meals for your family and friends, I hope you will try my Millet Risotto with Wild Mushrooms, Hearty Split Pea Soup, Rice, Garbanzo and Artichoke Salad, as well as the other flavorful vegetable-centered dishes included in this book.

The healthiest diets in the world are clearly traditional Asian and Mediterranean diets, where daily use of animal protein is as a complement to the rest of the plate and not the central component of the meal.  Until other cultures started copying the American eating styles, ours was the only country where meat occupied the center of the plate.  This was supposed to be a benefit and a sign of wealth!

As important to your health as what you eat, is where what you eat comes from.  We’ve gotten accustomed to thinking we can have any fruit or vegetable at any time of year.  True enough, we may see them in the grocery store and they may look quite appealing, but if they’re not in their season, they come from far away.  When your fruits and vegetables are grown in faraway places, chances are they’ve been picked while VERY green and either injected with some kind of gas to make them ripen on their way to market, or at least turn the color we expect them to be.  Whatever, it seems clear that the closer we live to where the food we eat comes from, the better it is for us – the more nutrients are actually absorbed by our bodies.

Salt is nature’s most marvelous natural flavor enhancer.  There are people in the world for whom eating salt may be dangerous, and presumably your doctor has told you if you are one of those few.  I would certainly not suggest you go against those orders. However, if you are not in that category, you should know that to salt your food while it is cooking is to enhance the flavors of that food.  To add salt after the food is cooked is to give your food the flavor of salt.  The major exception to adding salt early in the cooking process is dried beans.    If you salt beans too early, they will never soften.  Instead, add salt about 20 minutes before the beans are finished.  If you wish to keep your salt intake low, you should restrict your consumption of processed and prepared foods.  Toss out the potato chips; forget the fries, frozen entrees and the like. But more than that, consider carefully the canned and frozen foods you may regard as “staples.”  Many of them contain far more salt and sugars than you may be aware you are consuming.

When you do use salt, sea salt or kosher salt are better choices than the salt that’s sold in canisters in the supermarket.  Table salt contains aluminum, silica and a variety of sugars – none of which need to be in salt – and all of which can contribute to a variety of other health problems.  Besides that, the silica in table salt prevents the salt from melting at the temperature where we generally cook our food.  This encourages us to add more salt in order to bring out the flavor.

I’ve included three fabulous ice cream recipes in this book.  One of the healthiest reasons for making your own ice cream is avoiding milk and cream from cows that have been given bovine growth hormone. The jury is still out regarding the long-term effects of consuming foods made with milk from such cows.  When you shop for dairy products, it’s wisest to look for cartons and bottles that indicate the product comes from hormone-free herds.

Soymilk is an excellent alternative to cow’s milk.  We’re becoming increasingly aware that soy protein is important to our good health.  In addition to providing a more absorbable source of calcium than is cow’s milk, soy milk has isoflavones that help build and maintain strong bones as well as maintaining a healthy prostate.  Soybeans are also high in cholesterol-reducing protein.  Be sure to look for a brand of that is stored in the refrigerator at all times and is made from organically grown soybeans.

Excellent vegetable-based sources for calcium are found in dark green vegetables such as spinach, collard greens and kale.  Artichokes, asparagus, broccoli, sugar snap peas and figs, both fresh and dried also provide large doses of calcium for your diet.  Remember too that people who eat less protein need less calcium in their diets.

More Americans choose chicken as their "meat of choice" than any other. When you ask them why, the answer is almost always "because it’s healthier."  But is it really? The answer to that question depends upon who produced the chicken you’re eating.

Much of the chicken that is sold in supermarkets today is raised by producers who cut many corners in their haste to get more and more tender chicken to market to meet the demands of you, the consumer. To that end, many of these chickens never see the light of day. Raised in indoor pens, as they grow their little feet are unable to touch the ground. They are inoculated with antibiotics to prevent the inevitable disease that occurs in such surroundings. Some of them receive hormones to make their breasts grow plumper. When you eat them, you are getting a dose of whatever medicines they’ve taken!

Thank goodness there are responsible producers of chicken that can be available to you in your supermarket. It is possible to purchase a healthy chicken even if you don’t live near a supply of live poultry. Bell and Evans has an excellent reputation for producing large numbers of chickens for market without using drugs or unnatural methods. Empire Kosher has been marketing delicious, safe chicken for years. (You don’t have to be Jewish to eat Kosher chicken!) Both brands are available nationally. If your market doesn’t currently carry them, make a point to request them. You and your family will eat more healthfully and deliciously!

Here are some good rules to follow when preparing and cooking chicken, wherever you’ve purchased it:

·    Chill chicken to 40 degrees F or lower.  Remove chicken from its store wrappings and rewrap in fresh plastic wrap.  Remove the giblets from the cavity and rewrap them also.  Remove any paper packed with the chicken.

·    Clean hands and utensils both before and after handling raw poultry.

·    Cook chicken to the recommended temperatures, 170 degrees F for white meat and 180 degrees F for dark meat and whole birds.  When you’re considering the proper time to remove the cooked chicken from the heat, remember that it will continue to cook for about 10 minutes (whole bird) from residual heat.  The internal temperature will increase about 10 degrees.

I am fortunate to live near one of the most complete and “European” green markets in the USA – the Union Square Greenmarket in New York.  It is my first shopping stop each week.  Whenever and whatever possible, I choose to purchase my food as close to its source as can be – and so should you.  Nutritionists are revealing more and more findings that show we get more and better nourishment from food the closer we live to where it is grown.  I really love to buy meat, fish and milk directly from the farmers.  I can be completely assured of its freshness and its freedom from hormones, steroids and antibiotics.  I strongly suggest that those of you, who can do so, seek out similar sources near where you live.  If you have trouble identifying such suppliers, go online to the Chefs Collaborative and ask a culinary professional in your area where she or he purchases their groceries.

Dear reader, if you eschew veal because you think it’s been raised inhumanely, rest assured this is no longer the case.  In fact, the very best milk-fed veal comes from calves that have never been separated from their mothers, and feed only on that milk.

Fin fish and shellfish are a delicious and nutritious source of protein, but there are several caveats to keep in mind when handling raw seafood.

·       Don't cross-contaminate!  Food poisoning and spoilage bacteria can spread easily from live and raw seafood to cooked seafood.  Handle raw and cooked seafood products separately.

·       Thoroughly wash and rinse knives, containers, and cutting boards between handling raw and cooked seafood.  Keep raw and cooked seafood from coming in contact with each other.

·       Cook fish and shellfish carefully.  Fish is cooked when it begins to flake and reaches an internal temperature of 140 F.  However, it becomes overcooked all too easily.  Remember the rule of residual cooking, and watch your fish while it is cooking. 

·       All raw foods contain bacteria.  Handle seafood as you would any perishable food.  Keep seafood properly refrigerated, cook adequately, and handle with safety in mind.

·       Many people enjoy raw or lightly marinated seafood products such as sashimi, sushi, ceviche, gravlax, cold-smoked fish and raw shellfish.  Eating raw seafood (and raw meat, poultry, or dairy products), has a greater food safety risk than eating properly cooked food.  Follow these tips to reduce this risk: use commercially frozen fish for sashimi, sushi, ceviche, gravlax, or cold-smoked fish.  By freezing seafood to -31 F for 15 hours or to -10 F for 7 days you can eliminate the risk from parasites that may be present in the fish.

·       Individuals with chronic liver disease or compromised immune systems should avoid eating raw or partially cooked oysters.  The US Food Drug Administration advises that oysters may contain the bacterium, Vibrio vulnificus.  This is especially true with oysters in the summer months from Gulf Coast waters.  Vibrio vulnificus can cause severe illness and death for individuals suffering from liver disease, stomach disorders, blood disorders, or immune system deficiencies.  Since cooking destroys Vibrio vulnificus, consumers with these conditions can safely enjoy cooked shellfish.

These “nutrition bites” have been brought to you because information is one of our most valuable tools to maintaining good health for ourselves and our families.  Nothing, however, is better for the human body and soul than a delicious meal that has been prepared with love, consumed at table with people we care about!

À votre Santé – To your Good Health!

© 2000, Feastivals

June C. Jacobs, CCP, FWS
President and Executive Chef
Feastivals