Part III Who is outliving us and why

East Asia is the most populated area on earth and has a multitude of regional cuisines, however they have a lot of common components.  The most common cooking methods in these countries are stir frying, steaming and deep frying.  Common ingredients include soybeans, mung beans, seafood, tofu, ginger, sesame seeds and tea – and of course rice.

Rice types vary by country.  Long grained rice is popular in China, Jasmine rice in Thailand and short grain rice in Japan and Korea.

Noodles are also a main culinary ingredient in East Asia, but the types of noodles also differ by country.

Thailand and parts of China tend to use noodles made of rice flour whereas Korea, Japan and the rest of China use alkaline wheat noodles. Soba noodles are also popular in Japan and sweet potatoes starch noodles are popular in Korea.

Key Characteristics of East Asian Cuisines

• Chinese cuisine
• Key ingredients involve soy sauce, rice, noodles, tofu, ginger, garlic, and scallions which form the foundation of many dishes
• Flavors encompass umami (savory taste), sweet and sour combinations, and spicy notes in certain regional cuisines (Sichuan, Hunan)
• Cooking techniques include stir-frying (quick cooking over high heat), steaming (preserving nutrients and delicate flavors), braising (slow cooking in liquid), and deep-frying (crispy textures)
• Japanese cuisine
• Key ingredients feature rice, noodles (soba, udon, ramen), fish and seafood, soy sauce, miso (fermented soybean paste), dashi (savory stock made from fish or kelp), and wasabi (spicy horseradish paste)
• Flavors focus on umami, light and delicate tastes, and a harmonious balance of sweet, salty, sour, and bitter elements
• Cooking techniques involve grilling (yakitori skewered chicken, yakiniku grilled meats), simmering (nabemono hot pot dishes), raw preparations (sashimi sliced raw fish, sushi vinegared rice with raw fish or vegetables), and tempura (deep-fried battered seafood and vegetables)
• Korean cuisine
• Key ingredients include rice, gochujang (fermented red chili paste), doenjang (fermented soybean paste), ganjang (Korean soy sauce), kimchi (fermented vegetables), garlic, and scallions which contribute to the distinct flavors
• Flavors are characterized by bold and spicy tastes, umami richness, and the prominence of fermented and pickled elements
• Cooking techniques feature grilling (Korean barbecue), stewing (jjigae hearty stews), fermenting (kimchi, doenjang), and steaming (steamed rice, dumplings) which showcase the diverse preparation methods

Let’s spend a minute talking about starches/ carbohydrates. One might say  – OK – Asians like rice and we like potatoes. What’s the big deal. Lets look.

We know carbohydrates convert to glucose and the speed of that conversion is called the glycemic index (GI) – a number assigned to a food that essentially tells you how fast it converts and impacts your blood sugar. Broadly simple carbs have a higher GI and more complex carbs have a lower GI. There are some cool simple websites out there that you dig up any number you want.

GI does not tell the whole story, however. Glycemic Load or GL might be a more useful number as it tells us how much carbohydrate is found in a food.

The glycemic load has been used to study whether high-glycemic load diets are associated with increased risks for type 2 diabetes risk and cardiac events. In a large meta-analysis of 24 prospective cohort studies, researchers concluded that people who consumed lower-glycemic load diets were at a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes than those who ate a diet of higher-glycemic load foods. A similar type of meta-analysis concluded that higher-glycemic load diets were also associated with an increased risk for coronary heart disease events.

Here is a listing of low, medium, and high glycemic load foods. For good health, choose foods that have a low or medium glycemic load, and limit foods that have a high glycemic load.

Low glycemic load (10 or under)

• Bran cereals
• Apple
• Orange
• Kidney beans
• Black beans
• Lentils
• Wheat tortilla
• Skim milk
• Cashews
• Peanuts
• Carrots

Medium glycemic load (11-19)

• Pearled barley: 1 cup cooked
• Brown rice: 3/4 cup cooked
• Oatmeal: 1 cup cooked
• Bulgur: 3/4 cup cooked
• Rice cakes: 3 cakes
• Whole grain breads: 1 slice
• Whole-grain pasta: 1 1/4 cup cooked

High glycemic load (20+)

• Baked potato
• French fries
• Refined breakfast cereal: 1 oz
• Sugar-sweetened beverages: 12 oz
• Candy bars: 1 2-oz bar or 3 mini bars
• Couscous: 1 cup cooked
• White basmati rice: 1 cup cooked
• White-flour pasta: 1 1/4 cup cooked

So – lower is better. Let’s look at some numbers of American starches vs East Asian starches through the lens of the GL load

Baked Potato    22

Jasmine Rice            36

Instant potatoes        66

Short rice                   22

Long rice                    18

Spaghetti                   26

Rice noodle               18

Soba noodle              16

Wheat noodle           15

White bread              39

Potato chips             37

I am not sure there is a statistical difference in these numbers - but it does spike one’s curiosity about blood sugar and how much sugar you are taking in without really knowing it.  Not all carbohydrates are created equal.

OK, that’s a wrap.  I had promised to revisit mortality data in these countries, but I am out of gas. We may do that later in the year.

Eat better, live longer

Farmer Kevin     

Sources:

French School of Cooking, Ecole Ducasse

East Asian Cuisine: Similarities and differences at Hawken edu.

Harvard School of Public Health - Carbohydrates and Blood Sugar