Eating raw

By: Clint Jhonson

There are more raw food recipes than you can imagine. Nevertheless, there is a small catch: before discussing these, there are some things that need explanations to what concerns what foods are raw, in fact.

Despite the general belief, there are different ways to determine whether a certain product is raw or not, and exactly to what extent it is so. It is essentially a matter concerning the level of its processing, particularly the level of heat applied: anything cooked at over 118F degrees can definitely not be part of raw food recipes.

Nevertheless, there is more to it than that. Depending on the source of the product, its contents and level of processing, you can determine the quantity in which it is acceptable after you have adopted a raw food diet. Obviously, the more processed it is, the smaller its quantity must be in your diet.

Seaweeds, for example, are extremely popular among fans of raw food recipes. If your source is a small family shop, then anything from Laver to Kombu is great – usually, producers dry them in the sun. However, you should take extra care with those that come pre-packed, especially in supermarkets.

An ambiguous allusion to their origin such as a simple “Asia” tag probably means they roasted them. Moreover, strangely enough, producers usually omit mentioning this detail on the package. So try to make only seaweeds with certain origins part of your raw food recipes, and keep the rest on a minimal level.

Also, watch out for spices. Considering their size, it is rather difficult to determine how raw they are with a mere glance. Implicitly, try to use them as rarely as possible. An efficient alternative is available in this case, though: you can grow your own spices at home. Indeed, growing your own fruit may be a bit of a problem, especially if your place is not a four-story mansion, but even a small flat can house a few potted plants that provide you with fresh spices at any given time. When owning your own potted spices, you are free to experiment with many raw food recipes and you no longer depend on uncertain labels and producers.

Olives are also quite a touchy subject – truly raw olives are, sadly, rather hard to find. Most of them are cooked or mixed with salt or vinegar, and these should be off your shopping list. However, if you do manage to get your hands on sun-dried olives, they are very healthy and safe.

Frozen fruits are also controversial. The general recommendation is to consume them as fresh as possible – implicitly, chain stores make among the worst possible places to get them. However, there is no technical argument against frozen fruit – it is, at the end of the day, raw. Keep in mind, though, that it has lost most of its benefic features due to freezing.

There are also a few items, which you should try to diminish systematically, and eventually abolish from your diet completely. One of the essential ones is salt. The way most people eat implies too much salt, and this causes an unhealthy imbalance. Diminish it as much as you can, regardless of its origin and form, and try replacing your need for salt with seaweed. In addition, there is a common misconception regarding maple syrup. Definitely, it is a processed product! So do not be fooled and replace it with something else.