Go Further With Food
You may not know this, but March is National Nutrition Month! And the theme for 2018 is to "go further with food" by reducing food waste. This theme is very appropriate for our current state of the food supply. According to a 2014 EPA study, Americans throw away more than 38 million tons of food every year! Not only is that a waste of food, it’s a waste of money - roughly $2,200 per year is tossed out to the curb. So decreasing food waste can also reduce your grocery bill as well as your impact on the environment.
But I say, let's take it a step further. How can we "go further with food" to also optimize health? Reducing the amount of food you throw away (by eating those veggies you bought!), as well as choosing whole foods over packaged foods will naturally increase your intake of quality nutrients and improve health. However, enhancing your experience and connecting with your food are also ways to “go further” with your food while enhancing overall health.
Here is a list of ways you can go further with your food!
Reduce Food Waste. This sounds easier than it really is, but with some simple strategies you can save money and reduce your environmental impact.
Love the ugly. Did you know that many farmers throw away their own crops if they do not look perfect? Crooked carrots, funky shaped peppers, etc. may not even make it to the grocery shelf, or stay there to never be picked. If you aren’t displaying the veggies for a fancy dinner party, why do they need to look perfect before you chop and sauté? Next time you’re in the produce aisle, choose those ugly ducklings, they are just as good!
Choose frozen dinners. No, not the highly processed ones at the store! You can easily make your own tasty frozen dinners. Any time you make a dish that you won’t be able to finish before it goes bad, just freeze the rest in single serving containers. As you try different recipes and freeze extra, you slowly start to build a variety of heat-and-eat dinners that are healthy and homemade.
Appreciate the ending. Did you know that you can use the top ends of your veggies to make a homemade broth? Just thoroughly wash the entire veggies, toss the ends into a pot of water, boil, strain and you’re all set! You can also eat the green tops of most root veggies. Did you buy a bunch of fresh radishes? Cut off the greens and sauté with a little garlic and olive oil.
Don’t bulk up. One deceptive way you may be actually wasting food and money is buying in bulk. It may seem less expensive at the time, but if you end up throwing some away, you’re most likely spending more in the long run. This includes healthy oils, not just produce. Oils become oxidized and eventually rancid the longer they are on the shelf. So unless you’re picking up shelf stable healthy whole grains like rice, quinoa and organic popcorn, choose smaller containers to put in your cart.
Choose glass. There are several reasons why choosing glass over plastic is the better choice. The obvious benefit is reducing plastic bottles in our landfills, oceans, trails, roads and any other place they end up. Second, you save more money reusing a glass bottle than buying packs and packs of water bottles. Lastly, reducing your exposure to toxins that leach out of plastics will decrease your overall toxin load and help enhance health.
Pick whole foods over boxed and prepared foods. This is a no-brainer. Not only are you choosing more nutrient dense foods with less chemicals, you are also reducing the amount of packaging. It’s a win-win!
Enhance Your Food Experience. Going further with food can also mean stepping out of the bland and into amazing flavors that keep you excited to eat healthier.
Spice it up. The major complaint about switching from highly processed foods to fresher, whole foods is lack of flavor. There are a few reasons for this. First, if you are used to extremely salty, sweet, and/or artificially enhanced flavors, anything less than that will be bland to your taste buds. Second, if you’re not a natural whiz in the kitchen it can be difficult to know what herbs or spices will go together or enhance the flavor of a specific food. Lastly, if you’re just boiling or steaming all of your veggies you won’t be using cooking methods that can enhance to natural flavors of your veggies. If you’re stuck in blah-blah land with your healthy food try these tips:
Increase your use of herbs and spices. If you don’t know how to combine spices try to experiment yourself, look online for herbs that complement each other or find recipes to try and build your knowledge of what works.
Salt your food after cooking. Sprinkling a little sea salt on your dish as you plate it will enhance the flavor without adding to much sodium to your diet.
Roast, stir fry and sauté. Roasting brings out the natural sweetness of veggies, stir frying can help blend flavors of the different veggies and sautéing can enhance the intensity of flavor.
Use healthy fats. Roast, fry or saute your food in a little bit of oil, or drizzle with a little oil as your plating. This will enhance the mouth feel of your food. Enhance flavor by using walnut oil or sesame oil.
Getting more variety. We are all creatures of habit, myself included! It can be easy to fall into a food rut, eating the same thing day in and day out. But this sets you up for boredom with your food and reaching for something less healthy. Instead, try a new vegetable or new way of cooking your normal veggies. Pick up some millet instead of the same ol’ same ol’ quinoa. Roast a chicken in the crockpot instead of eating baked chicken breast. The more variety you can get throughout the month, the more motivating healthy eating can be.
Repurpose dishes. Do you normally take your Thanksgiving leftovers and repurpose them somehow? Maybe your turkey becomes turkey sandwiches or, if you’re really creative, you make a turkey Shepard’s pie with leftover turkey, veggies and potatoes. If you have tried to eat your Turkey Day leftovers in a different way, you are repurposing your food! This is another way to go further with food. Did you roast a chicken but are getting bored with it? Why not shred some meat, toss with Mexican spices and do chicken tacos. Use the leftover carcass to make a nice bone broth for your next soup. If you’re not naturally creative in the kitchen, repurposing can take some time. But there are thousands of recipes out there to help you!
Connect with your food. Finally, going further with food means reducing mindless eating, and really connecting with the experience of your meal.
Eat Mindfully. If you consider yourself a fast eater, emotional eater or have looked down at your empty plate, bowl or bag wondering where everything went, you are not eating mindfully. When you wolf down your food, you reduce your ability to properly breakdown your food and utilize the nutrients from it. When you stuff your emotions down with food, your body is in stress mode which shuts down digestion and can lead to digestive complaints after. When you eat on autopilot, you are not getting the whole experience of the food on your plate. The practice of slowing down and paying attention to the smell, taste and texture of your meal will not only enhance your digestion, it will also help you better understand what flavors you truly enjoy.
Portion Control. Mindless eating also makes it difficult to control portions. It takes approximately 20 minutes for your stomach to register it is sufficiently full and to send a message to your brain to stop eating. When you eat mindlessly and quickly, you shut that communication down and reduce your chance of getting that “I’m full” message before it’s too late. Slowing down and eating mindfully allows you to connect with your food and your appetite. This in turn will help you naturally eat the correct portions for your body and to reach your optimal weight.
So this year, why not make an effort to go further with food – your wallet, your environment and your health will thank you!
Resources:
https://foodforward.org/2017/09/how-much-food-is-wasted-in-america/