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The one oil that should always be in your kitchen

For many years, people in kitchens everywhere have always had a bottle of sunflower oil on hand to cook with. I'm not sure how or why that became THE oil to use. I'm sure someone, somewhere realised it was cheap to make and easy to sell as a "health food" and make a profit on. For a long time it was the only oil people used. These days you can find many different types of oil when you walk down the oil aisle. It's difficult to know which ones you should be using.

We've all been told, for years, that we should rather use oils that are liquid at room temperature, such as vegetable oils, and avoid oils that are solid at room temperature, such as butter and lard. We've also been told to avoid full cream ANYTHING and to cut as much fat as we can out of our diets... If you know anything at all about my blog,  you know just what I think about THAT theory...

There are actually a few liquid oils that are pretty good for you, and I'll go into those in another post, but right now, let's get to that all-important oil that should always be in your kitchen. (Drum roll please!)

Coconut oil is one of those oils that is solid at room temperature. It consists of about 92% saturated fats. For that reason, it has been vilified and ostracised for years as a primary contributor to heart disease, along with all other saturated fats. In fact, up until the last decade, westerners wouldn't touch it with a barge pole. Fortunately, though, people started questioning that and today, it is one of the most sought after oils and has been completely redeemed. What amazes me is that, the theory of it being bad for you, is not based on any real facts. One only has to look at the non-existence of heart disease on tropical islands like the Seychelles to work out that coconuts are NOT a cause of heart disease. We actually went to the Seychelles for our honeymoon. Believe me, coconut is EVERYWHERE there. They give it to you with all your meals, they cook only with coconut oil and copious amounts of coconut milk, coconut is given as a bar snack instead of the usual peanuts, you can buy coconut oil on just about every street corner. They eat A LOT of it and yet heart disease is not a problem there. Why? Because coconut oil actually prevents heart disease!

Here are some of the many benefits of coconut oil:

• It helps normalise blood lipids and protects against damage to the liver by alcohol and other toxins
• It helps prevents kidney and gall bladder diseases
• It's associated with improved blood sugar and insulin control and the prevention and management of diabetes. 
• It has antiviral, antibacterial and anti-fungal properties and helps to boost the immune system.
• It is thought to help strengthen mineral absorption such as calcium and magnesium, which is important for healthy teeth and bones
• It can help improve the condition and appearance of the scalp, hair and skin when ingested or applied topically
• It has been very beneficial for HIV and cancer patients as it reduces their viral susceptibility
• It is used by athletes, bodybuilders and those just trying to lose extra body fat. The reason for that is that coconut oil contains less calories than other oils, its fat content is easily converted into energy, and it doesn't lead to accumulation of fat in the heart and arteries. It helps boost energy and endurance, and actually enhances the performance of athletes
• Studies have shown that it can help treat and even prevent Alzheimer's disease (since Alzheimer's is in GLM's family, I have her on at least 2 tablespoons of coconut oil a day!)

One of the ingredients in coconut oil that makes it so beneficial in the fight against heart disease is lauric acid which helps in actively preventing various heart problems like high cholesterol levels and high blood pressure. The saturated fats found in coconut oil are not harmful at all. They actually help to reduce damage to the arteries which lowers the risk of a heart attack. Lauric acid is extremely helpful in dealing with viruses and bacteria that cause diseases such as herpes, influenza and even HIV. It helps in fighting harmful bacteria as well and has been used extensively in Ayurveda, the traditional Indian medicinal system. In fact, I wrote a whole post on the benefits of oil-pulling using coconut oil, which is an Ayurvedic treatment.

So, which is the best coconut oil to buy? Do I really need to say it;) Organic is ALWAYS the way to go. Why? Oil is one of the few processed food products that I will encourage you to buy. There is NO OTHER WAY to make oil. Oil doesn't exist naturally. You can't hold a bucket under a coconut and wait for oil to drip out of it. The coconut has to be treated in a certain way for the oil to be produced. The idea is to choose the oil that has been the LEAST processed. There are many different grades of coconut oil and the trick is to choose the right grade. According to the Asian and Pacific Coconut Community Standards for virgin coconut oil, coconut oil can only be sold as virgin coconut oil when it is “obtained from the fresh and mature kernel of coconut by mechanical or natural means with or without the application of heat, which does not lead to alteration of the oil.”

That's the trick. You don't want the oil to lose any of its nutrients during the extraction process or it really won't be doing you any good at all and then, what's the point? Some coconut oils are deodorized, some are refined, some have sodium hydroxide added to remove impurities and prolong shelf life, some are even put through hydrogenation and some are bleached. It's the same as choosing white, refined rice, or organic brown rice. The less something is processed, the better it is for you.

In the case of coconut oil, it's always best to go with organic, and even better if it's organic virgin coconut oil as this type is not  heat treated, is in no way refined, and contains all the natural goodness that gives coconut oil all it's beneficial properties PLUS the coconuts are organic which makes them even more potent. Don't waste your money buying any other type of coconut oil, seriously. Incidentally, there is NO such thing as extra virgin coconut oil so don't let manufacturers fool you. Virgin coconut oil is more than sufficient.

Coconut oil also happens to be the best oil to cook with. It is not heat sensitive and doesn't oxidise easily so it's perfect for frying anything. You can use it in place of butter when baking, or even on a slice of bread. 

That's it, in a coconut shell;) Dischem sells organic virgin coconut oil and it has a lovely taste, in my opinion! 

Give it a try!

Real Food Friday Feast - Fermented Chilli Sauce

You heard me right. I said fermented. Your initial instinct is "Blegh" right? Mine was the same until I discovered the wonder of fermented foods! Not only are they exceptionally good for you, but they are really tasty.

Fermented foods are foods that have been through a process called lacto-fermentation which involves natural bacteria feeding on the sugar and starch in the food, creating lactic acid. The whole process actually preserves the food for very long periods of time. It also creates beneficial enzymes, b-vitamins, Omega-3 fatty acids and various strains of probiotics (The opposite of antibiotics. Probiotics are the good guys when it comes to bacteria.)

Lacto-fermentation is nothing new. It's been around for centuries. It was commonly used to preserve food because fridges weren't readily available. These days you still find loads of foods pickled in jars and sold at grocery stores but, unfortunately, in the interest of big business, it is too costly and time consuming to properly ferment foods. That is why the pickles you find today, like beetroot and gherkins, are dead food by the time they reach you. They are all preserved in vinegar, which is too harsh for anything to survive in. However, lacto-fermentation is still practiced a lot in countries like Germany, where sauerkraut is extremely popular, and Korea, where kimchi is consumed with every meal.

Unfortunately, the amount of probiotics in the average western diet has declined so dramatically as to be almost non-existant. Milk is now being pasteurised so no-one drinks it raw anymore (except us), store bought yogurt, which might as well just be pudding it's so loaded with sugar and very little live bacteria, has replaced homemade yogurt and vinegar based pickles have replaced lacto-fermented foods. Instead of nutrient rich foods full of enzymes and probiotics that our great-grandparents probably ate, the average diet today consists mostly of sugar laden, scientifically created, dead foods.

Here are some of the benefits of eating fermented foods:

• They contain probiotics: Eating fermented foods and drinking fermented drinks like kefir and kombucha, introduces good bacteria into your body and improves the balance of bacteria in your digestive system, which is often upset by bad diet and antibiotics. It's also been proven that probiotics help slow or reverse some diseases, improve bowel health, aid digestion and strengthen your immune system.
• It improves your absorption of food: Having a lot of good bacteria in your colon and digestive enzymes, helps your body absorb more of the nutrients in the food you eat. This is especially beneficial if you are eating a clean, organic, real food diet, AND eating fermented foods. You'll find that your body absorbs a lot more nutrients from the food you're eating and you won’t need as many supplements and vitamins as you used to, because you’ll be absorbing more of the live nutrients from the food you eat.
• Economical: Eating organically can get expensive if you don't know where to shop, but fermented foods definitely make it more affordable because you can buy veggies in bulk and ferment all of them so they last you for weeks or months. You can make your own whey at home  for the price of a litre of milk (more on this in a bit), and then all you need is a good mineral salt, water and the veggies. Adding these foods to your diet also cuts down on the number of supplements you need, which helps your budget AND lowers possible future medical costs.
• It preserves food easily: Homemade chilli sauce only lasts a week or so in the fridge but fermented homemade chilli sauce lasts months (unless you are me and are chilli crazy!) The same goes for sauerkraut, pickles, beetroot and anything else you ferment. Lacto-fermentation allows you to store food for longer periods of time without losing the nutritional value.

So, how this all started for me was that I bought some chillies from my organic veggie supplier and there were LOADS of them. I'm the only one who eats them and I was worried, as much as I love chilli, that I still wasn't eating them fast enough.  They were definitely going to go off. I'd also found an amazing chilli sauce while on holiday in the Berg and it had come to an early demise when GLM accidentally dropped the glass bottle on the floor! I was missing my chilli sauce and I had all these chillies, so I started hunting around for a recipe to make my own. Every recipe I found involved cooking the chillies though and I wanted to keep them raw. Suddenly it dawned on me that I could ferment them!

I've been fermenting my veggies at home for a few months now and I can't tell you what a difference it's made to my IBS! I knew that, if I made fermented chilli sauce, I'd eat it daily and what could be better for me than that? Beside which, chillies are exceptionally good for you. You can read about the benefits of spicy food in this post but I'll give you the low down on  chilli. The main ingredient is Capsaicin, which is responsible for the intense heat you feel when you eat a chilli. Here are some of the health benefits of chillies:

• Lowers Blood Sugar Levels: Eating chillies can have a very positive impact on people that are overweight or suffer from diabetes. They can significantly help to control insulin levels after eating a meal. One study even showed a lowering of insulin levels by an amazing 60%!
• Improves heart health, boosts circulation, thins blood and helps protect against strokes
• Provides pain relief & reduces inflammation: Capsaicin contains a neuropeptide associated with the inflammation. Chilli has helped relieve pain in patients with auto-inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid and osteoarthritis, as well as more common ailments such as headaches, migraines and discomfort caused by sinus problems. The regular intake of chillies can help to minimise the effects these diseases have on the body. Capsaicin can provide pain relief without the side effects of normal painkillers like sedation and an inability to focus. It is a far healthier alternative to painkillers. Capsaicin has antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties, which means they can really bring relief to conditions such as IBS and even flu or a cold.
• Acts as a relaxant: Studies have found that chillies help you to "chill" far more easily;) 
• Helps clear congestion: Nothing clears the sinuses like a good, hot curry! That's because chillies are really good at quickly and effectively opening your nasal passages, allowing you to breathe more easily.
• Limits spreading of prostate cancer: Cancer research has proven that Capsaicin can help stop the spread of prostate cancer. The Capsaicin found in chillies actually triggered suicide in both types of prostate cancer cells and dramatically slowed the development of new cancer cells.
• Lowers risk of stomach cancer: Chillies and stomach cancer have been a topic of debate amongst researchers for a long time, with many varying opinions. Scientists used to believe that chillies actually caused stomach cancer (much like they believed saturated fat caused heart disease!) but recent studies have proven that they actually reduce the risk of getting stomach cancer. Scientists have also found that Capsaicin inhibits cancer cell growth in general.
• Chillies help to burn fat: NOW I have your attention;) Capsaicin is a thermogenic compound. It raises your metabolic rate, which aids in the fat burning process. Studies have shown that eating chillies can raise your metabolic rate by up to 23% for about 3 hours!
• Lowers cholesterol: Eating Chillies has recently been shown to lower cholesterol, and to lower the blood's tendency to clot.

So now you know why you should be eating chillies AND why you should lacto-ferment them.ssss But how do you do it?

As I said a bit earlier, all that's really needed to lacto-ferment food, is a good mineral salt, water, veggies and whey. When I say whey, I don't mean the kind USN sell at Dischem! I mean the liquid kind that is a by-product of making cheese from raw milk. Sounds complicated but it's actually so easy. The trickiest part of this whole recipe, is finding the raw milk! If you have a farmer's market near you, you will find it easily. If you don't, you are going to struggle because NO store will sell you raw milk. Woolies organic milk doesn't count because it's not actually raw. It's still pasteurized and heat treated. Start looking for raw milk at a farm near you and, if you struggle, give me a shout. I know people;)

Once you find raw milk, making the whey is simple:

• Pour the milk into a glass bowl, cover with a cloth and leave for a few days. Keep an eye on it from about day 3. 
• It will start to curdle and separate, into curds and whey (like little Miss Muffet;) 
• After it's completely separated (about 4-5 days), get another glass bowl and put a dishcloth over it. (use one that you don't mind getting dirty!)
• Pour the contents of your other bowl, onto the dishcloth.
• Grab all the corners of the dishcloth and gather them together so that the curds are inside the cloth. Tie a knot in them and then leave the whey to drip slowly out of the dishcloth, into the glass bowl beneath it. (I tie piece of string around the knot of the dishcloth and then tie it to one of my cupboard handles in my kitchen and leave the bowl underneath it on the counter for about a day to slowly all drip out.)
• The liquid in your bowl will be the whey you will use for your fermented foods and the solid stuff in the dishcloth is actually cream cheese! It's delicious and exceptionally healthy and tasty as a dip or a spread.
• Pour your whey into a glass jar and place in the fridge. It will keep for a few months. If you find you won't use it often, put it in a container in the freezer.

Now you are ready to make your chilli sauce!

Lacto-fermented chilli sauce

±500 grams chillis (You can stick to one type OR use a mix)

6-8 cherry tomatoes

1 tsp crushed garlic

1 tsp sea salt or himalayan rock salt

2 tsp raw honey

1 Tbs whey

1 glass jar

Prepare the glass jar first:

Boil your kettle and fill the jar with boiling water

Leave to sit for about 10 minutes (this is to kill off any bacteria that might interfere with the good bacteria fermentation will produce)

Pour out the water and leave to air-dry

Method:

Wash all the chillies in lukewarm water and a bit of vinegar and chop off all the stems.

Place all ingredients in a blender (I have found my hand blender actually works best as the normal blender gets sauce all up the sides!)

Blend until all chunks are completely broken down

Use a filter to scoop and pour all of the sauce into the glass jar (Mine is well used and broken now but you by these plastic filters very cheaply at Pick n Pay)

Seal the lid TIGHTLY

Leave to sit in your kitchen, at room temperature, for 5-7 days (it takes time for the little guys to get working!)

I'm on day 3 now: 

You can see that the process has already changed the chillies a bit. They aren't as lumo green as they were before;) It's hard to tell, but there are little bubbles in there too and that is a good thing! It means the bacteria are working. By about day 5 or 6, the chilli may actually rise to the top of the jar which usually means it's good to go!

Eat copious amounts, with anything, anytime! The more you eat of these the better. You can obviously also play around with the recipe according to your tastes. Just be sure to include the whey, honey and salt as they aid the fermentation process.

Enjoy!