Nourishing Traditions and other Recipes for a Better Health

[colowyo0809]

Okay, first, I've renamed the thread.

First set of questions - stopped in a local dry-goods store and saw Winona Flour and Sapphire Flour. For the first, there was a ingredients list that included Barley. The second, just said "wheat". What special purpose do these flour fulfill?

(now that I think about it, I didn't see any arrowroot, and that was something else I was looking for.

Winona Ryder has her own flour? Really? Why?

 

[GardenWeasel]

The recipe for fermented beans is worth the price of the book for me. I just use a ton of garlic in it. Brings tears of joy.

 

[moolie]

Just be aware as you read this book, as with any book, that it is not the health panacea that some perceive it to be. I do own this book and find parts of it useful, but much of it has no place in my kitchen.

Sally Fallon is very well-meaning, and does back up many of her assertions with research--as they relates to health and traditional foods/cooking methods. She's not wrong that our ancestors ate better than we do.

But when it comes to the actual cooking methods she describes, she has a lot of traditional cooking practices downright wrong and also contradicts herself in several places (sometimes on the same page).

For example, she recommends washing all fruits and veggies to remove pesticides with a particular brand of soap, hydrogen peroxide, or chlorine bleach. Then she turns it around and states that dishwasher powder is poison and should not be used to clean the dishes of cancer patients or other ill/immune compromised people. The poison in dishwasher detergent is chlorine bleach--so which is it Sally? Do we poison our fruits and veggies and worry about our plates, or should we take a more balanced, traditional and natural view? Traditional peoples didn't use chemical pesticides or herbicides on their food, so all that was needed (even when I was a kid) was to pick an apple off the tree in the yard and give it a wipe on your shirt. Buy organic, grown your own, and don't put poison on anything you ingest.

She also recommends eating raw meat and fish (despite the danger of parasites, bacteria, and viruses) and demonstrates in several places/recipes that she doesn't actually know how to cook in a traditional manner, despite the "scientific research" she's done. French chefs would be horrified at how she treats meat--she actually recommends throwing away the browned bits/fat after searing meat and adding new oil, rather than deglazing the pan to save the yummy tasty bits that mean all the flavour to certain dishes.

Not to mention all her short cuts when it comes to lactic fermentation. Sauerkraut takes weeks to ferment properly and naturally, not days--lactic fermentation is a truly natural process and doesn't require speeding up, and if we're going with the belief that traditional methods are best, perhaps we should stick with actual tradition.

And pay special attention to her sources--Sally Fallon is not a scientist, nor does she list any degrees after her name. She is simply a person who set out to publish a book based on her personal beliefs as they relate to food and nutrition. Sure, she worked with a Ph.D. on the book, but what does that mean? Is Ms. Enig an actual doctor? What's her field?

Fallon herself is clearly in the same camp as many on this forum who believe that pressure cooking/canning is bad for food (despite loads of contradictory research that shows that these cooking/preservation methods actually preserve most of the nutrients in food cooked/preserved this way--just google it). Interestingly, pressure cooking is only mentioned twice in the book, as it relates to cooking grains (never does she mention pressure canning), and it is Fallon's personal opinion that is given that this method "cooks the grains too quickly"--no sources cited.

Watch the sources that are listed and actually read some of them to see if there is bias. E.g. her comments related to "extruded" foods--Fallon bases her many assertions on one source, a book written by someone who has something to sell (scroll to the bottom of the page to see what he's selling). Read his book and decide for yourself.

All of this is just the tip of the iceburg--read the book and decide for yourself. Take it all with a grain of salt, and truly research traditional food preparation methods on your own. Cooking healthy traditional food is its own delicious journey

(And if you are really interested in traditional cooking, look to the peasant cuisines of eastern Europe in particular--they knew a thing or two about how to squeeze maximum nutrition from humble foods.)

 

[colowyo0809]

Just be aware as you read this book, as with any book, that it is not the health panacea that some perceive it to be. I do own this book and find parts of it useful, but much of it has no place in my kitchen.

Sally Fallon is very well-meaning, and does back up many of her assertions with research--as they relates to health and traditional foods/cooking methods. She's not wrong that our ancestors ate better than we do.

But when it comes to the actual cooking methods she describes, she has a lot of traditional cooking practices downright wrong and also contradicts herself in several places (sometimes on the same page).

For example, she recommends washing all fruits and veggies to remove pesticides with a particular brand of soap, hydrogen peroxide, or chlorine bleach. Then she turns it around and states that dishwasher powder is poison and should not be used to clean the dishes of cancer patients or other ill/immune compromised people. The poison in dishwasher detergent is chlorine bleach--so which is it Sally? Do we poison our fruits and veggies and worry about our plates, or should we take a more balanced, traditional and natural view? Traditional peoples didn't use chemical pesticides or herbicides on their food, so all that was needed (even when I was a kid) was to pick an apple off the tree in the yard and give it a wipe on your shirt. Buy organic, grown your own, and don't put poison on anything you ingest.

She also recommends eating raw meat and fish (despite the danger of parasites, bacteria, and viruses) and demonstrates in several places/recipes that she doesn't actually know how to cook in a traditional manner, despite the "scientific research" she's done. French chefs would be horrified at how she treats meat--she actually recommends throwing away the browned bits/fat after searing meat and adding new oil, rather than deglazing the pan to save the yummy tasty bits that mean all the flavour to certain dishes.

Not to mention all her short cuts when it comes to lactic fermentation. Sauerkraut takes weeks to ferment properly and naturally, not days--lactic fermentation is a truly natural process and doesn't require speeding up, and if we're going with the belief that traditional methods are best, perhaps we should stick with actual tradition.

And pay special attention to her sources--Sally Fallon is not a scientist, nor does she list any degrees after her name. She is simply a person who set out to publish a book based on her personal beliefs as they relate to food and nutrition. Sure, she worked with a Ph.D. on the book, but what does that mean? Is Ms. Enig an actual doctor? What's her field?

Fallon herself is clearly in the same camp as many on this forum who believe that pressure cooking/canning is bad for food (despite loads of contradictory research that shows that these cooking/preservation methods actually preserve most of the nutrients in food cooked/preserved this way--just google it). Interestingly, pressure cooking is only mentioned twice in the book, as it relates to cooking grains (never does she mention pressure canning), and it is Fallon's personal opinion that is given that this method "cooks the grains too quickly"--no sources cited.

Watch the sources that are listed and actually read some of them to see if there is bias. E.g. her comments related to "extruded" foods--Fallon bases her many assertions on one source, a book written by someone who has something to sell (scroll to the bottom of the page to see what he's selling). Read his book and decide for yourself.

All of this is just the tip of the iceburg--read the book and decide for yourself. Take it all with a grain of salt, and truly research traditional food preparation methods on your own. Cooking healthy traditional food is its own delicious journey

(And if you are really interested in traditional cooking, look to the peasant cuisines of eastern Europe in particular--they knew a thing or two about how to squeeze maximum nutrition from humble foods.)

I've been waiting for an honest "other" viewpoint on this book. I don't argue that it has alot of good things in it, but it seemed to me that it was being touted as the be all end all of nutritional cooking.

 

[Bubblingbrooks]

Just be aware as you read this book, as with any book, that it is not the health panacea that some perceive it to be. I do own this book and find parts of it useful, but much of it has no place in my kitchen.

Sally Fallon is very well-meaning, and does back up many of her assertions with research--as they relates to health and traditional foods/cooking methods. She's not wrong that our ancestors ate better than we do.

But when it comes to the actual cooking methods she describes, she has a lot of traditional cooking practices downright wrong and also contradicts herself in several places (sometimes on the same page).

For example, she recommends washing all fruits and veggies to remove pesticides with a particular brand of soap, hydrogen peroxide, or chlorine bleach. Then she turns it around and states that dishwasher powder is poison and should not be used to clean the dishes of cancer patients or other ill/immune compromised people. The poison in dishwasher detergent is chlorine bleach--so which is it Sally? Do we poison our fruits and veggies and worry about our plates, or should we take a more balanced, traditional and natural view? Traditional peoples didn't use chemical pesticides or herbicides on their food, so all that was needed (even when I was a kid) was to pick an apple off the tree in the yard and give it a wipe on your shirt. Buy organic, grown your own, and don't put poison on anything you ingest.

She also recommends eating raw meat and fish (despite the danger of parasites, bacteria, and viruses) and demonstrates in several places/recipes that she doesn't actually know how to cook in a traditional manner, despite the "scientific research" she's done. French chefs would be horrified at how she treats meat--she actually recommends throwing away the browned bits/fat after searing meat and adding new oil, rather than deglazing the pan to save the yummy tasty bits that mean all the flavour to certain dishes.

Not to mention all her short cuts when it comes to lactic fermentation. Sauerkraut takes weeks to ferment properly and naturally, not days--lactic fermentation is a truly natural process and doesn't require speeding up, and if we're going with the belief that traditional methods are best, perhaps we should stick with actual tradition.

And pay special attention to her sources--Sally Fallon is not a scientist, nor does she list any degrees after her name. She is simply a person who set out to publish a book based on her personal beliefs as they relate to food and nutrition. Sure, she worked with a Ph.D. on the book, but what does that mean? Is Ms. Enig an actual doctor? What's her field?

Fallon herself is clearly in the same camp as many on this forum who believe that pressure cooking/canning is bad for food (despite loads of contradictory research that shows that these cooking/preservation methods actually preserve most of the nutrients in food cooked/preserved this way--just google it). Interestingly, pressure cooking is only mentioned twice in the book, as it relates to cooking grains (never does she mention pressure canning), and it is Fallon's personal opinion that is given that this method "cooks the grains too quickly"--no sources cited.

Watch the sources that are listed and actually read some of them to see if there is bias. E.g. her comments related to "extruded" foods--Fallon bases her many assertions on one source, a book written by someone who has something to sell (scroll to the bottom of the page to see what he's selling). Read his book and decide for yourself.

All of this is just the tip of the iceburg--read the book and decide for yourself. Take it all with a grain of salt, and truly research traditional food preparation methods on your own. Cooking healthy traditional food is its own delicious journey

(And if you are really interested in traditional cooking, look to the peasant cuisines of eastern Europe in particular--they knew a thing or two about how to squeeze maximum nutrition from humble foods.)

I've been waiting for an honest "other" viewpoint on this book. I don't argue that it has alot of good things in it, but it seemed to me that it was being touted as the be all end all of nutritional cooking.

its not, but its the best out there at getting people started on the right track.

 

[freemotion]

I have a different view of Sally's book. But that opinion is based on reading MANY sources, not just her book. I've read her book cover-to-cover 2 times and portions of it many times. She clearly states that many of the methods presented are modernized updates on some of the methods traditionally used. For example, in the traditional societies (oh, yeah, when the term "traditional" methods are referred to, it means ONLY the methods used by the HEALTHIEST of the peoples that Dr. Price studied....not ALL traditional cooking methods from everywhere) that used grains, they ALL (the healthiest societies, again) fermented the grains or the resulting breads/grain products for 2 weeks. But she doesn't give two week methods, she shortens it for us, thank goodness. Really, who of us would eat brick-hard bread that had been aged for two weeks?

I've listened to her lecture and it really rounds out a lot of the stuff in the book.

Raw meat is from healthy sources, first, and is frozen at 0 F for at least two weeks to kill parasites/germs. It is NOT hamburger from the grocery store.

If you go onto the website, you will find many, many references to back up the info in the book.

As for the link to Paul Stitt's book....the entire book and a couple others are available for free reading on the site. I see nothing for sale anywhere on the site, just a reference in the brief biography at the bottom of the page that describes his success in business...There is no link to any site to purchase anything. It does not seem like a reference designed to get me to buy. In fact, I had to re-read it several times to see what you were referring to. Paul Stitt would be 71 now. It doesn't even say whether or not he still owned that company. I'm not sure how someone's success in life cancels out the science cited on extruded grains.

It is DR. Enig. She wrote a very scholarly book on fats Know Your Fats and one for the average person, still quite scholarly, Eat Fat, Lose Fat. She earned the title Doctor. She is a researcher. She raised the cry on hydrogenated (trans) fats decades ago and was severely criticized for it. She was right.

Anyways, I find the book to be a great resource and a good start to a healthy journey. It is very much a ss bible since it is based on foods we can raise and how to cook them without the use of modern ingredients. And helps us not to be afraid of healthy fats and to put grains into proportion without eliminating them....etc.

As for the fermenting bit.....yes, she gives a method for speeding it up because most people do not have a place to store 'kraut, pickles, kvass, salsa, etc, by the gallon for months. The quick method allows the average person living in the modern world access to the health benefits of these foods without a cold cellar or second fridge. A good follow-up book is Wild Fermentation by Sandor Katz.

I love the book and highly recommend it. Just remember to reduce the salt in the ginger carrots to a tsp not a Tblsp! Those who have followed the fermenting thread on this forum know that the methods in NT are a jumping off point and it takes experience to make a good ferment, even using those recipes.

My family and extended family have made HUGE progress in our health due to the information contained in this book and to where it has lead us....many other books that support the info found in its pages. LOVE IT!

 

[Bubblingbrooks]

 

[FarmerJamie]

Okay, first, I've renamed the thread.

First set of questions - stopped in a local dry-goods store and saw Winona Flour and Sapphire Flour. For the first, there was a ingredients list that included Barley. The second, just said "wheat". What special purpose do these flour fulfill?

(now that I think about it, I didn't see any arrowroot, and that was something else I was looking for.

 

[miss_thenorth]

maybe you need to rephrase the question. what exactly are you asking about?

 

[Wifezilla]

Nourishing Traditions is something iI didnt read until I was several years in to my health journey. The information in that book is.independently verified by enough other sources for me to trust it.