 |
| I love to cook |
I can spend hours perusing recipes online and in books; I watch endless cooking shows, food documentaries and cooking clips on YouTube and I frequently trawl food markets and food halls or walk into posh delicatessens and green grocers just to take a look (despite the fact I find most other forms of shopping mind-numbingly dull).
Fortunately, this means that the thought of preparing 99.9% of my meals from scratch appeals to me, as I view it as more of a hobby than a burden (I also know how fortunate I am that I have a choice at all, because for many people simply having enough food to eat is a luxury - let alone choosing whether or not to prepare it yourself).
 |
| Self-catering is good for your health and budget |
You will rarely get sick (due to increased vitamins and minerals in your diet). You will have more energy, improved moods and a greater attention span (due to fewer blood sugar crashes). You will become a better cook (or at least a more creative one!)
Sure, it takes a little more self-restraint and a more concerted effort initially. But like many things in life, if you stick with it long enough it will become the new 'normal' and will eventually take less mental effort to sustain. Plus - you might even find you enjoy it!
I'm so glad I developed some good habits (and better culinary skills) back in Australia before hitting the road, as it has made it much easier to continue with this lifestyle (e.g. buying fresh and preparing/cooking ourselves; buying at farmers markets wherever possible; cooking with less meat or none at all) and it has saved us A LOT of money, without sacrificing our health.
So if you're looking for some motivation to get healthy in the new year, or simply wanting to reduce your food spending at home or on your travels, here are my tips:
Before I go on - I'm NOT advocating vegetarianism, veganism, a raw foods diet or any specific 'diet'. That would be completely hypocritical of me (as anyone who knows me can attest to how much I enjoy meat and animal products). I'm simply not going anywhere near the meat-eating debate thankyouverymuch (whilst I completely respect people who choose to be vegetarian or vegan, that's not what this blog is about).
Rather I'm simply recommending the substitution of highly-processed foods and refined grains for whole foods - i.e. foods without added salt, fat, sugar or other carbohydrates (like fructose). Eat as many foods as you can in their natural state (fruit and vegetables, nuts, seeds, legumes, whole grains) or as un-processed as possible.
Because despite what the label might say, many of those low-fat ready-meals and salt-reduced sauces and high-fibre breakfast cereals are in reality highly processed. Don't believe the packaging - the food manufacturers know what they're doing. They often market a product as 'healthy' when they've simply substituted one harmful ingredient (trans-fat/saturated fat) for another (sugar).
It has been well documented that since the 'low fat' mantra started in the 1980's most western, industrialised societies have actually been getting fatter. In Australia - over 60% of our population is now considered overweight or obese, with the UK and US displaying similar numbers (some scary facts here). This is predominately linked to the replacement of fat in foods with sugar, mainly in the form of high-fructose corn syrup (commonly used as a sweetener in processed foods).
In addition to the usual suspects (cakes, biscuits, lollies, soft drinks etc) many former dietary staples are now full of sugar (fruit juices, yoghurt, condiments, bread). So unfortunately, the only way to avoid the hidden nasties is to eat as much real food (i.e. food you have prepared yourself) as possible - with the bulk of that coming from vegetables and fruit.
As I said, I'm not advocating a complete rejection of meat or animal products. Each to their own.
However, I do believe that most people can reduce their meat consumption without too much difficulty. And I am concerned that as a society we already consume too much meat, at levels of consumption that will not be sustainable in the future.
The United Nations has been suggesting for years now that people should eat less meat if they want to help tackle climate change, with the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation estimating that meat production accounts for nearly a fifth of global greenhouse gas emissions.
So try having at least one meat-free day each week, then take it from there. A good start is to make vegetarian versions of some of your favourites - e.g. soups (tomato and lentil, minestrone); burritos and quesadillas (fill with rice and beans instead of meat); pastas (basil or sundried-tomato pesto, tomato-based sauces); pizzas (potato and rosemary, mushroom and capsicum, eggplant etc); Shepherd's Pie (with lentils instead of meat); risotto (mushroom, pumpkin); stews (white bean and sweet potato); curried lentils; zucchini fritters with tzatziki; falafel wraps with hummus; stuffed capsicums; vegetable omelettes... the list is endless!
(For further inspiration check out Green Kitchen Stories or Forks Over Knives for recipes).
And for all the Paleo fans - I agree with Michael Pollan on this one. Whilst I do think that some of our current health problems stem from modern agriculture (too much wheat and corn for instance); attempting to eat as our ancestors did isn't as simple as removing all grains from our diets and relying on meals full of meat, nuts and vegetables.
The reality is that our modern meat consumption is probably nothing like what our ancestors ate. Animals bred by modern agriculture are often fed artificial diets and beefed up with antibiotics, so their nutritional profiles are far different from the wild game that our ancestors ate.
Pastured animals (those raised on diets of grass and grubs etc) more closely resemble their wild relatives. So if you do choose to eat meat, try and buy the best pastured meat you can afford. You can stretch your purchases further by increasing the other ingredients (vegetables, legumes) and you can often get better value if you buy in bulk and then divide into portions yourself and freeze.
(More of Michael Pollan's articles and resources here)
Easily one of the best ways to save money and have control over what you put in your mouth is to buy less pre-prepared food and make more from scratch yourself. Yes, it can take more time cooking than it does simply reheating in a microwave or oven.
But is it really worth filling your body with junk for the sake of a few extra minutes?
Try and enjoy yourself whilst cooking. Put on some music, put the phone away and turn off the television. Immerse yourself in the process of cooking and let your mind slow down and the stress of your day disappear.
That doesn't have to mean spending an hour every night preparing a meal. I would often cook up a storm on a Sunday (a large pot of soup, a Moroccan tagine or a curry) that I would then divide into portions and freeze, so that on weeknights when I was feeling tired or lazy I had something healthy to quickly reheat.
Or make it a social event - have a BBQ or picnic with friends instead of going to a cafe or restaurant. Invite friends over for a pizza night. Or a taco night. Have more communal dinners with flatmates or friends, where everyone brings a dish to be shared.
If you're really not the cooking type, try replacing just a few store bought staples with home-cooked versions. Make your own tomato sofrito using tomatoes, onions, garlic, peppers and olive oil; then use it as a base for a variety of dishes. Save all your vegetable scraps and parmesan rinds and meat bones and chicken carcasses and make your own stock.
If you can, invest in a cheap food processor. We bought a food processor/blender from our local electrical goods supplier that was heavily discounted as it had been the display model on the shop floor. It worked a treat - I would make my own pesto, Baba ghanoush and Hummus; my own dough for quick flatbreads or pizza bases; my own 'healthy' paddle pops using frozen banana (which has the consistency of ice cream), coconut and chopped fruit... a definite time and money saver!
In the year and a half it took us to save for our travels, Saturday mornings became synonymous with market day. We would head down to our local market, clutching our re-usable bags ready to stock up on our food for the week. Anything we couldn't find at the street market we would get at our local supermarket - and then we wouldn't set foot inside a supermarket again until the following Saturday.
This was primarily because the street market was vastly cheaper than any of our local supermarkets. If there's a farmers market or a fruit & veg market in your local area, I highly recommend you use it. Buying 'loose' (i.e. not pre-packaged) fruit & veg is often cheaper; and if you go at the end of trade you can get significant discounts.
When you do visit the supermarket - shop with a list. Always. Whilst some studies suggest shopping with a list helps with weight loss, even if you're not trying to lose weight it is a much more cost-effective way to shop. By putting a little bit of time into preparing a weekly meal plan and shopping with a list, you're less likely to be tempted to buy items on impulse that you don't need (or that aren't good for you).
Or consider going online. You can browse supermarket websites to see which are cheaper in your area, then pay them a visit (or have your groceries delivered, saving you time and money). This is particularly useful for buying bulk staples like rice, beans and pasta.
You can browse price comparison websites to find good deals, or buy second-hand kitchen appliances from online classifieds. Or consider some of the many swap websites, for swapping and bartering goods and services.
Finally, use social media for more than just posting Instagram photos of your food. Follow companies you like for giveaways or competitions, or tell your favourite companies how much you like their product...they may just send you some vouchers!
I'm so glad I developed some good habits (and better culinary skills) back in Australia before hitting the road, as it has made it much easier to continue with this lifestyle (e.g. buying fresh and preparing/cooking ourselves; buying at farmers markets wherever possible; cooking with less meat or none at all) and it has saved us A LOT of money, without sacrificing our health.
So if you're looking for some motivation to get healthy in the new year, or simply wanting to reduce your food spending at home or on your travels, here are my tips:
1. Adopt a Whole Foods, Plant-heavy Diet
Before I go on - I'm NOT advocating vegetarianism, veganism, a raw foods diet or any specific 'diet'. That would be completely hypocritical of me (as anyone who knows me can attest to how much I enjoy meat and animal products). I'm simply not going anywhere near the meat-eating debate thankyouverymuch (whilst I completely respect people who choose to be vegetarian or vegan, that's not what this blog is about).
 |
| Eat more real food |
Because despite what the label might say, many of those low-fat ready-meals and salt-reduced sauces and high-fibre breakfast cereals are in reality highly processed. Don't believe the packaging - the food manufacturers know what they're doing. They often market a product as 'healthy' when they've simply substituted one harmful ingredient (trans-fat/saturated fat) for another (sugar).
It has been well documented that since the 'low fat' mantra started in the 1980's most western, industrialised societies have actually been getting fatter. In Australia - over 60% of our population is now considered overweight or obese, with the UK and US displaying similar numbers (some scary facts here). This is predominately linked to the replacement of fat in foods with sugar, mainly in the form of high-fructose corn syrup (commonly used as a sweetener in processed foods).
In addition to the usual suspects (cakes, biscuits, lollies, soft drinks etc) many former dietary staples are now full of sugar (fruit juices, yoghurt, condiments, bread). So unfortunately, the only way to avoid the hidden nasties is to eat as much real food (i.e. food you have prepared yourself) as possible - with the bulk of that coming from vegetables and fruit.
2. Eat Less Meat
As I said, I'm not advocating a complete rejection of meat or animal products. Each to their own.
However, I do believe that most people can reduce their meat consumption without too much difficulty. And I am concerned that as a society we already consume too much meat, at levels of consumption that will not be sustainable in the future.
The United Nations has been suggesting for years now that people should eat less meat if they want to help tackle climate change, with the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation estimating that meat production accounts for nearly a fifth of global greenhouse gas emissions.
 |
| Potato, pesto and rosemary pizza - yum! |
(For further inspiration check out Green Kitchen Stories or Forks Over Knives for recipes).
And for all the Paleo fans - I agree with Michael Pollan on this one. Whilst I do think that some of our current health problems stem from modern agriculture (too much wheat and corn for instance); attempting to eat as our ancestors did isn't as simple as removing all grains from our diets and relying on meals full of meat, nuts and vegetables.
The reality is that our modern meat consumption is probably nothing like what our ancestors ate. Animals bred by modern agriculture are often fed artificial diets and beefed up with antibiotics, so their nutritional profiles are far different from the wild game that our ancestors ate.
Pastured animals (those raised on diets of grass and grubs etc) more closely resemble their wild relatives. So if you do choose to eat meat, try and buy the best pastured meat you can afford. You can stretch your purchases further by increasing the other ingredients (vegetables, legumes) and you can often get better value if you buy in bulk and then divide into portions yourself and freeze.
(More of Michael Pollan's articles and resources here)
3. Do It Yourself
 |
| Have a BBQ instead of eating out |
But is it really worth filling your body with junk for the sake of a few extra minutes?
Try and enjoy yourself whilst cooking. Put on some music, put the phone away and turn off the television. Immerse yourself in the process of cooking and let your mind slow down and the stress of your day disappear.
That doesn't have to mean spending an hour every night preparing a meal. I would often cook up a storm on a Sunday (a large pot of soup, a Moroccan tagine or a curry) that I would then divide into portions and freeze, so that on weeknights when I was feeling tired or lazy I had something healthy to quickly reheat.
Or make it a social event - have a BBQ or picnic with friends instead of going to a cafe or restaurant. Invite friends over for a pizza night. Or a taco night. Have more communal dinners with flatmates or friends, where everyone brings a dish to be shared.
 |
| Make your own stock with leftovers |
If you can, invest in a cheap food processor. We bought a food processor/blender from our local electrical goods supplier that was heavily discounted as it had been the display model on the shop floor. It worked a treat - I would make my own pesto, Baba ghanoush and Hummus; my own dough for quick flatbreads or pizza bases; my own 'healthy' paddle pops using frozen banana (which has the consistency of ice cream), coconut and chopped fruit... a definite time and money saver!
4. Shop Smart
In the year and a half it took us to save for our travels, Saturday mornings became synonymous with market day. We would head down to our local market, clutching our re-usable bags ready to stock up on our food for the week. Anything we couldn't find at the street market we would get at our local supermarket - and then we wouldn't set foot inside a supermarket again until the following Saturday.
 |
| Visit your local street market and save |
When you do visit the supermarket - shop with a list. Always. Whilst some studies suggest shopping with a list helps with weight loss, even if you're not trying to lose weight it is a much more cost-effective way to shop. By putting a little bit of time into preparing a weekly meal plan and shopping with a list, you're less likely to be tempted to buy items on impulse that you don't need (or that aren't good for you).
Or consider going online. You can browse supermarket websites to see which are cheaper in your area, then pay them a visit (or have your groceries delivered, saving you time and money). This is particularly useful for buying bulk staples like rice, beans and pasta.
You can browse price comparison websites to find good deals, or buy second-hand kitchen appliances from online classifieds. Or consider some of the many swap websites, for swapping and bartering goods and services.
Finally, use social media for more than just posting Instagram photos of your food. Follow companies you like for giveaways or competitions, or tell your favourite companies how much you like their product...they may just send you some vouchers!
 |
| "Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food" - Hippocrates |
No comments:
Post a Comment