FAST FOOD FOR NUTRITIONAL BALANCING

by Dr. Lawrence Wilson

Many people like food that is easy to prepare. Some people do not have a lot of time to cook meals, and others just do not enjoy cooking each day. This is understandable. However, it is imperative to eat the right foods every day to nourish the body. This article discusses healthy ways to solve this problem, which must be solved by everyone who wants excellent health.

WHAT NOT TO DO

Many people who do not have much time or the desire to cook eat standard fast food like candy bars, soda pop, potato chips, taco salads, string cheese, fruit, nuts or food from vending machines. This always damages your health! Please do not do this. You will get virtually no cooked vegetables, which are very essential to eat in large amounts. You will also not get high quality meats and eggs, which are also essential. Most packaged foods are not good quality, although some discussed below are excellent.

Other people eat at the standard American fast food restaurants that are so convenient with their drive-up windows. The problems with almost all fast food restaurants include:

1. Poor food choices. You often cannot get the right foods that we all need such as fresh, organic, cooked vegetables, whole grains but not wheat, lamb but not pork or ham, real fresh chicken or turkey, soft-cooked eggs, cans of sardines, blue corn chips, and sea salt rather than table salt.

2. Very cheap, and poor quality ingredients. This is true of almost all fast foods, and fast food establishments like McDonalds. It is just too tempting for them to cut corners to save a nickel here and there so they do it. The oils are not as fresh, the herbs are old, the meat is sometimes questionable, and the cheese is usually fake. Even the milkshakes are mainly fake.

3. Hundreds of chemical additives hidden in the food such as MSG and many others. This is a serious problem that may not be obvious because they are experts at doctoring up and flavoring the food to make it appear and taste fresh and wholesome.

4. Cutting corners to save time on cooking and preparation. Food is partially cooked miles away in most cases, and then reheated in microwave ovens, thawed and refrozen, and other unhealthy practices are used to save time and money.

HEALTHFUL FAST FOODS

However, you can have simple, easy to prepare meals, providing you do it right. There is no need to spend hours cooking. Simple food preparation is fine on a nutritional balancing program. In fact, very simple meals are far more healthful than complex multi-course meals. Ideally, meals should include just one or two foods at a meal. More than this tends to stress the digestive system and weaken it, especially if it is already damaged.

Here are suggestions for healthful, quick, easy fast food meals that will satisfy you once you become accustomed to simple eating. They can all be prepared in about as much time as it takes to order and receive your fast food at a restaurant, and they are all less expensive and far more nutritious:

1. A small bag of frozen green beans. Place in a pressure cooker, or steam or stir fry.

2. A large amount of one or two steamed vegetables. These could be carrots, onions, cabbage, turnips, broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, kale, Brussels sprouts, parsnips, bok choy, Chinese cabbage, Swiss chard, other greens, rutabaga, or perhaps daikon radishes.

Cut up the vegetables in large chunks. This takes no more than 5 minutes. Then place in a vegetable steamer and set the timer for 20-40 minutes, depending upon which vegetables you are making. If you don’t want to eat them plain, top them off with sea salt, some grated or other cheese, some yogurt, some raw cream, butter, or mild herbs such as rosemary, oregano, thyme, curry powder, turmeric, a little cayenne pepper or others.

To save time when you buy vegetables, you could wash them off when you buy them, and put them in the refrigerator back in the original bags if they are not dirty. This will save time when you want to cook the vegetables.

3. Two eggs – soft-boiled or poached. Cooking time is under 5 minutes in both cases. Buy the freshest and most natural eggs you can find, although any eggs will do if money is tight. Do not hard boil eggs. Always eat eggs soft-cooked for best digestion.

4. A can of sardines (up to 3-4 cans per week). If you don’t like the taste, try different brands, as all are acceptable. To improve the taste, other ideas are to add a little sea salt and garlic powder, or some curry powder, or mustard, relish, mayonnaise or even a little cayenne pepper to them, and perhaps mash them up with a fork and eat on rice crackers or blue corn chips. They are a wonderful food for everyone.

5. 10-12 ounces of carrot juice, perhaps with a few greens thrown in. The best is to make it fresh, but you can buy it at many health food stores, preferably made fresh at the store.

6. Some raw cheese, such as 4 to 6 ounces of raw goat or raw cows cheese.

7. Beef, turkey or lamb jerky. This may sound like an odd food, but it is quite nutritious and very healthful. Look for jerky that does not have many chemical additives in it. While you can buy it at any convenience store, that found in the markets or health food stores is probably purer, with less sugar and chemicals in it. Some people offer it homemade via the internet without chemical preservatives, which would be best.

8. A cooked vegetable salad. Cook a large quantity of steamed vegetables. Place in the refrigerator. Then when you want a salad, just take out some of the cold steamed vegetables. Perhaps chop them up more finely, and if you wish add some blue corn tortilla chips, grated cheese, leftover pieces of chicken, some sardines, or a salad dressing. The toppings are not necessary, if you don’t mind a plain meal, and they make the meal more complex to digest for most people.

9. Crock pot vegetable stew, perhaps with some meat, too. Crock pots are very easy to use. Set them on low and in about 8 hours, you have a hot cooked meal that can be quite delicious, without having to cut up the vegetables or meat, and without much effort. You can make enough to last several days. Place 2 or 4 vegetables only in a crock pot, perhaps with a piece of chicken for added flavor and protein. Do not overcook the meat, however, so take the meat out after about one to two hours or less.

The crock pot can cook your food overnight while you sleep, or during the day while you are at work or elsewhere. It generally won’t burn anything, and it is safe to leave it going while you sleep or are away. Try not to overcook meats, by the way. They are best cooked for just an hour or up to two hours, but not more.

If you make extra amounts, place the extra in a plastic or glass storage container for a second hearty meal. I do not recommend keeping leftovers more than a day or two, however, for maximum freshness and nutrition.

10. A container or even two containers of plain, preferably full-fat, raw milk yogurt or kefir.

11. Up to eight ounces of raw, full-fat cows or goats milk.

12. A handful or two of organic blue corn tortilla chips. Most brands are fine. This makes a very healthful quick snack. Half a bag of them can be used for a meal. Add some cooked vegetables for a more complete meal.

11. Half a cup or more of organic brown rice, or millet, or quinoa, or perhaps oatmeal. These may take longer to cook, but are easy to cook with some practice.

12. Several lamb chops – steamed or baked/broiled in a toaster oven.

13. Several pieces of fresh chicken or turkey. You can cook the chicken at home, or buy a roasted chicken at the supermarket.

14. Several tablespoons of toasted almond butter on rice crackers or even on blue corn chips. Less often, you may have other nut butters instead of almond butter, but almond butter seems to be the best.

15. A bag of plain popcorn, preferably organically grown. This is not a bad snack or can even be used as a small meal.

16. Six to eight preferably organic blue or perhaps yellow corn tortillas. Steam or warm up on the stove. If you wish, add butter, cooked vegetables, some chicken or lamb, mashed sardines or raw cheese if you like, though you need not make it that fancy. Roll them up to make enchiladas.

17. A bowl of onion or lentil soup. For delicious onion soup, just chop up an onion or two and simmer in a pot with water for about 45 minutes. Add a little salt and herbs to taste, if you like. Lentil soup is the same idea. Just boil some water, add the lentils and cook for about 2 hours.

It is best to make this fresh with very simple ingredients. However, you could buy bean soups in a mix or can, better organically grown and from the health food store. Although not as good, the canned soups at the health food store are not that bad.

18. Some pasta made from rice, corn or quinoa, to eat with your vegetables or perhaps with a protein. While pasta is not as good as whole grains, it is fine now and then. Do not eat wheat pasta very often, as we find that wheat is irritating for the intestinal tracts of most people.

SECRETS OF FAST FOOD COOKING AND FOOD PREPARATION

1. Keep the ingredients on hand. This way you will never be without plenty of options and tempted to go to a restaurant.

2. Have the right cooking utensils handy such as a food steamer, a crock pot, and perhaps a carrot juicing machine.

3. Relax at home and know that you are feeding yourself much better with the meals above than you can at any fast food restaurant.

IF YOU MUST EAT OUT

1. Preferably eat at East Indian, Chinese , Vietnamese or Thai restaurants. These usually prepare vegetables and meats fresh, and offer a lot of cooked vegetable dishes. You can patronize other types of restaurants, but only if they serve plenty of fresh vegetables, along with fresh meats and eggs so that you can obtain the right foods.

The only caution with any restaurant is that it must be clean.

2. Go to restaurants that have a quiet, relaxed atmosphere.

3. Ask for more cooked vegetables, instead of bread or potatoes, for example. Most restaurants are happy to accommodate their customers, but you must ask for what you want.

4. If possible, bring your own spring water with you rather than drink tap water. Also, try not to drink with meals, except enough to take your supplements.

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