I'm curious how much spicing people do to their foods- at least those of you who eat more vegetables and nuts, as opposed to mostly fruit.

I made a raw pistachio chili yesterday, and it was absolutely delicious, but it really disturbed my consciousness, and I'm trying to figure out if it was the garlic, the cayenne pepper, or both, or perhaps all the spices (also used curry and cumin and himalayan sea salt). I think garlic was probably the primary factor... countless people do say beware of garlic. But I'm wondering in general if folks feel better when they eat more bland food or if you think a little added flavor does help "spice up life."

p.s. As an aside, I have to say I now *love* pistachios. They're apparently the most nutrient-dense nut, as well as the lowest-fat. And uniquely delicious, if you ask me.

that sounds delicious, and honestly, I LOVE curry, I make it so often, and always tend to feel really energized and warm, like my blood is pumping that much faster after eating some really hot curry,LOL... Ive never really had a problem with garlic either, and I eat lots of it in raw food recipes... hmmm, maybe its just some combination your body didn't like...

Mm, thanks. Maybe it was too much cayenne pepper. I really poured it on.
Btw, here was the basic formula I used, which I modeled after Living Tree Community Food's delicious "pistachio pesto":
-pistachios, sesame seeds, sun-dried tomatoes, olives, olive oil, basil, curry, cumin, garlic, thyme, rosemary, cayenne, salt

What kind of curries do you do, Curator? Make simple curry sauces and pour them over veggies?

Ive done that, Ive also done allot of cooked curries, with potatos, and other veggies... an interesting one I made one time that WAS completely raw, using a yellow curry paste, I made a coconut mango curry "sauce" which I dipped slices of various types of apple into, and had carrots as well and chunks of coconut... it was different, but I really liked it... and sorry, no real recipe, just kinda made it up as I went along, didnt really measure anything, but if I make it again I will attempt to do so, if I HAD to guess though, here is what I THINK the measurements happen to be...

3 cups water, 1 cup or so of fresh coconut water
somewhere between 3-5 tablespoons yellow curry paste and some extra turmeric to make it REALLY yellow...
I think maybe 2-3 teaspoons of hot and sour soup mix
and I think it was about a half a teaspoon of sea salt... and quarter teaspoon freshly ground white pepper...

I cooked the yellow curry paste and hot and sour soup mix in a tablespoon or two of olive oil in a pan, then when it started to smell really good, gotta be careful not to burn, I put in the coconut water, mixed it all together till it was incorporated, then I mixed it with the water I had set aside, then blended in 2 really ripe mangos, and served with the aforementioned fruit and veggies... it was very different, but I loved it...

Im not entirely sure if it matters that the curry paste is cooked first, since its not raw to begin with, and its just to help bring out the flavors, but I'm sure some one on here will let me know if it is an issue, and why it would be... personally, since 99% of the meal is raw, and just the sauce isnt, I think its an ok compromise probably,lol (I kinda liked it best with the green apples, and the bits of coconut...)

Well, in yoga they avoid garlic, onion, and hot peppers because they think it's rajasic, or in the mode of passion. However, I was at a hatha yoga open house a couple of years ago and when we ate our vegetarian lunch, I asked how it could be so spicy without any thermogenic herbs. The cook answered: "Well, we put just a little hot pepper in it..." LOL! Because even at the Hare Krishna temple the food isn't always bland. They use hing (asofeotida) in the place of garlic/onion, but it seems like the same type of spice and that it would affect the body in the same way.

I broke my garlic press and have found that it's much easier to do without garlic than I thought it would be.

While I still use spices, I'm keeping it much simpler than I used to do... not as many spices in a combination, not as much quantity and less variety of spices.

I especially like to put cumin in a salad dressing. I put curry in a cauliflower pate' that I made for a lettuce wrap the other day. And I add a dash of cinnamon to apple sauce.

Whoops... one edit... for "truth in advertising" I often add prepared mustard to salad dressing, although it doesn't qualify as raw.


My favorite raw vegan



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/18/2010 09:00PM by Trive.

spices are great and have some decent nutrition and health benefits. turmeric, cayenne pepper and so on.

garlic is great too.

Cinnamon has an amazingly high amount of anti-oxidants in it...in pretty sure in the top 3 or at most 5 most anti-oxidant dense food substances known... good stuff!!!

i have about lived on garlic for the last 5-6 years....my body really wants it...onions also....just learned about sattvic eating - avoiding garlic and onion - when i lived in india....garlic, onion, plus turmeric, cilantro, cumin, coriander, mint, serrano peppers, sea salt, olive oil - have been mainstays in my diet....can't imagine living without them....but, my diet has changed in drastic ways, so i know it may be that i give them up some day.....

I don't think we should be eating garlic or chili.

For reasons why:

Garlic -

[debbietookrawforlife.blogspot.com]

Chili -

[debbietookrawforlife.blogspot.com]

But I do think it would be a tall order for those who love them to give them up immediately, especially on going raw, and yes I still have them occasionally.

hmmm, well, raw or not, I dont intend to ever give them up, personally I dont think there is anything unhealthy about them, I love them, and unless somebody ends up proving they are deadly I think I will keep eating them... I just love garlic, and all sorts of chilis and spices way to much, life would be to bland without them,lol.

Interesting range of responses here- thanks, all. For the record, I've been making this "pistachio chili" repeatedly and actually loving it. I think it was just the moment that first time, and too late at night. Late night eating always disturbs me.

But what Trive said strikes me as right- use fewer spices, not a million in combination, cause that may confuse the body. Or at least don't be random and excessive about it. But my body does seem to love curry mixes, and probably a little cayenne or chili, too, though I'm not totally sure. Definitely I love basil. Gabriel Cousens suggests we don't have to avoid garlic and onions entirely, but to minimize them. I haven't noticed a problem with them yet, but I'll keep paying attention. On an aside, one of my favorite things I've ever had was a raw "peanut sauce," actually almond butter-based, that my friend makes, spiced Thai-style. I'd like to learn how to do that one myself, cause it's unreal.

I would listen to what your body is saying. If my consciousness were disturbed, I would do whatever it takes to prevent that in the future. Reducing or eliminating the garlic or chilies will likely reduce the disturbance of consciousness.

What I found in my process and experience was that initially I did fine with garlic and chillies and I enjoyed them. Over time, my body quit liking them, and I was enjoying them less and less, so I dropped them from my diet.

Thanks, Prana. Yeah, I think that is what I'm starting to find... but, I can't eat tons of sweet fruit either, though I think a bit more of it as I'm raw for longer. I'm going to try eliminating the extremes of garlic and cayenne and strive for a balance of veggies with moderate spicing; hearty fats that I love, like olives and almonds; and fresh fruit, mostly lower-glycemic, like raspberries and strawberries. Coming off a pretty poor SAD diet only a few years ago, learning balance and moderation is going to be quite a path for me. I appreciate that there's this community here. Initially as a raw foodist, my body was *fiending* nuts and seeds, because I had been really deprived. Now I'm starting to realize that my needs are changing a bit, and I need more fruits and veggies. Though I seem to have no problem with and still crave certain fats, especially olives and coconut right now (sick of avacadoes). Anything really nutrient-dense my body seems to take to, though now that it's summer the fresh fruit is calling out to me more than ever before, especially those luscious berries.
Sometimes it's hard to figure out what is doing what to me, so it's interesting to hear other peoples' stories. Also, just taking it a little bit slower... living in the mystery, as it were.

Well, I would think you would want everyone's opinions, as I have been a cooked & raw omni, a cooked & raw vegan, and a raw medium or high fat vegan, and a raw low fat high fruit vegan. I can tell you the last one I feel greatest on, and while my elimination is great on the last, if I have teh slightest bit of spices, my @#$%& and also sweat stinks whereas it normally wouldn't on no spices, no onions, no garlic.

Well, thanks, Utopian Life. I'm interested in that perspective, absolutely, but I know that when I feel a lot of sweet fruit I don't feel the tranquility I feel when eating mostly veggies and nuts/seeds and lower-glycemic fruit. I'm a classic ayurvedic "vata," though, so that may be why I need a lot of heavier stuff. I would like to experiment with everything in time, though. But I know that eating lots of date and stuff tweeks me out, and my body gurgles with happiness when I eat, say, olives when I'm really hungry, so I don't think the really low fat thing is for me. But I will try it at some point- at least cutting the fat back somewhat and doing mostly fruits and veggies. In fact, my body is starting to be less excited about nuts and seeds; I'm noticing that. And I'm going to experiment with different spicing and see how it goes. Happy summer days...

My path has followed a similar one Prana's-- initially I enjoyed and even craved onion and garlic. But that has tapered off to where I don't really want them at all. In fact, I don't see where they would fit into my eating choices these days...

One spice that I have adopted lately and consume on a daily basis is tumeric. I buy it in powder form by the pound at a local spice market and mix it in with my morning smoothie (usually around two or three tablespoons). I do this because I have heard so much about the significance of tumeric in its antioxident capabilities, as well as its potency as a major anti-inflammatory substance. I find it agrees with me very much- and has helped my joints significantly.

By the way, recently I had heard that it is best absorbed with a little fat, so in goes a bit of coconut oil--- the two go well together- yum!

About the only spice/herb that doesn't make me jittery and anxious is mint. I've been enjoying it a great deal.

It's interesting how my body is becoming more and more sensitive to what it wants. The downside is that I live in the Upper Midwest in the U.S. where it gets rather cold. Consequently, fruits, my staple, aren't always the most available.

[www.youtube.com]

david

I find myself needing much less spices and flavoring the longer I'm raw. I still use garlic, though not as much and eventually it will rarely be used. I like cayenne pepper & kelp and use those the most. I enjoy the taste of real food now instead of always having to doctorate it to make it palatable like SAD. There are foods I never ate before, let alone raw. So much fun!

Simple Raw Recipes & Health Tips

I think initially a lot of us used to a high-fat diet feel better eating those types of foods until we slowly transition ourselves off, regardless if we fit a classification of "vata" or not, no?

I just really love the way certain flavors pair up, not doctoring, or covering anything up, like this mango curry puree I made one time, I loved the way it and the sour/sweet crunch of a slice of green apple went together... maybe im weird, but for me, it wasnt the covering up of the flavor, it was the whole new type of flavor that those different components become when brought together...

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Oh, mirror in the sky
What is love?
Can the child within my heart rise above?
Can I sail through the changing ocean tides?
Can I handle the seasons of my life?

In winter I like heartier foods, in summer it's all I can do to force myself to eat anything that isn't watermelon. I wonder if we could survive on just that for the next 3 months of so...

Mint muddled in some stevia lemonaide might be nice and refreshing. It's more of a plant than an herb in that context though. I toss some basil leaves out of the yard into salad on occasion. Then again, more a plant than an herb then... I like garlic and ginger in salad dressing. Prefer just lemon in this heat though.

Ah, I like tasty food but I'm just as happy to eat things bare.

I like making using mint in limeade ^_^ basically a virgin mojito...mmm

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oh, mirror in the sky
What is love?
Can the child within my heart rise above?
Can I sail through the changing ocean tides?
Can I handle the seasons of my life?

Thanks, everyone!!! I'm starting to find the same thing as a lot of you. The longer I'm raw the less fat and protein I seem to need, and I eat more fruit, and especially cause it's the summer, I imagine. I've actually gotten really into dates, and if I don't combine them with lots of heavy stuff I don't feel tweeked out at all; at least I haven't been. Right now I'm on a fruit and nuts kick (mostly almonds, some tahini, a few walnuts), with more of the former. I'm trying to like veggies, and I do like zucchini and asparagus OK, but, I don't know... seems I don't like them as much as fruit and nuts, and I'm not interested in forcing myself. Though seaweed salad may be an exception; I love that stuff. Anyway, It reminds me that when I was younger and less influenced by the SAD society I used to live off of dried fruit and granola. Of course, it was sketchy dried fruit with preservatives and added sweeteners, but now I know better.
Keep those specific food combination stories and ideas coming; they're appreciated. Mint, huh? I never use mint; maybe I'll give it a shot. I'm a huge fan of cardamom....

Do you get premade seaweed salad? I would not recommend it at all.....if so....it usually has dried fish flakes, tons of sugar and salt.

omega-3 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I'm curious how much spicing people do to their
> foods- at least those of you who eat more
> vegetables and nuts, as opposed to mostly fruit


Hi Omega 3. I eat a mostly high vegetable diet with limited amounts of legumes, fruits, seeds, nuts and sprouted grains. I use limited spicing in most foods. Garlic doesn't do much for me. I see that there are benefits for this food. [www.whfoods.com]

But in fairness, how much is the value added for garlic for a raw food vegan? I use it sparingly when I use it. Wrt to other spices, I use Ms. Dash from time to time but mostly nothing. The general idea is to keep your taste buds unstimulated so that they enjoy the subtle but powerful taste of raw foods. Best.

Paul
> I made a raw pistachio chili yesterday, and it was
> absolutely delicious, but it really disturbed my
> consciousness, and I'm trying to figure out if it
> was the garlic, the cayenne pepper, or both, or
> perhaps all the spices (also used curry and cumin
> and himalayan sea salt).


I think garlic was
> probably the primary factor... countless people do
> say beware of garlic. But I'm wondering in general
> if folks feel better when they eat more bland food
> or if you think a little added flavor does help
> "spice up life."

omega-3 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
Mint, huh? I
> never use mint; maybe I'll give it a shot. I'm a
> huge fan of cardamom....

Its quite refreshing in a light limeade!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oh, mirror in the sky
What is love?
Can the child within my heart rise above?
Can I sail through the changing ocean tides?
Can I handle the seasons of my life?

I use all herbs, spices, garlic, onions, hot peppers,and fermented foods.