Recipe: Fish Filet with Green Salad & Miso Dressing

A simple low-carb dinner. The greens were picked from my farm this morning, I used arugula and Shinjuku chrysanthemum leaves. The dressing is a combination of several recipes. Next time I will add some cherry tomatoes to the salad greens.

Miso Dressing

1/4 cup yellow miso paste
3 tbsp muscovado sugar
3 tbsp rice wine
2 tbsp hot water
2 tsp Bragg's amino acid (or light soy sauce)
1/4 tsp expeller pressed toasted sesame oil
1 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tsp minced ginger
1 tsp minced garlic

Place all ingredients in a wide rimmed bottle and shake well to combine. This makes around 1 cup of dressing.

Salad Greens

mixed salad
cold pressed grapeseed oil(or any unrefined cold pressed vegetable oil)

Toss greens with oil, using just enough to lightly coat the leaves.

Just before serving, toss salad greens with some miso dressing.

Fish Filet

1 tilapia fish filet
salt
egg, beaten
unbleached flour

unrefined vegetable oil for frying (I used virgin coconut oil)

Dredge filet in flour, patting out excess. Dip in beaten egg then coat with more flour.

Fry fish in hot oil until golden brown, about 2 minutes each side.

Serve with salad greens.

My New Blog

I finished the 10-day fast (plus 3 days extra to wean myself to eating solids) five days ago and I feel great! I don't know if its the effects of the fast but I decided to revamp my blog. So here it is the new and improved...

Seafood & Mercury

I like seafood. But recently I've been hesitant to buy or eat seafood because of the health risks involved. I wasn't sure which kinds of fish or shellfish had the toxic mercury I heard were found in seafood. This is something I didn't worry about when I lived in San Francisco because I bought my seafood at Whole Foods Market. Now that I live in Manila I have to be more careful because there are no indicators to what the mercury level is, if any, in the seafood bought anywhere in the country. So I did a bit of research for my peace of mind and so I may make informed decisions.


Mercury is found in all sea creatures. So there isn't a single seafood found in any market in any part of the world that will be free of mercury contamination. That’s sad isn't it? The implications of this is no longer merely ones health but extends to the health of the planet in general. Mercury is found in the atmosphere, soil, seas and lakes. It enters water systems mainly through rain and surface water run-off. Much of the mercury acquired by sea life comes from toxic heavy metals in the air and water, along with sediment that reaches aquatic life. Mercury comes from multiple sources, the most pervasive of which is from acid rain caused by powerplant emissions and from gold mining operations. Mercury contamination affects us globally since mercury can be transported through the atmosphere over large distances.


Mercury contamination poses health risks to adults and especially children and the unborn fetus. In adults, symptoms of mercury toxicity are hair loss, upset stomach, difficulty concentrating; numbness, burning or tingling of the extremities (lips, fingers, toes); fatigue; weakness; irritability; shyness; loss of memory and coordination; tremors; and changes in hearing and blurred vision. Extremely high mercury levels can permanently damage an adult's brain and kidneys, or even lead to circulatory failure. In the unborn child, infants and children, high levels of mercury can harm the developing nervous system, kidneys, liver and cause neurological damage.

Some fish have higher levels of mercury than others. Predatory, large and long-lived fish such as shark, swordfish, tilefish, orange roughy, tuna, marlin and king mackerel have the highest levels of mercury and should be avoided altogether. The lowest levels of mercury are found in shrimp, sole, tilapia, clams, oysters, herring, hake, scallops, anchovies, squid, flounder and sardines. In general, the smaller the fish the lower the level of mercury.

The good news is that mercury is released from our bodies through perspiration. But, this isn’t enough if one eats contaminated seafood regularly. The only other way to eliminate mercury from our bodies is to stop eating fish. It will take 2 to 3 months for the toxin be expelled but this is only for mercury we consumed recently. Mercury that has lodged itself in tissue is much harder to remove from our system. I would suppose fasting and taking bentonite would remove mercury together with other toxins from our bodies. The other thing is that we should not altogether eliminate seafood from our diets because we need to consume foods with omega 3 oils, which our bodies don’t produce naturally. So the best thing to do is to eat fish that has very low levels of mercury and consume more foods, such as nuts and seeds, that are high in omega 3 oils.

Works Cited:

BusinessWeek, “Time To Scale Back On Big Fish?”
by Carol Marie Cropper, Jan 19, 2004
http://www.keepmedia.com/pubs/BusinessWeek/2004/
01/19/347852?extID=10038&data=mercury_levels

University of Kentucky - College of Agriculture,
“Mercury in Fish: Advice for Consumers”,
http://www.ca.uky.edu/enri/pubs/enri_220.pdf

Oceans Alive, “Mercury in Fish and Shellfish”,
http://www.oceansalive.org/eat.cfm?subnav=mercury

Natural Resources Defense Council, “Mercury
Contamination in Fish”,
http://www.nrdc.org/health/effects/mercury/
protect.asp

8th Day Lemonade Diet

I can't believe I'm on my 8th day! I haven't eaten anything solid for 8 days. I start my day with a cup of laxative tea and as I steep my bag of Senna Tea I began to wonder about the availability of local ingredients for my spicy lemonade. Particularly the availability of maple syrup and the lack of sugarcane juice. Here I am indulging in imported and expensive maple syrup because I can't find sugarcane in a country full of sugarcane plantations. Fresh sugarcane juice is full of nutrients and is a refreshing, delicious drink. I would really like to see a sugercane juice stand in my neighborhood grocery...

Here is a nutritional analysis for 100 ml of sugarcane juice.

Sucrose: 16-18%
Glucose 7 Fructose: 0.5-1.0%
Ash: 1.0-2.0%
Nitrogen: 30-160mg
Protein: 180-960mg
Phosphorus: 13-28mg
Potassium: 200-400mg
Sodium: 5-15mg
Calcium: 20-40mg
Magnesium: 40-80mg
Sulphur: 30-80mg
Chloride: 200-400mg
Amino acids: 40-100mg
Phenolic acids: 100-300mg
Iron: Traces
Vitamins: Traces

Solanum Lycopersicum

This is a beautiful tomato from my farm. This plant was planted 4 months ago and has produced some fruits just this week. Too bad I'm still on my fast so I can't taste the gorgeous fruit.

Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) is technically a fruit - the ripened ovaries of a plant, as are squash and peppers. Researchers have traced the tomato to South America and are thought to have originated in the west coast making its way to Central America. After the conquest of South America by the Spanish, the tomato was distributed to Europe and the colonies in the Caribbean and the Philippines. From the Philippines it traveled to Southeast Asia then to the entire Asian continent. The tomato is not only a delicious fruit used in many dishes around the world but is highly nutritious as well. Tomatoes are high in antioxidants that help prevent heart decease and several forms of cancer. The most potent cancer fighting component in tomatoes is found in the gene that makes a tomato red. This gene contains the antioxidant lycopene which is found in all red tomatoes, the redder the tomato the higher the concentration of lycopene. Tomatoes are also high in vitamins C & A, potassium and fiber.

Antioxidants "neutralize", or render harmless, oxygen free radical molecules. Free radicals in our body are precursors of cancer, atherosclerosis, cataracts, and age-related muscular degeneration as well as premature aging. Free radicals are highly reactive toxic by-products of bio-chemical reactions that occur both as a part of normal cell metabolism and when our bodies are exposed to smoking, pollution and other damaging environmental influences. Antioxidants also helps to prevent formation of oxidized LDL, the 'bad' cholesterol in blood, which contributes to the build up of plaque that narrows, stiffens and constricts arteries and can lead to heart attacks.

Our bodies do not naturally produce lycopene so we must get it from other sources. Lycopene is found in pink grapefruit, watermelon, mango and tomato.

Unlike some fruits and vegetables that are nutritionally better when eaten raw, tomatoes are better eaten when cooked. Processing tomatoes decreases its water content making a product that has more lycopene per unit than a fresh tomato. Cooked tomatoes increase the concentration of lycopene so the best way to get a healthy dose of antioxidants from tomatoes is to cook them into sauces. Since tomatoes are lipophilic, which means their nutritional value is increased when cooked in some fat, add a little olive oil or cheese in order for your body to better absorb the lycopene and other vitamins. Yum!

The flavor of the tomato needs to develop by ripening on the vine. Tomatoes are bland when plucked from the vine when it is still green or unripe. Most grocery bought tomatoes are plucked green for a longer shelf life. Purchase tomatoes that are vine-ripened and organic. Storing tomatoes in the fridge will also cause it to loose flavor. The best is to keep tomatoes in a basket at room temperature; it will last for about a week. I've kept mine for a lot longer that way. Over ripe tomatoes are excellent for sauces.

3rd Day Lemonade Diet

Today is my third day on the lemonade diet and I am sick of spicy lemonade! I'm on my 15th glass so far. Its not so much the hunger, which is satisfied by yet another glass of lemonade, its not the chili pepper that gets stuck in my throat and causes me to cough... its the dull and endless monotony of having only one thing to drink several times a day for days on end. All I've been thinking about is what I'm going to eat when this diet ends in 7 days. Brined Pork Roast with White Beans, Shrimp and Bacalao with rice, Waffles... It doesn't help that I peruse other food blogs and surf the net for recipes. But I prevail with grim determination.

Master Cleanse

I started the Lemonade Diet today. For those not in the know, the diet is actually a detox cleanse that thoroughly removes toxins from your system. Feeling great and healthy are the after effects of the cleanse, not to mention loosing about 10 pounds if one is overweight. The diet/cleanse calls for organic ingredients. You'll need non-iodized sea salt, lemons, maple syrup, cayenne, filtered water and a laxative tea. Thank goodness for the organic lemons and non-iodized sea salt available at the Organic Market. I was able to find organic Maple syrup at Rustan's Supermarket. The original recipe for the Master Cleanse Lemonade called for organic sugarcane juice which was what I wanted to use. The only source I had for organic sugarcane juice had just sold all their canes so I had to get the Maple syrup. The Master Cleanse is a detox cleansing program where no solid food is eaten for a minimum of 10 days (click title for detailed info). Lemonade with a dash of cayenne is packed with nutrients and, apparently, will sustain you for 40 days if you wanted to go that far. The Cleanse will remove toxins from your body, in the process removing all symptoms of decease and sickness. It promises no lose of energy and no hunger pangs. Although this diet can be done with regular supermarket ingredients, its advisable to use organic ingredients.

Earth Day

Today at 2:26 am the sun crossed the celestial equator, making today's day and night of equal length. This event is called the Vernal Equinox. Beginning tomorrow the days will be longer than the nights. Meaning, summer is here! I will start my day at 9am with a 2 hour class of Tai Chi. Then I'm off to the farm to seed and plant some veggies. Planting today is believed to produce a greater yield of fruits when harvest time comes.

Today is also the day that Earth Day is celebrated by the United Nations and other countries around the world (for more info click on title). It's founder is John McConnell and it was first celebrated in San Francisco. Earth Day is a day of reflection and renewal of our commitment to the earth. Now, more than ever, we need to do our part in supporting environmental causes and issues.

It's funny but when I surfed the web on more info about Earth Day I went on sites that said Earth Day is celebrated on April 22 by the USA. The sites also claimed that a former New York mayor was the founder of Earth Day. Strange.

Saturday Market Finds

My sister has moved in, temporarily, and so I've been enjoying the pleasure of her company and will continue to do so for a month. This morning we strolled over to the Salcedo Market, which is a block away from my condo, and went looking for lunch. Didn't find anything interesting, the same usual stuff - paella, inihaw, lechon, and the like. Then just as I was giving up we came to a stall selling authentic provincial food. I was so excited I bought way to much food. Dishes were Bicol home cooking. I got a dish made with ground santol rind with shrimp and pork, manta ray in gingery spicy coconut milk, a sweet pork with spicy coconut milk and Bicol's most famous dish - laing. Actually all the dishes had hot chili and coconut milk. I particularly liked the santol and manta ray dishes. I don't much like sweet dishes...
Here are pictures of my two favorites and a vegetarian lumpia with seaweed my sister was eating.

Recipe: Nasi Lemak (Indonesian Rice)

I made this for an Indonesian luncheon I hosted. It turned out really well. The original recipe did not include coconut oil and called for white rice. I served it with pork curry but this would go well with any grilled food.

1 kilo brown or red rice
1 can coconut milk
2 stalks lemon grass, cleaned and trimmed to fit in pan
2 inch ginger, minced
1 tbsp salt
1/4 - 1/2 cup virgin coconut oil

Wash the rice. Add the water and the rest of the ingredients, except oil. Cover and bring to a boil, then lower the heat to lowest setting and leave it to cook until rice is tender.

Remove lemongrass stalks. Fluff rice with a fork. Put rice in a bowl and mix in the virgin coconut oil.

* Pour in enough water to cover the rice by 1/2 inch. You may also use all coconut milk in place of water.