Ani's Raw Food Essentials

Table of Contents

 

 

 

 

 

Also by Ani Phyo:

I dedicate this book to our children.
May we work together to uncover the truth
about food; to continue improving our
health through organic gardening and
whole food nutrition; to inspire our friends,
family, and communities to live a life they
love; and to heal our earth.

INTRODUCTION

When I first strated on my path to live foods, I was amazed by the potential—there are so many, things you can do with raw fruits and vegetables. Even seemingly “hands-off” foods, such as pizza or pasta, could be made using fresh, uncooked ingredients. I'm not a formally trained chef; I came to raw foods from a simple and practical hands-on perspective. I wanted delicious, healthy foods that were fast and easy. My recipes are simple and can easily be made more complex by adding sauces and serving beautifully.

Over the past fifteen years, I've gone from making the simplest raw meals to starting my own raw foods company, SmartMonkey Foods. I've always focused on fast, fresh, unfussy—and ultimately, delicious—food. Along the way, I've developed some more complicated recipes but always keep an eye on what is quick to assemble and use seasonal ingredients whenever possible. I've designed these recipes with simplicity in mind, based on how I feed my busy self. Most recipes require only a few easy-to-find ingredients that are blended or processed quickly. Most of the recipes are ready to eat right away.

This book is for anyone who's new to raw foods—if you're curious and not sure where to start, I'll tell you what utensils you need and which ingredients to stock in your essential raw pantry. You'll also learn a lot of basic techniques—from how to split a fresh coconut to working with a dehydrator (and how to experiment if you don't own your own Excalibur Dehydrator just yet!). If you've been around the raw foods block a few times, you'll find some new tips to make your time in the kitchen less complicated and more enjoyable, as well as recipes you can use as templates to develop your own unique raw foods kitchen. It's easy—and the rewards are endless.

It seems every person I meet is eager to live healthier, greener, fitter, leaner, and happier. But many people have the misconception that to be healthy, they need to invest a lot of time and energy. I'm going to break it all down for you to help you get healthy the fast, easy, and delicious way. It's simple to do when we start by taking small steps, one at a time. Each little bit adds up over time to make a difference.

We all would benefit from eating more unprocessed whole foods—fresh, unheated fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds are what the FDA calls “superfoods,” which have been shown to increase our overall health. Superfoods help us ward off diseases and illness, give us more energy and stamina, keep us at our ideal body weight, and help us look and feel our best.

Raw food is more than just a diet. It's an entire philosophy and way of life. Eating more fresh organic ingredients affects the way we look, how we feel, and how we interact with other life and planet Earth.

Whole, fresh, unheated, unprocessed, organic fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds are rocket fuel for our body. This turbo-charged, nutrient-dense food fills us up with the vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and enzymes our body needs to hum like a well-oiled machine.

Raw foods and sunshine give me energy, mental clarity, focus, and help me to be more productive.

A properly fueled brain can take charge and orchestrate the trillions of cells in our body to fight illness and disease. As our health and stamina increase, we may shed unwanted extra pounds, our complexion may clear up . . . all while we tread lightly on our planet. And, when we feel great, anything is possible!

My recipes are designed to help you enjoy more healthy, whole, fresh food, which is the key building block for living life well.

Most of my youth was spent in the Catskill Mountains, living on a large plot of land where my family grew our own organic produce. We didn't have candy, sugar, soda, or processed foods in my house growing up. I ate a lot of Korean food, which, like most Asian food, is traditionally wheat and gluten free. Like most traditional foods, Korean food is whole and unprocessed. And a majority of Korean food is vegan, raw, and fermented.

My father was a raw fooder, and mono dieted frequently. He'd eat a whole bell pepper like an apple, and I had thought this was because he was from the “Old Country.” That era of raw foods is what I now label “Raw Food 1.0.” Raw food was eaten functionally back then, because it was good for you, not necessarily for taste.

My parents, having come from what was considered a third-world country in those days, were frugal. Having grown up poor, Koreans were good at conserving and using less . . . which are essential for treading lightly on our planet and living eco-green.

Although I grew up in a raw foods family, my eating habits changed when I got to college: the dining halls were full of new types of food, such as fried cheese, pasta, cake, and cookies. I loved trying all these new tastes. Unfortunately, I was eating mostly white flour, sugar, and dairy, and this newfound “diet” took its toll. I gained the Freshman 15 in just a few months' time and my cholesterol was almost at 300, which is too high for anyone. My mom put me back on a vegan, whole food diet—and immediately, my cholesterol dropped. I began exercising again. That was the turning point on my path back to an active, healthy lifestyle.

After college, I discovered vegan raw foods in San Francisco. A friend took me to a raw restaurant that had delicious food served like I'd never experienced before. It was what I call “Raw Food 2.0” and was beautiful, delicious, and healthy.

I had so much energy after my first Raw Food 2.0 meal, I couldn't sleep. I felt fine the next day and carried on with work as if I'd rested. Soon, I began to eat more of this raw gourmet food for energy, stamina, mental clarity, and focus. I could work more efficiently, be more productive, feel great, and sleep less without getting sick. I began making and incorporating more gourmet raw foods into my diet, and the people
around me were interested in learning more. When I moved to Los Angeles for work a few years later, a few other raw chefs and I offered weekly dinners around town; their popularity grew quickly. This was when I realized I wanted to focus only on raw foods to help people and our planet.