The Complete Book of Raw Food (4 page)

BOOK: The Complete Book of Raw Food

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Buying Clubs
. Some natural foods wholesalers sell foods to “buying groups” which are usually made up of a few families who get together and place a big order once a month. Through these groups you can save money on expensive bulk items such as nuts, honey, Celtic sea salt, oils, and sometimes produce, too. To find a buying club, search on-line using the keywords food, buying, clubs, and co-op. You may also find them listed in your local Yellow Pages.

Food Co-ops
. These are special health food stores where you can become a member and can get better prices than at health food stores.

CSA Programs
. Community Supported Agriculture, or CSA, is becoming more popular. A farm (or group of farms) puts together boxes of fresh produce every week. Each member of the CSA gets a weekly box (sometimes called a “share”) for a very reasonable price. You don’t often know in advance what will be in a particular week’s share, so it’s a bit like Christmas. It’s also an inspiration to create new recipes that are healthfully ideal because they are organic, fresh, locally grown, and in-season.

On-line Ordering
. There are many on-line sources of great food. Many of them are listed in
Part III
.

FOOD STORAGE

Raw food ingredients are just that: Raw. Unless you’ve been eating canned and frozen foods exclusively, you know that fresh food can attract pests or contain eggs of pests. The good news is that keeping them away from your raw ingredients is as simple as choosing the right storage containers. Anything that isn’t refrigerated should be stored in plastic or glass containers with tight-fitting lids.

ORGANIC DEFINED

Fifteen years ago, few people knew what the word “organic” meant as it related to the foods they ate. Today all that has changed and there is ever increasing demand for organically grown produce.

But what exactly does organic mean? Before October 2002, the use of the term “organic” was unregulated by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), though several independent certifying organizations did exist. On October 21, 2002, the USDA put into place a set of national standards that food labeled “organic” must meet, whether grown in the United States or imported from other countries. Here is the definition of organic, as set forth by the USDA:

Organic food is produced by farmers who emphasize the use of renewable resources and the conservation of soil and water to enhance environmental quality for future generations. Organic meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products come from animals that are given no antibiotics or growth hormones. Organic food is produced without: conventional pesticides, fertilizers made with synthetic ingredients or sewage sludge; organic products are processed without bioengineering or ionizing radiation. Before a product can be labeled “organic,” a Government-approved certifier inspects the farm where the food is grown to make sure the farmer is following all the rules necessary to meet USDA organic standards. Companies that handle or process organic food before it gets to your local supermarket or restaurant must be certified, too.

Keep in mind that foods labeled Organic aren’t necessary 100 percent organic. Here’s how it breaks down:

One hundred percent certified-organic products can be labeled as 100 percent Organic.
Products with 95 percent or more organic ingredients can be called organic on the primary package label.
Products with 75 percent to 95 percent organic ingredients can be described as made with organic ingredients, and up to three organic ingredients can be listed.
Products with less than 70 percent organic ingredients may use the term organic only on the ingredient information panel.

Organic foods are still harder to find and tend to cost more than non-organic; however, even Wal-Mart stores today are stocking organic produce. Is it important? Recent research has investigated the amount of pesticide residue on specific non-organic foods and dubbed those with the highest amount the “dirty dozen”; for these items, consumers may want to commit to organic. They are: meat, milk, coffee, peaches, apples, sweet bell peppers, celery, strawberries, lettuces, grapes, potatoes and tomatoes.

A
raw dinner menu is not composed solely of cold, hard, crunchy foods. On the contrary: raw chefs can prepare sweet potato pie with a filling as smooth and dense as a baked version and creamy puréed soups that are as velvety as any you’ve had. Chefs achieve those results with some common kitchen tools and a few pieces of specialized equipment.

Gearing up to prepare raw food can get expensive. If you’re the type of person who loves to have the latest kitchen gadgets, you can easily spend $1,000 or more on equipment. On the other hand, you can achieve fantastic results with tools you may already own. “When I first began a 100 percent raw diet my only equipment was an old blender, a hand grater, a good knife, and a cutting board,” says raw chef Nomi Shannon. “I was 100 percent raw for six months using only that equipment before I purchased any other machines.”

CHEF’S TIP

Don’t throw away those old gelatin molds, bundt pans and muffin trays—they are excellent for shaping raw cakes.

—Julie Rodwell

Here’s an overview of the tools you’ll find in a raw food kitchen, from the most basic to the most elaborate.

BASIC TOOLS

You may already own some of the kitchen tools that are useful for raw food preparation. Those listed below are used for everything from chopping and slicing to preparing and presenting food. Those that you don’t yet own are often fairly inexpensive and available at kitchen supply shops.

The Raw Tool Kit: Basics

blender

cake decorating kit

cake pans

citrus juicer

cutting boards (washable)

electric and hand beaters

food processor

funnels (various sizes and spout widths)

garlic press

grater

honey dipper

kitchen knives

knife sharpener

ladles

mesh bags

palette knife

potato masher (for making guacamole)

rolling pin

strainers (various sizes)

spatulas (various sizes)

stirring and serving spoons (large and small)

wire beater (coiled)

mango cutter

citrus zester

NOT-SO-COMMON TOOLS

The following tools are ones you may not be as familiar with. However, if you progress in the living foods lifestyle, you may come to consider them to be indispensable. These items require a larger investment, so shop around for the best deals. We’ve listed the item along with the names of some of the more popular brands.

Spiral slicer
(Saladacco®). This ingenious tool can turn vegetables such as onions, zucchini, sweet potatoes, and winter squash into fine, spaghetti-like strands (for raw pasta) or long, thin ribbons. The spiral slicer can also create thin slices and julienne strips.

Champion®, or other “masticating” juicer
. The Champion juicer is very strong and powerful and handles any kind of hard or soft fruit, nut, or vegetable. The juicing plate separates the food into juice and pulp (when juicing, re-process the pulp until it is woody and dry). See
chapter 3
for more about juicers and juicing.