Cooking: Why I Think It's An Essential To Health And How To Improve Your Cooking Skills [Ep. 49]

This is the eat well.Well live well podcast.I'm Lisa Salsbury.And my mission is to help women stop obsessing about everything they eat.And feel confident about their ability to lose weight without a diet app.Today is episode49.And I'm going to be talking about the one essential scout.I think you'd need to develop in order to improve your health.And help with your weight loss efforts and that skill.Is cooking.So I want to share a little from a study.I read.One thing it said is the typical American adult gets one of every five calories from a restaurant that's20%of our calories.That's a pretty staggering statistic,but the worst news is this at fast food restaurants,70%of the meals Americans consumed were of poor dietary quality.At full service restaurants,about50%or have poor nutritional quality.The remainder They considered intermediate nutritional quality.So of note,the authors found that less than0.1%,almost none,essentially of all the restaurant meals consumed.Over the study period were of ideal quality.So just so you know,I did look up what the quality scores were.The primary diet score included five components,which was total fruits and vegetables,the amount of efficient shellfish,whole grains,sodium or sugar sweetened beverages included in the meal.Whereas the secondary score added three additional components,which was for nuts seeds.It'll gums,processed meat and saturated fat.So I think this means that meals with red meat would be given a lower score seeing as how they were using parameters widely adopted by the American heart association.Red meat has been shown to be especially nutritious though,for women in the perimenopause and menopause ages.I know several of the menopause educators I follow.Online,encourage the adequate consumption of animal proteins,including red meat.So all that to say,we can take these measurements with a grain of salt,no pun intended there since they probably fill if I salt as well.So I'm not trying to negate the statistics.I just shared only that we all of course need to make our own assessments as to what ideal nutrition equality.Is in any case,the article and the study.That I read basically conclude that we need to improve our restaurants.I kept reading,thinking.I would see them recommending some eating at home.Some advice about those other four calories,right?Because it started with the American gets one of every five calories from restaurants.But what about those other four?But no,unfortunately that was not the case.The authors did admit this though.And this is a quote,our food is the number one cause of poor health in the country,representing a tremendous opportunity to reduce diet related illness and associated healthcare spending.So the obvious solution here to me is what are we eating at home and therefore cooking.What about the other80%of our food?Right?Because one of five calories means that we're getting20%of our calories are intake from restaurants.And that might seem a,like a lot,but truly.You can make significant impacts in your health with that other80%,you don't actually have to give up restaurants.To give up going out or take out for those nights that it's necessary due to time or it's date night,or you just want to,if you are focusing on the quality of the food you are eating at home.Uh,those restaurant meals,aren't going to define your health.Even if you choose all of the poor quality restaurant foods,right.Ultimately,we must develop the skill of cooking from home in order to increase the quality of our food.We just can't depend on restaurants to improve their quality in order for us to improve our overall health.When we are eating at home or outside of restaurants,80%of the time.So if food is the number one cause of poor health in our country,then we have to address the eating that we are doing at home.And maybe more than80%.If you start cooking at home more,Or maybe you find that you're eating at restaurants more than20%of the time,maybe because that is an average,of course,in this study,which means a lot of families are eating at restaurants30or40%of the time.So.If you're wanting to reduce some of that or just wanting to improve that80%,the,the time that we do spend at home,keep listening.Mark Hyman said cooking is fun,freeing and essential to achieving health and happiness.Unfortunately,we have handed the act of cooking this unique task that makes us human over to the food industry.I think what he is saying here is not just that we've handed it over to the restaurants,but also to the big food makers.So remember that what I'm going to be talking about in this episode is not just cooking from home pre-packaged mixes and putting those together.But I want you to start experimenting if you're not already with really cooking from scratch.Basically in my humble opinion,I think making food at home.Is the number one thing you can do to improve your health.And so I encourage you to develop this essential skill.Let's talk about a few ways to begin.Number one.Is learn some techniques.I learned how to cook from my mom,but she didn't necessarily teach me the why and what's of what I was doing.So why do I brown the meat before adding the vegetables?Why should I preheat the oven?Why do I need a little oil in the pan?When I saw two things?The strongest recommendation I have here for techniques.Is the book Salt,Fat,Acid,Heat by Samin Nosrat she really gives you the reasons and a lot of science behind why you need to salt food from within meaning you must salt food.As early as possible in the cooking.So that it will be properly seasoned.She goes into detail about salting vegetables versus starches versus meats and when,and how to properly season each.That is just the first part in this technique book.It it's really stunning.The four elements that she pulls out about cooking,which I would have never thought of.But truly The amount of salt,you're going to add to your home cooking two ingredients that are fresh,such as raw protein and vegetables and grains is vastly less than the processed or restaurant foods.So don't be afraid to properly use salt when cooking.No amount of salt added at the table will make up for improper seasoning during the cooking process,you just can't get salt inside the food when you're salting at the table.Just like the chapters on salt,the chapters that teach about fat.And acid and heat are equally informative,entertaining,and valuable to the home cook.Honestly,if I could have Simien on the podcast,that would be like a dream guest.She was absolutely delightful as the narrator.I listened to this book,the first half is all of this technique stuff.The latter half does have some recipes,which is not part of the audio book.So you would want to do both,but I did check out the audio book from the library.It was so good.I have to say that even though I consider myself a good cook and have been cooking pretty much all homemade dinners for decades.My cooking was improved by listening to this book.I really couldn't recommend it more.Both two seasoned cooks,as well as those that are beginning.the other part of learning techniques I would say is knife skills.You've got to be able to chop an onion And cut up meat.I have watched the same YouTube video for cutting up a chicken.Almost every time I do it for the last like year,because I've been trying to learn how to cut up a whole raw chicken.So I just pull up that YouTube video and I follow along as I'm cutting up my chicken and it's so great.It's so cheap to buy a whole raw chicken and break it down.And then cook it,you know,cook the individual parts like that.I have a couple of recipes that I like to use a whole cut up chicken in.So we have the different parts,especially like chicken cacciatore,or other recipes that are simmered in sauce.It's really good.When you have the bones in there.I usually take off the skin because I don't like long simmered skin.It doesn't really add much.I leave the skin on if I'm going to roast it.But,that's just an example.There's always YouTube videos that you can watch.To learn techniques.If you're cutting up something new,if you buy a new vegetable that you're not sure of.I remember years and years and years ago,my sister-in-law called me up and she said,I'm following this recipe that you gave me.And it calls for green onions and I've never used them.Can you tell me how to cut them up?And I was like,of course,absolutely.But luckily now we have YouTube for that and you can just say like,okay,I've never cut up a butternut squash.Like,how is that done?And you can just.Get a quick YouTube video on that,but generally speaking,learning how to use proper knives and using the proper knife for the food that you're cutting.Meaning you're going to use a large chef's knife on a cutting board for chopping vegetables,as opposed to a paring knife in the air.When you're trimming vegetables.So you wouldn't use a sh a paring knife to cut something down on a cutting board.I hope that makes sense.If you do some knife,cutting skill videos,you will see what I mean.Okay.Second recommendation here is to get some recipes.Obviously cooking is frustrating when you don't have instructions.Recipes are the instructions for how to put the food together.So purchase an introductory level cookbook or asked for some of your favorite recipes from your parents or your siblings or your friends.A quick Amazon search for easy cookbooks brought up and number.I would consider ordering,to be honest,I have actually been ordering more cookbooks recently from my favorite bloggers,especially because I like what they have online.And I just like to look through.A cookbook and have those in hand.There are tons of free recipes online though.Of course,like I said,I use blog recipes constantly.One way I like to search for recipes is to use.Other people's crazy.that's mean,but crazy diet obsessions to find things I want to make.So for example,let me tell you what I mean,if I want a protein heavy meal.I might Google paleo recipes.If I'm avoiding dairy for the time being,I might use the words whole30in my search terms,because that would be a dairy free type.protocol.So you don't have to be following these types of diets in order to benefit from other people,creating recipes around those parameters.Generally speaking,if you're Googling,quote,healthy recipes.Have a variety of other people's definition of health will come up.So this is going to include everything from weird protein powder,microwave,mud cakes,to keto fat bombs,and then a low fat dairy lasagna.There's really no rhyme or reason to these searches.So that's why I suggest you target the types of foods that you're looking for with a specific type of meal or a specific protocol that.Would help you get the kind of food that you want to include?Okay.Number three.Make it a priority.Making cooking at home a priority instead of an afterthought or a,well,if I have time,Sort of last resort sort of thing.Is always just going to be a recipe for disaster.So planning is really just the key to making it a priority.No one wants to walk in the kitchen at six15,start rummaging through the produce drawers and wondering what you could pull together.Even,I do not like cooking in that environment.So set aside,time to meal plan.I generally like to meal plan on Sunday evenings.And then decide when during the week you have time to go to the grocery store.Not only do you want to create meal plans and do the grocery shopping?Of course,but in the morning,Take a few minutes to look at your schedule for the day and decide what meal will be a good fit for that day's activities.Thaw meat from the freezer,if needed earlier in the day.You could also even do this the night before.If you think to look at your meal plan right after dinner.The night before.Keep these meal plans that you're creating and repeat favorite meals.This is actually been huge for me lately.I used to subscribe to a few different cooking magazines.So every month I was getting an influx of fresh recipes.And so I was constantly trying new ones.But there are favorites you like to make and you,and maybe your family like to eat.So keep a running list of favorites and just stop,reinventing the wheel.Right.Making,cooking a priority means that it is the default.When you are thinking about dinner,you default to,what am I going to make?Rather than where can we go to pick something up for dinner?Also note,I realized that most of my listeners are women and in no way,am I assuming that only women can do the cooking at home?If you are not the primary chef in your home making.Eating at home a priority,maybe looks different for you.maybe that means meal planning with your partner.That does the cooking or offering to do the shopping or whatever works in your relationship?I don't want to sound like a1950s housewife here in talking about,you know,While the woman is staying home and making dinner for everyone.I just know that with my clients,I ask.And by far the majority tell me they are the ones responsible for meals.And also usually for the grocery shopping as well,many will tell me that their spouse.We'll uh,contribute or make something on the weekends.But for the most part,I find my clients generally are the ones that are in charge of cooking for some it's because they are single.And so they're the only ones that are cooking.Which of course presents its own set of challenges,but for others,it's just the way they and their spouse or partner have divided the work at home.So if doing all the cooking though is not working for you.And you tend to be saying,I just want to go out more because it's getting overwhelming.Then that's a different conversation.That's time to have a conversation with your partner and divide the work at home differently.So just,that's just a little side note.I'm just making the assumption here.That view as the listener are either in charge of,or.Somewhat responsible for the majority of the cooking at home.If not though,again,time to have a conversation with your partner.If you want to increase the amount that you are eating from home.Okay.Number four.Is good tools.I purchase some good quality cooking tools.At the very least start with a large cutting board.A good chef's knife.A smaller paring knife and a serrated knife.Those are my three knives you should have.And some decent cookware.This does not have to be expensive.Obviously check Amazon and Costco.My cookware right now is from Costco.It's totally fine.I mean,it's not amazing,but I produce a lot of food on very averagely priced pans.I also have a lodge cast,iron enamel,Dutch oven.So it's like a covered pot.It's basically a knockoff from the locker.Say probably saying that wrong cause it's French.But you know,those pots that are gorgeous colors.Anyway,those are available on Amazon.Great pot,very averagely priced compared to some of those pricier French once.But what I want to encourage you here in the good tools category is to skip all of the one trick pony gadgets.Consider that your kitchen needs tools,not gadgets.So if it seems gimmicky,skip it.If it seems like a quality tool that will serve several purposes.Think,like I mentioned,the big chef's knife.Um,a silicone scraper cast,iron pans.That's where you want to invest.Maybe consider adding one tool a month or think about what,what am I noticing that I am wanting to reach for?Or I see the videos on the recipes that I'm watching.They consistently use a tool that I don't have.That's something you may want to put on your list.you will enjoy your time in your kitchen so much more when you aren't frustrated with crappy tools.I have to give a little shout out to my mother-in-law here.I have.Teased her for lack of a better word for years,about some of the tools and the knives that she keeps in her kitchen.And she has really curated those and gotten down to some better tools.I know she's been doing a lot more cooking and I think that she is.A lot happier with fewer knives that work well.Speaking of that one thing to remember as well with your knives is to get them sharpened regularly.I touch up my blades with a small sharpener.I just got on Amazon.You just run it through a couple of times,and then maybe once a year,once every two years have them professionally sharpened.You need to start with decent knives here for them to hold an edge.But once you have a good knife with great weight and balance,you'll want to take care of it.There's a couple places you can get this done.there's a local guy that comes to my farmer's market and I've dropped them off with him while I shop around at the farmer's market.So that's worked really well for me.I have also asked at the butcher's counter.I don't know if they still do this,but they used to sharpen knives there and I have in years past,I've had it done there for free.I've also had it done there for very inexpensive.It just depends on the grocery store.So that's another,thing you can ask about at the grocery store.All right.Number five.Let's talk about vegetables.Focus on the vegetables.When you are looking to start cooking more at home.Sometimes we first look at what meat the recipe has.Is it chicken or beef?I encourage you to make sure it has vegetables.Start with broccoli or brussel sprouts or carrots and decide what protein you want to add.Remember the base for all of your meals should be protein fiber and healthy fat.So,yes,for sure.I want you to make sure you're getting adequate protein and even better if it's animal proteins.But sometimes we get so hung up there and worried about what meat we need to thought from the freezer that we forget about the vegetables.Which is where we are getting the majority of that fiber component.The fat component is usually going to come along naturally with cooking.You're going to saute in some avocado oil or make a salad dressing with olive oil.Maybe you're going to top off what you're having with a bit of avocado or a sprinkling of nuts.That's usually the very easiest part to incorporate.So I don't really worry about that in my planning.But the vegetables often get overlooked.If you don't love cooking vegetables,you can start with bagged salads.I like the Taylor farms brand because they have lots of good variety and the greens are not usually just iceberg lettuce.The other go-to for me is roasted vegetables.Be sure to spread them out on a pan or they will steam if they are too close together.And use a high heat in your oven for that.Lastly,I like to saute vegetables on the stove,whether that becomes a stir fry with sauce and protein,or sometimes that's just the way I fixed vegetables as a side dish.I sauteed broccoli,green beans,brussel sprouts,all kinds of things right on the stove.It's very quick and easy.And if you use proper heat again,I will refer you to the book.I mentioned earlier,salt.Fat acid heat,but using proper heat and the proper fat in the pan will give you some times that roasted.Quality of vegetable because you'll get that my yard reaction with the pan that Browning and it'll be really tasty.So also as a side note,I think I've assigned,noted everything here,but I want to say that if you struggle with fiber in your diet,if you struggle with it causing extra bloating or just digestive issues,try cooking your vegetables,it really can make a difference.If you are struggling with big salads and the.Raw fiber like that.Cooking vegetables can often improve digestion you don't always need to have a salad or a side salad.For your fiber or eating raw vegetables,But choosing to cook your vegetables can.Make that digestion a little bit easier.Okay.Lastly,do not strive for perfection.I do not worry if the recipe you are making has butter or pasta or honey or something you've previously told yourself is quote unquote fattening.I promise food made at home will be better than food made in a factory or a restaurant.And having higher nutritional profile.Just start cooking and you can alter recipes as you go along and learn more.And when I say it will be better.I mean,it's going to be better for you.It might not taste better right away,because you need to work on your technique.But as you learn to salt,as you're cooking,apply the proper heat and to add some acid at the end for flavor,I think you're going to find that your cooking will vastly improve.The other part of not being perfect.Is to take some help where you can,although I don't recommend using a lot of pre-packaged mixes because that's where you can get a lot of additives.Preservatives,you know,just chemicals.You can find those really nice grocery stores.I have one right next to me called the nugget.If you are familiar,I don't know if they are in other places besides Northern California.It's similar to whole foods,but they have a lot of pre prepped items.So everything from pre chopped vegetables.But also even pre prepared meats.So you can buy like a pound of meatloaf raw,so not meatloaf mix,which is just like the way the,the meat is ground together with like pork and beef and maybe Turkey or whatever that.But your decides to put together,but it's actually seasoned and got vegetables in it and everything.So you could just plop that down on a pan and make some baked potatoes to go with it.And that can be a really happy medium to making everything on your own.So look and see what helps you can get from your grocery store that are still,maybe in that meat department.You know,when you're thinking about the exterior of your grocery store,your fresh vegetables,your fresh meats look and.And see what helps they can give you like the bagged salad.I mentioned like the pre chopped vegetables and fruits and see what kind of things that they can offer you in Pre-seasoned beats and you know,ask them and make sure that there's not a lot of chemicals that it's just spices that they're using.I know the nugget is really good in that way.I have bought their home recipe sausage as well,and it is absolutely fabulous.They make it right in the meat department.So the lots of great.Things you can get that really still.Qualify as unprocessed and homemade type foods that are very far from a factory or restaurant type things.Oh,okay.That was a lot.To get you started with cooking.I hope that you make something from scratch at home this week.And let me know how it goes.If this sounds overwhelming.One thing I want to remind you of is the idea of repeating meals,and that really is kind of the core of the go-to meals.Eat guide.Not only do you want to repeat your dinners that you're making for your family,but having some go-to meals,especially for breakfast and lunch is going to make this so much easier.If you want a little more variety at dinner.Time.So if you download that,you'll notice I have a lot fewer go to breakfast and lunches than I do.Dinner's my dinner list is much longer.So I don't mind eating the same,basically the same three breakfast when I have lots of variety.With the other parts of my day.So grab that free ebook that will help you to start.A list of your go-to meals that are going to help you stay on track.This also helps simplify your grocery list because you just know exactly what you need.For those go-to meals,you always want to make sure,you know,I'm going to want to make sure I have yogurt and.frozen fruit for my yogurt parfaits.I want to make sure I've got oatmeal and eggs and,you know,just my basic things that I use for my go-to breakfast.That link of course is in the show notes.And last but not least.If you are ready to get some more personalized help from me,I would encourage you to book a free strategy session.The best way to know if coaching will work for you.Is to get a little coaching.So I am open and ready for that this summer.I have lots of appointments available.Actually I have quite a bit more free time in my schedule now that I'm not doing,uh,the amount of driving that school time requires.So I look forward to meeting you and to speaking with you,when you are ready to get that scheduled.All right,have a great week.