Eat Close to the Source and you’ll know what sound your food makes…
I just spent the last ten years living in New Zealand and lemme tell you, that culture knows what eating close to the source means.
I’m not talking about gnawing on steak tartare in the cow pasture. What I’m saying is if you go pull an onion out of your garden and slice it up and put it on that steak, then its going to have more nutrients than if it is picked too early from some far away farm, trucked across the country to a factory, cooked, mashed, shaped, breaded, packaged, frozen, shipped, deep fried and served with a side of ranch dressing. Both are yummy, one actually feeds the body.
Eating close to the source should be easier than the alternative, right?
That brings me back to gardens. I never met a single person in NZ who didn’t grow stuff. Gardening is in their blood. And their blood, sweat and tears are in their gardens. Most people I knew had plots in their backyard where they grew a host of veggies and fruits year-round. Those who didn’t at least grew lettuce and herbs in pots. To supplement, they have farmer’s markets by the dozens. Every weekend, scattered around the city, year-round. Yeah, they have grocery stores (and that’s a great place to buy that steak).
Even if gardening isn’t in your blood, you can eat close to the source.
How?
- First, try gardening! If you haven’t ever gardened before, start with herbs! $20 in seeds and potting soil got me started. (I even planted an avocado seed on a whim in a pot in my kitchen window which magically took root and is now about 3 feet tall…it can be done!)
- Second, try eating fresh. Some say Raw is the way to go and maybe it is. I prefer my prep to be slightly more than just giving it a wash. I just read a source (Dr. Cate Shanahan) who says eating fat, salt and acid along with your veggies helps your body absorb the nutrients – so splash the salad dressing or yogurt it up:) At the very least, stay away from the veggies available in your store that look like they were grown in NZ and hopped the slow boat to America, basked on the beach for awhile and then took the scenic route to the shelf. You know the ones.
- Third – In case you want to eat the stuff that eats veggies – go for grass-fed or at least sourced close to home and not shot through with antibiotics and other terrible things. Me? I am probably not going to milk my own cow even if I had the pasture and grass to feed it…and I’m certainly not going to carve up it’s steak. That is a bit too close to the source for me. Even wild-caught salmon from the store might be a bit too rich for my finances. But Free-range chickens. Certainly. (A friend of mine calls them Happy Chickens). Simply shopping at the meat counter or the veggie bins is a win over the canned food aisle. And canned foods are a win over the nearest drive-thru. Everything is relative.
The cool thing is? Just a couple of small changes, solidified over time can make a massive difference in overall health.
So…happy eating!
Why health tips? Read my introductory post Talk About Inspiration HERE
Interested in reading the first chapter of Black Sand Forest? Find it HERE