Raw Food

Last week, City Market hosted a class where the cooking lesson featured raw vegan tacos. I was as intrigued as I was excited for this class—as were many of our participants! The instructor, Krissy Ruddy, is a holistic health coach, and is well versed in variations of the raw food and vegetarian and vegan lifestyles.

While I was a vegetarian for about 5 years, I have never followed a raw food regime and realized I knew very little about it! This delicious class left my palate and my mind wanting more. So, I did a little research to find out what the raw food diet was really all about.

As it turns out, raw foodism is not a new idea. The first known person to advocate for a similar food plan was a Swiss doctor by the name of Maximilian Oskar Bircher-Benner in the late 1800s. He believed that whole foods lost vital “solar energy” as they were consumed by other animals, passed down the food chain, and lost still more when foods were cooked. Over a number of years, his living and eating philosophy, called Ordungstherapie, became more regimented with a strict diet at the core. The diet relied heavily on uncooked plant foods, but was not strictly vegetarian. Over time, however, the association between raw food and vegetarianism strengthened. Ordungstherapie also limited any kind of food processing, and really only allowed for steaming and low-heat cooking when absolutely necessary.

By nutritional standards today, a strict raw food diet would be difficult to maintain but can be a great option when planned appropriately. It is generally low in caloric intake and requires a bit of planning to keep the meal plan varied and robust. But, the core of the diet promotes a healthful plant-based diet rich in whole foods with lots of vitamins, minerals, fiber, phytochemicals, antioxidants, and other nutrients.  Some cooking techniques, like boiling, can leach water-soluble vitamins out the food and heat can inactivate food’s natural enzymes. Today’s raw food diet promotes the idea that foods should never be heated above 118°F, which is too low for meat to be cooked to the safety recommendations of the USDA guidelines. Some devout followers will consume raw milk, eggs, fish, and/or meat, but with the mindfulness of the potential for food-borne illnesses from these foods.

For a raw food lifestyle, many people recommend having a powerful blender, dehydrator, food processor, juicer and a vegetable spiralizer to get creative at mealtimes. Here are some of my own favorite (easy!) raw food recipes:

Raw Vegan Tacos, from Krissy Ruddy

Easy Breakfast Bowl

Carrot Apple Beet Ginger Juice

 

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