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Login Here Signup Here Signup using FacebookSo I was raw over the summer and then I stopped because I went to college in another country and it was hard. However about two months ago I decided to dive back in and I am not planning on looking back. Depsite this, I have a lot of concerns. You see, I used to be a gourmet cook and have worked in restaurants since I was 13. Giving up a huge part of my life and talent was really hard at first. I am now used to it and liking where I am. That being said, I use a lot of things like nama shoyu, garlic, onions, carrots and nuts that seem to show up on these so-called
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Adensspell, I was about 85 percent raw for quite a long time, now about 95, and I love using spices onions and garlic. Carrots are the best for carotin if you don’t have access to superfoods, like goji berries!!! and they contain a lot of other valuable nutrients as well like chromium. I use nuts too, but in moderation. If I feel I need more of them, then I eat more. I think nobody has the right to attack you for using these things, especially as I think these things help you staying raw! I like eating apples for dessert, after my meals, I heard they can be combined with other things. Maybe not the best after a meal, but if I don’t feel any problems after eating them I think it is ok. Listen to your body, it says what it needs!
You know. You won’t get any preaching from me. I tried that 80-10-10 and ended up falling completely off the raw life. If you enjoy making Gourmet Raw, then do it. You already know how good you feel. I say if you have a dressing w/ Nama or raw nuts and you feel like crap then maybe it’s not for your system. This is beautiful food. it is happy food. You will know right away if you eat a food that doesn’t make you feel happy! Yes, many people eat very simply because it’s right for them, but I know there are so many people just trying to stay 80% raw here or trying to heal from a major life event. I strive for 100% as available so if i’m out of nuts and i have to buy not so raw ones, I just buy them. Socially, simple 100% raw can be very isolating. The food just isn’t attractive.
Adensspell, Don’t worry about others!!! It is YOU that you have to please… Read, learn, digest and makeup your own mind… What is right for YOU is right, when it isn’t right for you, your body will let you know and then you can make different choices… Those spices are full of antioxidents so use as desired… The thing about fruits after a meal isFruits are digested in the first part of your small intestines and digestive juices kills the nutritent in them so your stomach dumps them and then you feel hungry quickly… Enjoy your meals and your life!!! Good Luck!!!
Thank you all! I feel much better. Like you said flybaby and waterbaby, it is about listening to my OWN body. And Izhpt, congratulations on getting to a point where you are totally confortable, I really like and respect your views.
Adenssppell, I’m just going to reiterate what everyone else is saying: Listen to your body! I know exactly how you feel—sometimes reading the posts can make you feel as if you are doing it wrong. You have to do what’s right for you, otherwise all the joy is taken out of eating. We are all on our own individual paths through life, and if that means you love to make gourmet raw food and have a freakin apple after supper, do it! I guarantee that the food police won’t knock on your door and take you away in the middle of the night. And if they do, just give ‘em some raw cookies and a pound of nuts.
Do what makes you happy! Ignore the haters, the nitpickers and the buttinskis. They have their own issues to deal with.
And besides… a few non-raw ingredients in a predominantly raw diet is a hell of a lot healthier than the token iceberg lettuce “salad” with a plate of meatloaf and mashed potatoes, right?
Relax. It’s all good. :o)
oh i’m so sorry that you get worried by these conversations. i must admit, i like to INVESTIGATE and ponder things, so i like the debate. when i first started i felt MUCH the same way you do. and the absolute hardest part of this diet was PSYCHOLOGICAL, like you. i felt i had to give up so much family history around food and such… and learning how to “uncook” was like starting on training wheels all over again…
but i think we (at least i can speak for me) like to nitpick because we are trying to be detectives for our own bodies. cause and effect are tricky though… was it really the nama shoyu that made you feel ill, or the fight with your partner before you started eating? your particular body chemistry changes from day to day and all we can do is just be aware and try to make appropriate decisions in the moment.
don’t give ANYTHING up (meaning what you do should feel like an empowered, conscious choice, not a punishment).
these experiments can be a bit disorienting, but i think that is what makes this process SO cathartic. we learn that we are not the sum of the things we eat, or the things we do. what we ARE doesn’t change because of our diet. as we become cleaner we are however in a position to be more in tune with who we ARE. for me at least i have become very humbled by this experience, challenged to keep my “centerpoise” in the midst of what often seems like dietary madness.
there is NO NO NO NO doctrine of absolute truth to draw from concerning diet. (if one more person claims to have discovered the truth about raw food—or any other—, i think i may SHOUT!)
anyway, laughter, calm, deep breathing, loved ones… these are my best superfoods… =)
Thanks again to everyone! Pianissima, that is really well written and helps A LOT! Thanks!
I like what you said too, pianissima. And I hope my comment about nitpickers didn’t sound mean. Didn’t mean it to! :o)
I didn’t think it soudned mean, I thought it was frank and righteous! I like it jenergy!
agreed. i totally didn’t take it that way at all. also, buttinskis is a really funny word. ;)
adensspell- i’m SO glad =)
I know, isn’t buttinski a great word? My mom always used that one when my sister and I were being nosy. Don’t be a buttinski! Hehe…
Great comments everyone! I have something to add.. raw foodists are considered anyone who eats 80% or more raw food. So… not everyone needs to give up the non raw ingredients. I think it’s helpful to know whats not raw, so that we can make informed decisions and choose to eat the non raw ingredients. But I think it’s supreme that anyone would even attempt the raw diet in any percentage… whether it’s 50, 80, or 100%. It’s great to have a community … I agree with pianissima – the nitpicky conversations ARE because some of us try to play detective, and there is no doctrine concerning raw food. It’s a relief, right? Because each of us gets to be our own doctor and make informed decisions about our diet. Aden – I’m totally with you on the gourmet foods idea. I think that eating gourmet will help me to stay raw for years – whereas i’d only be a cooked vegan without all these wonderful fancy recipes that I cook up every few days. And of course – welcome to goneraw!!
Adenspell – I hear you!! I was enjoying raw food much more before I started reading the debates about ingredients. I eat all the bad stuff and I feel great. Just remember how much of being healthy is in your attitude. And for every recipe you post there’s likely to be a lot more people who love it than those who challenge your choice of ingredients. You are not alone!
you need to do what feels best to your body. i struggled with being raw vegan and found that i love raw cheese, and honey, and have absolutely no ethical or digestive problems with either. also, i don’t care what folks say about eating fruit and nuts together—it works for me!
one small suggestion though, grow your own herbs, this way you know how they are grown, and you could dry them for future use.
Yeah, Winona is right, these debates or informetions about the non raw ingredients are because to warn others that certain ingreds are not raw, but these are not intended to offend anyone, having all the information everyone can make their own choices!
Adensspell, for me, someone who has been passtionate about (veggie/vegan/healthy) cooking for my whole life too, i found it er…interesting coming across all these ideas. i love to read as many opinions and experiences as possible, and experience them for myself, but i am proud to say i just follow what rings true for meee :)
but the reason i wanted to reply is because i found raw food “cuisine” the most inspiring and magical discovery and it is what motivated me so much to enjoy this lifestyle…i like to really treat and look after myself as health and happiness are very important things and the feeling you have when youve created an absolutely scrumptious beautiful colourful supernutritious dish that you want to share with the world is just amazing! so i think whatever it takes to feel like that – go for it! nama shoya or not! hehe
saying that i dont eat complicated dehydrated things every day (i er dont have a one) but in the beginning espeically i was making recipes every day and learning about tastes and techniques, it was amazingly fun.
i am in quite an interesting situation, in july i moved from a not even a veggie restaurant sort of town to the raw capital of the uk (am making raw chocolate ;) ) and i have shiney people around me following all sorts of different things…they are pretty much balanced and healing in all other ways and often follow a holistic lifestyle, so whilst food is an amazing thing and an important focus, it is not LIFE ITSELF hehe and there are so many other things to do..and yes, some of them eat lots of nuts. haha. i am so lucky though, to be surroudned by such vibrant happy folks. so what im saying is, although simplicity is good (and ive found it more appealing naturally as time goes on but my passions for creating food mean that i will probably never end up 100% momo mealer heh) the important thing is, follow your path (repeating here) and do what feeeels right! i like to take food combining into mind but rarely go crazy,.anyway i find things naturally work out – i wouldnt particularly want sweet potatoes with strawberries.
saying that, i am a bit obsessed with reading and making new things and learning as much as possible to spread the word with! yeah! keep it up and show those people how good it can be!
PS i saw a raw lifestyle coach eat watermelon after chocolate cake shock horror!!!
much love X
Thanks again to everyone!Crystalbat, that is really well put and makes a lot of sense (I too wouldn’t want sweet potatoes and strawberries, or chocolate cake and watermelon, I like just watermelon sometimes for a good dessert!) Stylistchick, I like that you said too, it is nice to know there are others out there like me! I actually do grow most of my own herbs, I had quite a collection, but we moved so now I will be starting over this summer. When I don’t have the herbs, I buy usually dry bulk that I know come from reputable sources. Anyway, thanks to you all for your responses.
We put the Dead Food List on our website Purely Raw, but this raw lifestyle is all about enjoyment and pleasure for me. Chris and I wrote the Dead Food List because we found that being 100% was the easiest way to stay raw. Even when we were eating a touch of nama shoyu or nutritional yeast we suffered from cooked food cravings and didn’t get the raw high. When we cut these things out we got the high and the cravings went. We want other people to find it this easy too and be aware of the ingredients they use which may be holding them back.
We do use spices, salt, garlic, onion and fats in our recipes, and never take any notice of food combining. Our food really does taste delicious, even SAD’S and major “foodies” go crazy for our food.
I really don’t think that being raw is about bland ugly tasting food! When you transition you need food that is reminisant of cooked food, and has flavour and looks great too. If it is not enjoyable you won’t make it through, it’s as simple as that.
You can make perfectly delicious raw food not using any cooked items. Check out mine and ChrisCarlton’s recipes on our profiles here and try them, they all taste amazing and have no non raw ingredients.
I think that nama shoyu masks the natural flavours of the veggies and I always prefer food without it. And mixing cooked and raw just never seems to taste right to me. I also tend to think that people don’t agree with nuts because they are eating non raw nuts. I have never had any problems with soaked or sprouted raw nuts.
I transitioned by gorging myself on gourmet recipes, and now after 3 years I do not feel drawn to eating them at all. I now love and enjoy mono eating, juices and smoothies, but this has happened naturally, I have not forced it,expected it or wanted it, it just happened. And even though I don’t eat it, I love making gourmet food for other people.
Eating more simply will happen naturally if you eat a lot of raw food. Thinking you should be eating less salt, less fat, no onions, no garlic, less poor combining is just an added pressure you don’t need at this stage. I never took any notice of food combining, ate plenty of raw nuts, oil, fats, spices, ate garlic and onions in huge amounts, and I have transitioned easily and am a successful 100% raw foodist. Don’t even think about being a mono eater etc for now, just enjoy your raw food!!
I am a firm believer in eat whatever you want as long as it is raw. Chris and I are proof that it works. We just had friends round and we made them recipes, we ate them together and after ugh, we both were saying, “No more recipe food!” It felt as bad as cooked food does! But as I said before it was gorging ourselves on recipes that have allowed us to stay raw long enough for our bodies to start to crave the simpler stuff.
I do hope that you get the same pleasure out of this food as I have. Truly I just don’t think I ever enjoyed food until I went raw, and I have learned to be a brilliant uncook, my food tastes so much better than any cooked food I have ever eaten. You are a chef, you will be able to come up with the most amazing recipes, I am looking forward to reading them on here someday.
i must say, zoe, i LOVE getting your “long term” perspective. sometimes i feel like my own lab rat, but this sort of reassurance is great.
like zoe, i also look forward to more creative recipes ;)
and like pianissima, i also love all posts by zoe :D (and chris) and i do completely agree with your 100% philosophy and how easy it makes life. (and your recipes are amazing, as you know ! have only made one, the curry one…but they exactly the sort of thing i like and feels good on all levels. think we have connected a few times through a raw company i used to work for in brighton hehe)
i have so many constantly avolving opinions on this though.. i just went to a dear friends who prepared a lovely raw spread, it was made with such love and was mostly simple ingredients, it was all delicious but we ate the dessert with a special extra – a brand of ice cream available here called booja booja, it is vegan and “raw” (agave and cashews..debatable!) very indulgent and delicious but after my recent wonderful 9 day juce feast (one of the best things ever…for anyone…anything.= JUICE!) and no cashew ways and all the other food, this made me feel very very full and ever so slightly queasy. not in a bad way. but like the feeling i might have after a cooked restaurant meal many moons back.
fresh, light ingredients just feel the best in the body..
in terms of things such as name shoya/tamari, it does not have a big place in my life at all (but did have a little one in early rawdom for me) but i believe the most important thing for me and the easiest thing for many people to grasp, at least at first, is to eat as healthy as possible and include as many fresh things as they can…condiments and such, can be healthier choices in perspective and compared to so many other diets..
i might be saying this though, since i managed to “go raw” very easily and all the time i had pretty much no cooked food cravings..even if i did have miso/whatever occasionally i agree that for most people going 100% is the best way to stop cravings or slipping though. i just dislike the mental restrictions people can put on this whole way of life, and beating themselves up about it..so i try to embrace an open ness to all of it and keep it cooool..
food made with love is the best of all, huh!
Thanks for the lovely comments guys ;) I know who you are crystalbat, great to see you here, your uncooking is pretty darn good too you know!!
Wow thanks again to you all, Zoe and crystalbat, this is interesting. That being said, I don’t want you to feel that I am knocking you for your habits (just as I don’t want to feel like I am being knocked for my own) but not consuming the so-called questionable raw foods does NOT interest me. I have really zero desire to give them up because I like the way they feel. Zoe, your recipes look great and I definetly am interested in making quite a few of them, but at the same time…there are a lot of other recipes that use the so-called dead ingredients and I enjoy them just as much. I am appreciative of your views and I respect them, but at this time (and probably never) I don’t wish to change mine.
Progress NOT perfection is the key! We’re all on a journey and it’s one I intend to enjoy!
Yes you have to enjoy your raw food, I think that is a most important thing. Pleasure seeking is what I live by too. I am so happy to find so much of it in raw food!
Zoe, what I love about your site is that it shows you are conscious of which foods are raw and which foods are dead, it’s really important for me that you have focussed on this and done this work to sort out the live from the dead. It means I feel really confident ordering food from you because you are not going to foist your non-raw food preferences onto me, you are going to give it to me absolutely raw! I am so looking forward to eating the order I put in for some of your food items! I want to be the one to choose when I want to eat raw food and when I want to eat cooked food, and then I want to be the one to choose what cooked food I eat (it has to be really worth putting aside decisions about raw and non-raw). I think that’s what you are all saying, including Adensspell, only I should choose when I bring cooked items into my lifestyle, I don’t want other people choosing for me! That’s why it’s so valuable knowing what is raw and what is not, so I make the choice, and I can listen to the cost of that choice on my body, if it seems fine then I’ll stay with my choice!
Hi Red Earth! Thanks for those words, it’s exactly how I feel about it too, I don’t like to buy expensive “raw” food and and up finding out it isn’t raw at all, there should be a raw standard tradmark like there is for organic food. One day maybe. Anyway,I am looking forward to making your gorgeous food tomorrow ;)