chrslnsze

[chrslnsze]

Pescatarian Diet

a person’s main source of animal protein comes from fish and other seafood.

the term pescatarian originated early 1990s a combination of italian word of pesce for “fish” and the word “vegetarian” that is why sometimes it is spelled as  ‘pescetarian’. 

by definition, if you are a pescactarian it means that you choose to eat vegetarian diet but also eat fish and other seafood. here are some benefits in eating fish: it lowers blood pleasure, lower risk of abnormal heart rhythms, and fewer fatal heart attacks than those who do not include fish in their diet. that’s why as advertized in televesion, when you eat tuna it says that it’s good for the heart as it has omega 3 in it.

not only it is good for the health but also good for the environment, as long as it was farmed properly. though there are still some issues about fish farming but i’ m not going to focus on that.

what can someone who follow pescatarian eat? below are the list of suggestions for the diet:

canned sardines

canned salmon

canned tuna

fish sticks

frozen salmon, trout, and herring

frozen shrimp

fresh fish, such as salmon, pollock, catfish, and sardines

fresh shellfish, such as shrimp, clams, and scallops

Other foods to include are:

fruit

vegetables

cereals and whole grains, including oats, bulgar wheat, amaranth, corn, and rice

food containing grain products

pseudo grains, such as quinoa and buckwheat, which are gluten-free

legumes, including kidney beans, pinto beans, and peas

legume products, including tofu and hummus

nuts and nut butters

seeds, such as flaxseeds, hemp seeds, and chia

eggs and dairy, if lacto-ovo-vegetarian

3 Day Menu Plan

considering I have a tree nut allergy. 

Day 1

Breakfast: Oatmeal with fruits, Chocolate milk

Lunch: Sinigang na Salmon -a flipino sour dish that is usually paired with pork but I change it to salmon. it has vegetables icluded like, spinach, raddish tomato and eggplant. Water.

Dinner: Salmon Sashimi and Water

Day 2

Breakfast: Strawberry Milkshake

Lunch: Shrimp Tacoss with black beans, water

Dinner: Sardines and rice, water

Day 3

Breakfast: Artichoke and spinach dip with chips, coffee

Lunch: Blackened Salmon with Cilantro Rice

Dinner: Tuna Taquitos with vitamin water

Reflection:

Pescatarian diet is the type of diet that is easy for me, because it is not limited to many food choices. But as a person who does not have a specific diet to follow, I think it would be challenging for me to continue since, I would look or crave for the flavours of the meat. Personally, I can’t continue this diet because of my choice to eat meat too. 

References:

Migala J., 2019, Going Pescatarian 101: Food List, Meal Plan, Benefits, and More, Retrived from: 

https://www.everydayhealth.com/diet-nutrition/pescatarian-diet-food-list-meal-plan-benefits-risks-more/

Jennings K-A MS RD., 2017, What Is a Pescatarian and What Do They Eat?, Retrieved from: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/pescatarian-diet

Crichton-Stuart C., 2018, What is a pescatarian diet?, Retrieved from:https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/323907#sustainability-and-animal-welfare

Food Allergy Canada, Retrieved from: https://foodallergycanada.ca/allergies/tree-nuts/

[chrslnsze]

Artichoke

A little something to know about ARTICHOKE. It actually came from the Thistle plant, family of Asteraceae. It is a type of flower characterized by it prickly leaves-- to avoid being eaten by herbivores. Artichoke itself is the bud of the plant if not harvested it will reached its full maturity and blossom into a beautiful, blue-violet flower, which is not edible.

The anatomy of Artichoke:

the bud which is the heart is the meatiest part of the artichoke. the inner petals along with center of the stem are tender enough to eat too. The choke is not eaten unless it is a baby artichoke. 

The Artichoke is one of the world’s oldest food. It is native in the Mediterranean region and I think can also be in Italian cuisine. The famous and easiest way to prepare an artichoke is to steam the whole thing along with herbs and lemon. It can be added into different dishes including pasta, dips and even soup!

Nutritional value of Artichoke:

- low in cholesterol, saturated fat and sodium.

- High in Dietary Fiber, Vitamin C, Vitamin K, Folate, Magnesium, Potassium, Copper, Manganese, Niacin, Vitamin B6, Iron and Phosphorus.

This makes artichoke a good option if you want to lose weight and maintain optimum health. 

Here is a tip to store and keep artichoke fresh:

I am going to share with you a Spinach and Artichoke Dip recipe I have searched online:

Ingredients

1 teaspoon olive oil

1 medium onion (diced)

3 cloves garlic (minced)

1 (10-ounce) package frozen spinach (partially thawed; it's ok if it's still frozen)

14 ounces of frozen artichokes (partially thawed and roughly chopped; can use canned artichokes)

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese

1/2 cup sour cream

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup mozzarella cheese

1 cup cheddar slices

Salt (to taste)

Pepper (to taste)

Steps in making it

1. Gather all ingredients.

2. Pre-heat the oven to 350F.

3. Heat the olive oil in a medium-sized pot on medium heat. Add the diced onion and minced garlic and turn the heat to low. Sauté until the onions are softened and fragrant, about 5 to 10 minutes.

4. Add the spinach and artichokes to the pot and stir until they are warmed through. (Be careful not to overcook so that the spinach does not lose its beautiful green color.) 

5. Add the cream cheese, sour cream, and mayonnaise. Stir until they are completely incorporated into the spinach and artichokes. 

6. Gently fold in the cheddar cheese and 3/4 cup of the mozzarella cheese and season with salt and pepper to taste. 

7. Add the spinach and artichoke dip to a greased casserole dish.

8. When you are ready to bake it, place the dip in the oven and bake for about 20 minutes, or until hot and bubbly. The bake time will be longer if you had previously refrigerated the dip.

9. Enjoy!

5 Sensory Evaluation

1. Sight- based on my roommates it is appealing, a good appearance for the dip.

2. Smell- you can smell the cheese and sour cream mostly.

3. Taste- it is a balanced of salty and sour, the artichoke meat can mask as the meat if your a vegan i think its a good alternative.

4. Sound- doesn’t sound anything as it is soft.

5. Touch- it’s soft and gooey because of the mozzarella cheese. 

Reference:

Anatomy of Artichoke and photo. Retrieved from: https://www.oceanmist.com/anatomy-artichoke

Artichoke Dip Recipe. Retrived from: https://www.thespruceeats.com/spinach-and-artichoke-dip-4157518

Nutritional Value of Artichoke. Retrieved from: https://sites.google.com/site/knowyourvegetables/know-your-globe-artichokes/nutrition-of-artichokes

https://www.thespruceeats.com/artichoke-selection-and-storage-1807734

History Background of Artichoke. Retrieved from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thistle

Storage photo of Artichoke: 

https://www.thespruceeats.com/artichoke-selection-and-storage-1807734

Photos in Recipe are all mine. 

[chrslnsze]

What comes to your mind when you hear the word ---diet? Personally, when I hear the word diet, it gives me the idea of eating less and healthy, boring, tasteless food. But that’s just because I lack in understanding what really diet is.

Diet in definition is refers to the food and drink a person consumes daily and the mental and physical circumstances connected to eating. Other definitions are: habitual nourishment, or the kind and amount of food prescribed for a person for a special reason.

Diet is not limited to just consuming vegetables alone. There is a proper diet for every person. And there are a lot of different diets out there that people do. Today, I'll be sharing more about plant based diet. (don’t worry it’s not what you think 😉 it’s not all about being a goat lol 🐐)

source of GIF: https://giphy.com/gifs/wiggle-nishika-3d-f6VZWfSYAYjBtjN5dG

Plant-based diet 

is an eating pattern that focus on foods primarily from plants. This includes not only fruit and vegetables but also, nuts, seeds, oils, whole grains, legumes, and beans. Also, plant-based diets does not mean you don’t consume meat or dairy products. Rather, this diet is more on proportionately choosing majority of food you eat from a plant source.

(So it is totally different form being a vegetarian or vegan.)

Basically, plant based diet is about maximizing the consumption of nutrient-dense plant food and minimizing the consumption of processed food, oil, and animal product.

Here is a guide of a plant-based diet eating plate:

What is the benefit of doing a plant-based diet?

1. Less risk of disease and improved health and well-being.

- it lowers the risk of having heart disease, high-blood pressure, diabetes and obesity. Because its focus is to eat a lot of nutrient-dense plant food it is high in nutrients and less in calorie, which is a healthy option.

2. Environmental Benefits

- switching from a meat-based diet to a diet based on whole grains, fruits and vegetables reduces water and land use, lowers pollution, slows deforestation and reduces destruction of topsoil. 

-We all know that animal mass produced is bad for the environment. That being said, factory farming is one of the major causes of pollution on global scale. Thus, switching from meat to plant is good for our environment because in this way, we lessen the demand of mass production of animal like: poultry, pig, fishes etc.

Trivia: Did you know that animal waste emits methane and nitrous oxide which are a major contributors to global warming.

3. Ethical Values

- the animal lives and well being (plant-based diets still consume meat just because it is part of our biological predisposition but it does not mean that it is their top choice, remember this diet focuses on plant foods)

*personal input* I think it really depends on a person what is ethical for her/him. Like for me I think it is still ethical for people who consume meat in adequate  amount, if he/she really can’t remove meat to his/her lifestyle. I think in this sense we have different beliefs and opinion that we have to respect.

- to optimize the health of human and environment.

4. Cost

- With the proper meal plan, you could actually minimize your cost. Vegetables as we all know is cheaper than meat products. And we save money eating whole foods, aside from its nutritional values it also saves us money by being healthy and not needing medications.

- In addition, if you have a green thumb, you could plant your own vegetables. which I think is wise  and cheaper.

In my Future Culinary Profession

I don’t see any harm of incorporating plant-based food in my menu. It has a lot of health benefits and it is cost effective. It’s a win-win situation for the well being of my consumers, my financial expenditures, and the environment.

So today, I’m gonna share a Vegan recipe that I made. It is actually a common filipino dish. I am surprised actually that Vegan recipe is common and actually easy to make. 

Adobong Tofu and Beans (Tofu and French Beans stewed in Soy Sauce and Vinegar)

Ingredients:

1-2 tbsp of Vegetable Oil

3-5 cloves of Garlic

1/2 piece of Onions

1/2  cup of Soy Sauce

1/2 cup of Vinegar

1/2 cup of Water

1 small pack of French Beans

1 small Firm Tofu

1 tbsp of Sugar

TT Salt and Pepper

Procedure:

1. First cut all ingredients needed: Crush the garlic and slice them. Slice the onions thinly. Cut the tofu in cubes. Trim the beans.

2. Heat the pan with the oil and sauté the onion and garlic til aromatic. 

3. Put in the French beans, and the tofu.

4. Add some vinegar, soy sauce, and sugar.

5. Season to taste with salt and pepper. And you’re done! :D

Actually in typical filipino recipe it is cooked with pork, but since its vegan I exchange it with tofu. 😁 It is a simple dish that I enjoy eating and making. It’s very easy and convenient to cook. 

Finding the ingredients is not hard, as it locally available in the market. It’s cost effective and healthy! I would definitely do this again and maybe try adding more vegetables in it, perhaps a mushroom and some nuts.

Resources:

https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/the-right-plant-based-diet-for-you

https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/what-is-a-plant-based-diet-and-why-should-you-try-it-2018092614760

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3662288/

https://www.downtoearth.org/articles/2012-04/2793/greenest-act-plant-based-diet

https://sentientmedia.org/ethical-vegan/

Photos in the recipe is all taken by me. 

[chrslnsze]

curious about afghan cuisine...

I love the asian cuisine though familiar there is still so many food to taste and explore. So today I decided to try the Afghan Cuisine, and I ended up at KABUL EXPRESS located at Dundas St. East.

For those who don’t know: Kabul is the capital and the largest city of Afghanistan. 

The place is ok, though it says that it is a fine dining restaurant I don’t think that it is the fine dining I know. Inside is a simple tables and chair then there is a counter where you place your order. (I wasn’t able to take some photo 😅)

Anyway, I am familiar with the food of the middle eastern but I only tried few of their dishes. I heard that their Butter Chicken is one of the famous dishes that they have so I ordered the butter chicken combo and a can of sprite for $14.96 cad. 

(That is me waiting lol. The order took a while but it’s ok since I am not that hungry. 😁) Moving on, the food finally arrived!!!! 

~TADAA~

Observation:

1. Visually it looks ok for me, the colour of the food is vibrant, love the toasted naan bread and with the size portion I am well aware that’s how they serve food.

2. You can smell a hint of cinnamon in the rice. With the butter chicken, I smelled a hint of the garam masala and the butter.

3. The sauce is in the right consistency not too loose and not too thick.

4. The taste of the butter chicken is leaning on the umame flavour. Also, you could taste the buttery flavour (not to the point its offending to the mouth) which is normal as it is a butter chicken, also after eating for a while you could feel a bit of spice due to the cayenne or paprika I guess. More so, it tasted like there is a bit of coconut in it or a cream. It is very savoury in the mouth. And the chicken is tender to eat which is good. 

Overall the food is great and it reminds me with its similarity to the Bicol Express of the Philippines but without the shrimp paste and chilli. If I were to rate the food its 4/5.

I figured that my palate still has a long way to go, as I am having a hard time to really identify ingredients used in food. Also, I am glad with this experience it made me realize that food is different when you eat it quickly and when you take the time to taste and savour it. And by using my senses and being aware while eating I was actually able to appreciate the food more. This also helps my palate to be more developed or professional to help me in my culinary life.

I would definitely eat this again and try more food that is unfamiliar to me and widen my knowledge and get myself familiar with the other cuisines too.

All photo used is taken by me :D

See you on my next blog!

[chrslnsze]

cold weather of Toronto calls for a hot Kimchi-guk!!!

WELCOME TO MY BLOG #2 in Theory of Food Series: SOUPS!

Ever since the craze of Korean BBQ Restaurants I have been a fan of their food. And my favourite banchan is Kimchi. Personally, I don’t have a specific favourite when it comes to soup, but because of the cold Toronto weather, I decided to make something I like as a soup. That is why I made a Kimchi based soup, which in Korea they call Kimchi-guk. It is a fermented kimchi based soup with pork and tofu in it. The flavours and cooking technique are quite simple and well-balanced. It is healthy and warm to the feeling. In just a simple soup you get vitamins and minerals (because of the fermented kimchi) and complete protein (because of the pork and tofu). I wasn’t able to add some cucumbers as it is optional, and I wasn’t able to buy some but I think  it’s better to add also for additional nutrient and texture.

For the recipe I followed Maangchi’s recipe, she is a known Korean author and food blogger. Here is the link for her website:(https://www.maangchi.com/recipe/kimchi-guk), but I will also be posting here the recipe.

Kimchi-guk Recipe Servings: 2-3 people

Ingredients:

2 cups of chopped aged fermented kimchi

1/2 pound of pork shoulder (or pork belly) cut into bite sized pieces

2 tablespoons of hot pepper paste (I used Gochugang)

 1 tablespoon of sugar (originally it’s 1 tsp but I think it taste better with 1 tablespoon, it all depends on your personal preference)

 3- 4 cups of water (originally it’s 5 cups but I wanted it to be more concentrated)

2 stalks of chopped green onion

1 package of extra soft tofu cut in cubes.

Instructions:

1. Combine the chopped kimchi and its juice, hot pepper paste, pork, sugar in a pot. (in my case I wasn’t able to put it directly in a pot due to the availability and limited resources in our house 😅😅😅)

2. Add water and bring to boil over high heat and cook for 30 minutes.

3. Add tofu and green onions, lowering the heat to medium low. Cooking for another 10 mins. just to heat up the tofu.

4. Remove from heat and serve, best to serve it with rice!

THIS IS THE FINAL PRODUCT!!! 😊❤️

So I asked my classmates/ friends to taste it, using the 5 sensory evaluation: sight, smell, touch, taste and sound.

To summarize their thoughts:

Presentation wise they think it looks good and appealing to the eyes.

The smell is a little bit sour because of the fermented kimchi but not offending to the nose. And it has the smell of chili where in you know from the smell it's hot. 

The texture is soft because of the tofu, but at the same time giving a little bite because of the meat and the cabbage.

For the taste, it is a balanced flavour of sour and sweet and the hint of hot flavour from the hot pepper kicking in at the end.

“Soup slurp” as it is liquidy. Anyway, soups are meant to be slurped!

Overall they think that it was good and balanced.

So was I successful in making this soup?

I am confident that I did well on this one. It is simple and easy to make, for me I would definitely remake this sometime for my family. And if I have to do it differently maybe I would add cucumber or pickles or other vegetables that would go well with it, to add texture, flavour, and nutrients. But otherwise I am very happy of how it turned out.

A little take away from this experience: 

I don’t have to create something grand or use expensive ingredients for me to create a beautiful and delicious food. And I don’t need to be too technical; sometimes going with the simple technique and components are the best way to go, letting the ingredients to speak for itself, and show-off their own flavours. 

I have a newfound respect to the ingredients and cooking technique. Simple ingredients can give you a whole lot of flavours that can satisfy hungry stomachs. 

In my future culinary endeavours, I hope to be introduced more on different ingredients and be able to handle it properly, maximizing its flavour profile and use it to create something fresh and tasty to the palate.

Photocredit: All taken by myself.

Reference: https://www.maangchi.com/recipe/kimchi-guk date visited: 02/06/2020

[chrslnsze]

Nutrition. Important or Not?

As a child we grew eating food that is served by our parents or whoever is taking care of us. It didn’t matter to us then what are it’s nutritional contents. We are kids, we don’t care about its benefits to our body, all we knew is that it’s delicious, it’s good (because our parents said so) and it feels up our hungry stomachs.

Now DID YOU KNOW? According to my research, last Oct 2019 it was reported by the UNICEF, that one out of three Filipino children who’s ages under 5 yrs. old are stunted, this means that they’re too small for their age, there was a hindrance on their normal growth development. And this is because Filipino children are suffering from poor diets, inadequate nutrition, lack of knowledge in food (not only for the kids but also the adults), and there can be a lot more factors that can reason to this.

Reference: 

https://www.unicef.org/philippines/press-releases/unicef-many-children-and-adolescents-philippines-are-not-growing-healthily

Photo by: Unicef Organization- 

https://www.unicef.org/philippines/press-releases/unicef-many-children-and-adolescents-philippines-are-not-growing-healthily

I find it interesting how it goes unnoticed, and why Malnutrition happens when food is everywhere. What interest me most in my nutrition class is that there are different types of food and its nutrient density. There is no bad food exactly, it is all about balancing food intake. And knowing that there are alternatives not only in the food but also in the method of how you cook it, which will result to be more healthier option, like for example rather than frying try poaching.

I strongly believe that if we have the proper knowledge in nutrition it will help us be more healthier and fit. As a culinary student I do believe that nutrition plays an important role for us, because it is our obligation to fill the hungry stomachs; at the same time keeping consumers in good health. We don’t just cook food but we also ought to know and cook what is delicious at the same time good for the body.

Photo by: Myself. This is actually the Banana Oatmeal Pancake I made myself.

“I don’t know anything about food and nutrition!” Well there are actually sites you could visit to check out but you have to know if its credible or not.

this is an example of a credible site as it is a government website, you can see the logo of the USDA. 

and there is an actual review from someone. :)

Photo: Screenshots. choosemyplate.gov

how to know its unreliable source:

Photo: Screenshot. Sparkpeople.com

it is unreliable since it is a forum type of site, where in the source comes from different people with their different opinions or knowledge.

Thank you and I hope this will help you and inspire you to learn more about food and nutrition.

[chrslnsze]

This is my story

Hi, I’m Chrisline Sze, I am currently taking up H100 Culinary Management here at George Brown College in Canada as an International Student from the Philippines 🇵🇭 . Before I went here in Canada, my culinary journey started last 2015.

Where it all started? I was in my 4th year in Thames Int’l School in Pasig City, Philippines. My major was BS Entrepreneurship, and we are required as a business student to put up our business. For me, I didn’t dream to be an employee (that’s why I took up business course in the first place), I want to be the ‘boss’ and I love food, food makes me happy. And so, I wanted to be a restaurateur and a chef. On my 4th year in business school I lose interest in what I’m doing and knew to myself that I’m much more better in applied learning. And I guess there’s part of me who wanted to be an independent type of a person, who can live and cook for myself alone. Then, I thought about it a lot, since I do’t want to waste the money of my parents already invested in that business school. So, I talked with my parents and said I wanted to shift to different school and course, I thought they’d be mad but they listened and was very supportive to what I want. To make the long story short I enrolled in a culinary institute in Quezon City, Philippines. I was able to graduate in 2 years with a Diploma in Culinary Arts and Technology Management.

What sparked my interest in cooking and what made me realized that I wanted to be a Chef? It opened an opportunity to me to be able to have my internship locally and internationally. I grab that opportunity and went to California for a paid-internship at Terranea Resort, and I really grew there, met different chefs, and experienced and learned about the culture of different races, and was able to widen my knowledge in different flavors of food. I assessed myself, asking the question “is this all there is in Culinary?” “After this internship, what is next? Am I capable of running a restaurant on my own?” And so, here I am today, back into studying food and understanding it in a different way. I appreciate this opportunity given because I know now, that I want to cook not only for my family but for everyone. I want for people to appreciate my creation, and actually enjoy food.

I only like three things in this world, family, food and travel. Someday, I hope to be able to travel the world, taste different cuisines and enjoy it with my family. hoping that I would be able to create a restaurant where I would be able to develop a food that makes people remember about their happy days. I believe that food has memories in it. And thats what I want to be able to do, that when people taste my food they will remember a certain memory in their heart and mind, that warms them up.

I hope that this blog would be useful to me & to the people who will be reading this. I hope that we could share different opinions, tips and techniques in cooking and in life.

here are some sayings i believe in:

Don’t waste time walking on a path you’re not happy.

We go through our careers and things happen to us. Those experiences made me what I am.

-Thomas Keller

References:

Photo. Dolly Parton. Retrieve from https://images.app.goo.gl/bK5Tpckx9ZKZ3x138

Saying by Thomas Keller. Retrieve from https://medium.com/@chefchris/20-quotes-from-successful-chefs-what-they-ve-learned-from-a-career-in-the-kitchen-bfe0c775d6f7