is Asian food always safe ?

[luxalol]

I am new here! recently i started being interested in healthy food especially Asian food doing some research i discovered some interesting statistics that show that Asian populations have a lower incidence of chronic diseases such as cancer so I decided to give interest to this kind of food. few weeks ago I found some posts distinguishing between healthy asian food such yumyasia.com/2019/08/health... and unhealthy asian food newsweek.com/unhealthy-chin... how can i distinguish between both especially i am newbie in the area?

[Cooper27 Administrator]

The Chinese food you've linked to is made with lots of sugar filled ingredients, like ketchups, and involves frying in unhealthy oils. Healthy Asian meals include lots more veggies, stir fried with natural flavourings (like chilli and ginger).

I think when you look at the ingredients and cooking method, you'll know what's healthy and what's not. Just look for natural ingredients, and minimal sugar.

[luxalol in reply to Cooper27]

hi cooper27 thank for your interaction, i noticed that asian healthy food is mainly made of vegetables which i personally don't like that much. Do you have any idea about some fried asian meals or meat based asian meals that keeps the healthiness property?

[Activity2004 Administrator in reply to luxalol]

Do you eat/like chicken?

[luxalol in reply to Activity2004]

chicken yeaah !

[Cooper27 Administrator in reply to luxalol]

Sorry, I forgot to respond to this! I like stir frys. Here are some good recipes if you like: bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/col...

I personally quite like veg, so my stir frys are full of the stuff maybe start with some veg that you like (like onion, peppers and green beans) and try adding something new every time you make one? Broccoli and baby sweet corn go well, and bean sprouts. Some people like pineapple in them too. I also use freshly squeezed lemon juice or orange juice for flavour

I've heard it takes an average of 12 times eating something before you grow to like it. I started as a really fussy eater, but knowing that you need to try it more than once to decide if you like it, I gradually expanded the foods I tried, cooking small amounts at first, and increasing once I didn't hate them anymore. Peppers are a big one for me - I used to hate them, but now I eat about 3 a week!

[Want2BHappy3]

Becarful with MSG.

[Matt2584]

When I think of Asian food, not only do I think of prawn toast, chicken chow mein with chicken balls and soy sauce but I sushi comes straight to mind as well.

I avoid soy/soya cos it’s not good for you apparently.

I know I mentioned soy sauce but that is something I might indulge in in every once in a while.

Sushi is fermented soy and won’t go near it.

But saying this, sushi did good for Tobey Maguire to beef himself up for the Spider-man movies in the early 2000s :).

According to him he ate a lot of sushi.

But that’s just it though, it might be good for beefing you up but not be so good on your health.

I try to stay away from soy after I found out it is GMO.

[Cooper27 Administrator in reply to Matt2584]

Sushi doesn't need to contain soya, so you don't have to avoid it. Stripped right back, it's just intended to be rice and protein, it's just that a lot of shop stuff uses soya beans as the protein.

You can make sushi with rice and meat/fish or rice and vegetables and no soya beans, if you like, and use a soya sauce substitute if you prefer. If buying shop stuff, just look for stuff without soya beans and don't use the soya sauce.

[Matt2584 in reply to Cooper27]

Interesting. I read once, and didn’t look largely into it, but it said sushi was made up of fermented soybeans.

Could this be more disinformation being spread through the internet? Sounds like it.

So maybe this explains why it worked well for Tobey Maguire. As far as I know, he is still alive and well :).

Anyhow, thanks for the info on making sushi more healthier.

I don’t think think I will be trying it soon as sushi has never really appealed to me... and that’s just by looking at it :).

They say “Looks can be deceiving” though :).

[Cooper27 Administrator in reply to Matt2584]

I think it's because they traditionally serve it with fermented soya sauce and can stuff it with soya beans. It's not entirely misinformation, but not always correct either!

Toby Maguire probably did have some soya sauce though I think it can be ok to eat in small quantities

[Matt2584 in reply to Cooper27]

After looking at one of my emails, it just reminded me.

I mixed up sushi with tofu.

Tofu is the white block that is made up of fermented soy, right?

And sushi is rice wrapped in seaweed. They look like little tires.

I always get them 2 mixed up.

Tobey Maguire used to live on a diet of tofu to play the part of Spider-man.

[Cooper27 Administrator in reply to Matt2584]

That makes more sense! Yes, tofu is soya, and I think tempeh is fermented soya.

A lot of athletes eat lots of sushi - I think I remember hearing Andy Murray eats a lot of it in training, because it's a good way to get the carbs he needs

[alchemilla12 in reply to Matt2584]

are you not thinking of tempeh which is fermented soyabeans? tofu isnt fermented it's just compressed soya beans.

soya is only GMO if it isnt organic

[Matt2584 in reply to alchemilla12]

I read somewhere that tofu was fermented soybeans, that was all.

But as you know, there is a lot of truth and a lot of fraudulence, even in written work/articles and so on.

So what I read could have been right or it could have been wrong but at the end of the day, tofu has soy beans in it :).

[alchemilla12 in reply to Matt2584]

for goodness sake why does everything have to come down to fake and why are you always so defensive if someone points out you're wrong! I know you dont care but tofu is NOT fermented - truth

[luxalol]

I guess its just a tradeoff between taste and healthiness :/

[andyswarbs in reply to luxalol]

The meals I cook are considered by people who eat them to be the most flavourful. They're also always colourful with a range of textures. They are also complete powerhouses of nutrition with a heavy focus on being anti inflammatory and proven cancer beating properties. They are not calorie dense and so you can eat your fill at each and every meal and still lose weight.

[luxalol in reply to andyswarbs]

hi andy kindly do you have any link to share with me here ? including your recipes ? thanks a lot !