A few weeks ago I decided, on a whim, to try the slow carb diet. So far I’m pretty impressed.
All of these things are noticeably improved:
Here’s a summary of some other findings and results.
Continue reading “SCD update: so far so good”I’m going to give the slow carb diet (SCD) a shot for a while and see how it goes. The “slow carb diet” (SCD) is summarized in this pdf from Tim Ferriss. The basic rules are:
If you’re in search of an easy, healthy, quick midday meal look no further than your trusty rice cooker. I’ve recently discovered that this humble appliance is more versatile than its name implies and it’s opened up a simple route to better eating.
For a while I was on a stir fry kick and my lunch was often some combo of sautéed veggies, beans and sometimes leftover rice or other grain if I had it from another meal.
I still love the stir fry meal in general. Lots of whole foods and great flavors, plus a hot lunch is always nice. It’s not too difficult and is pretty healthy but it requires a bit more time in the kitchen supervising the stove.
Earlier this summer we picked up a new, larger, rice cooker but I only just found it buried in the cabinets. When I took it out to try it on some farro I flipped through the instruction book and it mentioned using the rice cooker to make other meals like stews.
If it could make a stew, why not try throwing some other stuff in with my farrow? Could the rice cooker cook my “stir fry” for me while I was off doing something else?
To find out I chucked in whatever random veggies I could find in the fridge, a can of pinto beans, garlic and a few spices and let it go. Twenty minutes later I had a ready-to-serve farrow bowl and a newfound appreciation for the rice cooker!
Here’s the very simple ingredients list and steps to put this together. Keep in mind there are no real rules here… add or subtract to your heart’s content.
That’s it—about 5 minutes of prep and you can walk away for the next 15-40 (depending on how much stuff you put in and what kind of grain), and when you come back your meal is ready!
It makes several servings so you could actually make this once and have a few lunches ready to go. Each serving probably costs about $1 for ingredients.
Enjoy!
Over the last six months or so I’ve been trying to design my diet to be more climate friendly.
My first, minimally informed, effort was to go vegetarian. This worked out fine and I enjoyed learning some new recipes. I noticed that I was eating a lot more dairy, though, and wondered what the impact of that was.
I did some research and found that some meats are actually better choices than some non-meat protein sources. Of course, vegan is the gold standard for climate-friendly diets, but I’m not prepared to go there.
One of the best resources I’ve found is this New York Times page. I feel like they made it specifically for me as it answers exactly the questions I had. The information is presented clearly and is easily digestible (sorry).
From the article:
The world’s food system is responsible for about one-quarter of the planet-warming greenhouse gases that humans generate each year. That includes raising and harvesting all the plants, animals and animal products we eat — beef, chicken, fish, milk, lentils, kale, corn and more — as well as processing, packaging and shipping food to markets all over the world. If you eat food, you’re part of this system.
New York Times
A couple of surprising findings:
So my cheddar intake is way down (oh so sad) and I’ve learned that yes, you can buy frozen scallops—and they’re pretty good!
I think the larger point is that there are a variety of eating choices that can help reduce your impact on climate change. Resources like this make it easier to make informed decisions.
Matt Copeland 