A raw food diet consists of 50 to 95 percent raw foods. Raw foods are rich in natural enzymes essential for proper digestion. Heating food beyond 118 degrees F destroys these enzymes. If you eat mostly cooked foods, your body has to worker harder at digestion, which may leave you feeling routinely tired, sick or bloated, according to Neutraceuticals World. You can help your body digest foods more easily and completely by learning to incorporate raw foods at each meal and to substitute raw foods for more familiar cooked meals.
Learn to Sprout
To increase the amount of live enzymes in your diet, try to eat fresh sprouts everyday. Sprouts are versatile enough to go with just about every meal. Eat them as a side dish with a little salt, lemon or salad dressing or use them to make a hearty main-dish salad. Good choices include mung beans, lentils, adzuki beans and chickpeas. If you are making a gradual transition to a raw food diet, add them to whatever else you're eating. Raw sprouts go well with just about any savory dish. Try them with soup, stir fry, chili, burgers, sandwiches, pasta, rice or eggs.
Discover Raw Noodles
Replace cooked noodles with a raw alternative such as kelp noodles or homemade vegetable noodles. Kelp noodles are available in Asian markets and online. Zucchini is the most common choice for homemade raw noodles, but you may also try cucumber, turnip or winter squash. To make vegetable noodles, invest in a spiral slicer such as World Cuisine's tri-blade slicer, available online for about $35. You can also make raw fettuccine-style noodles with a carrot peeler.
Instead of Bread
Make sandwich wraps with leafy green vegetables instead of bread or tortillas. Use collard greens to make raw or half-raw burritos. Use radicchio leaves to make mini sandwiches or tacos. Other good choices for wrapping raw or cooked fillings include napa cabbage, lacinato kale and Romaine lettuce.
Replace Rice
Instead of cooked rice, serve raw cauliflower or turnips that have been pulsed in the food processor into a rice-like consistency. Serve with stew or Indian curries for a half-raw meal or toss with other vegetables to make a salad.
Add Vegetables
Add raw chopped vegetables to the meals you already prepare or try replacing cooked vegetables with raw ones in dishes such as scrambled eggs, soups, stir fry, pasta sauces, burritos and tacos. If, for example, you typically sauté vegetables to make a veggie scramble, try adding raw vegetables once the eggs are cooked. Doing this will help you become accustomed to consuming more raw vegetables.
Make Raw Sauces
Look for raw sauces and dressings to pour over vegetables, pasta, rice or eggs or to serve with sandwiches, burgers, burritos or chips. Popular examples include pesto, salsa, guacamole and tahini sauce. To make a raw marinara sauce, simply toss fresh tomatoes into a food processor along with garlic, herbs, olive oil and soaked sun-dried tomatoes.
Use Nuts
Raw food enthusiasts convert nuts into many different, and often elaborate, meals. Nuts and seeds provide a foundation for sandwich spreads, dips, mock mashed potatoes, raw soups, raw breads and chili. You can also use nuts to make dairy-free cheeses, milks and smoothies.
References
- Nutraceuticals World; Rohit Medhekar; The Past, Present and Future of Enzymes; June 2007
- Raw Food Made Easy; Jennifer Cornbleet; 2005
- Ani's Raw Food Kitchen; Ani Phyo; 2007
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