Category Archives: Matcha Tea

Healthy Eating…The bonus? You may lose a few kilos… Anti-inflammatory foods…

Welcome to Tuesdays healthy eating post…It is a tad cooler here in the mornings and the fan is staying firmly off my shawl is around my shoulders albeit the sun is shining…I can hear you… I know many of you are experiencing extremely cold weather so never fear the recipes here today will warm the cockles of your heart…

Here I am clocking up the digits so I am going to have a little corner for food which will help alongside a healthy diet to help keep those wrinkles at bay… and hold back the sands of time…

shar pei puppy

It is also a known fact that if you eat half, walk double, laugh triple and love without measure that YOU will live well and longer!

I know that some health conditions are caused all or partly by inflammation and doctors may advise following an Anti-inflammatory Diet.

On hearing these words many people just freak and think what! It is going to be expensive, it will be foods I don’t like, I am going to have to eat different food to the rest of my family… all manner of thoughts…

It is Healthy Eating no more no less…It is knowing which foods cause inflammation and which foods help calm inflammation…Pure and simple…

Let’s have a look, shall we? Break it down…

Firstly reassess your lifestyle as stress plays a huge part in this…Chill out!

relaxed reading kindle lady

Exercise goes without saying...It doesn’t need to mean expensive gym fees…Walking, riding a bike, using your bottom stair for step ups, using cans of beans to get those arms working, a hula hoop, a skipping rope, cleaning those windows, play ball with the kid’s, if they have a trampoline need I say more…Unleash that fun side…

girl trampoline

Many little bursts of exercise through the day can work wonders.

What to eat?

Fewer highly processed foods...You knew I was going to say that …Didn’t you? Look on the bright side it will save you money…

Spices...Turmeric contains curcumin, garlic a wonderful bulb which adds flavour to foods and helps curb inflammation, ginger may reduce muscle pain and soreness and its anti-inflammatory properties can help with Osteoarthritis.

Reduce caffeine as in  tea and coffee drink and replace with

  • Chicory Coffee
  • Matcha Tea….more info here 
  • Golden Milk. Golden milk is a rich, caffeine-free substitute for coffee. …
  • Lemon Water. …
  • Chai Tea. …
  • Rooibos Tea. … I know this as Redbush Tea and love it!

Red wine has known anti-inflammatory properties…There seem to be 2 camps on this consume or avoid…My take try moderation…

Oily Fish for that Omega 3… Salmon, tuna and sardines are all good…Just know your source and that it is sustainable fish.

Olive oil and avocados…

Eat plenty of fruit and vegetables…Spinach and kale are both rich in Vitamin K and help curb inflammation as do broccoli and cabbage…Cherries, raspberries and blackberries whose colour is a type of pigment which helps inflammation. Go for colour and variety.

Whole grains…Oatmeal, whole-wheat bread, Brown Rice all may help lower inflammation.

Beans contain so much fibre and are loaded with antioxidants to help reduce inflammation.

Nuts just a handful a day… Almonds and walnuts…

Now, what to ditch… Or cut down gradually…You will notice the difference guaranteed!

  • Refined sugars and starches
  • Sodas and other highly sweetened drinks
  • Hugh fat and processed meats
  • Fried Foods
  • Transfats

beach desert island

None of these should come as a surprise to you unless you have lived on a desert island with no radio, newspapers or the internet for the last 30 years…

After following this you should notice a difference in any joint pain, stiffness, swollen joints or redness…

To give you a start here is a day’s food plan starting with breakfast.

Porridge and a lovely berry compote made with frozen berries just cook some and reduce down…Too sour add some honey.. or as I often have…

muesli-3186256_1920 porridge fruit

Pineapple Smoothie

Full of fibre and protein, which makes people feel fuller for longer.

Mango and Pineapple Protein Drink 1

Pineapple contains high levels of bromelain, which has anti-inflammatory properties. Bromelain supplements are an emerging market due to its anti-inflammatory properties.

Lunch… A lovely bowl of soup

squash-pumpkin- soup

  •  1 small squash, peeled and deseeded. Cut into pieces.
  •  1 brown onion, peeled and cut up
  •  1 carrot washed and cut
  •  4 cloves of garlic finely chopped
  •  Piece fresh ginger finely chopped
  •  3 Broccoli stalks, peeled and cubed (I always save the broccoli stalks) for when I make soup. Waste not, want not and I think ideal for soups for flavour.
  •  1-1½ litres fresh home-made vegetable stock

Let’s Cook!
Heat a glug of olive oil and gently cook garlic ginger and onion to just soften and not colour.
Add other vegetables gradually and cook while stirring for about 5 minutes, then add the stock and seasoning.
Simmer gently for about an hour or until vegetables are lovely and soft and remove from heat. I let it cool down before I blend.
This makes a lovely vegetable soup but I also use it as a base and freeze in portions.
When I reheat I add little-dried chilli flakes and 1 or 2 tbsp of coconut milk.
It just gives it a creamy flavour.
Sometimes I add crushed lemongrass stalk and a little fish sauce, it depends on how I feel, it is a versatile soup base so play with it, have fun.
Add some curry powder, a squeeze or 2 of lime juice or coriander, whatever you fancy. Enjoy!

Dinner… Salmon with Greens and Cauliflower rice.

Salmon Trout my way…

salmon with herbs and chilli steamed

  • 180 gm  Trout or Salmon fillet.

For Topping:

  • 1 spring Onion finely chopped.
  • 2/3 stems Coriander chopped finely.. I use the stem as well.
  • 1 red birds eye chilli finely chopped.
  • 1 tbsp Fish Sauce.
  • A cheek of lime.

Mix all ingredients together.

Put fish on foil and spoon topping on. I reserve some of the toppings to add when serving. Seal foil and put in the oven on 180 for 10/15 mins until cooked.

Saute some kale or spring greens and serve with Cauliflower rice… recipe here

These are just some ideas of foods to eat and cook with if you need to follow an anti-inflammatory diet…Not so daunting is it?

Many of these foods are foods which you may have in your fridge/larder or buy already.

Anti- Ageing Food Corner:

Let’s start with a treat…Dark Chocolate ( Not milk) is loaded with nutrients which can have a positive effect on your health. Made from the seed of the Cocoa Tree it is loaded with antioxidants…Studies show that it can improve your health and we are talking proper chocolate here..Not your cheap stuff but one with a high cocoa content dark chocolate with 70% or higher cocoa content.is rich in fibre, iron, magnesium, copper, manganese and a few other minerals just apply the moderation bit as it does contain sugar but the fats are mostly saturated and monounsaturated, with small amounts of polyunsaturated fat.

dark chocolate stacked

A couple of squares a day my father swore by it and had his two squares with his afternoon tea so go on treat your self to a good bar of dark chocolate and some of them now have chilli and chilli and chocolate is good…

Well, that’s my not so little spiel over…I am happy that you joined me today.

For delicious healthy recipes???

I hope you thought so xxx

About Carol Taylor:

Enjoying life in The Land Of Smiles I am having so much fun researching, finding new, authentic recipes both Thai and International to share with you. New recipes gleaned from those who I have met on my travels or are just passing through and stopped for a while. I hope you enjoy them.

I love shopping at the local markets, finding fresh, natural ingredients, new strange fruits and vegetable ones I have never seen or cooked with. I am generally the only European person and attract much attention and I love to try what I am offered and when I smile and say Aroy or Saab as it is here in the north I am met with much smiling.

Some of my recipes may not be in line with traditional ingredients and methods of cooking but are recipes I know and have become to love and maybe if you dare to try you will too. You will always get more than just a recipe from me as I love to research and find out what other properties the ingredients I use contain to improve our health and wellbeing.

The environment is also something I am passionate about and there will be more on this on my blog this year

Exciting for me hence the title of my blog, Retired No One Told Me! I am having a wonderful ride and don’t want to get off, so if you wish to follow me on my adventures, then welcome! I hope you enjoy the ride also and if it encourages you to take a step into the unknown or untried, you know you want to…….Then, I will be happy!

Carol is a contributor to the Phuket Island Writers Anthology: https://www.amazon.com/Phuket-Island-Writers-Anthology-Stories-ebook/dp/B00RU5IYNS

Connect to Carol

Blog: https://carolcooks2.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheRealCarolT
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/carol.taylor.1422

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/caroltaylor56/pins/

Thank you once again for reading this post I hope you all have a great week xx

Matcha or Green Tea??

Matcha or Green Tea

My last post had many comments … so thank you…It did, however, raise the question of what is the difference between Green Tea and Matcha powdered tea…

What is Green Tea?

Like all teas, it is brewed from the dried leaves of the Camellia Senensis but it is the level of oxidation in the initial production of tea which determines the type of tea.

Green Tea drinking set-3057645_640

Green tea is produced from unoxidized leaves which means it goes through fewer processes thus it has more antioxidants and polyphenols than it’s sister black tea.

Green Tea has been used for many thousands of years in traditional Chinese and Indian medicines.

The amount of research into the medicinal properties of green tea is mind-blowing and very interesting but this post is about Taste and the difference between Green Tea and Matcha powdered tea…

Like lots of other products, the Green Tea market is a very lucrative one. It can be bought ready made to drink on the go… BUT just because it says Green Tea somewhere on the label …Please don’t be fooled…

If it is sitting on the shelf among the other sodas you can bet your life it is loaded with sugars and the like…

Here I only promote good teas…no nasties..just green tea… Nuff said!

So what does Green Tea taste like?

The most common comment I hear and I have also been guilty of this…It’s bitter!

I now know why?

It is only bitter because either your tea is low-grade aka cheap or it has not been brewed correctly,  brew with cooler water and don’t leave the leaves in the tea once it has brewed. Once you have that bitter taste no amount of sugar or milk will get rid of it….

It is only since living here that I have learnt the art of brewing a nice green tea but no matter where you live the amount of information online is astounding and with a little effort you can benefit from an amazing cup of beautiful green tea.

Cup of green tea-1887042_640

How to brew Green Tea.

Makes 1 cup.

Ingredients:

6 ounces of water, a little more if you are pre-warming your cup or teapot.

About 1 tsp of or 2 grams.

Let’s brew….Get that on to boil and get your cup or teapot.

Your water ideally should be 160F -180F so bring your kettle to the boil and let it cool it should be just short of boiling. Obviously, if you have a temp thingy that is great.

Pre-warm your cup or pot ( my mum) always used to…I don’t well if it is a pot I do but my cup…I know I should and I will…promise.

Measure out your tea leaves set to one side pour your water into your cup and add the tea leaves then cover your cup..let it steep for 1 -3 minutes if your tea is small-leaved it will be quicker…I just set my kitchen timer to start with but practice makes perfect and no more bitter green tea…

Once it is ready…Enjoy!

When you use a new brand of tea it takes a little adjustment in amounts of tea or steeping time to get your perfect cuppa… But when you do a sense of achievement.

I spent so many years really disliking green tea and only drinking because it was ” good” for me….Since I have learned how to brew it correctly…I can say hand on heart…I am a convert…

What is Matcha Tea?matcha-tea-with name

Matcha tea is nutritionally equal to 10 cups of Green Tea and is said to have 137 x more antioxidants. It is easy to use and cook with.

Matcha means powdered tea and it is made from tea leaves which are specially grown for Matcha powdered tea the leaves are kept covered during growth which aids the production of more chlorophyll. Hence the lovely green colour of Matcha powdered tea. It is also only the leaves which are ground the stems and veins are removed which is why it grinds down into a very fine powder.

Traditionally it is made by mixing about a tsp of powder with half a cup of hot but not boiling water and then whisked with a bamboo brush until it is frothy. Doesn’t that brush look cute? I always get a feeling of calm when I just look at these photos…

bamboo brush matcha-2042569_640

Matcha powdered tea comes in two grades…

Culinary Grade which is mainly used for cooking and baking.

Grown to taste slightly bitter is why the cooking grade Matcha powder combines well with many foods, milk-based drinks, smoothies, ice cream, beautiful sponge cakes and much more.

Ceremonial grade Matcha Tea powder is the one used in traditional Japanese Tea Ceremonies.

The crème de la crème of tea. It is grown specifically for drinking and can command very high prices for a superior tea. spends the last few weeks of its growth cycle in the cool shade of bamboo mats, sometimes several layers of them, to keep the sunlight out.

Then, only the top one or two leaves of each plant are hand-picked and allowed to dry, usually indoors, again away from any direct sunlight. That’s why this grade of matcha powdered tea is so green and so full of nutrients.

My Conclusion:

I have drunk some very nice Green Teas since living here in Thailand the choice is far bigger than when I was in the UK and I now know how to brew it correctly..it is little wonder that mine was so bitter…Lesson learnt..lol

Matcha powdered tea is another level and nutritionally more beneficial so if it because you want the greatest nutrition value from your tea then it has to be Matcha powdered tea…

If you do a lot of baking using the culinary-grade Matcha powdered tea which you can also drink it makes sense to use culinary Matcha tea powder as its use is two-fold.

The ceremonial grade is probably out of my price range for tea so I would drink that when I was out and wanted a treat…

Green tea suits me very well on a day-to-day basis as I only drink 1 cup daily….

I would say based on that it is down to each person’s individual circumstance but as with anything I always advise moderation.

I hope you have enjoyed this post if you have please hit the share buttons…xxx

Want to see more from me???? I am a crazy English lady with a quirky sense of humour…Still, want to see more from me???

Connect to Carol( Moi)

Blog: https://blondieaka.wordpress.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheRealCarolT

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/carol.taylor.1422

Pinterest ( 1): https://www.pinterest.com/caroltaylor56/pins/

Have a great weekend everyone I hope the weather is kind to you…Until next time xxx