Healthy Cookout Creations – A Multicultural Style

Posted on July 13, 2015 by Patricia Thao

The summer months are always a great time to start up the grill and invite over friends and family! The problem is, while all of the food is delicious, barbeque and all of its accoutrement add up to be a not-so-nutritious splurge. To rectify this, we’re providing you with three recipes that can help you keep the flavor you crave while eliminating the fat and calories you don’t.

Hawaiian Skewers

Hawaiian Skewers

Ingredients

1-2 packages of boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 14oz cans of pineapple chunks
2 sweet onions, any variety
½ cup Barbeque sauce
Lime juice
Wooden or metal skewers (if you’re using wooden, don’t forget to soak them in cold water!)

Directions

The beauty of this recipe is that you can make it up to a day in advance. Cut up the chicken and onions into chunks. Place the pieces in a bowl and pour the pineapple chunks, and a quarter of their juice, on top of the chicken and onions. Squeeze barbeque sauce and lime juice (to your liking) on top of ingredients and mix. Arrange the chicken, pineapple, and onion on the skewers. Refrigerate for at least an hour, then grill away!

Greek Yogurt Coleslaw

Greek Yogurt Coleslaw
Ingredients

½ cup nonfat, plain Greek yogurt
3½ tablespoons cider vinegar
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
⅛ teaspoon black pepper
16 ounces (about 6¼ cups) bagged coleslaw blend or shredded cabbage

Directions

In a small bowl, combine Greek yogurt, vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper and whisk until smooth and thoroughly combined. Place slaw blend/cabbage in a large bowl and pour Greek yogurt dressing mixture over top. Stir to coat cabbage thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate until using (preferably at least 30 minutes)

Recipe from twohealthykitchens.com

Red, White, and Blue Fruit Salad

Red, White, and Blue Fruit Salad

Ingredients

4 cups sliced strawberries
2 cups blueberries
2 cups diced watermelon
1 cup diced jicama (or apple)
1½ tablespoons lime juice
1½ tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon minced mint
⅛ teaspoon chipotle chili powder (optional)

Directions:

Place strawberries, blueberries, watermelon, and jicama in a large bowl. In a small bowl, stir together lime juice, honey, mint, and chili powder. Pour over fruit and toss to coat.

Recipe from spicysouthernkitchen.com

Credits belong to rightful owner.

Season Change – the things you need to watch for

Posted on April 13, 2015 by Patricia Thao

Spring is quickly arriving and with the new season, there are some things to do. For every season, we all need to prepare for it. Here are some ways that you can help prep yourself for the new season:

More cleaning? Sadly, yes we all need to clean our yard every year. Whether it is pulling out weeds, raking leaves, picking up pine seeds, planting new garden plants, or trimming the grass, it can help prep the yard to allow new things to grow. Also, it’ll help make the yard look cleaner.
How to properly dispose garbage and recycle? Depending on where you live, the city will tell you how to organize your recyclables and dispose garbages based on the city rules. It will help make it easier for the waste service to handle them and prevent you from paying any fees.
Experiencing warmer (or colder) weather? Time to put away your clothes that are not suited to the weather. Whether it is warm or cold weather, dress accordingly so that you can fully enjoy the warm weather (or protect yourself from the cold).
Food is a major part of the seasonal change! Check out your local farmer’s market and groceries to get fruits and veggies that are in season. As a bonus, having a garden can help you get outside, stay active, and grow your own produces!
There are many activities that you can do each season. Spring and summer is great for fishing, camping, walking, running, bicycling, swimming, and more. Fall and winter is great for harvesting, skiing, sledding, walking, and more. So it really depends on what you want to do during the season.
New season means other holidays are coming near! Usually, people get work off as well as students. It is a great way for families to celebrate with great food, entertainment, and bonding with others.
Season positions? Summer is the prime time for internships, summer jobs, and youth employment programs. It is a great way for many youths to earn a few buck while having time to spare for personal fun.

There are many things to do each season so make sure you enjoy each of them while they are still here! Have fun, stay active, and experience new things.

Daily Health Tips

Posted on April 3, 2015 by Patricia Thao

The start to a healthier lifestyle is starting out with small steps. These are the steps that can help gradually help you reach your goal. Whether you’re trying to lose weight, maintain your body weight, trying to eat healthier, or what you may want to achieve, it is better to set a plan with realistic approaches.

Switch out unhealthy foods with healthier alternatives. For example, do you have a sweet tooth for sugary drinks, snacks, deserts, and candies? It is better for you to switch it out with sweet fruits, organic juices, and have fruits become your snack.
Drinking too little of water? Maybe you don’t realize that you are not drinking enough water. Although there are tastier options out there, water is the best source of hydration for your body. After all, your body is made up about 65% of water! The recommended amount of water to drink is up to 2 liters a day.
An active lifestyle is always a plus and beneficial to your body, physically and emotionally. It helps reduce stress, burn extra calories, and maintain your body. It doesn’t mean that you have to work out according to a schedule. But trying to incorporate work out sessions (even if it it’s short or long) into your daily life is a great start.
Dieting isn’t always the answer to an healthier lifestyle. Everyone’s body are different biologically and sometimes, you lose or gain weight with a diet plan. Make sure to experiment and find out what works best for you.
Getting enough sleep is a very important part of the body regulation and recovery. If you find yourself being hunger many times, having mood swings, gaining weight, stressing out, and more, then maybe you need a break. Putting stress on your body by not getting enough sleep results in more stress. So make sure to sleep on a time schedule (if possible) and take naps whenever you are exhausted.

Remember, it’s not our external appearances that defines us, but what we think about ourselves internally. Don’t value yourself based upon what you see, it’s about how you respect and know that you’re worth. It is important to maintain one’s lifestyle physically and emotionally.

NRC Recognizes National Nutrition Month

Posted on March 6, 2015 by Patricia Thao

March is recognized as national nutrition month! This month focuses on healthy eating and living. The goal is encourage people to maintain a balance lifestyle between exercising and eating. Obesity is still a problem in the U.S. as less people are being active and consuming more than they should. Obesity affects many different kinds of people from all sort of age groups.

If you are still keeping your new year’s resolution or looking for simple ways to be healthier, here are some quick tips onto how:

Avoid fast food companies, junk food, and anything that is high in calories. Although the price might be cheaper, but what you are getting in return is more calories than necessary. Look for foods with simple ingredients, low calories, and organic is always a plus!
Eat seasonal fruits and veggies. The best to consume fruits and veggies is when they are in their season. Most likely that fruits and veggies will be cheaper at this time so take advantage of it!
“Replace fats like bacon grease and butter with olive or canola oil” – http://reachcoalition.org/
Cook your own food. It doesn’t get any better than knowing what is and how much is in your food. Whether it’s fried chicken, a burger, or a stir fry dish, it’s a lot healthier to eat compared to eating out or ordering fast food.
Work out as much as you can or maintain a exercise schedule. Even a little exercise can help you lose calories and destress. If you are able to keep up your own schedule, mixing up exercise methods can help you avoid boredom and still be productive.

References and pictures are from: http://reachcoalition.org/

Follow the fight against obesity at CDCObesity and theweightofthenation.

Eating Traditional is Healthy!

Posted on January 28, 2015 by Patricia Thao

Asian Americans who grew up in the U.S. have been influenced over their lifetime of how to eat healthy. The American diet is shown in a food pyramid that doesn’t really represent or incorporate foods from other cultures. Many people choose to mix in both diet and switch other things. But did you know that many Asian cultures actually have a healthy diet too? Here’s an example of what many Asian foods consist of.

So what are the main differences between the two diets?

1. One difference between Western and Eastern diet is at the bottom of the pyramid. Westerns tend to eat more grains, oats, and more. While the Eastern diet consist majorly of rice, noodles, and tofu. A great change to make in your diet is to eat 100% whole grain/wheat breads and switching from white rice to brown rice can be a healthier choice.

2. In many Asian dishes, there is usually vegetables/fruits mixed in or as side dishes. In Japan, even fruits can be seen as deserts and served to children after dinner. Western dishes don’t usually include side dishes and whenever there is some, they are usually considered a full entree plate. It’s just more common for Asians to eat vegetables and fruits on a daily basis due to the different types of cuisines and culture.

3. Some people eat meat daily, rarely, and sometimes, always. The point is that everyone eats meat differently and at a different rate. In many cultures, meat was perceived as a luxury food and only available to the middle to rich classes. But in these days, it is something that everyone can have easy access to and it has become affordable.

4. One of the biggest differences between the American diet compared to Eastern diet is that the Eastern diet consist less processed food than the American diet. It could because of culture differences since America was built upon the slogan of ‘bigger and faster things can produce, the better’. In the U.S., it is much harder to find organic or fresh produces that are not being sent of to large groceries or being very expensive. In Eastern cultures, foods are usually home cooked with organic or local produces from their markets. It could because that they do have better access to fresh produces like fruits, veggies, fishes, and more.

Today’s Health Topic: Diarrhea

Posted on November 18, 2014 by Patricia Thao

According to www.mayoclinic.com, diarrhea is a “loose, watery stools that occur more frequently than usual”. In the old days, diarrhea was known to be able to cause death of people due to dehydration. But nowadays, it is a common health issue that is less threatening under normal conditions. Diarrhea could result because of many reasonings such as :

Expired food/food poisoning that may require your body to force out impurities and waste
Diet that could cause a imbalance in your digestive system
Medications/surgery/bacteria/virus/sickness/parasites that may cause you to have diarrhea as a side effect

Here are the symptoms of diarrhea:

Experience of multiple of watery loose stools (little waste to water)
Stomach bloating/pain/cramps
Dehydration
Sweating
Fever usually can accompany it or/and cause it to occur more

At this point, diarrhea would eventually go away in a day. If the symptoms worsen and last to the second day such as:

Vomiting
Severe sweating
Blood in stool
Fever with high body temperature of 102 F (39 C)

Make sure to contact for emergency help because it could be serious concern. Afterwards, remember to monitor what you eat after experiencing diarrhea so that it doesn’t reoccur. If you had mild diarrhea, drink water/sports water (contain salt and sugar, which your body flushed out) and snack or have smaller meals. If you had mild to severe diarrhea, make sure to drink water little by little and stick to a bland diet that contains no dairy, alcohol, high food saturated, artificial flavors/food dye, non-processed, non-organic, and hard to digest food.

Eat & Cater Your Own Healthy Diet

Posted on October 13, 2014 by Patricia Thao

There’s a saying that “you are what you eat”. Often time, people don’t realize that part of being healthy is eating healthy and it is in our human nature to want to eat yummy delicious food. Unhealthy food that are fried, loaded with fat, sodium, and have too much sugar can cause you to feel sick inside and out. That is why it isn’t ideal to eat out often or eat junk food on a daily basis because it does affect your health. Also, eating a limited range of foods doesn’t give you proper nutrients, it can contribute to obesity, and body related diseases. So it is up to you to determine how your body can become more healthy or unhealthy. It doesn’t take much, but for you to realize what you’re putting in your body.

Tip 1: Cook your own food. Even if your food isn’t organic, you can wash it multiple times and cook it properly. Also, you know what you’re eating, how much you’re consuming, and what you put in it. So you would know what’s in it compared to eating something that was prepared unseen.

Tip 2: Balance your eating habits. It’s ideal to have at least 3 proper meals a day, but eating snacks in between breakfast, lunch, and dinner can actually benefit you. It’s because you won’t feel the need to eat more when you’re less hungry and your body will crave less. You may consume more calories here and there, but remember these are snacks, not a small meal. So just be careful of what you are snacking on.

Tip 3: Have varieties in your dishes. This means that keep your diet full of different fruits, veggies, carbs, proteins, and such. If you’re stuck on a certain carb like bread or rice, make sure to mix it up and add some color. You’ll enjoy eating something more with colors and textures.

Tip 4: Cut down on eating junk food. We all have some cravings at some point, but we can always try to decrease having them slowly. If you’re eating a donut today, maybe wait another 3 or 4 days to indulge again. It’s all about that balance you want to find and keep up.

Top 5: Drink water most of the time. If not, all the time. We all know pop, juices, mochas, frappes, and those other drinks have high levels of sugar. We can have them once in a while, but the body doesn’t need all that unhealthy sugar. Water can promote better circulation of fluids in the body as well as keep you hydrated throughout the day. Remember that our body does contain 50-60% of water. That’s a lot of water require to make your body function properly.

Bicultural Healthy Living

A Balanced Approach to a Bicultural Healthy Life

Tag Archives: food