daal and murghi are not barabar

[ahmadjee]

I feel that in most desi circles I have come across, eating murghi (or meat in general) is still considered a status issue. Or at least good eats. I know a number of uncles who eat only meat salan. While I think meat is a great source of protein and its really good for us, eating it almost every day is not good. In parties I see the meat entrees vanish in minutes while the subzi, like bhindi, bangan etc, is left untouched. Eating salad is like a fashion statement more than a health choice, that too, mostly among women (Ok, maybe I am going too far) But its hard to deny, even statistically that we, as in humans, are eating a lot more meat per person than ever before in history.

Looking back, I have read that among most hunter gatherers, meat was a festival or occasional thing, mostly it was veggies and fruits and while the hygiene standards and due to lack of medical advances their over all health was probably worse than ours, they probably didn’t have dietary issues. Even in the known documented history, eating meat everyday was not a average man’s diet and poor would hardly get it. Its only in the recent century that we have domesticated enough animals and made their reproduction, slaughter, processing and marketing so streamlined that its cheaper to eat meat than veggies.

Socioeconomic issues aside, from a health prospective our bodies are not evolved to eat that much meat. And so we see so many diet related health issues. Same is the case with sweets. Its only recent that so many different kind of sweets are available in such abundance, in the past eating something sweet meant finding a sweet fruit.

Point of the thread is that we should make an effort to diversify our food, even if it means eating non-Desi food and try to eat natural, rather than processed food, regardless of our weight issues. I have friends who eat meat, sweets and other junk and are still fit because they exercise a lot. Good for them but what I warn them is that unless they expect to be that active in their old age, they need to mold their eating habits while they can.

Disclaimer: This thread is not an FYI … I am expecting criticism citing diets like Atkins and other junk.

[Mr_Fraudia]

Re: daal and murghi are not barabar

bigger problem than meat is simple carbs. in old days ppl had meat, veggies, fruits, nuts and some grain, not the highly refined stuff that is presentthese days, and also crap like high fructose corn syrup.

and more than anything it was about portion control and physical activity.

[Diva4U]

Re: daal and murghi are not barabar

I agree with you ahmadjee. Pakistanis love their meat and potatoes. No doubt. I have recently started cooking with a little vegan attitude. For example made cauliflower & tofu curry today. I think branching out and even being creative with vegetables can bring good flavour and food to the table. Desis, pls try new things !! Meat was surely not everyones bread and butter back in the day but now its a norm to reach out to the meat items on the table first.

Fraudia :- portion control was ALWAYS there because there were always more people than food to go around, especially in bigger families. Now, its the opposite.

[Mr_Fraudia]

Re: daal and murghi are not barabar

diva thats what I am saying, we dont control portion size, we have too much saturated fat and preservatives, too much meat with hormones and antibiotics, too many pesticides on our produce.

but you know what, even when it comes to vegetables, its not just what we eat but how we cook it. there is a ton of difference between steamed brocolli and carrots versus, ghee fried palak paneer :D

[Sara516]

Re: daal and murghi are not barabar

i never saw ti as a "status" issue, eating chicken and meat and stuff.. ill eat veggies, but not as a full meal, as a side definitely, but deff not desi veggies (unless its bhindi and sometimes daal)

[shweetdreamz]

Re: daal and murghi are not barabar

actually if u follow a paleolithic diet......these people ate veggies and meat and fruits/nuts....what they did NOT eat was grains , dairy products like cheese, alchoholic beverages, starches, legumes, refined sugars and salt.
These hunters-gatherers had no instances of cancer, obesity and other diseases.....they were taller, bigger and leaner.
the absence of grains from their diet meant that they did not have to rely on vitamin supplements like we do today because grains contain "phytic acid" ...an agent that creates mineral deficiency in the human body.

[Diva4U]

Re: daal and murghi are not barabar

@Fraudz

diva thats what I am saying, we dont control portion size, we have too much saturated fat and preservatives, too much meat with hormones and antibiotics, too many pesticides on our produce.

but you know what, even when it comes to vegetables, its not just what we eat but how we cook it. there is a ton of difference between steamed brocolli and carrots versus, ghee fried palak paneer

I agree with you bro !! 100 percent correct.

[confused]

Re: daal and murghi are not barabar

i agree.. human body can only have SO much of meat.. coming from the DESI background, where getting a sugar-problem after 40 and heart problem after 60 is common like headaches, i stopped eating desserts... takes a few people and a lot of complaining to make me have small portion of a birthday cake..

i would VERY MUCH LIKE to follow shweet's example.. but its tough .. over the period of 1 year, i've stopped smoking cigs, minimized drinking soda, switched to pop, said no to grease, WHICH WAS THE basis of lots of fights at gathering as i would only eat salads/leaves and anything not oily/fried..

i try to randomize my food intake with no patterns.. few constants: minimum oil/no oil/grease stir fry if have to, no fried stuff.. lots of "GREEN" .. variety of fruits..

daal and murghi not barabar - for 6 months, i used to take boiled chicken and non-tarka-lagi-daal for 2 meals @work .. BELIEVE ME I used to feel MORE energetic than ever before in life..

food and exercise go hand in hand - what u eat, only lets u go SO far.. the way 'age' ages, if u were running 1 mile at age 25, u gotta run 2 miles at age 30 and along with time progression, ur workout should get tougher, and longer..

meaning to stay healthy in an OPTIMUM CONDITION, ** at age 40, u should be doing 4-5miles a session**. doable, NOT impossible.. but to get to that stage, gotta be doing it ALL YOUR LIFE..

pick a sport, tennis, squash, swimming, these ones are the BEST .. u dont wanna move too much, pick table tennis.. but do SOMETHING .. food has to be combined WITH physical activities..

religious practices - so there are practices of eating 3 portions, leaving 1 empty. works great because this keeps ur metabolism high ..and doesnt let fat get stored and cause blood pressure problem, artery clogage.

prophet also used to add vinegar in his diet - VERY good practice.. lil portions of vinegar help food breakdown, digest and flow easily in body.

english people - apart from all the jokes about their food, used to had BIGGEST meal of the day as breakfast, lil portion of tea in evening, and a medium-sized supper at like sunset.. so while going for bed, their tummies were empty, meaning no fat was stored.. but everything got burnt at the end of the day ..

** eating is not just WHAT to eat, but when to eat and most important HOW MUCH to eat**

[shweetdreamz]

Re: daal and murghi are not barabar

@confused

WHICH WAS THE basis of lots of fights at gathering as i would only eat salads/leaves and anything not oily/fried..

Very true. This is one of the biggest obstacles in switching your diet to a healthier one. Constant bickering from family members and relatives and pepople forcing you to eat the food they made otherwise their hearts will be broken. one of my cousins went vegetarian four years ago. for four years every gathering she went to she would bring her own tiny lunch box and i would find it offensive. but now i understand her. she went from seriously obese to perfect figure over the course of three years.

@confused

english people - apart from all the jokes about their food, used to had BIGGEST meal of the day as breakfast, lil portion of tea in evening, and a medium-sized supper at like sunset.. so while going for bed, their tummies were empty, meaning no fat was stored.. but everything got burnt at the end of the day ..

the same with chinese people.....many of them dont eat after 6 or 8 pm.

Furthermore if you look at the dietary habits of the Okinawan pople in Japan (Okinawans live the longest healthiest lives among all the societies in the world) you'll see they DO eat meat (fish, chicken, beef and even pork) but in very small portions. it is a fraction of what the average american eats everyday. In addition Okinawans eat alot of seaweed but only close to a teaspoon of tofu (much unlike Americans who have made it a habit to eat huge chunks of fried tofu percieving it to be miracle food) what the okinawan do not eat much of...again....is dairy/processed foods/sugars/salts. over-all their diet is rich in plant-based foods and low in fat.

Ofcourse diet also depends to a great deal on individual and environmental needs. the eskimos on the north pole living in the extreme cold need a high fat diet and can burn the fat in the blubber meat they eat. most people living in mountain ranges can afford to eat high cholesterol diets. doesnt mean we city-dwellers who wake up sit our butts in front of a PC all day can afford to do the same.