The Paleo Report - Day One #6 Fermented Stuff and Curry Soup
Argh.
Seems like I say that a lot these days. Just getting into the role, maybe? Argh. Me paleo guy. Eat meat. Meat awful so eat offal.
OK, that was bad.
But the truth is I hate the texture of meat so skin, fat, blood and tendons are great to me. But that is another story.
I am trying to wrap my brain around fermented stuff. I've drunk kombucha before, and I love sauerkraut. Never liked beer or wine, though I can manage port if I put mulling spices or herbs in it.
Apparently there are good sources of bacteria in fermented stuff - probiotics. There are even probiotics in dirt. Yeah, no. With my luck I'll eat a spider and blow up like a balloon. But since tofu, which is fermented, is from beans, I can't have that? And I can't have natto, which is supposed to be one of the best sources of vitamin K? No fair.
I have tried ginger beer today. Argh. It's hot. At least this stuff, Fentiman's ginger beer, is. And then I read the label.
WTH is fermented ginger extract? This was combined with carbonated water to make the drink. No wonder it was hot. This stuff also had juniper, yarrow and something I've never heard of before - speedwell. Luckily it was on sale at Sacks, the local liquidators - not quite the loss a bottle of kombucha would be. My favorite kombucha costs $3.79 for a 16 ounce bottle. The nice thing about it is that since I have so little tolerance for alcohol, it gets me mildly intoxicated. Just enough to say, "Oh, that's nice." Not enough to impair driving.
BTW, speedwell is supposed to be good for things. Supposedly it has a taste like watercress. It's also a weed, and I suspect we have some growing in the lawn put in by the guys who destroyed our driveway while putting in a new water system.
Between the fermented stuff (about 2 bottles of kombucha a week) and daily double doses of probiotics in pill form, I think things actually are getting better. I use accuflora because it was on sale, I tried it and it made a difference. It put Monty to sleep. Unfortunately shopping at Sacks means I'll have to get more online. No clue which store it came from. I got some fancy refrigerated stuff from Hoover's and I couldn't tell other than feeling a little ill.
At any rate, between the probiotics, aloe vera juice and the DGL, it seems like something is making a difference. I ate candy yesterday and there were limited ill effects, and today I fed Monty a GF bagel and he loved it but then went back to sleep in less than 12 hours. Normally he's up all night and half of the next day. My weight has stabilized. No change today.
I made curry soup on Thursday and left it in the crock pot, on and adding things like tendon and coconut milk - the kind in the carton, not the can. The stuff in the carton I froze into cubes and am using in the soup. They don't add crap to the stuff in the carton, which can be had organic. The curry paste is a violation, but Monty ignored it. There was half a pork chop in there and initially some bones, but I took the bones out and most of the pork is eaten. The only bad thing about tendon is that it's glue. That only happens if you cook it until it's near dissolving. The texture I like best is slightly harder than that. I used kitchen scissors to cut it and forgot to rinse them - they were stuck tight and had to be soaked for hours to get them apart. Glued some paper and the layers separated when we tried the bond. I'm going to try wood next.
I put in
a heaping teaspoon of curry paste (results in very spicy)
12 ouces of coconut water
1/2 cup frozen peppers and onion mix (yup, being lazy)
pork bones
1 pork chop (or half a large one)
I simmered the peppers and onions and curry paste for a few minutes on high
Then I added the coconut water, bones and part of the pork chop that was attached.
Turned it down and left it for about 4 hours.
Took out the bones and added the other part of the pork chop (it was cooked already)
Ate some two hours later.
Added water and some fresh onions and left it overnight
Added tendons (also already cooked with onions and shitake mushrooms)
Ate some more.
Added a half teaspoon curry paste, coconut milk and tendons (as above)
I'm leaving on low while I sleep and will have it for breakfast tomorrow, along with another cheat - liverwurst.
Took some 5-HTP in service of restoring my sleep cycle. I wonder if I will sleep 6 hours like the first time?