This page is going to be deeper and more philosphical. How food is processed, and the mindset that goes into it is one of the most crucial aspect. overall I strongly believe in “Natural Processing”. Following Wu Wei Principles (Working within the flow of nature). Along side an understanding of what bacteria is, and what it needs to survive. (Food, Temperature, Acididty, and moisture), and using nature to maintain the quality of everything processed.

Nature of food

At its core food is what creates, and maintains us. From energy levels, to composing every cell in our body. There is nothing more important than the food we eat, but more important is the perspective that food is energy in solid form. Treating food as an energy that can be shaped and molded to best suit our needs has fundamentally shifted the way I look at cooking. Heat is merely the rate of vibration. Cooking is the process of taking things nature provides mixing them together and raising thier vibration to the point that they become more etheral and are able to merge with everything else present. then lowering that vibration allowing all ingrediants to merge together into a new whole.

FIRE & ICE [Temperature]

“Frozen food” is often perceived as something of lower quality. however it is not freezing itself thats the issue, its the process that goes into freezing…..or lack there of. There are 2 main methods of breaking the cellular structure of a veggie. Either fire or ice. When water freezes it expands breaking the cellular structure, and locking everything into place. This is a highly chaotic method and the shift in texture is highly telling. Cooking on the other hand gets the molecules vibrating at such a high rate they break down. From a heated state it can be further adjusted (Seasoned, mixed with other veggies etc) and its configuration of energy can be set to whatever desired state, then after that adjustment freezing to lock the energies in place until your ready to tap into those energies by using fire to reawaken the frozen product.

As an example, you can peel a carrot, and throw it in the freezer, However you can also take that peeled carrot, boil it, mash it, season it and then freeze it. The quality of the cooked then frozen carrot will maintain its prefrozen properties much better then a raw frozen carrot could ever dream of.

Oil & Vinegar [Moisture]

Salt, Oil, and Vinegar (vinaigrettes) are great natural ways to preserve food by creating barriers for pathogenic bacteria. Bacteria need moisture to reproduce, while oil blocks water. Thus you can use oil to create a barrier around produce both locking in moisture, while seperating any outside force from utilizing that moisture for contamination. Why stop there? Vinegar kills bacteria. More specifically certain types of good bacteria when they ferment they create Acetic Acid which is the main compound in vinegar that kills Pathogenic bacteria. The good bacteria (Probiotics) create vinegar that disrupts bad bacteria on a cellular level. Most vinegar is then pastureized to kill off those probiotics however living vinegar is not pasturized and still has those good bacteria that are great for your health (Similar to a Kombucha or other fermented foods like kim chi).

2 examples, the 1st Cabbage. You can slice Cabbage and Marinade it in a Living vinaigrette. Cabbage traditionally ferments using Lactic Acid that breaks down the carbs in the cabbage, creating sauerkraut. However the Acetic acid disrupts the lactic Acid’s envrionment. while Acetic Acid needs methonal (From Fruit Pectin) to reproduce. As such Living vinegar on cabbage creates a protective layer that stops the cabbage from breaking down further, while also providing extra nutritional value.

Rice is another appliction for living vinegar. Cooked rice is a breeding ground for bacteria, and is generally not considered safe for consumption, after a day. Vinegar kills that bacteria, and that space that was once a huge health hazard, now becomes a place where only the beneficial acetic acid bacteria can thrive, until you ingest it and your gut gets the boost from the influx of probiotics. Think of sushi. Sushi rice is short grain rice with Vinegar, Sugar, and salt….Cold rice with vinegar, coating raw fish. This is why when I cook a kitchari (Rice and Lentils) after it cools before putting it in the fridge I will always finish it off with some living vinegar.

NOTE: I can not find any hard evidence/research that backs this up. this is purely hypothetical, and based on personal experience, and the feedback from my products. If anyone has more concrete details on the proccesses of living vinegar and its effects on reversing potential health hazards I would love more information.

DRY Goods [Moisture]

High Alkaline Foods [Acidity]

MORE TO COME……