Everything You Need to Know about Prawns

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By Walter Trupp, Chef

The history of the prawn as a food source is an interesting but short one, as it was not a big part of the human diet until the 1950s, when the discovery of deep-water prawns in the Gulf of Mexico had a dramatic impact on the world of cooking. Before this, only the smaller cold-water prawns of the north Atlantic had been fished, mainly around Greenland and Scandinavia.

Today, approximately 30 different species of prawn are commercially fished. The largest, best-quality crustaceans are found in the coldest waters of the Pacific and the south Atlantic, down to a depth of about 800 metres. With their sweet, nutty flavour, they can attract higher prices than lobsters. The variety most commonly offered in Australia is the black tiger prawn, which is both caught in the wild and farmed. King prawns and leader prawns are the most expensive wild varieties, while banana, endeavour, red spot king and red tail prawns are generally cheaper.

Prawns are reproduction machines, with females producing up to 80,000 eggs yielding 3000 baby prawns at one time. The youngsters grow quickly and moult their shells at the monthly full moon, and some of these offspring reach a length of 35 centimetres. Because prawns reproduce so strongly, they do not fall into the category of unsustainable seafood, although the methods used to catch them result in huge amounts of by-catch (refers to the animals that are ‘mistakenly’ caught in nets along with the targeted species). Some commercial fishing operations use specialised nets known as turtle excluder devices, which allow these marine creatures to escape—if this is the case, it will be stated on the packaging of frozen prawns. Promisingly, a new type of net is being trialled in Spencer Gulf off South Australia that apparently results in no by-catch at all.

Farmed versus wild prawns

My opinion is that you should only eat wild, sustainably fished prawns, and here are some reasons why.

A few years ago, there was a ban in Australia on the importation of farmed prawns, which are bred in enormous water tanks here and in the Americas, as well as in the rice fields of tropical Asian countries. This was because they were said to be one of the most chemically polluted foods you can eat. The irony of this story is that acceptable Australian-farmed prawns that had been sent to Asia for processing (peeling etc.) were then not allowed back into the country, which makes you wonder why they weren’t just banned as well to begin with.

At the time, I came to know a local quarantine officer and I asked him to explain the ban. He told me that highly toxic chemicals such as antifungal/antifoaming agents were being used by cheaply run prawn farms to stop the tanks or rice fields from foaming up, which is what happens when prawns are forced to live in extremely cramped conditions. The quarantine officer also mentioned the use of sodium metabisulphite (or E223) to prevent the oxidisation and discolouration of the prawn shells. According to Asthma Australia, this agent is one of the most common chemical triggers for asthma, and has also been linked to cases of dermatitis and hay fever. Another preservative that can legally be added to prawns is 4-hexylresorcinol (E586), which is suspected of causing bowel irritation and harming organs such as the heart and liver.

All prawns contain at least one of the aforementioned preservatives, so I suggest that you always wash green (uncooked) prawns thoroughly under running water before peeling and cooking them, to get rid of any chemicals. I also suggest that, before buying uncooked prawns, rub some of them softly between your fingers—if they feel soapy (just imagine having some soap on your fingers), then they are covered with preservatives. Cooked prawns, on the other hand, often contain few or even no preservatives; I talk more about precooked prawns a little later on.

Getting back to the ban, importers quickly found a loophole they could exploit. The ban did not apply to marinated prawns, so companies simply added a bit of garlic, vegetable oil etc. to their product and so managed to get around the regulation. The whole thing quickly turned into a farce, with consumers never being told exactly what had happened.

Another reason why farmed prawns can be considered one of the dirtiest foods we eat is that the creatures are fed foodstuffs made mostly from fish and soy flours, similar to what is given to poultry and farmed fish. Some prawn farms also use large quantities of antibiotics, hormones and other chemicals such as food colouring—added to cooked prawns to give them a natural-looking bright red colour—which in many cases have serious adverse effects on local waterways, not to mention the prawns themselves. And because these farms are often located around agricultural operations, the prawns can be exposed to chemical run-off, which leads to the accumulation of heavy metals in their bodies.

This does not mean that all prawn farms are horrible, nor can it be said that farmed prawns from any particular country are worse (or better) than those that come from another country. It really comes down to the individual grower—Crystal Bay prawns based outside Port Douglas in Queensland, for example, grow a premium and clean product.

Buying and defrosting prawns

So how can you tell the difference between wild and farmed prawns? Firstly, there will be a huge price difference, as wild prawns often cost up to three times as much as farmed ones. Secondly, you will be left in no doubt as to which is the more natural product when you compare flavour and texture. Wild prawns are best described as crunchy, nutty, sweet and clean-tasting, whereas badly farmed prawns will remind you of well-chewed gum, lacking texture and with a soapy/plastic flavour.

When you are shopping for prawns, also keep in mind that size does not really matter. Generally, the larger prawns are more expensive simply because they are easier to peel and cook. Some people say they have a better texture and taste, but I don’t share this view. The taste will depend more on the prawn’s freshness and how you cook it. That said, it is true, as I mentioned earlier, that the larger prawns from deeper ocean waters are generally of better quality.

The catch date is an interesting issue. As prawn fishing seasons have short catch windows, you will often find that the pricey prawns you buy at Christmas are actually several weeks or months old. You can save yourself a bit of money by buying frozen prawns well before the festive season. Legally, frozen prawns can sit in the retailer’s freezer for up to 18 months. Also pay attention to the other information on the packaging, which can include details of whether a sustainable or non-sustainable catching method was used.

Wild prawns are mostly offered frozen—even the best restaurants in the world often have to use frozen product. This is because prawn trawlers often stay out at sea for long periods of time, until they have caught their quotas or filled their holds, and they immediately freeze their catch so it won’t spoil. This makes it extremely unlikely that you will ever be offered fresh wild prawns. Rather, any unfrozen wild prawns that you buy will already have been defrosted, which means you should not freeze them again. My advice is that if you aren’t going to eat the prawns straight away, buy them frozen and then defrost them yourself—you will end up with a much fresher product.

The secret to great-tasting prawns lies in how they have been defrosted. It is not a good idea to thaw prawns at room temperature as the outer cell tissue will defrost first and encourage the growth of bacteria, as well as drying the shell out. The best method is to cover the prawns and let them defrost slowly in your fridge over a period of between 36 to 48 hours. Of course, this is a very long time, and I know from my own experience that this is hardly ever feasible at home. So as an alternative, I suggest that to speed up the process, you wash the prawns really well under lukewarm water and then spread them over an oven tray and turn them over once or twice to stop them from drying out. This all takes around 2 to 3 hours and is perfectly safe.

You will find that a wild prawn will turn blackish within a few hours of being washed, but this is not really a problem. This is due to a lack of preservatives and does not mean the crustacean has gone ‘off’. The discolouration will more or less disappear once you cook the prawn.

A more unconventional but extremely effective method of defrosting is to wash and dry frozen prawns, then boil or roast them while they are still frozen. This minimises the defrosting process but means that you have to increase the cooking time to compensate.

Peeling and cooking prawns

Did you ever wonder where the real flavour of a prawn is hidden? It is in the head and shell and blossoms during cooking. If you’ve ever eaten a lobster or prawn bisque (a soup made only from shells), you will have experienced the flavour potential of crustacean shells.

This is why you should not peel prawns before cooking them. And in case you need further convincing, just imagine being spared the tedious job of peeling all those prawns yourself! After serving prawns, I always find it quite amusing when suddenly the whole table goes silent as everyone focuses on peeling them, usually followed by the sound of people licking that delicious shell taste off their fingers. If you really do not want to serve your prawns unpeeled, then strip off most of the tail shell—break the shell where the little feet sit, as it’s at its softest there—but leave the tail end and the head untouched. This means you will not lose too much flavour during the cooking process, and it’s also a nice way of presenting the prawns.

Here’s an extra tip: do not wash peeled prawn meat, whether it’s raw or uncooked, as you’ll only end up washing away a lot of the meat’s flavour. We don’t do this with steaks, but for some reason we think it’s okay to do it with fish fillets and peeled prawns!

As for deveining, it’s good to do this with larger prawns. Their veins can harden during cooking and often contain lots of poo and sand, which can be quite disgusting when eaten—a full vein can add a very unpleasant flavour to your prawn experience! The best way to devein a prawn is to straighten it out and make a little incision on the top side from just below the head down to the tail. Then get hold of the digestive tract with the tip of a small knife and carefully lift the vein out. (As an aside, wild prawns are hardly ever peeled and deveined, while farmed prawns are almost always peeled and deveined.)

A word on precooked prawns. These can be a bit of a lottery. They are often overcooked, and if frozen for too long they can end up being rubbery or chewy when reheated, with a blunt flavour. Precooked prawns are really only suitable for consumption when they are cold.

When roasting or otherwise cooking green (raw) prawns, you need to remember that overexposure to heat can make the meat dry and chewy. Perfectly cooked prawn meat will have a glossy centre—think about medium-cooked steak—and a bright, shiny colour. This will guarantee the uniquely delicious and crunchy ‘prawn bite’.

How to boil prawns

The following recipe is for approximately 20 large frozen prawns.

Method:

Bring 4 litres of water to the boil and season with a teaspoon of salt.

Add the frozen prawns and cover the pan.

Bring to the boil again as quickly as possible, then turn the heat straight off.

Let the prawns sit in the water for 18–20 minutes, then strain and peel or serve whole.

Note: if you use defrosted prawns, decrease the resting time in water to 4–5 minutes. Cooked prawns will last for up to three days when stored in the fridge.

How to grill frozen prawns

Method:

Wash the ice coating off the frozen prawns and dry them on kitchen paper.

Warm some butter or coconut oil on medium heat.

Add the prawns and cook for 3 minutes on each side.

Cover the pan and let it sit for 10 minutes.

Move the prawns onto a warm plate, add some aromatics (garlic, chilli etc.) to the pan and cook until ready.

Put the prawns back into the pan together with fresh herbs or liquids like coconut milk, honey, palm sugar, sherry vinegar etc., and reheat under constant stirring.

Prawns glazed with honey and sweet sherry

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Completion time: 30 minutes

Makes: 4 serves

Ingredients:

1 kg prawns

3 tablespoons butter

1 large shallot, finely chopped

1 carrot, cut brunoise

1 white leek, cut brunoise

2 tablespoons honey

1 cup sweet sherry wine (or port wine)

¼ cup sherry vinegar (or white balsamic vinegar)

3–4 tablespoons double cream

salt and pepper for seasoning

2 tablespoons parsley, chopped

steamed rice

Method:

Clean the prawns, leaving the tails on.

Heat 1 tablespoon butter.

Add shallot, carrot and leek and cook for 2–3 minutes.

Add prawns and roast until cooked through.

Remove prawns from pan, add honey, wine and vinegar, and reduce to a glaze.

Once a thick consistency is achieved, add remaining butter and cream and bring to the boil.

Add prawns and glaze with sauce.

Season, sprinkle with parsley and serve with steamed rice.

For more on the selection and preparation of prawns, as well as other seafood, have a look at Trupps’ Wholefood Kitchen, our new book on eating well, living well and feeling great.

Searching for a Natural Lifestyle in a Big City

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By Dorota Trupp, Nutritionist

Living in a big city like Melbourne can be a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, you have the incredible culture, professional opportunities and comfort, while on the other, you have the traffic, pollution and commercialism.

As Walter and I both come from the European countryside, naturally there is a part of us that dearly misses the farm experience: the animals, the harvests, the simple beauty of nature. Fortunately, over the years we have found many ways of enjoying what Melbourne has to offer. We have been able to lessen our homesickness by spending time at terrific places in the Victorian countryside, with its amazing towns and villages, and at city-based sites such as the Collingwood Children’s Farm and the organic farm at CERES (the Centre for Education & Research in Environmental Strategies) in Brunswick East.

Another way in which we reconnect with nature is by going shopping for healthy, unprocessed food. We enjoy wandering around the stalls at the Queen Victoria, Prahran and South Melbourne markets, as well as the farmers market at the Collingwood Children’s Farm. Apart from offering fantastically fresh produce, these places evoke wonderful memories of harvest time and celebration. As we are advocates of organic/biodynamic produce, we also shop in small organic groceries such as Organic Wholefoods on Smith Street, Fitzroy—they have a second shop on Lygon Street in Brunswick East—where not only can you find tremendously well-priced produce, but just as importantly, the sort of friendly atmosphere that we remember from our visits to small fruit and vegetable shops back in Europe.

We are glad that we have discovered so many beautiful places in Melbourne, in particular because now we can take our toddler Sol to them and let him appreciate nature for its loveliness. Trying to de-stress and rest while running your own business can be hard, as it’s easy to create work for yourself just about anytime. But we have learned to ‘let go’ of our work and to value our family time. Our business brings us enormous satisfaction and fulfilment, but our family comes first and we strive to spend all of our free moments together.

Walter and I don’t hesitate to take a couple of hours off from our busy schedule during the week and walk around places like the city-based farms with our son, nor do we mind sacrificing some of our social life to allow for more quality family time. We head outdoors as often as possible, and we make our trips involve animals, beaches, gardens and parks whenever we can. We hope to give Sol some beautiful childhood memories, so that when he is older he can remember the close contact he has had with animals, and the parents who have always been there for him.

Reconnecting with nature on a regular basis leaves us feeling energised, relaxed and balanced. As for our work, we have found that loads of fresh air and physical activity has the added bonus of filling our heads with new ideas on how to improve our business!

Perspectives on Diets: What World Eats

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By Dorota Trupp, Nutritionist

It is interesting what dietary conclusions we can come up with when we look at the remarkable work of Peter Menzel and Faith D’Aluisio in their photographic study Hungry Planet: What the World Eats. Just have a look at the images below—it is astonishing work. These pictures say much more than words can describe.

In the financially well-off Western world, we have an abundance of food to choose from and more food knowledge than ever before, as well as access to free health information. Yet look at what we eat! No wonder we are suffering from an epidemic of so-called ‘civilised diseases’.

As a health professional, when I look at the photos below, there’s no doubt in my mind that nutrition has a direct effect on health. How interesting it is that the poorest of countries have the highest intake of nutritionally dense whole foods, whereas the more-developed countries have the lowest, preferring nutritionally depleted foods. And when it comes to kilojoule intake, it is just the opposite.

What I also find interesting about our modern Western food culture is how the obvious escapes us. We focus on drastic dietary decisions such as ‘Shall I go gluten-free?’ or ‘Shall I eat fruit or not?’ or ‘Shall I have dairy or not?’. More and more of us are turning to dramatic diets in order to restore our health. But short-term dietary solutions are unlikely to lead to long-term health and wellbeing.

Somehow, we often overlook the simple fact that we have so many health problems because we have been eating processed, nutritionally poor and kilojoule-rich foods for far too long—in the case of many families, for generations. What we really should be focusing on is freeing our diet of processed foods for a period of time that is long enough for us to fully adapt to a better way of eating.

Fortunately, many of us are now recognising that this kind of basic lifestyle change is necessary. We have started to question the food industry and seek help from dietitians, health advocates and nutritionists. And we are willing to learn from the dietary choices made by societies such as those shown in the pictures bellow.

Long-lasting health is best achieved when you eat unprocessed and clean whole foods that you have prepared yourself. It makes sense to return to your kitchen and relearn the art of preparing wholesome meals for yourself and your family, just as other people all around the world are doing right now.

United States: The Caven family of California

Food expenditure for one week: $159.18
Favorite foods: beef stew, berry yogurt sundae, clam chowder, ice cream

Great Britain: The Bainton family of Cllingbourne Ducis

Food expenditure for one week: 155.54 British Pounds or $253.15
Favorite foods: avocado, mayonnaise sandwich, prawn cocktail, chocolate fudge cake with cream

Germany: The Melander family of Bargteheide

Food expenditure for one week: 375.39 Euros or $500.07
Favorite foods: fried potatoes with onions, bacon and herring, fried noodles with eggs and cheese, pizza, vanilla pudding

Mexico: The Casales family of Cuernavaca

Food expenditure for one week: 1,862.78 Mexican Pesos or $189.09
Favorite foods: pizza, crab, pasta, chicken

United States: The Revis family of North Carolina

Food expenditure for one week: $341.98
Favorite foods: spaghetti, potatoes, sesame chicken

Kuwait: The Al Haggan family of Kuwait City

Food expenditure for one week: 63.63 dinar or $221.45 Family recipe: Chicken biryani with basmati rice

China: The Dong family of Beijing

Food expenditure for one week: 1,233.76 Yuan or $155.06

Favorite foods: fried shredded pork with sweet and sour sauce

Poland: The Sobczynscy family of Konstancin-Jeziorna

Food expenditure for one week: 582.48 Zlotys or $151.27
Family recipe: Pig’s knuckles with carrots, celery and parsnips

Egypt: The Ahmed family of Cairo

Food expenditure for one week: 387.85 Egyptian Pounds or $68.53
Family recipe: Okra and mutton

Ecuador: The Ayme family of Tingo

Food expenditure for one week: $31.55
Family recipe: Potato soup with cabbage

Bhutan: The Namgay family of Shingkhey Village

Food expenditure for one week: 224.93 ngultrum or $5.03
Family recipe: Mushroom, cheese and pork

Mongolia: The Batsuuri family of Ulaanbaatar

Food expenditure for one week: 41,985.85 togrogs or $40.02
Family recipe: Mutton dumplings

Chad: The Aboubakar family of Breidjing Camp

Food expenditure for one week: 685 CFA Francs or $1.23
Favorite foods: soup with fresh sheep meat

Japan: The Ukita family of Kodaira City

Food expenditure for one week: 37,699 Yen or $317.25
Favorite foods: sashimi, fruit, cake, potato chips

Italy: The Manzo family of Sicily

Food expenditure for one week: 214.36 Euros or $260.11
Favorite foods: fish, pasta with ragu, hot dogs, frozen fish sticks

Mali: The Natomos of Kouakourou

Food expenditure for one week: 17,670 francs or $26.39
Family Recipe: Natomo Family Rice Dish

Guatemala:The Mendozas of Todos SantosFood expenditure for one week: 573 Quetzales or $75.70
Family Recipe: Turkey Stew and Susana Perez Matias’s Sheep Soup
References:
Peter Menzel and Faith D’Aluisio, “Hungry Planet: What the World Eats“, 2005,
Pictures sourced from:  http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1645016_1408120,00.html

Fennel, orange and Spanish onion salad with goat milk fetta

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By Walter Trupp, chef

This wonderful salad goes well with seafood, fish and any meat.

For a different flavour hit, replace the fetta with a mild blue cheese or ricotta, while radicchio or witlof can be used instead of rocked.

Preperation time: 15 minutes

Servws 4 as an entree

Ingredients: 

3 oranges

1 large fennel bulb

1 red onion

15-20 black of green olives

10-15 mint leaves

2-3 handfuls rocket

juice of 1 lemon

8 tablespoon seed mustard

8 tablespoons olive oil

salt and paper

150 g goat milk fetta cheese

Method: 

Peel 2 oranges. Using a sharp knife, cut off the top and bottom of each fruit, then place flat side down onto a cutting board. Cut downwards, removing the peel in sections, ensuring that no pith remains.

Cut orange crossways into 4-6 thick slices and put to one side.

Pick green tops off fennel very thing and place into a bowl.

Slice onion in half, cut into 1-2 mm wedges and add to bowl.

Add olives, mint leaves and rocket to bowl.

Squeeze lemon and remaining orange, and place juice in a separate bowl.

Add mustard and olive oil to juice, disk and season with salt and pepper.

Add orange slices to the dressing and mix.

Break fetta into small pieces and add to fennel and mix.

Combine with orange mix, place onto a serving dish and garnish with fennel tops and pepper.

For more healthy salads recipes refer to our cookbook “Trupps’ Wholefood Kitchen” available in stores across Australia.

10 Steps to improve yourself as a cook

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By Walter Trupp, Chef

Train your Taste

One of the most important keys to being a successful cook is to understand and learn when something tastes right.

At the beginning of your journey with food and its preparation, almost everything new to you will taste amazing. Learning about food is easy, and the process can be sped up by paying attention to the food you consume every day and by asking as many questions as possible. Go out and try different types and styles of food at markets, food festivals, cooking schools, exhibitions and restaurants. Experiment at home via the Internet, books and magazines. Cooking at home, in my opinion, is the most exiting adventure; as your inner alchemist can explore countless new cooking methods and techniques, flavour combinations, textures and presentation styles.

During my career, I went through stages where I would favour particular ingredients or cooking techniques. Often with a single ingredient, I would try countless methods of preparation and cooking, as well as flavour combinations.

I naturally gained knowledge and confidence by exploring markets and talking to people in the food industry like producers, processors, farmers and importers. To this day I still explore, ask and (most importantly) listen when it comes to food. I also constantly train my taste memories through conscious tasting and chewing (almost similar to wine tasting), where I explore the differences between the elements in a dish and also ask myself questions such as:

Are the textures and flavours in harmony, or do they disturb one another?

Does the dish work as the perfect ‘all together’, or do the ingredients not marry with each other all that well?

Is there something missing, or is there too much of a certain ingredient that overpowers the other flavours?

Is the dish incomplete, half-finished or overworked?

And if you’re pairing wine or beer, does your choice compliment your dish in its textures and flavour?

Recipes

Before you try a new recipe, study and analyse it beforehand by visualising the cooking process in your mind.

Start with easy and simple methods and presentations using recipes from well-established cookbook authors, as they tend to be more accurate.

At first glance, most recipes appear quite simple, although in many cases it is the preparation and the cooking technique that makes them tricky.

The more recipes you study and practice, the more knowledge you will gain on different ways of approaching an ingredient or cuisine and be able to incorporate any changes to a recipe if you consider it more suitable. So after a while, you will be able to develop your own style and learn to follow your intuition.

Be hard on yourself and don’t fall for compliments from people you cook for, as you are the best person to judge the quality of your style and technique in the dishes you produce. Be in harmony with what you cook, as it is a reflection of your knowledge, experience, belief and talent.

Do not avoid procedures that you are afraid of or don’t appeal, as they might turn out to be a mayor key in achieving results, and may even become one of your favorites. Remember that the more you try, the more knowledge and confidence you will gain. Over time, your cooking will become more relaxed and be an accurate reflection of yourself, not to mention a great topic of conversation.

Speed

When cooking a dish, coordinate cooking times so that each element is perfect.

Consider that each ingredient has a perfect cooking point and avoid unnecessary techniques and preparations. On the other hand, follow all the necessary techniques and preparation methods you need to optimise your dish.

If you plan to serve an impressive menu where each dish consists of several elements, it pays to be well prepared. Choose dishes that you are confident with and that you can cook and plate quickly and at the same time. Never try new dishes on your guests, as a disaster is almost guaranteed.

Try to practice every day to improve your speed and technique and work as quickly as possible. Don’t just prepare food; keep your working environment clean and organised by washing your dirty dishes as you go. Plan at least one step ahead; as this will keep you out of trouble and train your skills in speed and organisation. Tools should be kept within a reachable distance. Nothing is worse than running around the kitchen looking for things, while in the meantime your fish, for example, overcooks.

When it finally comes to plating the food, avoid unnecessary presentations or garnishes and leave the dish natural. Learn to love and enjoy the plating process, where you face the final result of your work, as it is probably the most critical moment for a passionate cook.

Start cooking for small numbers of guests and increase slowly as your confidence grows. If you stress too much during the plating process (because of too many guests or overly complicated food), you will lose the enjoyment of it all.

Accept eventual mistakes and try to avoid them the next time. It is only through mistakes that you will learn, improve and understand the product and it’s characteristics better.

 

Equipment

Only purchase kitchen equipment that you really need. Your kitchenware should allow you to use modern and traditional preparation and cooking methods to achieve a satisfying end product.

When using appliances, first think if it is worthwhile to do so, as sometimes you might end up chopping something in a blender that you could have done by hand in the same amount of time. Not to mention that you end up spending more time cleaning and dismantling the food processor!

Realistically, you don’t need much electrical equipment. A pasta machine, mortar, and blender is more than enough, but great additions would be a juicer, grain mill and flaker and maybe an ice cream maker for frozen fruit purees.

Food processors for chopping herbs, vegetables or mincing meat and fish are not all that necessary at home. Your money is better invested in some good working tools like a wooden chopping board, glass or metal bowls and containers, some good knifes and most importantly, a good stove and oven. Avoid purchasing plastic utensils.

Produce

Study produce and use it seasonally. This gives you the best available quality at the cheapest price.

Low quality ingredients turn even the best chef into an average cook. On the other hand, good quality products can help the average cook produce fantastic dishes.

With dry goods, don’t only trust brand names. It pays to study quality regulations and labeling guidelines, so that you do not to end up with expensive products that aren’t exactly what they claim to be (some brands that produce balsamic vinegar, truffle oil etc are guilty of this).

For fresh produce, only trust yourself and do your own quality control check when purchasing. Ask plenty of questions and if you are satisfied with their answers and the quality of the ingredient, add this seller to your network of ‘trusted suppliers’. This network helps when you pre-order rare products, where an established relationship almost always guarantees quality.

Spend time speaking with a trusted seller and gain an understanding of their opinions or concerns about what they’re selling (or not selling!). He or she will often have a greater understanding of produce and their inherent characteristics, and this gives you a better idea of when and how to best use them. Keep in mind that this should not stop you from doing your own research about individual ingredients.

Maintain your own personal recipe book (which could one day be published) and take notes on everything from how a certain ingredient cooks, to combinations and seasonality. This is probably the most important tool of all.

Though it might sound like hard work, once you have your system up and running, you will know where to find quality produce with surprising ease. All you need to do from there is to add the ingredients together in the best way you know how.

Such an understanding from your side and from your supplier network will make cooking at home very easy and enjoyable indeed!

Kitchen fashions

Most food fashions come and go and every trend has to be considered very carefully. Some leave behind useful new developments which will have a long-term impact on our daily cooking, but it is often forgotten where they actually came from.

When it comes to following trends, try to stick to simplicity and be mindful of the authenticity of the produce.

Avoid adopting fashions at the expense of quality. Maintain and express the personality and seasonal identity of a product. Use contrast, textures, temperatures and flavours logically so that the natural qualities of the different elements work harmoniously and marry well with each other, not to mention with food’s partner, wine.

Don’t fall for current trends. I’m personally very skeptical about a few of them, such as the unnecessary plastic coating in the sous vide method, where you bombard your food with highly toxic plastic hormones*. Some molecular recipes use an enormous amount of food additives that often exceed the daily recommended intake of those ingredients by as much as several hundred times. Short-term adoptable trends are used for spectacular creations, but the originality of our food suffers.

Other current trends are concerned with the way a dish looks. The food plated appears impressive, until you find out that it has been cooked using very basic methods and the quality (especially temperature) suffers because of its difficult presentation.

On the other hand, cooking is a creative process. What is new today might be old tomorrow. You have to keep your mind open for new trends – study, explore and discuss them – as you might find some amazing new flavour combinations, techniques or ways of doing things. They certainly will expand your knowledge, so take the best out of each and use it if it suits you, but do not let yourself get carried away by them.

Do not get scared

Dicing, whipping, chopping, peeling… Most beginners get scared about the enormous amount of work and it might all seem to be too much in the early stages.

When you become more comfortable with cooking, things will start to become easier and it might turn into a form of relaxation. It is often regarded as a type of meditation that allows you to escape from your daily routine.

Of course there are many easy recipes such as risottos, salads and so on, but you do not want to cook them all the time.  When you start to experiment with the more complex recipes that demand more precise preparation, timing, confidence and the controlling of several factors, that’s where you might start to struggle. The key lies in avoiding as many mistakes as possible. You also need control of cooking times and be able to balance flavours.

In the beginning, the simplest jobs might take you hours. Start early, do not fear complex challenges, and give yourself enough time to try and discover new techniques. Through learning them, the more complex recipes will seem easier to follow and understand. By being well prepared you have nothing to fear. Try to do everything in a dish, even the complex jus’ and sauces (which you can freeze anyway). Do not compromise. It will make you feel so much happier and confident in the knowledge that “I can do this and I also know how to do it several different ways”.

Creativity

It is sometimes difficult to stick to a recipe. The availability of certain produce, seasonal problems and quality of what is on offer will often dictate this. You might just buy a perfect piece of fish, or find some ripe tomatoes and strong flavoured herbs and feel like making something out of that.

So you will have to improvise or ‘be creative’. Many recipes use ingredients that are often out of season and represent the author’s taste and style. Sometimes it is just impossible to find all ingredients for a certain recipe in top quality at the same time.

With a trained taste, good basic knowledge and confidence in your cooking abilities, you will be able to improvise, develop and slowly create your own style. That’s precisely how any creative and successful chef started his or her career.

To do so, you will need a good back up of different style cookbooks (for reference), a good understanding of different vegetables, spices, herbs, oils, vinegars, sugars and frozen stocks that you could add or change, improve and balance if needed.

Be cautious and grow slowly in those early stages, do not fall in love with your creative flights, the chance of being successful can be very close to fluke or disaster.

Confidence

To be a good cook you will need a healthy dose of self-confidence, but be careful not to overestimate your skill or close yourself off and repeat the same methods again and again.

Do not over-interpret compliments or ignore critical words. Try to be creative and perfect with every detail. Keep learning, improving and trying new ways of doing things. Repeat what you learn over and over, until they are a part of your cooking routine and menu combinations. Set yourself a target to optimise the quality of each element in a dish and menu.

Be self-critical and judge yourself harshly but honestly. Know your weaknesses as well as your strengths, and that way you will quickly become a better cook.

If you are not happy with certain things in a dish but only you know of or recognise these issues, don’t mention them, as it serves little purpose other than to draw attention to what would otherwise be a perfectly acceptable dish.

If something really did go wrong, just see it as a reflection of your current skill level and learn from it. Set yourself goals and slowly lift the bar higher and higher. Do not accept that you’ve reached your potential – just keep practising.

Costs

Sometimes cooking seems like skiing. You queue to get on the lift for a while, then it takes you up the slope (for quite a while) and all that time spent waiting is a fraction of what it takes when you finally descend. The time it takes you to prepare a menu, in comparison to how long it takes you to eat it, is mostly skewed towards the former.

Additionally, if good produce is used, cooking at home is not all that cost-effective. To prepare a menu with top quality produce, it might cost you the same as eating in a decent restaurant. Cooking is not a cheap hobby. Sometimes you might feel you just wasted a lot of money and time, or you might feel like you cooked for the wrong guests. When having these thoughts, simply think about the healthy food you ate, how much you learned and how much you improved.

Be a pioneer! Think of all those dishes that restaurants can’t provide because of time pressure and customer demand. Realise that cooking at home allows you to experiment with different (especially slow) cooking methods. Whole roasted poultry and large roasts, braising dishes that are cooked to perfection for hours and slow baking soufflés are just some of the things that you can do at home much easier than can be done in a restaurant environment.

At home, you can also match your food perfectly to wine. This allows you to enjoy rare and expensive wines which, when consumed in a restaurant, would cost you a fortune.

*Refer to Trupps’ Wholefood Kitchen for more information.

5 Weight loss myths busted

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By Dorota Trupp, Nutritionist

1. Eating artificial sweetener will make you lose weight.

Many people think that if you swap sugar for artificial sweetener, your energy intake will reduce, therefore aiding in weight loss.

A study on rats at Purdue University in Indiana found that artificial sweeteners impair ‘sweetness’ recognition and its control of calorie intake, causing the rats to eat more and get fatter. In fact, many farmers feed artificial sweeteners to their pigs in order to encourage faster weight gain. Despite the fact that artificial sweeteners don’t contain any sugar, the tongue still tastes a sweet flavor and sends a message to the brain telling it that insulin will be needed to help absorb the anticipated (though nonexistent) dose of glucose. What happens? Well, you may not have gotten the glucose, but you now have an excess of insulin in your bloodstream. You need to eat something to balance this spike in insulin, so your hunger will increase accordingly. So much for your weight loss! Pay attention to the fact that there are different types of artificial sweeteners – synthetic and natural. Both will cause you to gain weight, but the synthetic will predispose you to cancer and many more nasty diseases. Replacing sugar is not a good weight loss strategy to start with; you should simply stay off any sugar, real and artificial. It is similar, when you want to give up smocking through the use of nicotine patches, when you think you get of the cigarettes, but you really only prolong your addiction.

2. Avoiding carbohydrates is good for weight loss.

Although an initial cut in carbohydrate consumption is a fabulous short-term weight loss strategy, that has quick weight loss results, it doesn’t equal long-term weight loss success.

What we find is that people often gain weight very quickly after returning to their ‘normal’ diet. The reason for this is that they don’t understand what type of carbohydrate is good or bad for them. They find it extremely hard to live carb-free for an extended period and they soon slip back into their old problematic eating habits. In my practice, I have always achieved great weight loss results by leaving carbohydrates in peoples’ diets, but I have made sure my patients’ know which carbs are good and those that they should avoid. Well-prepared whole grains and fresh fruits are always a part of my patients’ weight loss diet and those that follow this, lose weight steadily without experiencing a ‘yo-yo’ effect. Refined carbohydrates and sugars were out for as long as they wanted to stay slim.

3. Avoiding fats is good for weight loss.

This is well known myth, because avoiding fat will not aid your weight loss and actually might make you sick in the process.

First of all, when you don’t consume enough fat it is likely that your body will compensate for the energy loss by eating more carbohydrates.

Secondly, by cutting out fat, you will limit fat-soluble vitamins that are essential nutrients for sustaining good health.  In my practice, I have always kept fat in any changes to diet and have taught my patients about the types of fat that will actually aid weight loss and those they should avoid. Omega 3’s and saturated animal and plant-sourced fats have always stayed in their diet, but Omega 6’s and trans fatty acids are always severely reduced.

4. Detoxification diets aren’t helpful.

Detoxification diets are ALWAYS a great way to start with any weight loss strategy. This regular practice will also help you to stay healthy and maintain your weight in years to come. Removing toxins from your body will result in weight loss, because fat cells store excess amounts of toxins and when you give your body enough support to detoxify itself, it will always shed fat cells in the process. A rejuvenated liver will deal better with the additional fat loss that will be caused by any reduction in calories when following a weight loss plan.  Long-term weight loss is best approached when a practitioner takes into consideration ongoing support in patient detoxification.

5. There is one weight loss diet that works for everyone.

People’s metabolic processes vary. Although a natural diet composed of unprocessed foods is the backbone to any successful weight loss strategy, it takes much more to resolve the needs of different people.

We know that humans have different nutritional typing. Some will be more vegetarian-oriented, others will be more protein-oriented and others will like to have a balance of veggie and animal-sourced protein ratios. Adjusting your diet to support your unique nutritional typing is key for a successful weight loss strategy.

Dietary Approach at Trupp Cooking School

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By Dorota Trupp, Nutritionist

Many people ask us about our own personal dietary orientation. Are we vegans? Do we eat meat? Are we raw-foodies? Do we subscribe to the Paleolithic diet? Do we consider principles of Ayurvedic or Chinese medicine? Have we learnt about our nutritional typing? Are we followers of the blood group dietary plan? You name it; we’ve probably been asked it.

Our approach to diet is influenced by a combination of our traditional upbringing, education, knowledge shared as food professionals and most importantly, by listening to our own bodies through trial and error.

Over the years we have tried various diets and have been through periods where we would cut some foods out, or would introduce something new.

When we learn about something in the field of nutrition that is interesting and makes sense, we try that new dietary approach to gauge its effects and what it does for us. We always have done and will continue to experiment as new knowledge and ideas come to light.

We also use food as a medicine. When one of us is sick, we adopt a particular dietary treatment plan that helps the body recover from illness. We also use nutritional supplements.

As individuals, there is no doubt that we have distinctively different constitutions, dietary orientations and needs. Food that makes one person feel great can make another feel sick. For this reason, Walter and I both have a hand in shopping for and preparing our own food. This ensures that we both satisfy our individual needs and helps to keep each other in balance (although Walter’s dishes taste so much better than mine!).

Walter is more vegetarian-oriented and loves raw and spicy foods. He also has a thing for anything sweet, which I can live without. I like to have more meat in my diet, but like Walter, I still love my raw greens. Unlike Walter, I enjoy sour flavours, pickles and soups of any kind. These preferences aside, the major difference is in our constitutions; Walter uses foods to ‘chill down’, whereas I use foods to ‘warm up’.

We have researched and trialed dietary systems adopted or promoted by everyone from our ancient predecessors, to modern-day experts, but to date, we are yet to find one that puts us in the same category. Therefore it is important for us to prepare our own foods and communicate well on the topic of “what’s for dinner”, so that we can satisfy our distinct nutritional needs.

Over the years on our journey towards better health, we discovered that removing processed foods of any kind was always better. We have tried diets that made us feel fantastic, helped us to lose weight or recover from illness. On the other hand, some diets made us feel terrible, even to the point of making us unwell. For example: Walter got really sick when on the Atkinson diet and I was not my normal self on my recent experiment with a 100% raw-food diet. In these two instances, we went against our constitutional needs.

Interestingly, a selection of whole organic/biodynamic foods that satisfies our individual constitutional needs serves us best and supports our health.

In conclusion, our dietary approach at Trupp Cooking School is liberal. We’re aware that people have different needs and can tailor our classes to accommodate this. We teach vegetarians and vegans how to prepare tasty salads that deliver complete proteins. For meat lovers, we teach you how to debone chicken or lamb and how to cook stews.  We also have lots of fun with our courses that cover traditional cuisines such as French or Spanish.

Above all else, we teach you how to cook using whole, unprocessed foods!

Celebrate good foods with us!

 

How to Make a Perfect Chicken Stock

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By Walter Trupp, Chef

Every time I look through a cookbook, I come across a slightly different recipe for chicken stock. With our Chef Essentials course coming up, I wanted to dedicate a bit of time on how to make the perfect chicken stock, as it will feature throughout the course. The reason why there are so many variations in chicken stock recipes is because they have different uses in later dishes.

I have come up with a real versatile chicken stock that can be used with any recipe.

I’ve experimented with several versions over the years and often I would incorporate new and unconventional techniques. My experimentations have led to some amazing findings and conclusions that may surprise you. The criteria I set for the ultimate chicken stock is that it must satisfy a delicate soup or sauce, a rustic risotto or bean stew, and of course it has to be suitable for just plain eating. Additionally, I wanted to stay away from the wastefulness of my fine dining past and not lose any part of the chicken, as using good ingredients costs money.

For the following recipe, I shopped all organic at the wonderful Prahran Market (which is the best food market in Melbourne and the reason why we opened our school next to it) and spent a total of $24.50 (spices not included). With leftovers, you will easily feed a family of four using the meat and possibly vegetables.

Back in the kitchen, this attempt at making a chicken stock was based on four previous trial runs. I was hoping that this would be the last, as we all had gotten a bit tired of boiled chicken and chicken stock!

Earlier attempts included a stock made of a whole chicken, one using chicken drumsticks, one with just bones and one with only wings. The wing version was very good, but it is often quite difficult to purchase only organic chicken wings. The most delicate stock used the whole chicken, so I wanted to give that another try, but it had to different – just a little bit more special.

With all the ingredients laid onto the kitchen table, I wrote out a list:

Note on chicken: The most important factor in this recipe is the quality of the chicken you use. Cheap, conventional chickens will give you an unbalanced and thin stock, which often tastes a bit soapy. You will find that cheap chickens create, what I like to call, ‘the protein problem’. This is where protein particles constantly release from the meat and often make stock cloudy and gritty tasting. Good quality chicken stock will show its real strength when it is ready cooked. When chilled, it will turn into a jelly.  Good quality organic chickens show balanced aromas with a clear and strong chicken flavour.

Ingredients List:

1.3-1.6kg of fresh organic chicken

The green of 1 medium-sized leek

2 sticks of celery (leaves* removed)

2 medium-sized carrots, cleaned but not peeled, cut into small cubes

3 small or 1 large onions, peeled

½ Tablespoon black peppercorns (you can use white** ones)

Few parsley stalks

2 garlic cloves, peeled (if they have a yellowish shoot, remove it)

6-7 medium-sized button mushrooms

5L cold water

10g fresh ginger ***sliced

*Celery is better without the leaves, as they tend to turn bitter if cooked for a few minutes. An alternative is to add them to the stock just a few minutes before you stop boiling it

** Black peppercorns are generally more aromatic due to being unpeeled, unlike their white counterparts, which tend to be hotter in flavour. Black peppercorns, in my opinion, give the stock a floral aroma.

*** Ginger needs to be fresh, which means it should have a softish skin, which is easily rubbed off. Older or golden coloured ginger is quite strong in flavour. Therefore, if that’s the one you have to use, just two to three thin slices will do.

 

Method:

First, de-bone the chicken (something you learn at Chef Essentials), remove the skin and cut it into strips. Cut all the meat into golf-ball sized cubes.

Chop the bones roughly. Something I didn’t do for this recipe was to wash the chicken or the chicken bones. Many chicken stocks call for you to wash the chicken. If you want to have a real crystal clear stock, you should actually wash the bones and skin (not the meat) and dry them in a strainer. I purposely did not wash any parts of the chicken, as I wanted to go for maximum flavour and minerals; washing would not help with either of these characteristics.

Next, I placed the bones, skin and meat into a really thick copper pot (3.5). I like to use copper as the heat is very even and they reduce stocks much quicker. They also use less energy. If you don’t have one, any thick stainless steel or cast iron pot will do.

I covered the chicken with water, turned the heat on and quickly brought it to the boil.

Just before the chicken starts to boil, you will find that the whole thing might just look like an inside of a dirty mop bucket, but don’t stress, this is just all the proteins releasing out of the bones. Once the water boils, the protein will curdle and form a greyish foam on the surface.

I skimmed the foam off the surface immediately and several times over. I had to be quick in this instance, because if left for too long, the foam would cook apart and the particles would boil back into the stock, turning it cloudy and bitter. I skimmed the surface for as long as it needed, but did not worry too much about a little of it sticking to the sides of the pot (also don’t be concerned by the foam sticking to the bottom of the pot). I did not throw the foam away (although it looks awful), as it contains a lot of good chicken fat which you could use for other cooking purposes. If you do this, let the foam stand for 1 hour as the fat separates itself onto the top before I skimming it off with a tablespoon.

Once the stock was boiling, I removed the first of the foam and turned the heat down so the stock just simmered.

After approximately 30 minutes, I removed the meat pieces by picking them very carefully out between the bones. I removed the meat, for no other reason than to not overcook and waste it (I actually turned it into a salad), but you could leave it in and cook it longer if you want to use it for a pie or something else where dry chicken is not a problem. If I were to cook the meat longer, not only would it be dryer, it would have made the stock stronger. But this would have failed one of my criteria – to not waste any part of the bird.

I simmered the remainder of the stock for a total time of 2 hours.

While simmering, I cleaned and cut all the vegetables. As you see in the photos, I cut them quite small (not the usual rough chop or whole vegetable versions – which I personally like). You will have also noticed that so far I made three fundamental changes to a classic chicken stock: the meat is in pieces, not adding the vegetables from the beginning, and finally the addition of mushrooms. Mushrooms are an interesting one as they are my answer to monosodium glutamate (MSG). Mushrooms are high in natural – and therefore healthy – glutamate, and a few of them adds a sweetness to the stock and really brings out the best in the other ingredients. Way back at my restaurant in Austria, I always added a few mushrooms to stocks and sauces, which is something I learned from one of my visits to Alain Chapel`s restaurant. He made a mushroom cappuccino from only mushrooms, water and cream (which was one of the best things I have ever tasted).

I added my vegetables later, because I found in one of my earlier attempts that adding the vegetables too early, the real vegetable flavours would weaken to be almost non-existent. The same goes for pepper. In these earlier attempts where I would add the vegetables early, the stock would taste best after approximately 30 minutes.

My conclusion was that vegetables, herbs and spices needed to be added during the last 30 minutes or so of cooking.  They also need to be chopped finely, in order to just cook through and release all their flavour and nutrients into the stock. So after I adding them, I increased the heat and brought the stock quickly back to the boil. I reduced the heat and simmered the stock for another 20 minutes. Then I turned off the heat and rested it for about 10 minutes. The purpose of the resting was to allow any floating protein particles to sink to the bottom.

Next, I strained the stock carefully through a very fine strainer. I used a ladle to transfer the stock from the pot and later I very carefully poured the stock directly from the pot, but I made sure that not too much movement was going on. When looking into the pot, I found that there were still a few particles floating around, and therefore I strained the stock through a muslin cloth or thin kitchen cloth. The stock I had now was not completely clear (which was due to not washing the bones), but it definitely had lots of flavour and minerals, which would have been lost with washing.

So it was time to taste the whole thing. I have to be honest, it tasted quite floral and fresh, which was due to way I used the vegetables. But it was still a bit reserved because there was not any salt in the stock. It would have been great for eating and Dorota thought it tasted great, so I kept half and I thought I would reduce the remaining half to see how it tasted when used for sauces and seasoning (more about that later).

Reducing a stock is a science of its own, and this is well explained in our Chef Essentials sauce session. With reducing liquids in cooking, I want to stress the most important rule: you have to reduce liquids very quickly, ideally using two or three pots. You need to create a large surface area in order for the water to evaporate quickly. Reducing lots of liquid in one single pot on a low heat just creates a boring and soapy end result.

Quick reducing preserves flavours and slow reducing destroys them.

After reducing the stock by approximately one third, it started to show its real strength. It began to taste very concentrated and I would say this is the very stock that can be applied universally to create elegant sauces, foams, stews and Asian stock-based dishes.

I wanted to go a step further and continued boiling the stock. I must admit that the fresh vegetable flavours started to disappear, but not at all in a bad way, as further reducing would still be suitable for a sauce or for seasoning purposes.

Here are my Reducing Results:

The original unreduced stock turned into a light jelly when chilled, which was nice to see as it showed I used a good chicken. From an eating point of view, it was perfect for a stock to drink and for use in cooking.

By reducing the stock very quickly and to 60% of its original volume, it turned into a firm but still soft jelly when chilled. It was a strong tasting chicken stock suitable for Asian style soups where pasta and vegetables are added (which would dilute the slightly stronger flavour).

Reducing the stock to 40%, turned it into quite a firm jelly* when chilled, and at that stage it was perfect for sauces and as a base of pureed soups, broths and stews.

Reducing the stock to 25%, I got a very firm jelly when the stock was chilled and I would say that this would be the ideal base for a sauce such as a veloute or a red wine glaze to round up a vinaigrette etc. Reduced stock like this is also the ideal seasoning tool for any food that misses depth, body, volume or that famous ‘something’. It can lift a soup, risotto or sauce to a different level. This version of stock I would usually use for freezing down, as it takes very little space in your freezer. What I do is pour it into the ice cube tray of my freezer. Once frozen, I place them into a tightly closed plastic bag. In our kitchen, those cubes are one of the best kept seasoning secrets, not to mention that they are very nutritious as they are packed with proteins and minerals.

Notes:

You can easily double or triple the recipe

You can pick the veggies out and use them for a soup a salad etc. they are still not overcooked and quite full of flavour.

When storing any of those stocks, I found they do very well for three days, after which the vegetable flavour seems to disappear. You can freeze them, but just make sure that the stock is well wrapped, as it acts like a sponge when it comes to absorbing freezer flavours.

If you are interested in learning more cooking techniques look up upcoming Chef Essentials Cooking Course


Nourishing your Baby and Toddler

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By Dorota Trupp, Nutritionist

As parents, we all want to ensure that those precious years of speedy growth of our beloved children is met with good nutrition. Supporting growth, learning, behavior and health through optimal nutrition is easily achievable and stress-free, provided you stay informed and follow your instincts.

As parents of a two-year-old boy, we have taken several key steps to lay the foundations for his body and optimise his health. I have listed them below:

Breastfeeding. There is nothing better for your baby and toddler than breast milk. As your child grows, your breast milk changes in composition – or nutrient ratios – to suit that particular stage of your child’s development. In other words, it is ‘custom-made’ specifically to your child’s needs. No formula company could ever beat that.  Breastfeeding is a first-choice feeding option for the newborn, baby and toddler. The World Health Organization recommends that breast milk should continue to be a part of a child’s diet until at least 2 years of age. Prior to giving birth, I had already made a decision to breastfeed my child. However when our baby was actually born, it wasn’t a ‘walk in the park’ experience for both of us. Our baby had torticollis (an injury to the muscles of the neck during the birthing process) and cried when breast-fed lying on the affected site. I had my own physical problems. A spinal disc injury in my lower back meant that I couldn’t sit or hold my baby without excruciating back pain. This caused both of us much distress, and I sought help from a lactation consultant, who gave me a good start in understanding the techniques needed to maintain the breastfeeding relationship. We went through lots of pain and tears, but I was persistent and didn’t give up. After 4 weeks of riding a roller coaster, we finally succeeded and had a happy breastfeeding relationship. It is important to not to be ashamed to get the right type of help when you may not manage as well as you have planned. My husband did all he could to support us in our journey; he cleaned, cooked and made sure I stayed hydrated. Luckily he is a chef, others may find that parents and close family members or perhaps friends may come handy in this very intense period of time.

Introduction of Solid Foods. In order to prevent the development of any food allergies, my baby was breast-fed exclusively for 6 months before the introduction of solid foods. At that stage, he had 4 front teeth. The introduction of solid foods didn’t prevent me from continuing breastfeeding and we had no intention of introducing any formula in his diet. We mashed his food on the beginning, but after few months he would refuse to eat it. Thankfully, we quickly realised that he enjoys softly cooked veggies in natural shapes, and we no longer need to mash his foods for him. He would eat meats that are finely chopped and overcooked. We have tried to follow specific instructions on the introduction of new foods to avoid any potential for the development of food allergies. At times, he may have eaten something he shouldn’t, simply because we forgot ourselves but in general we have tried to be consistent. Remember, that naturally, children seem to be suspicious about new foods, this is one of the evolutional instincts we have, therefore try few times with foods your child seems to not accept at first.

Avoidance of Processed Foods. We made sure that our baby wouldn’t eat any foods that are processed or high in sugar or salt, as much as it was possible. Additionally, we avoided specially designed processed foods and drinks for babies as well as formula. I also made sure that I stayed on a relatively allergen-free and stimulant-free diet, as this usually have passed onto my baby through breast milk.

Psychology and Eating Habits. Our child imitates us in everything we do.  Therefore, we never favour or dislike some foods above others. When we want our child to eat broccoli, we eat it ourselves. On the other hand, we don’t eat any junk foods, because we want our child to know that it shouldn’t be a part of a normal diet. In addition, we never force our child to eat something they don’t want to, as a child who is forced to eat could potentially develop food aversion and phobias.

Feeding on Demand. A child grows super fast and has a very small stomach. Those two facts can make a baby and toddler hungry far more often than adults. It’s rare for a baby to sleep through the night at 4 months, especially if you choose to breastfeed, as multiple feeds will probably be required for many months. I discovered that this is completely normal, and I needed to adjust to the needs of my baby and feed on demand.  It’s increasingly common for people to attempt to train their children to sleep, but I would personally be cautious of this approach, as it may in fact teach the baby to ignore their needs, in order to fulfill yours. A child that is trained that way – usually by technique called ‘controlled crying’ – is often a hungry child, and may not be getting enough nutrition and comfort for optimal development. As research shows, there are far more negative consequences when this technique is adopted, and your relationship with your child may be negatively affected. Most importantly, your child’s normal brain development could be disrupted, due to the high levels of cortisol, a stress hormone your child may experience. The circumstances can be strange, but I continue to feed our toddler on demand. That’s fine with me – as long as he’s happy. One day he will be old enough to make his own food right? I just keep it in mind and enjoy his babyhood!

Choosing Fresh Organic Whole Food.  Organic and biodynamic food is known not only for being free from a number of nasty agricultural chemicals, but also it is known for being nutrient-denser. Therefore, it is an ideal choice when we shop for food. As much as possible, when our finances and seasonal availability allows us, we buy organic whole foods and cook and prepare them ourselves. To be cost effective and get the most nutrients out of our diet we bake our own bread, we make our own pasta and so on. We strive to prepare each meal fresh and we avoid storing and reheating it again and again. Surly, the fact that our food related professions makes it easier for us to live that way, but we are time deprived too, as many other families. Planning ahead, frequent shopping, good organisation, cooperation and mastering of our cooking skills helps us to maintain such a lifestyle. Its achievable, if you prioritise good food first.

Snack Time. Our son loves to nibble snacks when he is out. We use variety of raw, fresh foods such as fruits, vegetables like carrots, soft nuts such as walnuts and home made sandwiches made with wholemeal bread, butter, avocado and meats or eggs. We drink filtered water, or water mixed with vitamin C powder, that our son loves.

Investing in your Baby Brain Development. Your child’s brain is in its most rapid phase of development during the first 3 years of life. Keeping this fact in mind, we endeavour to help our child’s brain develop by incorporating essential nutrients into our diet, such as foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids. We also make sure he has plenty of vitamins such as B12, D and A, as well as minerals such as zinc, iron and calcium. We feel that it is important to make sure that our child is physically active, therefore we don’t expose him to TV, and instead take him to playgrounds and parks. We’ve also invested money in an outdoor trampoline; as research shows that a child’s intelligence goes hand-in-hand with a well developed sense of balance. There is also a growing body of literature suggesting that physical activity has beneficial effects on several mental health outcomes, including health-related quality of life and better mood states. Sharing the responsibilities between all family members makes it easier to look after our energetic toddler.

In ongoing support of our child’s brain development, we had to make other decisions than just diet and parenting style related. Our child was born with a facial birthmark called a Port Wine Stain, which are rare vascular malformations that occur in 3% of newborns. We were advised by doctors to start laser surgery treatments as soon as possible in order to remove the malformation and prevent any potential emotional impact this birthmark could cause. Although we originally started with the treatment, further investigation revealed that general anaesthesia, which is a necessary part of the procedure, may carry adverse effects for the developing brain.When it comes to unexpected events, we have learned that seeking second opinion and staying informed was very important. We have chosen to delay his treatment until well after the age of 3, in order to limit unnecessary risks associated with the use of general anaesthetic and potential for negative effects. For the time being, we simply teach our child to accept his difference and encourage the development of healthy self-esteem.

Building your Child’s Immune System. Our goal is to build our child’s immune system naturally. It is very important for us that our child has healthy whole food diet, adequate levels of vitamin D and zinc.  Also we try to help him to develop good intestinal flora, 80% of immune system is found in the intestinal wall lining, therefore well functioning bowels means an immune system that functions as it should. We try to keep him away from any unnecessary exposure to toxic elements through food, play and personal care products.

Having Fun! Having a meal with your child is fun. Witnessing your little one discovering all the different flavorous is priceless. Once you establish good eating habits, you will grow as a parent, and yes, you will be proud seeing your child healthy, well behaved, happy and energetic.

JOIN NUTRITIONIST DOROTA TRUPP AND CHEF WALTER TRUPP FOR AN INTERACTIVE COOKING CLASS SESSION TO LEARN MORE ABOUT BABY & TODDLER NUTRITION, MEAL PLANNING AND COOKING.

5 Easy Ways to Get More Calcium into Your Bones

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By Dorota Trupp, Nutritionist at Trupp Cooking School

Getting enough calcium, a mineral that helps build and maintain strong, healthy bones, is very important and especially so for growing children. Dairy products like milk, yoghurt, cheeses and kefir are good sources of calcium, but are often unsuitable for those who are intolerant or avoid dairy altogether for ethical, religious or personal reasons.  Thankfully, there are lots of dairy-free options for meeting your daily calcium needs.

1. Sardines contain almost as much calcium per serve as a glass of milk. Sardines are commonly eaten with their bone structure is intact and, unlike many other species of fish, are soft enough to eat. Therefore any small fish that can be eaten whole, as is the case with sardines, is an excellent, calcium-rich food source. Sardines are great on top of a green salad or with a bit of mustard on whole-grain bread. Sardines are high in protein, vitamin D and they are also rich in omega-3 fatty acids.

2. Broccoli is a vegetable that has many great qualities, one of which being a good source of calcium. Steamed broccoli is a fantastic addition to salads and soups and can be added to vegetable juices when raw. Broccoli is high in fibre and rich in vitamin C. It also contains multiple nutrients, such as diindolymethane and selenium, with potent anti-cancer properties, which can help to ward off one of the most prevalent diseases of modern society. Other great calcium-rich vegetables include bok choy, kale, okra and most green leafy vegetables.

3. Nuts are very good source of calcium. Among this food group, tahini paste and almonds are the best sources. Other beneficial nutrients they deliver include omega 3 fatty acids, vitamin E, B group vitamins, magnesium, zinc and many other minerals. Add freshly crunched almonds into your morning porridge or snack on them during the day. Tahini paste is great when eaten on wholegrain toast, or when used as a garnish (mix with lemon juice, salt and garlic and dilute with a bit of water).

4. Exercise! That’s right; exercise helps to move calcium from the bloodstream into the bones. Therefore, daily exercise is essential for optimal bone growth, health and in the prevention of osteoporosis.

5. Sun Exposure. What does it have to do with calcium? Your skin naturally produces your body’s supply of vitamin D3 from direct exposure to bright sun. Vitamin D3 is known to play a major role in regulating the concentration of calcium and phosphate in the bloodstream, and in promoting the healthy growth and remodeling of bone. Therefore, try to get outdoors in the sunlight without sunscreen for at last fifteen minutes per day.