Real Food...

[Mynyel]

What is this? I have seen is buzzing around bit don't exactly know what is means?

 

Real food vs. ?

[nmoira]

Real food vs. ?

 

 

Real food is generally considered to be as local in origin as possible, minimally or un-processed, and nutritious. Think locavore or terroir.

[lilbean05]

To me, "fake" food is something that is made with "food sciences", so most prepacked snacks, cereals, etc. aren't real food.

 

On an even more detailed level, I would think that taco shells purchased at the store are not "real food" at its fullest. Ideally I would make my own taco shells with my own ingredients.

[nmoira]

 

LOL Why you dissing the Spam?! :D I like me a little Spam once in awhile.

I still have a soft spot for tinned corned beef. My father used to make nummy grilled cheese/corned beef sandwiches.

[DarlaS]

Real food would be food that is not created in a factory somewhere and clearly resembles something your grandparents (or if you are fairly young, your great grandparents) may have eaten.

 

Local, organic etc. is all bonus, but not required (IMO) for food to be "real". I like the simplest definition. :001_smile:

[redsquirrel]

Michael Pollan says real food is something a great grandmother would recognize as food. So, a great grandmother would recognize tofu, were she Asian. She would not recognize soy protein isolate. A great grandmother would recognize pasta made with wheat flour and water etc. She would not recognize powdered pea protein (added to some pasta) as food.

 

Items that are not real food but are edible are edible foodlike substances.

[nmoira]

Items that are not real food but are edible are edible foodlike substances.

And here I thought I'd coined that phrase. :tongue_smilie:

[nmoira]

Local, organic etc. is all bonus, but not required (IMO) for food to be "real". I like the simplest definition. :001_smile:

In the pnw, it's more or less considered a requirement.

 

Is it Local? (2.5 minute video)

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

As I constantly tell my dh, Kraft processed cheese food product is NOT real food! :lol:

 

I think of real food as whole fruits and vegetables, meats and fish directly from the animal, whole grains that are very minimally processed.

[Impish]

Whipped cream = real food

Cool Whip aka edible oil product = not real food

[Caitilin]

Whipped cream = real food

Cool Whip aka edible oil product = not real food

 

Love you, Imp!

I always refer to CoolWhip as "petroleum by-products!"

[Aquinas Academy]

Whipped cream = real food

Cool Whip aka edible oil product = not real food

 

Love you, Imp!

I always refer to CoolWhip as "petroleum by-products!"

:iagree:My thoughts exactly.

[twoforjoy]

What is this? I have seen is buzzing around bit don't exactly know what is means?

 

Real food vs. ?

 

In my somewhat tongue-in-cheek opinion, "real food" is what the person talking about "real food" feeds their family. What inferior parents feed their kids (generally, food associated with the poor) is not real food.

[twoforjoy]

As I constantly tell my dh, Kraft processed cheese food product is NOT real food! :lol:

 

See, I'd agree that it's not real cheese.

 

But, it's food. And, it's not imaginary.

[Caitilin]

In my somewhat tongue-in-cheek opinion, "real food" is what the person talking about "real food" feeds their family. What inferior parents feed their kids (generally, food associated with the poor) is not real food.

 

Possibly, but I am poor, have been all my married life and much of my earlier life, and at no point would I have considered process-cheese-"food" a real food. I don't buy it, and we don't eat it in other contexts either. Eating real food has much more to do with the adults' level of education than with amount of money in the bank. We in our family eat as much real food as we can afford, which is good enough for me. I do not claim that parents who don't feed their children as I feed mine are inferior--just that they are under-educated about food. If I get the opportunity to politely pass on things I have learned, I do. Otherwise, I don't say anything.

[Sputterduck]

If it involves man-made chemicals or is processed to become different than God made it, it's not real food. If it grew out of the ground or comes from the inside of an animal, it's real food, so long as no one has altered it.

[DarlaS]

In the pnw, it's more or less considered a requirement.

 

Is it Local? (2.5 minute video)

 

:lol:

[Ellesmere]

There is a book called Real Food. Not recommending it or against it, just saying it's out there!

[Snickerdoodle]

I love talking about food.

 

:D

[regentrude]

If it involves man-made chemicals or is processed to become different than God made it, it's not real food. If it grew out of the ground or comes from the inside of an animal, it's real food, so long as no one has altered it.

 

That's a problematic definition.

Grinding grain and baking something from the flour is definitely altering the thing that grew out of the ground... yet most people would consider bread real food.

Cooking alters the animal protein as well.

It is really not all that simple where to draw the line.

[Punchie]

There is a book called Real Food. Not recommending it or against it, just saying it's out there!

 

I have this book. It's written engagingly and in layman's language. Love it.

[Dawn in OH]

Real food would be food that is not created in a factory somewhere and clearly resembles something your grandparents (or if you are fairly young, your great grandparents) may have eaten.

 

Local, organic etc. is all bonus, but not required (IMO) for food to be "real". I like the simplest definition. :001_smile:

 

:iagree:

[Snickerdoodle]

But hubby eats bread (he is German...can't help it ).

 

If someone is in Germany, maybe they could post the ingredient list to a loaf of bread, and we could compare it to the ingredient list in the USA.

 

;)

 

I'm pretty sure the difference would be striking.

[Snickerdoodle]

We are gluten free now, but when we moved back to the US after living in Europe, the kids thought US bread (and milk) was nasty.

[Snickerdoodle]

We used to live near a farm. We'd ride our bikes with a large bucket and buy milk directly. Oh, and a bee farm was nearby too.

 

:drool5:

 

Yum.

[Snickerdoodle]

Foood, glorious foooood...

[elizabeth]

I like a more inclusive definition. No crappy styrofoam rice cakes, fake sugar unless diabetes mandates it, no decaf coffee and no diet soda. No phony "krab" crap salad and definitely no cheese that comes in foil and has a shelf life of 5 years. Chocolates are always good...:lol:

[Sputterduck]

That's a problematic definition.

Grinding grain and baking something from the flour is definitely altering the thing that grew out of the ground... yet most people would consider bread real food.

Cooking alters the animal protein as well.

It is really not all that simple where to draw the line.

 

Well, He's told people to eat cooked meat and bread so I'd put those in the okay category.

[nmoira]

 

I like a more inclusive definition. No crappy styrofoam rice cakes, fake sugar unless diabetes mandates it, no decaf coffee and no diet soda. No phony "krab" crap salad and definitely no cheese that comes in foil and has a shelf life of 5 years. Chocolates are always good...:lol:

So is wine.

[angela in ohio]

I like a more inclusive definition. No crappy styrofoam rice cakes, fake sugar unless diabetes mandates it, no decaf coffee and no diet soda. No phony "krab" crap salad and definitely no cheese that comes in foil and has a shelf life of 5 years. Chocolates are always good...:lol:

 

I agree. I think of "real food" as less limiting than "whole food." For example, white pasta is "real food" to me, but not "whole food."

 

There's often a continuum: you start by going real food, then you go whole food, then you start looking at local only, slow food, organic, traditional foods, natural healing foods/herbs/oils, etc.

[nmoira]

 

and beer

Yup, and beer. :D

[DarlaS]

If someone is in Germany, maybe they could post the ingredient list to a loaf of bread, and we could compare it to the ingredient list in the USA.

 

;)

 

I'm pretty sure the difference would be striking.

 

Yep! For starters, it would be in German! :w00t:

 

Sorry, couldn't help myself...:leaving:

[DarlaS]

Yup, and beer. :D

 

 

:thumbup1:

[regentrude]

If someone is in Germany, maybe they could post the ingredient list to a loaf of bread, and we could compare it to the ingredient list in the USA.

 

;)

 

I'm pretty sure the difference would be striking.

 

I am German and I'll oblige:

For a basic rye bread: Flour. Water. Salt.

 

For a white wheat bread: Flour, water, salt and yeast.

 

That is what a traditional bakery would use (one of the dozens you find in every city). there are, of course, now packaged supermarket breads, too....

[Impish]

Quick tip: if it says 'edible' and/or 'product' on the label, chances are its not real food.

[nmoira]

Quick tip: if it says 'edible' and/or 'product' on the label, chances are its not real food.

Never bodes well, just like when "eats" is used as a noun on a restaurant sign.

[elizabeth]

Yup, and beer. :D

 

Mead. Medicinal purposes of course.

[nmoira]

Mead. Medicinal purposes of course.

I have a friend who makes amazing mead, nothing like the stuff we produced in college.

 

ETA: He also makes his own bacon.

[Snickerdoodle]

I have a friend who makes amazing mead, nothing like the stuff we produced in college.

 

ETA: He also makes his own bacon.

I'm always happy to make new friends. :D

[Ellesmere]

I have this book. It's written engagingly and in layman's language. Love it.

I have it, too. I guess I should get around to reading it!

 

 

 

And from my avatar, we can safely assume that I am counting chocolate chip cookies along with wine as Real Food. No idea if that book would agree but I don't care. I will not give up cookies or wine. ;)

[Punchie]

I have a friend who makes amazing mead, nothing like the stuff we produced in college.

 

ETA: He also makes his own bacon.

 

Good mead is hard to find! My DH makes mead (he put rose water in one batch and a year on, it has a wonderful, delicate flavor). And beer. And bread. And various meat products. I love my husband!

[Audrey]

We are gluten free now, but when we moved back to the US after living in Europe, the kids thought US bread (and milk) was nasty.

 

I feel the same way about American beef. I used to think it was just 'meh' and never really cared for it much until I moved here and had good Canadian beef. That corn-fed cr*p just makes me gag now.

 

Oh, and I think real food means food that is without chemicals or unnatural processing. So, for example, bread made with no preservatives and from real grains, milk, etc. is real food. Wonder Bread would be "not real food" bread. A plain unprocessed chuck roast would be real food. Bologna would not. Broccoli, plain and whole is real food. That frozen stuff in the "cheese" product sauce is not real food.

Edited June 13, 2011 by Audrey

[Audrey]

I have a friend who makes amazing mead, nothing like the stuff we produced in college.

 

ETA: He also makes his own bacon.

 

 

My dh makes smoked bacon and sausages and hams from our pork and beef. The peppered beef sausage is awesome. It's good stuff and it's made with real food. I consider it real food.

[JustGin]

In our family we define real food as anything edible that:

a) grows i.e. veggies, fruit, grain

b) eats what grows or eats other eaters i.e chicken, fish, beef, pork, elk...

c) comes directly (with as little messing about as possible) from grow or eater eaters i.e. milk, eggs, butter, cheese

 

LOL - well that's kind of our definition. As far as organic - meh...not convinced it's any better especially on my budget. Local? Nice for somethings, but to stick to local only makes no sense to me, what about produce we can't grow locally, like oranges, cantaloupe, bananas?

 

Anyway, we try to stick as close to our three categories as possible, I cook mostly from scratch, using very, very few processed ingredients and I think that's good enough for us. :)

[nmoira]

 

My dh makes smoked bacon and sausages and hams from our pork and beef. The peppered beef sausage is awesome. It's good stuff and it's made with real food. I consider it real food.

Mmmmmmmmm.

[g7s22]

There is a book called Real Food. Not recommending it or against it, just saying it's out there!

 

 

Love this book and author. She has another called Real Food for mother and baby.

[elizabeth]

absolutely...not to mention good for the soul :cheers2:

 

Why yes it tis... rather celebratory in some circles.

[MelanieM]

My brother-in-law is a classically trained French pastry chef, apprenticed at the age of 14 and making pastry and bread all of his life. He and my sister-in-law own a bakery and make every kind of bread you can imagine, with all real ingredients and no preservatives, just like your classic European bakery. We most certainly consider it real food... real yummmmy food! (My daughter pretty much wanted to move here near them just for the croissants!)

[HLDoll]

That's a problematic definition.

Grinding grain and baking something from the flour is definitely altering the thing that grew out of the ground... yet most people would consider bread real food.

Cooking alters the animal protein as well.

It is really not all that simple where to draw the line.

 

Yes, grinding the grain and baking the bread alters what grew from the ground. That being said, bread can be made with just a handful of ingredients. If the list on your bread bag goes beyond 7 or 8 ingredients and contains lots of unpronouncable chemicals and ingredients, I would argue that it's not a "real" food. Things that have been altered to never go bad aren't really food anymore. Real food is minimally processed and is as close to its original form as possible.

[MelanieM]

Yes, grinding the grain and baking the bread alters what grew from the ground. That being said, bread can be made with just a handful of ingredients. If the list on your bread bag goes beyond 7 or 8 ingredients and contains lots of unpronouncable chemicals and ingredients, I would argue that it's not a "real" food. Things that have been altered to never go bad aren't really food anymore. Real food is minimally processed and is as close to its original form as possible.

 

Yep. Here are the ingredients in whole wheat Wonderbread (thanks Google!):

 

Whole wheat flour, water, wheat gluten, high fructose corn syrup, contains 2% of less of: soybean oil, salt, molasses, yeast, mono and diglycerides, exthoxylated mono and diglycerides, dough conditioners (sodium stearoyl lactylate, calcium iodate, calcium dioxide), datem, calcium sulfate, vinegar, yeast nutrient (ammonium sulfate), extracts of malted barley and corn, dicalcium phosphate, diammonium phosphate, calcium propionate (to retain freshness).