Monday, January 30, 2012

Kokoda and fried food may not be bad for the heart

Food Diary (January 30, 2012)
Breakfast: Sausage and bacon with bread
Lunch: Kokoda, potatoes and black beans
Dinner: Sautéed brussel sprouts with polenta

Kokoda, pronounced kokonda, is the Fijian version of a ceviche. The main difference between kokoda and other similar raw fish dishes is that kokoda has coconut milk. Kokoda, usually served as a starter, is very refreshing and fresh tasting, with a good hit coming from the chilies.It is typically served during summer, since it is always summer in Fiji. It is also great on a cold winter day, as long as you are sitting in your warm house! The recipe is available here.


Today's Favourite Photo
Yuzu Mango Coconut Cake Shooters


Today’s Favourite Blog
Source:BBC
Eating fried food may not be bad for the heart, as long as you use olive or sunflower oil to make it, experts say.

The Autonomous University of Madrid did a large survey covering 40,757 adults. The participants were asked about what types of food they ate in a typical week and how that food was prepared and cooked. None of the adults had any sign of heart disease at the start of the 11-year study, but by the end of it 606 heart disease events and 1,134 deaths had occurred. When the researchers looked at these heart events in detail, they could find no link with fried food in the diet. This, they believe, is down to the type of oil the food is cooked in.

Before you get too excited, the study was conducted in Spain. The Mediterranean diet differs, it is comprised of high-fibre fresh fruits and vegetables, as well as fresh fish. When combined with the Mediterranean diet, food deep fried in olive or sunflower oil was not found to be detrimental. It may not be the case in other countries where the diets are unhealthy to start with. Regardless of the cooking methods used, consuming foods with high fat content means a high calorie intake. This can lead to weight gain and obesity, which is a risk factor for heart disease.

It seems the moral of the story is that it is OK to eat deep fried food, fried in healthy oils, as long as your diet is healthy. 

Recent Recipes

Popular Recipes

26 comments:

  1. That's a pretty photo of the day. Very cheery.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I'd just read on another site that peanut oil is the oil to go. And deep fried foods actually do not absorb as much oil as shallow frying, if done right. I still avoid deep frying, more so for the amount of oil used and the wastage.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I haven't read that yet but peanuts are good, so the oil must be good too? I don't see much peanut oil around here, its more expensive and less popular.
      Even though deep fried stuff absorbs less oil, I guess there's a psychological barrier

      Delete
  3. We honeymooned in Fiji and I remember eating lots of kokoda! It's so tasty :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kokoda made from fresh fish in Fiji - that would be good

      Delete
  4. I've not tried kokoda before, but it really sounds interestin!:) I have never really been a fan of fried food before as I tend to get sick whenever I take fried or deep fried food; guess it just doesn't agree with me:p
    Anyway, most of the people are switching to vegetable oil these days, in their cooking and baking, which is a healthier option :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. What a charming name! Kokoda sounds so good and the photo is so beautiful (wonderful presentation idea!), I knew it was something I would love. I have never had ceviche (even though it's famous), but love sushi, so I'm sure I would enjoy it too. I don't know fish well enough to dare buying it and preparing raw. I wish I could...
    Thank you for the good news! I will keep on frying (I fry in vegetable oils most of the time, although sometimes some dishes need duck or goose fat, but I have heard these are not bad in small amounts).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, I tried my best to make it look good:)
      This time I bought frozen fish and used it, was a bit unsure but nothing happened, so far:) It is difficult to know I guess but we also have to take risks perhaps:)?

      Delete
    2. Maybe frozen fish is the best option. What I am afraid of are parasites.
      Do you buy whole, not gutted fish often? I do quite often and so many of them have parasites... (For example I will never ever taste Atlantic mackerel sushi: every single mackerel I have bought in the last two years had parasites. Apparently, they slowly destroy the liver and if consumed regularly they can lead to a complete destruction. In theory they are next to the fish liver, but I have found some tiny ones in the flesh... I suppose experienced cooks now how to get rid of them) The parasites die when the fish is frozen, so at worst I would consume some additional meat... The only fish I could buy fresh is tuna, but the one we have here is not what the Japanese call "sashimi grade" and I don't think it would taste great raw...

      Delete
    3. I don't buy whole fish. Long time ago I bought a whole salmon but it was already gutted. My parents buy whole fish but I have never seen parasites. I need to read more, I wonder whether the parasites are there when the fish is alive? Most frozen fish is cleaned and frozen while still on the ship so its frozen while still very fresh. Eating raw fish is always a risk, thats why its good to serve it to someone else first and wait for a little while:)

      Delete
    4. Great tip ;-)
      Seriously, I buy fish in a shop mainly selling to restaurants. The fish is very fresh (the freshest one can get in Switzerland at least ;-) ) and very small fish is often sold not gutted. They assume the restaurant's employees will do it. I don't mind gutting at all, especially since this is an amazing source of many varieties of fresh (and cheap!) fish I cannot find anywhere else.
      Actually the parasites are a good sign: the fish is fresh! (they prey on the living fish of course) and I once talked to one of the fishmongers there, who told me that the big majority of Atlantic mackerels have parasites, and the warmer the season the bigger amounts of parasites.
      In Japan there are some cases of liver diseases because of fish parasites... Some fish (like tuna) never have parasites.

      Delete
    5. Interesting, I didn't know that about parasites. Good to know that tuna does not have it. I wonder about salmon and herring.

      Delete
  6. I LOVE that photo of the day - Normally I would believe the BBC!! but somehow I don't think I'm going to be frying too much
    Maryx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you. BBC is reliable, and its independent research that they summarised.

      Delete
  7. what an interesting article on fried food. yes, these studies can always have miscontrued results since it can be contingent on so many factors!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I think fried food should be all right as long as you don't eat them every day.
    Kokoda looks great.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Everything in moderation is always good. Looks delicious.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Yes,everything in moderation. And as important as using a good oil is I believe if food is fried at the correct temperature not that much oil gets absorbed.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I am huge fan of ceviche so i just must try this, never heard of it before!

    ReplyDelete