Vegetables For All Blood Types
EXCITING NEW VEGETABLE DISHES TO SUIT ALL BLOOD TYPES
Please also refer to the vegetable section in my book: Healthy Happy Eating for more information about the all-type vegetables, basic recipes and the other vegetables that really agree with your own blood type.
As such, you can then also indulge in aubergines, tomatoes, potatoes and your particular blood type favourites. But cook them as separate dishes so everyone can choose what they like. Blood type B can have a lot of cheeses and cheese sauces and yoghurt with all the vegetables, but other blood types only tolerate smaller quantities of soft natural cheese and minimal quantities of milk or yoghurt. Here are some new recipes that I am working on, to make vegetables the highlight of the meal, to make the plate leaner and greener and to make you healthier and happier.
GREEN BEANS IN A CREAMY CURRY SAUCE
For two people:
200g green beans (about two fists full)
For the sauce:
1 cup chopped onion, celery and parsley. Garlic is optional.
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon mild curry powder
1 tablespoon rice flour
1 teaspoon honey (optional)
a pinch or two of herb salt to taste
Boil or steam the beans without salt till they are tender. Cut larger beans into thin strips or baby beans can just be topped. Pour off the water and keep it for the sauce. Take a pan and fry the chopped onions, parsley, celery, etc. Add a teaspoon of honey, the curry powder and rice flour. Stir and add enough water to make a creamy sauce. Add the beans and season according to taste.
Variations:
- When you have fried the onions, etc. add a little finely chopped and peeled apple or pineapple to the sauce.
- A teaspoon of peanut butter and a splash of soy sauce and a little milk give the beans a Thai twist.
- To pad out the dish, add half a can of baked beans or the black eye beans that you cook yourself
.
Other dishes to serve with your beans: A casserole or curry. Brown rice or mashed potato mix. Add a carrot dish or yellow pea dhal for some contrasting colour or a bowl of chopped tomatoes and onion for the tomato lovers. Fried ostrich, beef or soy burgers, chicken, fish or mutton chops. (Eat according to what suits your blood type)
GREEN STARTER
For four people as a starter or a side dish or a lean meal for two people
1 pack of asparagus (about 12 spears) or 1 small can of asparagus spears
1 pack of small whole baby green beans
Or: a large handful of green beans, sliced vertically in half
2-3 medium sized courgettes (baby marrows)
Or: a 10cm long slice of marrow, cut downwards into finger-sized strips
Make the light onion sauce well in advance. (see recipe)
Boil or steam the beans, courgettes or and marrows until just tender.
Chop off the tough ends of the asparagus.
Steam them very quickly until tender but not too soft and brittle.
Neatly pile the beans and marrows onto individual plates.
Arrange the asparagus spears on top, with a slice of lemon.
Serve with the onion sauce or the yoghurt sauce.(See sauces, dips and dressings).
Alternatively, serve with butter, olive oil and lemon juice.
CARROTS FOR ALL SEASONS AND ALL REASONS
To your cooked or steamed carrots: add a big pinch of cinnamon and some ginger powder or fresh grated ginger. Toss in a little olive or rice bran oil and add a squeeze of orange juice before serving. Use leftovers to add to your soups.
Carrots can be cut Julienne style into thin strips, or thinly sliced crossways, like coins. See the book for more ideas.
CURRIED COPPER PENNY CARROTS
Boil or steam about 200g (4 big carrots) cut into thin cross-cut slices till almost tender. Reserve the water for the sauce.
In a hot pan with a splash of oil, fry: chopped onion, leek, celery, a little garlic and chilli. When the onions are glassy, add a teaspoon or two of curry powder, a pinch of herb salt and some kaloonjie ground up with coriander, cumin and fennel. (It is best to make a large batch of this special pepper substitute –see book). Add a teaspoon of brown sugar or honey. Stir it all round and then mix in a tablespoon of rice flour. Now blend in about a cup of water, turn down the heat and mix till it is creamy. Add the carrots and serve immediately. This dish keeps well. For a lovely soup, add some hot stock and blend it smooth. You can also add a tablespoon or two of yellow pea dhal with a swirl of yoghurt.
SPINACH IS CERTAINLY NOT BORING!
Steamed spinach goes well with curry and you can serve it with a light onion sauce (see recipe) or yoghurt. Spinach is easy to steam or microwave in small quantities or use frozen spinach in a packet. Remember that Swiss chard is hard, bouncy spinach and English spinach is soft and it disappears into almost nothing when cooked. This is why I add a little fried onion and cooked sweet potato to bulk up soft tender spinach. The best way to cook larger quantities of spinach is to stir-fry it. Heat up oil in a pan with chopped onion. Then add the shredded, washed spinach and stir till tender. To make creamed spinach, sprinkle on some rice powder and stir in a little milk or water and heat till thickened.
Season with salt, lemon juice, or soy sauce
To make a cheese and spinach side dish: Blend the cooked, creamed spinach with a little stock and soy sauce. Then float a few lumps of soft feta cheese or special Indian cheese in the bowl. This dish also makes a wonderful soup in its own right, especially when using up leftover spinach the following day. I can’t get enough of it! I also add thin slices of mushroom to leftover spinach to soup and a spoon of yellow pea dhal for a very satisfying lunch.
NEITHER IS BROCCOLI!
Steamed broccoli is the ultimate fast food. It is always my first choice when preparing a quick meal, especially late at night after a long session at the gym. Before I leave, I clean and trim the broccoli. Then I pack it into a bowl, arranging the sprigs so all the stems face downwards. To cook, I place a lid on the bowl and microwave it for 3-4 minutes while the rest of the food is being cooked. Otherwise, I steam it in a basket over the mixture of sweet potatoes and turnips I make as a substitute for mashed potato. The dish can be enhanced with feta cheese and a splash of olive oil. Natural mayonnaise is also good. I sometimes eat a whole dish of broccoli for lunch – I crave it. Give broccoli a chance!
Broccoli crimes that people commit: I hate mushy, overcooked dark green to brown stinky broccoli as much as underdone, leathery broccoli or biltong broccoli that has been included in a dish of baked vegetables. And forget about cooking broccoli that is late in the season or just beginning to flower – it tastes foul! The reason most people hate broccoli is because they have never tasted the real thing. Soft, tender bright green broccoli is delicious as it is and you must not cook it with anything acidic because it goes hard and the colour darkens. I fumed with rage when I ordered a plate of vegetables at a very posh, exclusive and expensive restaurant and was presented with: tough, fishy tasting sprigs of broccoli in tomato sauce. There won’t be a next time!
CREAMED VEGETABLES FOR SOUP, BABY FOOD OR “MASHED POTATO”
Vegetable purée and creamy soups are a wonderful way for fussy eaters to enjoy vegetables. A very thick vegetable purée made from carrots, butternut, sweet potato, parsnips or turnips and any combination thereof makes a wise substitute for mashed potatoes and they suit all blood types. (Blood type A: reduce sweet potato to a minimum) Use the mixture for a baby food or a thick, creamy vegetable soup as well. Simply peel, dice and boil the vegetable chunks in water –covering most of the vegetables. For mashed vegetables: drain them when cooked and process with a hand-held blender with a little olive oil, sea salt and herbs and spices that you fancy. You can also add some canned butter beans if hungry guests suddenly arrive! For soup: add a stock cube to the pot of cooked vegetables and water and liquidize in the blender or use a hand-held blender. Adding a tablespoon of curry powder makes a delicious quick soup.
It is convenient to cook a large quantity of these vegetables and keep them in the fridge for a day or two. In a matter of minutes you can then whip out hearty soups by warming them up with a little hot water and a stock cube. Add milk or soya or rice milk for a creamier result. Top with a blob of fresh cream or yoghurt or some grated cheese if you tolerate dairy products. Alternatively, serve with a slice of lemon, chopped parsley, a sprinkle of paprika, cumin, etc.
Enjoy with toasted rye bread, rice cakes or crackers. Remember not to serve fluffy white bread with soup as most people do not chew starches properly and they get indigestion. Besides, only blood type A1 really tolerates any bread.
BAKED AND ROASTED VEGETABLES FOR ALL BLOOD TYPES
Forget about all those greasy roast potatoes! Potatoes only suit blood type: B1, AB1 and AB2. Sweet potatoes are a far better option as only A1 has a problem with too many sweet potatoes. Only A1, AB1 and some AB2 tolerate wheat. This means that the average family who eats hamburgers, chips, pasta and pizzas regularly is going to have serious health problems, by logical deduction.
For healthier yet equally satisfying large family meals, cook more vegetables to fill them up and stay away from expensive takeaways! Chicken is poisonous to blood type B and a major cause of obesity. Blood type O does not tolerate wheat or cheese. An attractive dish of roast butternut, sweet potatoes, carrots, parsnips and onions will be far cheaper and more satisfying than soggy, old chips that are fried in toxic trans-fatty acids. When next you roast or bake, include a large baking dish of chopped up vegetables, lightly tossed in a little olive oil and seasoned with herb salt and a spicy blend of ground-up kaloontjie seeds, cumin, coriander and mustard seeds.
STIR FRY A VARIETY OF VEGETABLES, ESPECIALLY THE SLIMMING ONES
Being short of time is always the excuse for not making stir-fries. 90% of the time is spent in chopping and cutting, so set aside some time each time you buy a lot of vegetables to prepare a variety of pre-chopped vegetables for stir fries. Now when you are in a hurry, simply tip a punnet of veggies into a pan with a spoon or two of olive oil. Add a little stock or water as it begins to heat up and turn onto low with a lid on. Add your new herb salt and season to your satisfaction. Serve with sesame, olive or flaxeed oil and lemon juice or balsamic vinegar. Eat as much as you like, especially the green beans as they are a great slimming food.
Red or green pepper, Chinese cabbage, spinach, matchstick carrots, slivers of green beans, onions, broccoli, courgettes, celery, lentil sprouts, fennel and a huge bunch of parsley, finely chopped. Add other vegetables that suit your blood type, like: cauliflower, cabbage or potatoes. If you want the mixture to be thicker and more satisfying add a few thin slices of sweet potato, butternut, etc. Add a few mung bean noodles or rice noodles if you have a lot of hungry people.