Olive oil

[thistlebloom]

I use grapeseed oil and avocado oil. They are mild tasting, and don't stand out as ingredients in baked food. I'm just not a big fan of the taste of olive oil in everything.
Seeds right. We're all going to die of something sooner or later. Better be prepared for what comes after.

edited for accuracy.

 

[catjac1975]

We bought some very pricey olive oil at 3 different farmers markets. The first salesman said his family produced it in Italy and shipped it to him. The second one said her bosses family produced it in Italy and shipped it to him. The third one...same schtick. It was all very tasty compared to the cheap stuff-but, how would I know if it is unadulterated ? Think I will try the California organic. Someone must be telling the truth.

 

[seedcorn]

@catjac1975, my MAJOR problem with our food supply, is the deceit from some suppliers. Have some producers involved with non-GMO products. Smaller, cheaper companies have much higher contamination levels due to their cost cutting practices. The higher quality companies charge more and smaller farmers want the cheaper seed. Since the marketing companies can't get what they want, they cheat or (larger main label companies) quit making it due to not wanting bad rep(& law suits).

 

[digitS']

This thread has prompted me to go back to my last blood tests and look at the results. In the spring of 2015, I just decided that the MD's "normal" was normal and went on to more interesting things ...

I'm planning on making some changes in my diet. I guess that changes and plans are a constant in my life. Maybe that is a good thing. But, having about 20+ years of lots of stir-fries means, for me, having bacon and sausage as important meats in my diet. I doubt if I eat as much meat as the average American. There seems to be differing stats on that but somewhere close to 1/2# daily, according to the USDA. I may eat half that.

Anyway, I've heard enough about cured meats as being unhealthy. Chicken, my other stir-fry meat, doesn't play a big enough role. So, my plan is to increase that by doing more marinades for chicken so that I'm using it instead of the cured meats and not just in addition. I will start adding a smoked paprika to marinades. Less sausage and bacon and more lean chicken should lower my over-all cholesterol intake.

I have olive oil and use it but not often and seldom in stir-fries.

Now that I've actually gone thru the blood test numbers, they look good as of last spring. Cholesterol is "desirable." HDL Cholesterol is "considered protective against heart disease." Triglycerides are only 1/3rd of the "borderline" level. LDL is "optimal." All this according to the American Heart Association and the National Institute of Health. However, there are more health reasons than cholesterol to limit cured meats.

Steve

 

[catjac1975]

@catjac1975, my MAJOR problem with our food supply, is the deceit from some suppliers. Have some producers involved with non-GMO products. Smaller, cheaper companies have much higher contamination levels due to their cost cutting practices. The higher quality companies charge more and smaller farmers want the cheaper seed. Since the marketing companies can't get what they want, they cheat or (larger main label companies) quit making it due to not wanting bad rep(& law suits).

One of the market managers we know from a farmer's market told me farmers were the worst scumbags. She visits the farms to be sure they are actually growing the produce they sell. Some were buying the produce for a market that was supposed to be grown local. I' m sure making a living farming is tough unless you are huge.

 

[digitS']

I think that market manager had best change her attitude. Her most important customers are her market's growers.

What she needs to realize is that they are on her side. If it's a growers-only market, they do not appreciate the competition from the produce resellers. Really, it can be competition with the produce companies!

Sometimes, the resellers don't even need to buy what they are selling. Just pick up the load that morning and pay for what they sold when they take back the extra, that afternoon.

If the market vendors are actually growing what they sell, they will welcome "farm visits" from market management.

Steve

 

[Nyboy]

Several stores I go to now list what farms the produce is from. Even whole foods is doing this.

 

[baymule]

I use olive oil, but not because of cholesterol, I use it because practically everything else on the market is GMO. I buy olive oil, coconut oil, grapeseed and avocado oil, in that order of use. When we butcher our pig, I plan on rendering the lard. We'll see how it goes...

 

[thistlebloom]

We raised a few pigs and mom always rendered the lard. Seemed pretty easy.
To a dumb kid anyway.

 

[bobm]

Five years ago,since I came down with diabetes 2 years prior, I was given a healthy diet with an emphasis on fruits and vegetables by a medical research group from Washington State University and backed by USDA's "healthy" diet . Well, in 2 weeks I gained 10 lbs. and my blood work for cholesterol , etc. increased quite a bit. I whent back on the good old American diet and held steady. Last year my Kaiser Doctor sent me to their Dietition , who gave me a very similar diet ... similar results. I junked that for one that is high in protein ( meat ) and low on carbs ( very little breads,cookies, fruits and vegetables) . I have now lost 40 lbs. and my blood work has greatly improved. Just what does " eat healthy foods " actually mean as each of us has different genetics and by whose standards ???