Table of Contents
How does it work
Macrobiotics, even before being a food model, is one philosophy of life and its purpose is to seek balance between man and the environment. This approach is inspired by a worldview based on the alternation of two opposite and complementary energies, yin and yang. If you choose foods taking these polarities into account, it is possible to regain and maintain health and well-being.
THE fundamental principles of the macrobiotic diet are as follows:
- follow the seasonality of fruit and vegetables;
- choose fruits and vegetables typical of the climate in which you live;
- minimize the consumption of animal food;
- avoid simple sugars and refined flours;
- regularly consume whole grains and legumes;
- introduce miso soup daily;
- learn how to use special seasonings (miso, shoyu, tamari, umeboshi) and seaweed;
- seek maximum variability by alternating the various types of cereals, legumes and vegetables;
- use whole Mediterranean sea salt.
The energy of food: not just kilocalories
In the macrobiotic diet every food possesses a specific energy that goes beyond its caloric value. This energy is able to influence various organs and systems in different ways. In reality we speak of global well-being, meaning by this we refer not only to well-being of the body but also to that of mind. The first step is to become aware of what energies we introduce into our organism eating this or that other food. The energy qualities of a food depend on where it is grown, how it grows and, finally, how it is prepared and cooked.
According to macrobiotics, every living being is constantly looking forbalance with the external environment. This concept is as true for plants as it is for animals. So if the environment is cold, the response of living beings is to retain heat. On the contrary, if the environment is hot, it adapts to it by eliminating heat. By transferring this concept to food, we understand how cabbage, a typical winter vegetable, tends to retain little water as opposed to summer vegetables. Growing up in a warm climate, zucchini and tomatoes end up filling up with water to protect themselves.
When we eat cabbage we take in the heat that this vegetable used to survive the winter cold. In this way we protect ourselves we too. On the contrary, if during the winter we eat summer vegetables, we are charged with a cooling energy (the same that allowed these plants to adapt to the heat) which must be eliminated by going through a seasonal disease.
Yin and yang foods
According to Eastern philosophies, every phenomenon in the universe has one polarity: night is opposed to day, cold to heat, fullness to emptiness, feminine to masculine. By learning to distinguish yin and yang in every aspect of existence we can conform to universal law. Alimony also falls under this law. It is possible to distinguish between yin foods and yang foods. In macrobiotic cuisine, yin energy is a cold, dispersive energy that moves from the inside to the outside; yang energy is a warm, focused energy that moves from the outside to the inside. By learning what they are yin and yang foods you can adjust your diet according to your health conditions, age, sex, level of physical activity, season and the geographical area in which you live.
List of yin foods and drinks
- Ice cream
- Alcohol
- sugar
- Milk
- Yogurt
- The
- Fresh cheeses
- Tofu
- Green leafy vegetables
- Round vegetables
- Root vegetables
- Flours
- Algae
- legumes
- Corn
- Oats
- Barley
- Wheat
List of yang foods and drinks
- salt
- Spices
- Herbs
- Eggs
- Cured meat
- Meat
- Aged cheeses
- Crustaceans
- Fishes
- Clams
- Buckwheat
- Mile
- Brown rice
Scheme
Macrobiotic breakfast
The breakfast offered by macrobiotic cuisine is mostly based on cream of cereals (wholemeal and in grains) and bancha tea. Other options are the porridge with bancha tea or with cereal coffee. Desserts prepared without animal derivatives (cow’s milk, butter, lard) and without refined sugars are allowed.
Macrobiotic lunch
The typical macrobiotic lunch is prepared with a whole grain cereal (barley, spelled, Venere black rice, red rice, wholemeal basmati rice) accompanied with seasonal vegetables sauté in a pan. In spring, for example, a first macrobiotic could be brown rice seasoned with field asparagus and leeks. The meal is always open from one Miso soup and is completed with a dish of azuki and stewed onions, important to cover the protein needs.
Macrobiotic dinner
For dinner the ideal combination is again a miso soup followed by a whole grain cereal topped with sautéed vegetables. I can be envisaged legumes or alternatively fish white meat such as cod or hake. Macrobiotics also includes the use of soy derivatives such as tempeh or tofu. Finally, many of the recipes of traditional cuisine are appropriately modified according to the precepts of macrobiotics. There are macrobiotic recipes for the preparation of lasagna, meatballs, meat sauce, sauces or pizza.
Miso soup
The miso soup represents a real one foundation of macrobiotic cuisine. It is prepared with three vegetables: an elongated root, a round vegetable and green leaves. An example would be carrot, onion and Chinese cabbage. To these three vegetables are added miso, wakame seaweed and flavorings (parsley or ginger juice). The three vegetables with different shapes and directions of growth serve to give the miso soup energy in motion. The energy of the carrot moves downwards, that of the onion in all directions and that of the green leaves upwards.
From the point of view of yin and yang philosophy, miso soup possesses a great deal dynamic balance and a strong energy and is able to give us strength and harmony. Miso is a product obtained from fermentation of soy and it is rich in enzymes essential for the balance of the intestinal flora. It has been shown to promote the growth of lactobacilli. Contains B vitamins, minerals and proteins. To keep its properties unaltered it must not be boiled. Instead, it dissolves in a little hot water which is added to the rest of the soup at the end of cooking. The wakame seaweed releases a mucilage that can be used by intestinal bacteria as a prebiotic. It is rich in mineral salts including calcium, iron and magnesium. Contains B vitamins and vitamin C.
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