The Coronavirus outbreak originating in Wuhan, China arrived in the UK in January 2020. Since then cases have sky rocketed to over 59 million cases across the globe. According to www.Statista.com, the number of confirmed deaths in the UK, as of November 27th 2020, amounted to 57,551.
While no diet can prevent coronavirus, studies have shown that staying healthy can reduce the risk of transmission, and also help fight off the virus if we get it.
Below are some recipes that not only provide healthier cooking options but explain how each vitamin/protein/iron contributes towards a better functioning immune system.
Nadia Iordanova, has worked in many restaurants in Chania, the second largest city in Crete. “In Greece we have a saying: you are what you eat,” says the 45-year-old chef.
“I cook from scratch, with fresh ingredients, not processed, not frozen, simply living. Through every season I gather ingredients nature provides me. In Greece with have a variety in our diet. The law of proportionality can help our health.”
Ntakos: a delicious Greek bruschetta
A starter she calls “simple, cheap and effective” is ntakos, which is like a Greek version of a bruschetta.
Ingredients:
2-4 slices of Greek Rusk bread
200-500 gm Crushed or grated tomatoes
Olive oil
Fresh white goat's and/or sheep's cheese
Oregano
Sea salt
“Here we have a dish full of health, fast and delicious,” says Iordanova. This dish can be made as a starter or as a side course for a light lunch, paired with soup or salad.
“First you crush or grate at least three tomatoes. Then wet at least two slices of the Greek Rusk bread and put them in a bowl, add your tomato mixture on top of the bread with around two tablespoons of olive oil. Add crushed goat’s or sheep’s cheese on the top. Add a sprinkle of oregano and you’re done!”
Tomatoes are high in lycopene, which helps protect your cells from damage can boost the immune system. It originates from the UV rays of sunlight.
Fresh fish soup: Kakavia
EustratiosZymbragoudakis, 29, works at an Asian restaurant in Chania. “My goal is to try flavours from around the world and enrich my knowledge. Strengthening our immune system through our food is our shield,” she says.
“Hippocrates once said: ‘Let food be thy medicine and let medicine be thy food.’ It’s a good excuse, this pandemic, to begin to look out for what we are putting in our bodies”.
Eustratios recommends Kakavia(Greek fisherman’s soup), as a main dish.
Ingredients:
(For 4-8 people)
2 kilos of fresh fish (grouper, golden grouper, John Dory, cod)
4 large potatoes, cut in four
3 large onions, cut in rings
2 tomatoes, cut in rings
300 g Celery
1 tea cup of olive oil
Salt
Pepper
Clean the fish, add salt and leave it on the side
Put in a large saucepan the onions, potatoes, the tomatoes and celery.
Fill the saucepan with water until the ingredients are covered, then leave to boil on high heat for 10 minutes.
Lower the heat and add the fish to the saucepan.
Leave to boil for 25-30 minutes.
Add the oil, salt and pepper and leave to boil on high heat for another 10 minutes.
Turn the heat off and serve the soup in bowls.
Serve the onions after 10-15 minutes of sitting in the juices.”
The soup tastes delicious and is bursting with Omega 3 fatty acids, which can have positive effects on immunity and inflammation.
Healthy ingredients
Chef Elias Marin, of Spanish origin, works in a Mexican restaurant in Notting Hill, London and tries to incorporate healthy ingredients in his dishes. “Feeding your body certain foods may help keep your immune system strong,” he says.
“My favourites, ceviches and aguacachiles, are traditional Mexican dishes in which you ‘cook’ the fish or shellfish with citrus fruits. To cook an ingredient you need to heat them, so you don’t really cook them,” he says.
“But if you immerse the fish/shellfish in citrus juices, the acidity of the juices will turn the meat of the fish in a texture and colour similar to the one you cook it.”
As you will eat the fish “raw” it is really important to do it with frozen fish to kill the bacteria and pathogenic virus. Freeze them for at least five days (if you buy them fresh).
Ceviche
+ For ceviches you normally use white fish
1 fish fillet (100-150 grms)
Lime juice to cover it (3-4 limes)
Garnishes to choice
10 grams red onion
10 grams jalapeno chili
10 grams coriander
15 grams sweet corn
25 grams tomatoes
25 grams papaya
Remove the skin of the fish and you cut it in cubes of 5mm aprox.
Place them in a container and cover with the lime juices.
Leave to rest for about two hours until you open the fish and it is completely white (instead of “translucent”.
In the meantime finely chop the rest of ingredients.
Once the fish is ‘cooked’, remove the lime juice and mix with the rest of ingredients. Season them with salt and pepper to taste.
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