What happened this year in your kitchen?  Did you learn something new?  Re-discover something old?  What was the best new thing you tried a bite of?

Two new foods entered my life this year.  Every winter I teach a course called “Cooking Demonstration” where students design and practice teach a cooking class.  One of my students chose fermented vegetables  as her project.  I had made them, but never gotten into the rhythm of the process.  Eliza made it seem so easy.  I pulled my crock out again and haven’t stopped using it.  I adore the fresh-tasting sauerkraut and kim chee that I always have either brewing or jarred in my refrigerator.

Another lovely student that was in my class spring quarter brought in her homemade tempeh to share.  It was so much fresher tasting that anything I had purchased in a store.  I bought the very inexpensive culture online this summer and started cooking soybeans and making my own tempeh.

All those probiotics from fermented food keep my belly happy.  And thank goodness I teach!  My students keep me perpetually learning.

How about you?  What did 2009 bring to your food life?

One of our viewers asked about the pros and cons of eating soy products. The negative impact of eating soy was brought to light in 2005 via “The Whole Soy Story: The Dark Side of America’s Favorite Health Food,” by Kaayla T. Daniels Ph.D., C.C.N. I’ve checked out  the book and also spent some time researching both pro and con articles on soy so I could bring a balanced picture to my classes and lectures.

When farming policies changed in the 1970’s the agriculture industry faced an oversupply of certain subsidized crops. Massive amount of corn quickly became beef and high fructose corn syrup.  The burgeoning  trend to avoid animal products with saturated fats provided growing room for subsidized soybean growers and processors.   The 1999 FDA approved health claim linking eating soy and heart health sold the public on many new soy-based food products.  From 2000 to 2007, food manufacturers in the U.S. introduced over 2,700 new foods with soy as an ingredient, including 161 new products introduced in 2007 alone.  Hence  the gulping of soy lattes, munching of soy-based candy bars (referred to as “energy bars”) and slapping tofu bologna between two slices of bread became accepted as “healthy”.

Soybeans have some great things to brag about. They contain potentially healthful compounds called phytoestrogens (lately come into question).  They are a good non-cholesterol protein source, a natural source of lecithin, and are concentrated in essential fatty acids, including omega-3.  Soybean products often provide an acceptable protein source for vegetarians and vegans.

On the downside, soybeans are one of the crops that have been genetically modified, and genetically modified soybeans are used in an increasing number of products. In 1995 Monsanto Company introduced Roundup Ready (RR) soybeans that have been genetically modified to be resistant to the herbicide Roundup.  In 1997, about 8% of all soybeans cultivated for the commercial market in the United States were genetically modified. In 2006, the figure was 89%.

Soybeans also are a difficult food for humans to digest. They contain more phytic acid than most grains or beans, which can affect mineral absorption. Some feel their natural enzyme inhibitors can block protein absorption. Ms. Daniels takes many more punches at the poor bean citing allergies, sexual dysfunction, adverse affects on hormone development during puberty, thyroid deficiencies, and retarded growth in children as symptoms of eating too much soy. Just to name a few. I also agree that there’s a real downside to feeding infants processed soy formula, which isn’t really comparable nutritionally to live mother’s milk.

Soybean derivatives such as soy flour, textured soy protein, partially hydrogenated soybean oil, and soy protein isolate certainly raise some concerns.  Soy protein isolate (SPI) is the key ingredient in imitation meat and dairy products made with soy, including baby formula, energy bars and some brands of soy milks.  SPI is not something you can make in your kitchen. A slurry of soybeans are mixed with an alkaline solution to remove the fiber. The slurry is precipitated and separated using an acid wash and finally neutralized in an alkaline solution. Acid washing in aluminum tanks may leach aluminum into the final product. The resultant curds are spray dried at high temperatures to produce high protein powder or SPI.  I don’t consider SPI a naturally-produced whole food. Not the same thing in my mind as tofu or tempeh (which I can make in my kitchen).  Products made from soy derivatives such as cheese, margarine, burgers, hot dogs and bacon are a staple in most vegetarian and vegan diets. To me, these products do not seem any livelier or healthier than their animal based counterparts. Less so in most cases.

The traditional Japanese diet, through centuries of trial and error, found ways to use soybeans in a healthful manner. They did not invent or eat soy protein isolate. They mainly ate carefully crafted, fermented soy products in small amounts. The fermentation process deactivates the phytic acid and renders the bean much more digestible. Tamari, shoyu, miso and tempeh add flavor and digestibility to meals when served in small amounts. Though not fermented, tofu also doesn’t affect mineral absorption because of the way it’s made.

Traditional tamari and shoyu are soy sauces derived from a long aging process. Some mass-market brands are not fermented and use hydrolyzed vegetable protein, corn syrup, caramel color and MSG to mimic the color and flavor of natural fermentation.

Cultures that traditionally used soy products in their diets also included sea vegetables. If there’s any worry about mineral absorption or thyroid deficiencies from eating soy, the plethora of minerals, including iodine, in sea vegetables counters it.

Is it a good bean or is it a bad bean? Where does eating soybeans fit into a well balanced diet? Enjoying small amounts of fermented soy products and fresh tofu, in a diet that includes sea vegetables is perfectly wonderful. Purchase organic soy foods, to avoid products made from genetically engineered soybeans. Buy things to eat that are fresh and lively; foods that you could reproduce at home without any heavy machinery.

Don’t revere soy or shun it. Simply pay attention to quality and quantity.

Is soy good for you? bad? or indifferent?

Some viewers have written with concerns about eating soy products.  There’s been a lot of discussion about the pros and cons of including soy in the diet. I’ve spent some time researching both sides of the argument so I could bring a balanced picture of the bean and its offspring to my classes and elsewhere.

Most people seem to get their nutritional information from the popular media, including television commercials. One problem is that they believe it. The second problem is that most Americans think that anything the media says is good for you to eat means you should not just eat it, but eat a whole lot of it; every day. So in the 90’s when the media began reporting scientific research showing health benefits from eating soy products, Americans hopped on the soy wagon. Hence not only the gulping of soy lattes, munching of soy-based candy bars (referred to as “energy bars”) and slicing of tofurkey at Thanksgiving, but the broad acceptance that anything with soy anything in it is good for you. It is no coincidence that the positive research touting soy as a health food emerged after government subsidies, to the tune of  $14.2 billion from 1995-2006, created an abundance of cheap, genetically engineered soybeans.

Soybeans have some great things to brag about. They are a good vegetarian protein source, a natural source of lecithin, and are concentrated in essential fatty acids, including omega-3. They contain other hotly-debated compounds including phytoestrogens which may be helpful for menopausal hot flashes, not so good for ladies with a history of breast cancer.  It all depends on which studies you read.

Soybeans also are a difficult food for humans to digest. They contain more phytic acid than most grains or beans, which can affect mineral absorption. Some feel their natural enzyme inhibitors can block protein absorption. Kayla Daniels (in her book The Whole Soy Story) takes many more punches at the poor bean citing allergies, sexual dysfunction, adverse affects on hormone development during puberty, thyroid deficiencies, and retarded growth in children as symptoms of eating too much soy. Just to name a few. I agree with her that there’s a real downside to feeding infants processed soy formula, which isn’t really comparable nutritionally to live mother’s milk.

Soybean derivatives such as soy flour, textured soy protein, partially hydrogenated soybean oil and soy protein isolate certainly raise some concerns. These highly processed, fractionated soy products, a result of multi-stage chemical processes, have become a major ingredient in many pre-packaged or fast foods. Products made from soy derivatives such as cheese, margarine, burgers, hot dogs and bacon are a staple in most vegetarian and vegan diets. To me, these products do not seem any livelier or healthier than their animal based counterparts. Less so in most cases.

The traditional Japanese diet, through centuries of trial and error, found ways to use soybeans in a healthful manner. They did not invent or eat soy protein isolate. They mainly ate carefully crafted, fermented soy products in small amounts. The fermentation process deactivates the phytic acid and renders the bean much more digestible. Tamari, shoyu, miso and tempeh add flavor and digestibility to meals when served in small amounts.

Cultures that traditionally used soy products in their diets also included sea vegetables. If there’s any worry about mineral absorption or thyroid deficiencies from eating soy, the plethora of minerals, including iodine, in sea vegetables counters it.

Tamari and shoyu are soy sauces derived from a long aging process. Good brews are fermented at least three to six months. Some mass-market soy sauces are not fermented and use hydrolyzed vegetable protein, corn syrup, caramel color and MSG as additives to mimic the color and flavor of natural fermentation.

Tofu, though not a fermented soy product, is made from cooked and strained soybeans that have had a coagulant added. Luckily the phytic acid of the bean is mostly found in the fiber which is discarded when tofu is made. Often tofu is served in dishes that include other fermented soy products such as tamari and miso, which further aid digestibility.

Is it a good bean or is it a bad bean? Where does eating soybeans fit into a well balanced diet? Enjoying small amounts of fermented soy products and fresh tofu, in a diet that occasionally includes sea vegetables (let’s have nori rolls!) is perfectly wonderful. Buy things to eat that are fresh and lively; foods that you could reproduce at home without any heavy machinery. Don’t revere soy or shun it. Simply pay attention to quality and quantity.