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A history of alcohol

Posted in Alcohol, Food, Historical, tagged alcohol, History on September 27, 2014|

Hello all!

Many apologies for my long absence! Believe it or not- moving across the country and starting your intern year as a medical resident is incredibly time consuming! Add to that, my gnawing guilt about not completing an academic chapter (Aaron, forgive me, but I am working on it!), and writing for pleasure keeps getting postponed.

It’s a rainy day in Salt Lake City, so instead of getting out to explore I’m trying to buckle down to finish some academic writing. To refresh my memory I pulled up my PhD thesis to review a couple chapters and happened to glance at my chapter on the history of alcohol. While the majority of my thesis is rather dry, focusing on liver pathology and cell-signaling intricacies, this chapter might actually be interesting to those with an interest in history (and/or booze). For those interested, I’m posting it below!

History

Fermentation of foods and beverages is intricately woven into human history and culture, with archaeological evidence of intentional fermentation dating back almost 10,000 years. The biochemistry behind the process was finally elucidated by Louis Pasteur in the mid 1850s [1, 2].

Archeologists have discovered extensive evidence for the historic production of fermented beverages around the world, including in China, Egypt, Iran, Greece, and Georgia [3]. Ancient beverages were made from a variety of products, including rice (sake), honey (mead), fruit (wine), and cereal grains (beer) [4]. One of the earliest and most prevalent sources of sugar for fermentation was, and remains, grape juice (Vitis sp.), with the earliest evidence of large-scale wine production dating back to approximately 5400BC in the northern Zagros Mountains of Iran [5]. Indeed, it is likely that humans’ propensity for wine led to the domestication of Vitis vinifera and the global expansion of the species [6]. It has even been suggested that the earliest agrarian societies converted from their nomadic hunter-gatherer ways in order to increase their ability to produce alcohol [7]!

The first winemaking was probably a mistake, occurring when juice from stored grapes was exposed to natural yeasts that would have fermented in a matter of days [8]. Originally, fermentation was probably initiated by wild yeast, and it is not known when humans started to selectively add specific yeasts to their materials [3]. The success and popularity of the drink is evidenced by the vast and rapid expansion of viticulture throughout Mesopotamia and Europe [8]. It is currently believed that grapes were domesticated between the Black Sea and Iran between 7000-4000 BC [3, 5, 9]. From there, grape production and winemaking spread over the Mediterranean, reaching Greece in 5000BC, Italy in 900BC, France in 600BC and the Americas in 1500 AD [3]. The export of wine was a driving force behind the expansion of the Greek sea trade, and when Rome conquered Greece the Romans adopted winemaking. As the Roman Empire expanded, viniculture and viticulture spread with it. When the Roman Empire collapsed, wine’s place in Christian rituals helped to maintain production. While wineries in the Middle East and North Africa disappeared with the advent and spread of Islam, monasteries in Europe protected and refined the art of wine making. European expansion eventually carried wine production to the Americas, starting in Mexico and heading south into South America. European grapes could not survive in eastern North America, and native varietals were adopted and cultivated for wine production [8]. European cultivars thrived on the west coast of the US [10].

It is believed that the production and consumption of beer arose after the advent of wine, though like wine, the actual date when beer was first produced is unknown. The first beer may have been a result of a batch of porridge that was left to sit too long, and there is extensive archeological evidence of beer production and consumption dating from 4000 to 3500 BC. It is likely that the Sumerians were the first beer makers and it is believed that as much as 40% of their grain production was used to brew beer. While the Sumerians may have invented beer making, the process was quickly adopted by Egyptians [8]. Analysis of ceramics found in Egypt that date from 1500-1300 BC suggests that a combination of cooked and uncooked malt with water and an inoculation of yeast were used to make beer [3]. Most people drank beer daily, and it was used as an offering to the gods. Beer production spread from the Middle East to Europe and Africa, and also began spontaneously in other parts of the world. The Incas, for example, used corn, manioc, and peanuts as the starting material for fermentation in South America [8]. The introduction of hops increased the stability of beer and allowed for greater dissemination of the product because the phenolic compounds in the Hops prevents the growth of gram positive bacteria [11].

In addition to having social and religious implications, beer provided a valuable nutritional source to those that drank it. Only a small amount of the energy in grains is lost in fermentation and the growth of yeast provides a valuable source of B vitamins to an otherwise somewhat nutritionally barren substance. Additionally, in a time when drinking water was frequently contaminated by the products of civilization, brewing (and wine making) provided a valuable source of potable liquid [8].

Both beer and wine provide relatively low percentage alcoholic beverages because of the self-limiting nature of fermentation. As the alcohol concentration of the fermented substance increases, the yeast lose the ability to survive and continue fermentation, therefore, with a few exceptions, beers are generally 4-6% alcohol by volume (abv) and wines are generally 10-14% abv. Variations in alcohol content depend on the availability of substrate for the yeast to ferment and the type of yeast used for fermentation. The process of distillation, by which alcohol is physically separated from water by exploiting differences in the substances’ boiling points, allows for the production of liquids with dramatically increased alcohol contents. Distillation first appeared in Mesopotamia around 4000BC, and was primarily used for the production of perfumes. Sometime later, distillation was used to produce alcoholic beverages, and between 1000 and 1500 AD the distillation of wine in Europe led to the production of brandy [8].

Initially, liquor was perceived as a healthy tonic, even being referred to as ‘aqua vitae’, the water of life. Distilled liquor had the advantage of decreasing the volume of the initial substance, and improving stability, increasing the ability to transport alcohol throughout Europe and North America. Many liquors are distinctly identified with a geographical location, such as bourbon in the US, tequila in Mexico, Scotch whisky in Scotland, Gin in England, and Rum with the Caribbean [8]. Unfortunately, the availability of relatively inexpensive high alcohol beverages led to abuse and societal problems, and began to be blamed for social and medical problems. Indeed, the English artist William Hogarth depicted the evils of the consumption of gin in his print ‘Gin Lane’, which he compared to the merits of drinking beer in his print ‘Beer Street’.

The production and consumption of alcohol has had significant cultural, religious, and social implications for millennia and it continues to be important around the globe today. In addition to its roles in social and religious events, alcohol is implicated in a number of facets of human health and disease. Moderate consumption of alcohol has been associated with a decreased risk of certain adverse health events in comparison to those who abstain from alcohol entirely, while the over consumption of alcohol is associated with a number of pathologies and death. The pathologies and benefits of alcohol consumption are varied, as are the mechanisms by which alcohol acts in the body. While some effects of alcohol are due to the direct action alcohol, the process and products of alcohol metabolism are hugely important and warrant significant examination.

Pasteur, L., Mémoire sur la fermentation alcoolique. . Ann. Chim. Phys, 1860. 58: p. 323-426.
Barnett, J.A., Beginnings of microbiology and biochemistry: the contribution of yeast research. Microbiology, 2003. 149(Pt 3): p. 557-67.
Sicard, D. and J.L. Legras, Bread, beer and wine: yeast domestication in the Saccharomyces sensu stricto complex. C R Biol, 2011. 334(3): p. 229-36.
McGovern, P.E., J. Zhang, J. Tang, Z. Zhang, G.R. Hall, R.A. Moreau, A. Nunez, E.D. Butrym, M.P. Richards, C.S. Wang, G. Cheng, Z. Zhao, and C. Wang, Fermented beverages of pre- and proto-historic China. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A, 2004. 101(51): p. 17593-8.
McGovern, P.E., D.L. Glusker, and L.J. Exner, Neolithic resinated wine. Nature, 1986. 381: p. 480-481.
Cavalieri, D., P.E. McGovern, D.L. Hartl, R. Mortimer, and M. Polsinelli, Evidence for S. cerevisiae fermentation in ancient wine. J Mol Evol, 2003. 57 Suppl 1: p. S226-32.
McGovern, P.E., Uncorking the Past: The Quest for Wine, Beer, and Other Alcoholic Beverages. 2009: University of California Press.
Wolf, A., G.A. Bray, and B.M. Popkin, A short history of beverages and how our body treats them. Obesity Reviews, 2007. 9: p. 151-164.
Arroyo-Garcia, R., L. Ruiz-Garcia, L. Bolling, R. Ocete, M.A. Lopez, C. Arnold, A. Ergul, G. Soylemezoglu, H.I. Uzun, F. Cabello, J. Ibanez, M.K. Aradhya, A. Atanassov, I. Atanassov, S. Balint, J.L. Cenis, L. Costantini, S. Goris-Lavets, M.S. Grando, B.Y. Klein, P.E. McGovern, D. Merdinoglu, I. Pejic, F. Pelsy, N. Primikirios, V. Risovannaya, K.A. Roubelakis-Angelakis, H. Snoussi, P. Sotiri, S. Tamhankar, P. This, L. Troshin, J.M. Malpica, F. Lefort, and J.M. Martinez-Zapater, Multiple origins of cultivated grapevine (Vitis vinifera L. ssp. sativa) based on chloroplast DNA polymorphisms. Mol Ecol, 2006. 15(12): p. 3707-14.
Soleas, G.J., E.P. Diamandis, and D.M. Goldberg, Wine as a biological fluid: history, production, and role in disease prevention. J Clin Lab Anal, 1997. 11(5): p. 287-313.
Sakamoto, K. and W.N. Konings, Beer spoilage bacteria and hop resistance. Int J Food Microbiol, 2003. 89(2-3): p. 105-24.

I will be back, with more posts on evolution, medicine, evolutionary medicine, travel, Utah, and life! Until then…

Corolla, we’re not in NJ anymore…

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Adventures in Ecuador…

Posted in Food, Life, Nature, Travel, Uncategorized, tagged Ecuador, life, Mindo, Otavalo, Photography, Quilotoa, Quito, Travel, Valle de chota, wracking up the frequent flyer miles, You only live once on April 13, 2014| 3 Comments »

I have a rather embarrassing admission to make: when I first started looking at taking a trip to the Galapagos three months ago I didn’t actually know that the islands were part of Ecuador. Two months ago I visited the islands. It was amazing, but other than one afternoon in Guayaquil on the way back to the states I really didn’t get a taste of mainland Ecuador.

But while touring the Galapagos on the National Geographic Endeavour I made friends with one of the naturalist guides who invited me to come back and visit him in mainland Ecuador. Always a fan for adventure, and with only minor apprehension about spending 8 full days with someone I had barely spent 8 full hours with, I booked tickets to Quito and packed my bag.

The Galapagos Islands are amazing. They are unique, beautiful, and biologically fascinating.

A blue footed booby in the Galapagos, with the National Geographic Endeavour in the background.

Mainland Ecuador is also amazing. It is beautiful, biologically diverse, and inhabited by generous and kind people. Ecuador has stunning biodiversity, spread over four distinct regions: highlands, jungle (Amazon), coast, and the Galapagos (600 miles due west of the mainland).

Quilotoa- more on this beautiful place later, but this is one of may beautiful spots that you can visit in the highlands of Ecuador.

Quilotoa- more on this beautiful place later, but this is one of many spots that you can visit in the highlands of Ecuador.

I landed in Quito, the capital, late in the evening on the first where I met my friend and started our adventures. Quito airport is new, and located about an hour outside of the city. There is a nice airport express bus that takes you to the old airport in town, from where we took a taxi to Plaza Foch- a popular touristic area of Quito (there’s quite a bit of night life in this part of the city, with un-Ecuadorian high prices). It’s a fun part of town, and despite being a pricey place to eat and drink there are many affordable hostels. The night we had a room at one called “The Magic Bean” (coffee was a theme). Throughout the rest of our trip we stayed at various hostels, never making plans or reservations until we arrived. Hostels were generally cheap: we paid $19-$40/night for 2 people, always with our own bathroom, and sometimes with breakfast or breakfast and dinner included.

My first morning we wandered around Quito, grabbed breakfast, and walked around Parque El Ejido, all near Plaza Foch. Quito is in a valley, stretching from north to south (with the old colonial district in the middle, dividing “the North” (which is more prosperous) from “the South”), with mountains surrounding. The weather in Quito is lovely, and fairly constant. There’s no need for seasonal wardrobes in Quito-you can wear the same clothes year round. Since Ecuador is at the equator, sunrise and sunset are fairly constant year round, occurring right around 6am and 6pm.

Around midday we headed to a bus station on the north side of the city and took a bus to Mindo. Ecuador uses the America dollar as currency, and generally speaking things are very cheap. Public transportation within the city allows you to cross town for $0.25 (12c if you’re a senior or child), and the ~2 hour bus ride from Quito to Mindo was a mere $2.50 (a good estimate on bus rides in Ecuador is ~$1/hr).

Our first destination was Mindo…

The trip to mindo took us winding through lush mountains. Wikitravels recommended sitting on the right side of the bus for the best views and they were right. The tops of these peaks were often in clouds, though we were at lower altitudes than we had been in Quito.

Mindo is a beautiful small town nestled in cloud-forest. It is famous for the quantity and diversity of birds, and it is an increasingly popular tourist destination. My travel companion had visited many years ago, when there were a few hostels in a small town. He was shocked at the number of hostels that are there now, with many more under construction.

We stayed at the Dragonfly Inn- definitely the most luxurious of our accommodations during our 8-day adventure, with an attractive and clean room for $50/night for two of us (breakfast included). The inn is located on the main street, overlooking a small river. Hummingbird feeders attract lots of hummingbirds, and you see other birds flitting about the trees at all hours. While eating breakfast on the patio I saw at least 20 hummingbirds buzzing about.

These guys were flitting around all the time and were especially active in the morning. The majority were this variety, though we did see others as well as a stunning yellow tanager.

Mindo has historically been a destination for birders, but it is increasingly becoming a hot spot for adventure tourism. During our stay we enjoyed a hike up at the cascade waterfalls and a tour of the local chocolate “factory”.

The cascades at Mindo are about 7km outside of town, and you either hike up the dirt road to the cable car that takes you across to the trails or you catch a truck-taxi. We opted for the latter option, setting up a return journey a few hours after we were dropped off (this ended up being a great set-up, as it started to pour as we finished our hike). To access the cascades you take a ride on a generator-powered cable-car that takes you on a ~900m ride across a deep ravine. Our car-operator would give any OSHA inspector a heart attack, as he opted to stand outside the metal cage as we zoomed along, hundreds of feet above the forest floor.

About 900m long, and absolutely stunning… A breathtaking way to reach a trailhead!

Once on the other side we opted to hike to the Reina Falls (there were a couple of trail options). There were many small falls along the way, and we spotted many hummingbirds and flowers along our hike. The final falls, Reina Falls, required a climb up a rather sketchy set of stairs.

One of the small falls along the trail to La Reina falls. Everything was so green and alive!

I loved these massive tree ferns.

La Reina falls.

Heading back down the sketchy stairs after we’d visited the falls.

Alas, it started to pour towards the ends of our hike, so our cable-car ride back to the taxi was a wet one. Had the weather been nicer, and had we had the interest, there are a number of outfits that offer canopy rides in the area.

A slightly soggy ride back!

We had lunch at a little café (trout is a regional specialty, and was delicious), where we had a long discussion with the café owner about the various challenges Ecuador faces when it comes to attracting tourists. While we chatted (first in Spanish, then in English) the owner caught on to my interests in agriculture and food, and insisted on running to the market next door where he purchased a naranjilla and a taxo (banana passion fruit) for me to try. Both have distinct and interesting flavors and are generally used for making fruit juice, for which they usually require some sweetening (“jugo natural”= freshly made juice, which is very popular in Ecuador. A glass of some sort is usually served with breakfast and lunch).

Taxo (above) and Naranjilla (below)

In the afternoon we headed to El Quetzal Chocolate Factory (Factory is probably a bit of an over statement, as operations take place in a small shed and two processing rooms), where we went on a tour and learned how they made chocolate- bean- to bar (actually pod to bar).

Cacao trees have many pods on them at one time and they sprout directly from the trunk or branches. They ripen at different times, and are red and yellow when mature. The best beans grow at lower altitudes, so El Quetzal doesn’t use the pods from their plants in Mindo (somewhere between 1000 and 2000m altitude) for making chocolate. Instead they use these for decoration and/or share the fresh pulp amongst the workers as a snack.

Pods are broken open to acquire the beans, which are fermented, as well as the white pulp, which is cooked down into a thick syrup that they call Miel de Cacao. I really liked the flavor, which had elements reminiscent of balsamic vinegar. In Mindo the cacao beans are fermented and dried in a plastic-sided green-house- the smell is intoxicating

Beans ferment for a few days to a week, depending on the temperature. They are wrapped in banana leaves to conserve heat.

The heat from the fermentation process kills the “embryo” inside. Initially these embryos start out purple, and they become brown as they cook and die. Brown (dead) embryos make good chocolate (there’s a reason chocolate is brown and not purple!). This one is on it’s way to being ready, but is still quite purple.

Once fermented, beans are laid out to dry. Drying time depends on the temperature in the house.

Once the beans are dried, any bad ones are removed and the remaining beans are roasted and cracked. The nibs are separated from the shells by a winnower.

The Roaster- Much like the fermenting and drying room, the smell in this room was intoxicating.

This is what you get after you roast the beans: nibs and shells. Throughout the process we were encouraged the try the beans. As someone who enjoys 100% cacao, I enjoyed nibbling on the nibs. Not so for the other 3 people on the tour.

Next, production moves into the first processing room where beans are ground. Here the beans were either made into 100% cacao paste, or separated (with pressure) into cocoa butter and cocoa powder. The thick chocolate paste, known as chocolate liquor, is then made into chocolate bars by adding sugar and extra cocoa butter. The mixture is refined, conched (ground and processed for a long period of time- I believe over 24 hours), and then tempered. El Quetzal doesn’t add any emulsifiers (such as soy lecithin), and instead relies on extended periods of conching and tempering to get a lovely smooth mouth feel and texture. They make a few different bars with various amounts of sugar and some added ingredients, such as ginger, chile peppers, and coffee- all of which they grow in Mindo (they also ferment a potent, and delicious, ginger beer).

I could have spent a couple of days in Mindo, but the next morning we headed back to Quito so that we could catch another bus to Otavalo.

The route to Otavalo.

Otavalo is a (relatively) large city in Imbabura province that is largely inhabited by native people. Otavalo is known for it’s large market (mainly selling locally manufactured textiles and leather goods), which has made the city and its people prosperous. The market is open every day of the week, but the largest market is on Saturday. We arrived on Friday evening, found a hostel (for $19/night for 2 people), took a brief walking tour of the market area, had some dinner, and called it a night.

The market in Otavalo, as business was winding down on a Friday night.

On Saturday morning we woke up early to go to the Mercado de Animales. This market is only open on Saturdays, and is where locals go to sell, buy, and trade all sorts of animals: cows, pigs, goats, sheep, llamas, chickens and assorted poultry, rabbits, and guinea pigs (known as cuyo). I’ve never seen so many pigs on leashes…

Early morning in the mercado de animales.

Looking out over the cow section.

Pigs on leashes!

Piglets on leashes! (I thought the spotted ones were very cute)

One of the few things I found in Ecuador that was actually more expensive than at home in the states was old laying hens. Here I know farmers that get $2.50/bird for old laying hens, while they were selling well for $9 a pair in this market. “Galina” (hen), has more flavor than regular meat chickens “pollo”, at least according to my travel companion!

A woman wearing her baby and selling Gallina (old laying hens). At $9/pair, these are more expensive than in the US!

Lots of Gallina: hens that have stopped laying eggs.

Alternatively, you could buy pollo- meat chickens (I didn’t catch the price).

I asked if you could buy laying hens (what we would call pullets), and was told that no one would sell a good laying hen. You could buy chicks though- I assume the brown paper bags on the side are for transportation once sold.

Guinnea pigs are a traditional meat source in this part of the world, and were prevalent in the market.

A mix of guinneas and rabbits.

People shopping in the Otavalo animal market. It’s kind of nice to be in a market where no one is trying to sell you anything. It’s pretty obvious that tourists won’t be taking anything home, so you’re left to wander around and people-watch to your hearts content.

Vegetable oil- the bane of my existence… I was sorry to see this guy selling vegetable oil at the animal market. Why abandon lard! (They’re getting the “animal fat is bad for you, vegetable oil is good for you” story in Ecuador these days.) While people cook most things from scratch outside of the big cities, there were lots of billboards marketing pre-made convenience foods as the way of the future.

After leaving the animal market (and passing through the small black-market out front where people sold animals without having to pay the $1 fee for trading animals in the market) we headed back into town to check out the main market. On market day, the central square and two main streets are full of vendors selling silver, leather goods, antiques, and clothing made in and around Otavalo. I couldn’t resist coming home with a small collection of scarves (made of locally produced cotton) which I bought for $2.50-$3 each. The main materials produced and used for textiles in the area are wool, cotton, and alpaca, and while most things are made in bulk on machines you can still find a few vendors that hand-make their own items.

I bought a few scarves from this young lady, who sold alpaca and cotton scarves, as well as wool hats that she knits herself (I somehow resisted the sponge-bob hat). She was very smiley while we chatted but became very serious when I asked her if I could take her picture.

I loved the colors of these locally produced wools.

Some general observations of the people in Otavalo:

The majority of people in Otavalo are indigenous Ecuadorians, and while they generally speak Spanish they also speak their own dialect of Kichwa. The women frequently wear traditional embroidered blouses with matching ribbons wrapped around their pony tails. They often wear hats, but will substitute a folded up blanket on their head to keep the sun out of their eyes in a pinch. The women generally wear flat sandals or shoes, and have no qualms breastfeeding in public. Babies are frequently worn in makeshift slings on mothers’ backs, and I didn’t hear or see an unhappy baby the whole time we were there.

A folded blanket doubling for a hat in the animal market. Women will walk around all day with a blanket like this.

In the afternoon we headed to Cotacachi- another predominantly indigenous town- famous for leather work. After meandering the main stretch and grabbing lunch (a delicious $7 per person “menu del dia” that consisted of traditional ceviche, plantain soup, a trout main dish, and strawberries with cream), we got back on a bus to make our way to Vale de Chota via Ibarra.

Valle del Chota is not a typical tourist destination.

Valle del Chota is a region in Imbabura province with a number of small villages and towns occupied largely by Afro-Ecuadorians. Along with the Esmeraldas province, Valle del Chota is one of the two areas in Ecuador largely inhabited by black Ecuadorians (descendants of former slaves and those who escaped from wrecked slave-ships coming from Africa). The villages in this area are generally rather poor (with some living in abject poverty).

Onwards to Valle de Chota

Perhaps some would find a visit to Valle de Chota interesting because of the heritage of the people or to see the difficulties of living in poverty, but we came for another reason… While people in this area traditionally scratched out a living trying to do agriculture in a very dry environment, this area has now become famous for the production of something very different- futbol (that’s soccer for Americans) stars.

Despite being a mere dot on the map of Ecuador, this region has produced half of the players on the last two Ecuadorian world cup teams. Players from these towns compete in Europe and around the world, and are internationally recognized as sports stars. While I have no interest in soccer my travel companion is a huge futbol fan, so exploring these towns was of great interest to him.

We started our morning in Pusir Grande- the most impoverished place I have ever visited. The easiest way to get to this village is on foot over a large suspension bridge built in 2004. In Pusir we spoke with a pair of older women who told us about life in the village. It was not a pretty picture, with no real jobs, no real opportunities, and no real way out.

The bridge to Pusir.

The view from the bridge is stunning, but the sights in the village on the other side take your breath away for totally different reasons.

Pusir Grande- Absolute poverty- there really isn’t much for me to say.

From Pusir we took a taxi to Juncal. The taxi was driven by a local young man who was excited to have some tourists visiting his area. When he heard our reason for visiting he told us that he would take us on a detour through his town of Carpuela, where he proudly pointed out the houses of family members of various famous soccer players (the names meant nothing to me, but my companion was excited). Carpuela was definitely better off than Pusir, and conditions continued to improve as he hit Juncal (though I would not call the area prosperous).

In Juncal we had a traditional lunch of Fritadas (fried pork served with a couple types of corn and potatoes).

Fritadas

We then walked through town, eventually meeting up with a group of young boys who found a couple of out-of-towners very entertaining. They took us down to the river and regaled us with stories, attracting more young boys with their shouts and laughter. I spoke to them all with my basic Spanish, and as each new boy showed up they asked me “Conoces Libby?” (Do you know Libby?) Apparently they have a visiting American teacher named Libby. The boys were also fascinated by how my friend and I could be together because my Spanish was so bad… For some reason they had a hard time believing that he was fluent in English.

These guys were great and full of life. Maybe one will be a famous soccer star some day.

I spotted this girl watching us on our walk back to town. Only the boys came up to us to say hello.

Under the bridge- this is where some of Ecuador’s best soccer players grew up, with this field being the training ground for World Cup players.

On our way back through town we stopped to watch some Ecuavolley. As the name suggests, this is a variant of volleyball, invented in Ecuador. The game is played with a soccer ball (it’s hard enough to afford one ball, you might as well use it for multiple sports), and is played three-a-side. During my stay in Ecuador I watched a number of these games (my companion is an avid and accomplished player). At this game, and throughout our stay in Valle del Chota, I stood out like a sore thumb (as did my relatively pale Ecuadorian friend) but while our presence drew some interested looks we never had any issues and were frequently offered assistance (because surely we were lost!).

A street game of Ecuavolley.

It looked like fun. I’d certainly like to try it out!

In the afternoon we again headed back to Quito. While we easily navigated Ecuador by bus, we always had to return to Quito to start a new adventure, with it acting like the hub of our travel wheel. We again spent the night in Plaza Foch, before heading south to Quilotoa (changing buses in Latacunga- the capital of the Cotapaxi province).

The roads to Quilotoa…

Quilotoa is a beautiful crater lake in an area sparsely populated by native people. Due to it’s growing popularity as a tourist destination, the locals have moved from their old village which was located about 1km down the mountain and are now living up at the edge of the crater where you can find many hostels and small cafes or stores (every building is a café, store, or hostel, as all the inhabitants make their living from tourism).

One of the many hostels in Quilotoa,flying the Incan flag.

My friend had visited Quilotoa 15 years ago, when you had to hire a truck to take you up the dirt road and the only thing at the top of the crater was a small adobe hut. In the last few years the government has paid for the construction of a nice new road to the village as well as the construction of a handicapped-accessible viewpoint and a maintained trail down to the lake. With these changes, tourism continues to increase, though there weren’t many other visitors during our stay.

This nice wide trail is a relatively new addition to the landscape at Quilotoa.

We opted to stay at one of the first hostels we saw- a recently constructed large chalet with beautiful large rooms heated with wood burning stoves. At almost 4000m (12,841 feet) and exposed to the elements, it’s windy and chilly in Quilotoa and we were certainly appreciative of the stove in our room and in the common area. For $20/person we not only had a room, but also had a dinner and breakfast that we shared with the other visitors (including four Indians who are on a months-long journey culminating in a trip to the FIFA World Cup in Brazil and a young Japanese woman on a solo year-long trip around the world!).

In addition to running a hostel, the owner of this establishment makes and sells wooden masks. In the back you can see him wife tending to the wood-burning stove.

We got to Quilotoa in the early afternoon. We had lunch at a small café associated with our hostel (a $4 menu del dia consisting of a bowl of lima bean soup, a plate of chicken, potatoes, and rice, and a glass of fresh-squeezed juice) and then headed to the crater. Despite a bit of concern that we may not make it down and up the crater before dark, we headed off down the trail. There we chatted with a local guy who was maintaining the trail. I figured that these guys must be used to tourists, so I asked him if he would take a picture of us with my digital camera. My assumption was wrong, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone have so much trouble taking a picture. Eventually there was success, and while the picture may be crooked, and you may see only part of the crater lake, our smiles were certainly genuine.

My travel companion is a photo instructor for National Geographic, a skill that definitely came through in some of the pictures that he took with my camera!

It probably took us about half an hour to make it to the bottom of the lake, and I’ll admit that a couple times I found myself concerned about our ascent up the steep path, especially with the added difficulty of catching our breath at altitude. At one point we passed a local giving a tourist a ride up the trail on a horse, but we declined his offer to come back and get us from the base.

The lake at the base of the crater. The colors of the lake are amazing, and changed with the angle and intensity of the sun.

At the bottom of the crater you can rent Kayaks for $2.50/hour, but they had shut-up shop by the time we got there. There is also a very basic hostel on the shore, which provides a bed and breakfast for ~$12 a night with access to a pit toilet. There are no wood-burning stoves in these rooms, but it was much milder down in the crater than up at the rim. We found a young local down at the hostel, and we chatted to him a little bit before starting our hike back to the rim. He said it takes him 25 minutes to hike back up, though I’m sure it took us well over twice that.

On our return hike we opted to take a different path, rather than the maintained trail. It was very challenging, but the views on this hike up and down were absolutely breathtaking. The water is a stunning blue, with the color changing dramatically depending on the light. The water is brackish and full of minerals, as verified by my hiking partner who bravely took a sip, and I’ll admit I would have loved to of taken a dip had it been earlier in the day.

This llama was hanging out on the side of the caldera as we hiked back up.

After our hike we visited one of the small shacks that served food. We had coffee and struck up a conversation with one of the locals. My companion asked a lot about how the village had changed since his last visit and I asked a lot about life in Quilotoa. We learned that people are getting married much earlier now than they had previously- now sealing the deal as early as 14 or 15. We learned about their marriage traditions (BIG parties) and that most people have about 8 children.

The clothing of the native people living in Quilotoa was notable different from that of the people living in Otavalo, which makes sense since the weather is much more severe. Hats are popular for both genders in both locations, though the preferred style is quite different in each place (and I noticed that many of the hats were adorned with peacock feathers in Quilotoa, a style I hadn’t noticed in Otavalo). I also noticed that while most women in Otovalo wore flats, all the women in Quilotoa wore heels. When I asked the guy about this he replied in Spanish that “they just like it… though it does make them too tall”. We spoke to everyone in Spanish, but the local language in Quilotoa is another dialect of Kichwa. We were told that they can understand the dialect from Otavalo, but that it’s different.

We had a great time chatting with this gent. As we drank coffee in the corner, women cooked dinner on the burners behind us while men played cards.w

I asked about childbirth for the local women and was told that some chose to have their children in hospital while others give birth at home with midwives. During my time in the Andes I was struck by the prevalence of nail clubbing. This is one of those things that medical students learn about in med school, and rarely see (I had a couple patients with clubbing in my clinical years). The condition was prevalent amongst people that I saw in a number of places in Ecuador (I pathologically started staring at peoples’ hands), and I started to wonder if there was a genetic predisposition in these populations or if it was a result of life at altitude (it’s a condition associated with chronic hypoxia). Just a random observation that I would love to explore further: you can take the girl out of the lab, but you can’t take the scientist out of the girl!

There is a trail, the Quilotoa loop, that goes around the lake. It takes about 5 hours and is apparently quite challenging. We would have loved to tackle it, but unfortunately we had to get back on the road by midmorning the next day, so we only had enough time to head out-and-back along one side of the loop for a couple of hours in the morning. The views were stunning, and I hope to get back one day to hike the entire loop.

One of the many beautiful views from the loop.

And this is what you see when you look out the other way.

From Quilotoa there is one bus a day to Latacunga, but you can easily catch a local taxi to the nearby town of Zumbahua at any time. From Zumbahua busses run much more frequently or you can catch a ride with someone heading to the city and provide them with some extra pocket money. That’s what we did, as we were quickly ushered into the cab of a small truck as we headed towards the bus. At the end of the trip our driver asked for $2 or $3 total (I think it would have cost us about $3 on the bus), having got us there in record time (I was holding on with white knuckles to anything I could get my hands on as we sped around tight mountain curves. While I was having multiple minor panic attacks my companion happily chatted to our driver- he’s used to this mode of transportation from when he travels home to see his parents in another part of the highlands).

Speeding down twisty mountain roads in the front of a truck had me grabbing on for dear life…

These are typical houses for the area around Quilotoa.

From Latacunga we caught a bus back to Quito, and again headed to Plaza Foch to find a hostel. That evening we took a walk through colonial Quito, which was lovely. Quito was colonized by the Spanish in the mid 1500s, and as such has a lot of history. Of note, we visited La Iglesia de la Compania de Jesus, aka la Compañía, where we had a tour and caught part of a baroque concert of sacred music (it’s always interesting to visit religious places during holy week!).

One of the many beautiful colonial period building lit up in Old Quito.

The following day I explored Quito alone, visiting the botanical gardens in Parque Carolina and reading a book and people watching in Parque El Ejido. I also got to meet up with a friend of a friend who is a native of Quito, and I really enjoyed getting a different perspective on life in Ecuador, especially hearing a different take on the current president (talk of Rafael Correa stirs up strong feelings in many Ecuadorians I spoke with). In the evening I headed to the airport, and sadly left Ecuador behind. I certainly hope to return again soon!

There are a couple of general things that I think are worth noting…

Coffee, Bananas, and Chocolate- I’ll admit that I was excited to return to a country that is well known for these three delicacies. I’ll also admit that I was somewhat disappointed by the lack of these things in Ecuador. I don’t know if all the bananas are exported (they are a major source of revenue for the country), but I ate more bananas in the airport lounges to and from Ecuador than I actually did in the country. There was plenty of other fruit, but bananas weren’t plentiful (at least not at this time of the year). Likewise, with the exception of El Quetzal chocolate in Mindo, I didn’t see any good Ecuadorian chocolate. Manicho, the quintessential Ecuadorian chocolate, is a milk chocolate and peanut candy bar, and while that was prevalent I did not see any dark chocolate for sale to the public. While Ecuador produces high quality chocolate beans, it appears they are sent out of the country to be processed and turned into expensive Swiss (or Belgian or whatever) chocolates. Likewise coffee is a major export for Ecuador, yet the coffee section in the supermarket I visited was an abomination of Nescafe and instant coffee!

Coffee selection- Are all the good beans exported? Where’s that delicious Ecuadorian coffee I was looking for?!

Food- The food in Ecuador was generally outstanding. By far the best of any of the countries I have visited in the last few months. The ingredients are fresh, food is simple, and food is a central part of community and family structure. People eat out a lot, but at simple places that are serving one of two basic ‘dishes of the day’. Some of the best meals I had cost a couple of dollars and consisted of rice, potatoes, and meat. Ecuadorians also really love soup, and the soups that frequently preceded our main dishes were generally outstanding. With the exception of strawberries after one lunch, desert did not seem common.

This plate of Menestras (beans or lentils) with pork cost me ~$3 just around the corner from the pricey Plaza Foch.

Potatoes are frequently served for lunch and dinner. They’re a traditional crop, and there are varieties that grow in the harsh Andes climate. They look quite a bit different to what you get in the store in the US!

Corn generally looks quite a bit different as well. I don’t think Monsanto had anything to do with these ears!

Street food was common, cheap, and delicious. I generally break a lot of the “food safety” rules when traveling, and I very happily ate food from street vendors while in Ecuador. Common options are grilled plantains with cheese and mango with salt. Fruit is commonly sold in plastic sleeves as snack food, and you can usually get a bag of grapes, apples, pears, citrus, or rambutans for $1 a bag. At one point I saw Avocados being sold on the street at 10 for $1. Not exactly your typical street food, but what a bargain!

Plantains grilled on the street.

Maduros con queso- sweet plantain with cheese.

Green mango with salt. Another popular street food.

Rambutans- A curious looking fruit!

Rambutans- I hadn’t had these before, but they are very tasty!

Bags of fruit were also commonly sold on the bus, as were ice creams, chips (plantain, potato, and cassava), peanuts, and all kinds of snacks. At various bus stops vendors would hop on the bus toting their wares, hoping to make a dollar or two before hopping off at the next stop. You could even get whole meals sold in this way, such as fritadas sold in little plastic bags with wooden forks.

Juice-fresh fruit juices, or “jugos naturales” are very popular and often included as part of a meal. Common flavors are blackberry, pineapple, naranjilla, guanabana (soursop), and tree tomato. They’re frequently sweetened, but you can ask to have them with minimal or no sweetening.

Tree tomatoes, aka Tamarillos- Solanum betaceum.

Money- Ecuador has used the American dollar as currency since 2000. I used more $1 coins during one week in Ecuador than I have in my entire lifetime in the US. Things in Ecuador are cheap, so small bills are preferred, and people frequently ask you for small and exact change. In addition to the US bills and coins, there are also Ecuadorian coins that correspond to the nickel, dime, and quarter.

Transportation- public transportation in Ecuador is cheap and fairly reliable. You can traverse the length of Quito (a lengthy ride) for 25c, and get most places by bus or taxi for very reasonable prices.

I usually just relaxed and watched the scenery go by as we rode the bus, but from time to time I would do some light reading- such as this article on the prevalence on fatty liver in children… Longtime readers will understand my interest in this topic!

A parting suggestion: VISIT ECUADOR. It is a beautiful country filled with generous and kind people. The environment is diverse and fascinating, the food is delicious. It’s easy to get to from the US, it’s easy to travel on a very limited budget, and you’ll never run out of things to see. It’s definitely helpful to speak Spanish (or to travel with someone who does), but some of the tourists we ran into had very limited Spanish and seemed to get by just fine.

The Galapagos were fascinating, but I fell in love with Ecuador when I visited the highlands. I’ve now seen two of the four regions of Ecuador, and I can’t wait to go back again… There’s so much to see and do, but perhaps next time I can make it to the Amazon!

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The Voyage of the Endeavour

Posted in Evolution, Food, Historical, Life, Nature, Travel, tagged Coffee, Darwin, Ecuador, evolution, Galapagos, Iguanas, National Geographic, Photography, The Beagle, tortoise on February 18, 2014|

I’ve been fortunate to do some pretty amazing travel in the past, but the journey I just returned from has certainly stolen the show.

As an evolution nerd, a Darwin enthusiast, and a lover of the natural world, a trip to the Galapagos was truly an experience I will never forget. I’ve wanted to visit the Galapagos for a long time*, and while I had thought about visiting in my 6 months off between med school and residency I only booked the trip about a month ago. My father (also an evolution nerd, Darwin enthusiast, and naturalist) and I travelled with National Geographic and Lindblad Expeditions on a trip to the Galapagos aboard The National Geographic Endeavour (named in honor of the first vessel that Captain Cook used in his explorations – the one that landed on the eastern coast of Australia; Cook never visited the Galapagos). I’ll just start by saying the company, the experience, the ship, the crew, the staff, the naturalists, the whole package- were all first rate. It’s a top of the line option for visiting the Galapagos, and it really shows.

In many people’s minds, the Galapagos are inexorably linked with Charles Darwin and his theory of Natural Selection. Darwin visited the Galapagos, on HMS Beagle, in 1835. Darwin was aboard the Beagle for 5 years, but he only spent 5 weeks in the Galapagos of which only 19 days were on land! Nonetheless, the observations he made there and the samples he collected were important ingredients for his future theory.

Tagus Cove- One evening we stopped in Tagus Cove- an area where Darwin landed. There is graffiti in this cove, as it was traditional (until recently) to leave the name of your boat on the cliffs (some are amazingly high up). The earliest inscription we saw was from 1836, the year after Darwin visited.

One evening we stopped in Tagus Cove- an area where Darwin landed. There is graffiti in this cove, as it was traditional (until recently) to leave the name of your boat on the cliffs (some are amazingly high up). The earliest inscription we saw was from 1836, the year after Darwin visited.

Most of the walks we took on this cruise were rather relaxed, but this evening’s hike was a change of pace, and we made good speed up a steep trail. Looking back, we could see the Endeavour and a large pond that Darwin wrote about in The Voyage of the Beagle. Alas, while he was hoping for a refreshing dip in some fresh water, he was frustrated to find that this pond is brackish.

A [disappointingly, at least for Darwin] brackish pond.

I recommend the Galapagos chapter of The Voyage of the Beagle (Chapter 17). It is a delightful and quick read, and if you have an e-reader you can find it for free online. The Voyage of the Beagle was a travel journal of sorts, and while Darwin was the naturalist aboard The Beagle (well he was eventually, he didn’t start that way but eventually replaced the original Naturalist) he first became famous as a travel writer (his theory of evolution didn’t make him famous until quite late in life, and strangely his book on Barnacles wasn’t a big seller…).

Over the years, the Galapagos became a popular stopping point for ships. While there is very limited fresh water, it was a good place to replenish food. Early visitors introduced goats (a species that quickly flourished on the islands, wreaking havoc on endemic creatures) and the Galapagonian tortoises were particularly popular as well.

There are a number of species that are uniquely Galapagonian- the tortoise being a prime example. These giant creatures at one time roamed the islands in great numbers, but their populations were decimated by humans in ~150 years. The tortoise had two great misfortunes- first, they apparently taste pretty good (Darwin wrote of roasted tortoise breast “Gaucho style” being quite tasty, and was complimentary of tortoise soup (from medium sized animals), though he found nothing remarkable in the rest of the animal). Perhaps the greater misfortune for these giants is that they can survive for ~2 years without food or water. In a time before refrigeration, when fresh meat was almost an impossibility on long sea voyages, tortoises could be stashed on boats for ages until they were finally consumed. I admit to being rather bad about anthropomorphizing animals, but I can only imagine that being kept in the hold of a ship for over a year before being killed and eaten was a rather unpleasant end.

A Medium Sized Tortoise- Perhaps this is a good soup-sized tortoise?

These giants are believed to live over 200 years, though it is hard to be sure since we haven’t been studying them that long.

The tortoises on different islands are considered different sub-species (though where you draw the line at species vs. subspecies or variety was a common quandary during our tour of the Galapagos) and some have gone extinct due to human harvesting, competition (with things such as introduced goats), and decreased hatching (because of damage to nests due to introduced species). One of the most famous Galapagos Tortoises was “Lonesome George”, the last of his kind- a subspecies of tortoise that inhabited Pinta Island. While a number of attempts were made to breed George and “save” his kind, none were successful, and he died- the last of his kind- in 2012.

Lonesome George had been living at the Charles Darwin Research Station on Santa Cruz Island since his discovery in 1971, and for many years was the center’s most famous denizen. We visited Santa Cruz, and the Charles Darwin Research Center, during our cruise, and we got to see the conservation efforts there.

The National Park manages 97% of the land of the Galapagos (only 3% is habited). The Charles Darwin Research Center does a lot of research, but only the national park can change policy and initiate change in the park.

The National Park manages 97% of the land of the Galapagos (only 3% is habited). The Charles Darwin Research Station does a lot of research, but only the national park can change policy and initiate change in the park.

Eggs from different subspecies are hatched and reared in captivity on Santa Cruz (and there are two other tortoise breeding centers elsewhere in the archipelago). When they are large enough to be released they are tagged and released. These efforts have generally been very successful and the tortoise population is recovering nicely. While they claim the number painted on the babies backs are for identification purposes, I secretly hope there is some illicit tortoise racing going on after hours!

Eggs from different subspecies are hatched and reared in captivity on Santa Cruz (there are two other tortoise breeding centers elsewhere in the archipelago). When they are large enough to be released they are tagged and released. These efforts have generally been very successful and the tortoise population is recovering nicely. While they claim the number painted on the babies backs are for identification purposes, I secretly hope there is some illicit tortoise racing going on after hours!

After his death, Lonesome George was sent to NYC where he was preserved by experts at the Natural History Museum. The current celebrity at the Charles Darwin Research Center is a much happier tale. When conservation efforts were initiated, there were only 14 tortoises of the Española subspecies- 12 females and 2 males. While conservationists hoped to build the population from these animals, the females were not interested in the males. In an attempt to save the subspecies, a global search for a male of their kind was initiated- seeking out giant tortoises in zoos and private collections around the world. Eventually a male was found in the San Diego zoo, and after some negotiating “Diego” made his way back to the Galapagos. Now, having fathered over 1000 offspring, Diego is known as “Super Diego”, and the subspecies is doing well!

The conservation of the Galapagos Tortoises seems to be on the road to success, which is wonderful. The Charles Darwin Research Station has also had good success breeding and reintroducing some subspecies of Land Iguanas. In fact, the breeding program at the research center has now been closed because the efforts were so successful.

These cuddly guys (land iguanas) have had a hard time on some islands, but with restoration and conservation efforts they are now dong well.

There were slim pickings for the Land Iguanas on North Seymour. These guys like to eat prickly pear cactus, but were taking to the trees to find some greenery in this sparse environment. One of the naturalists we were with said he has never seen Land Iguanas so high in trees before.

Lusher pastures for this land iguana near Urvina Bay.

You may not know it, but about 30,000 people live in the Galapagos. While 97% of the island is National Park (for which you need a permit and a naturalist to visit- no more than 16 tourists per naturalist), there are a number of inhabited areas. At the end of our cruise we visited Santa Cruz, where the Darwin Center is, and San Cristobal, from where we flew back to the mainland. In Santa Cruz we took a walk through town, and it was fun to stop at the fish market and see the catch of the day. Humans weren’t the only interested customers!

Pelicans at the self-serve bar

A bit more anthropomorphizing… I imagined this Sea lion waiting for his number to be called at the deli counter.

The Sea Lion was given a hunk of fish and the fishmonger kept the pelicans back with a fly swatter so he could enjoy it!

The Sea Lion was given a hunk of fish and the fishwife kept the pelicans back with a fly swatter so he could enjoy it!

The Galapagos are part of Ecuador, and until fairly recently were not inhabited. Initially, colonists were “gifted” land, as encouragement to come and live in the Galapagos, but now there are significant efforts to curb immigration. When we were in Santa Cruz we headed up into the highlands to see tortoise in the wild (they much prefer to be in the highlands with lush vegetation and more water, but the females come out of the highlands to lay eggs- an unfortunate habit, since the smaller females were more desirable fodder for hungry sailors, and were much closer to the ocean than the large males who stayed in the highlands).

The tortoises in the highlands like to relax in ponds such as this one. They will drink gallons of water when they visit, but can go years without water in hard times.

At first I was confused by the shrubbery this tortoise had acquired, but after seeing them wallowing in the weed-covered pond all became clear.

Unfortunately, this method of hiding didn’t save tortoise from hungry sailors. Darwin writes how sailors would flip these hiding beasts over and carry them off to the ships for storage.

While we were in the highlands we visited a plantation where a family grows coffee and sugar cane. Both grow well in the Galapagos, and while we visited we learned how people traditionally processed sugar (into molasses and alcohol) and coffee.

Sugar Cane processing- This isn’t how the family processes sugar today, but this is the traditional method. Sugar cane is fed into the press and juice comes out the bottom. On this plantation half of the sugar cane juice is made into molasses and half is made into alcohol!

Diabetic Warbler?- This Yellow Warbler really liked to hang out on the sugar cane press!

Hooch- this was the open vat where the sugar cane juice was fermenting. The final product, after it was passed through a still, was… rough. There’s a reason people age rum!

Coffee- Having had an introduction to traditional coffee processing methods in Belize, I got a review in The Galapagos. Here you can see the unroasted cleaned and uncleaned beans.

Having had an introduction to traditional coffee processing methods in Belize, I got a review in The Galapagos. Here you can see the unroasted uncleaned and cleaned beans.

I took a new camera with me on this trip and certainly had some fun with shots like this…

We got to try coffee beans, sugar, coffee, sugar juice (delicious with a squeeze of lime), and hooch (ditto). While I certainly took lots of pictures in the Galapagos thing, the only physical product I’m coming home with is some Galapagonian Coffee.

Admission time- Label something “Evolutionary” and I am 27% more likely to purchase it.

I have a lot more to write about, and many more pictures to share, but this seems like a good stopping point for now. I’ll get the next post up ASAP, but it may be a bit of a wait since I head to the UK tomorrow for a quick visit with family.

Me and my old new-friend. Unlike Darwin, I didn’t try and catch a ride (though you can see why he tried!)

*While I have always been keen to visit the Galapagos, I have also been somewhat wary. There is no doubt that humans have done a lot of damage in the Galapagos. While the bulk of this damage was done by early visitors who purposefully introduced a number of hardy species, tourists certainly have the potential to damage the environment, spread seeds, and introduce species or disease. That being said, done correctly, tourism can be an incredible force for good in the Galapagos. A lot of damage has been done in the past 200 yrs by sailors, settlers, and visitors. Progress is being made to repair these damages, with money coming largely from tourists. If humans were to now abandon the Galapagos, the endemic species would be pushed out by species that have already been introduced. Well-regulated tourism, appropriate management of the land, and conservation efforts can help preserve the Galapagos. They are certainly a wonder worth saving.

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Fatty Liver- Is it the fats’ fault?

Posted in Disease, Food, Lipids, Liver, tagged Need to learn to stand still, Video on October 30, 2013|

Just a quick post that my talk from the 2013 Ancestral Health Symposium is up. Alas, there were some technical difficulties and the last few minutes weren’t recorded, but most of the meat of the talk is there.

**Apparently the video has been set to private. I’ll update when it’s back!

***Update 11/4- It’s back!

Also, the slides are up on Slide Sharer here (there were a few reveals/animations that didn’t make the upload, but again the meat of the topic is there!).

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Where’s the beef?!

Posted in Food, Life, tagged Beef, Butchery, Circle of life, farming, Meat on October 7, 2013| 5 Comments »

Yesterday I helped bring a baby calf into the world. Today I was at the other end of the spectrum, taking a trip to our butchers to see four sides of our beef cut into retail cuts. The circle of life. (Apologies if you now have scenes from The Lion King flashing before your eyes!).

For the last few years I have been the point person for selling our family’s beef. Whether it’s friends from college or people from the gym, I have a pretty good pool of people who are interested in locally-raised grass-fed beef.

If it’s not obvious, I LOVE beef. I like to cook it (all of it, including the odd bits!), I like to eat it, I’m interested in the ethics of it, I’m keen on the impact of local grass-fed beef for the economy and the environment, and I’m interested in the potential health benefits of grass-fed beef. Oh, and I’m all about saturated fats.

When I talk to friends and potential customers about our beef I can talk about our animals, recipes, or anything else on the list above, but when it comes to discussing the traditional bits of the animal I sometimes find myself woefully unprepared. Yes, I can explain that you either get T-bones and Porterhouse or Filet and Strip Steak (those are the options when it comes to the loin of the animal- we’re not going to discuss grinding it!), but quite how you break down the round, chuck, and rib is a topic I sometimes skirt around (though I don’t skirt around skirt steak- it’s probably my favorite cut!).

Today was the day the butchers were cutting the last four sides of our beef, which had been dry aging in their cooler for the last two and a half weeks. I just started an EMS elective that has me doing six 12hr shifts and I had today off, so I asked my butchers if they would mind me hanging out and hopefully learning a thing or two as they finished the work on our animals. They kindly obliged, and I think they actually quite liked having a young lady around the place to liven things up!

When I first showed up they were half way through butchering the first side, which was now broken down into a number of primal cuts. Primal cuts are large sections of the animal that are then cut down further into retail cuts. Some of the names will be familiar. “Chuck” is the shoulder, “rib” is the next area back, followed by the “loin”, “sirloin”, and then the “round”. On the underside of the animal, starting from the front, you have “brisket”, “plate”, and “flank”. You also have the shanks, and some people break the sirloin down further. The round is broken into a top round and a bottom round. These are all names you may see slapped on a piece of meat in the supermarket, but seeing a carcass go from a hanging side to a retail steak helps put it all in perspective.

This is what a 400# side of grass-fed beef looks like!

The rounds… Eye of round, bottom round, and top round from front to back.

The butchers we go to have been in operation for 75 years. They service the local farming community, and are butchers for people who raise a single animal for themselves as well as farms that are sending multiple animals to the butcher every week. While there has certainly been an increase in nose-to-tail eating, I think my “paleo”/“foodie” customers are still somewhat in the minority in their preference to have tail, shin and marrow bones, and offal… “Everything but the squeak”, one of the old guys said. These guys are good at doing simple, standard cuts, and if we ask for something special they try and oblige, but requests for flat-iron steaks and flap steaks have gone unanswered. When I made a plea for the hanger steak today they gave me a questioning look, but obliged (I think many of their customers don’t even want skirt steak- the horror!).

Some beef options- the loin can be cut into T-bones and Porterhouse (bone in) or Strip Steak and Filet

T-bones

Strips- the other option (with filet mignon) for cutting the loin.

Roasts, steaks, or stew…

Some people want the big roasts all cubed for stew meat.

One of our other topics of conversation was the difficulty of USDA inspection. Our butchers have a USDA inspector onsite 8hrs per day, 5 days per week, but for smaller butchers that is a burden they can not shoulder. Likewise, while our butcher has stayed up to date with regulations and standards, some smaller butchers have not been able to keep up and have dropped their USDA inspection or closed. It also seems that the mountain of paperwork is a real burden- taking the boss one full day per week to handle.

Talk of USDA was a bit demoralizing, but it was fun to chat with the butchers about meat. I recently had a patient on the floors who had been a butcher (he was 85). We talked about a number of things over his extended hospitalization, but if I really wanted to get him talking all I had to do was get him talking about meat… Ask him about his favorite steak and he was off telling you about the best way to age things, the best part of the country for raising beef, and how he liked to cook things. On the other hand, one of the guys I worked with today admitted that he sees too much meat during the day and doesn’t care for it much at home (this was not my problem- I was very keen to head home to a steak lunch).

I also asked the various butchers about their thoughts on grass-fed beef. They laughed and said it was all the rage, but if they wanted something grass-fed they’d just walk outside and eat the grass themselves- give them corn-fed beef any day! They commented that grass-fed meat smelled different, looked different, and tasted different. When I asked one of them how our grass-fed meat faired in comparison to other grass-fed animals the guy gave me a shocked look and said “This is grass-fed? I had no idea… All grass-fed? How’d you get all that fat on it?” It is true that our beef had quite a bit of fat on it*, and for grass-fed meat had quite a bit of marbling. British Whites are supposed to do well on grass, and my mother is very proactive with rotational grazing, so hopefully this is a testament to how good grass-fed meat is good meat!

London Broils being cut from the top round. Good marbling for grass-fed beef.

Short ribs. Our butchers tend to debone these and grind it all, but some people asked for them to be kept whole. They’d be trimmed, but it’s still a high fat cut from our grass-fed animals.

Seeing a side of beef broken down into retail cuts is quite sobering. For every 1000# animal there are only a few pounds each of skirt steak and flank steak. For those who like these cuts, and eat them on a regular basis, it’s good to realize quite how limited they are (and to be thankful that there are those who don’t care for them!). As delicious as some odd bits are, a commitment to eating nose-to-tail frequently means eating a lot of roasts and ground meat…

*As I said, there was quite a bit of fat on our steer. I asked the guys to save me a couple boxes of trimmings so I could render it down for tallow. I’ve done this the past few years. It’s a messy task, but grass-fed tallow isn’t easy to come by and I like to use it in cooking and as gifts!

Tallow in the making.

Rendering down trimmings for tallow

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A most excellent week.

Posted in Food, General, Life, Med school, Nature, tagged Ancestral Health Symposium, Hiking, Med School, Memories, nature, North Carolina on September 8, 2013| 4 Comments »

It’s been a busy month since my last post. I’ve studied for and taken the United States Medical Licensing Exams (USMLE) Step 2 CS and (on Friday) USMLE Step 2 CK, two parts of what most people know as “the boards”. I’ve attended and spoken at the 2013 Ancestral Health Symposium (AHS) and moved out of the apartment I lived in for the last 18 months. I’m also half way through my “Acting Internship”, a clerkship most medical schools call a Sub-Internship, where I basically function as an intern (a first year medical resident). I’m doing this rotation at a local community hospital and I’m really enjoying the atmosphere, personnel, and patients. The hours are long, but not as long as for many of my classmates doing acting internships in Internal Medicine, Surgery, and Ob-Gyn (mine is in Family Medicine, the specialty I am pursuing). Applications for residency programs go live in just over a week which finds me struggling to write (for the fourth time) a personal statement that embodies me.

Needless to say, things have been hectic , and the last month has been a touch overwhelming at times. I’m certainly looking forward to some downtime after I finally complete my remaining med school requirements (just 8 more weeks!), have my residency lined up, and am able to catch my breath.

I really shouldn’t complain. Even in the last, relatively crazy, 6 weeks I’ve still had some good times. The week of AHS in particular was one for the books.

I’ve written before about destinations and journeys. The destination for AHS was clear- Atlanta Georgia- but the journey I took to get there wasn’t what you might expect.

Many, many, months ago, when the location for AHS was first announced, I made a rather rash statement that Atlanta was almost close enough for a road trip. While I had no real intention of road tripping to Atlanta, my longtime Twitter friend @PrimalRush (henceforth known as James) said he was keen to tag along for the journey. At the time I thought an actual road trip was unlikely (it’s a good 13 hour drive and airfare isn’t that expensive), but as the time got closer I realized I would regret turning down the opportunity to create an excellent story (those that know me know all too well that I’m a fan of adventures and stories).

Since I took 4 weeks off from school to prepare for the boards and attend AHS, I was able to take some extra time travelling to AHS. About a week out, I vaguely mapped a path to Atlanta, made plans to pick up my Canadian travel buddy from the bus stop, and hoped for the best!

Three days before we planned to pull into ATL, James and I hit the road with camping gear, a cooler, and a tank of gas. After making a stop at one of my favorite butchers to fully stock our cooler, we made tracks to Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. We travelled the length of the park on Skyline Drive, stopping about midway to camp for the night.

At times, we were in the clouds driving on Skyline Drive. Driving the length of the park added a few extra miles to our trip, and certainly slowed us down a bit (the speed limit is 35mph and you can’t help but pull over and ogle at the views), but it was certainly worth it!

Without going into detail, our time in Shenandoah involved meeting some mushroomers who confirmed my Chanterelle (and Chicken of the Woods) identification, cooking a truly excellent camp dinner (with Chanterelles), having a run-in with a slightly disgruntled ranger, hiking part of the Appalachian trail in the dark, pitching a tent in the dark, waking up and breaking down camp in the dark, and then scrambling to a 360^o viewpoint to watch the sun rise. When we were finally able to tear ourselves away from our solitude and sunrise we hiked the couple miles back to the car and made tracks through the rest of the park and onto our next destination in Mortimer North Carolina.

A delicious addition to our dinner (good thing I had some Kerrygold butter in the cooler!)

I’ll take this over dehydrated rice and bean camp dinners any night!

The view at dawn from Bearfence mountain.

It was certainly worth waking up at 5, and hiking in the dark, to watch the sun rise over Shenandoah.

How could I resist?

Mortimer North Carolina holds a special place in my heart. One of my longtime friends has a family cabin in Mortimer, and I’ve twice travelled with her for an escape to the mountains and the beauty of Wilson’s Creek. Mortimer is also home of Betsey’s Ole Country Store an establishment owned by my friend Bruce. The address to Betsey’s is a little deceiving- let the record show that “Highway 90” is a gravel road where you need to pull over to let oncoming traffic pass.

Anything I say about Betsey’s or the owner/operator of the establishment, Bruce, would sound like a paid advertisement, so I’m not going to even start. What I will say is, if you want to visit a beautiful part of North Carolina- visit Mortimer. And if you visit Mortimer- visit Bruce. He’s got cabin rentals, inner tube rentals, and more knowledge of the area than you’ll find anywhere else. If you ever find yourself that way, tell him Victoria sent you… Seriously!

With Bruce’s back yard as our home base (he is a gracious host), we put in many miles of hiking, had numerous dips in local swimming holes, and managed to spot some of the Perseid meteors. It was hard to tear ourselves away in order to make it to Atlanta on schedule (we actually didn’t make it to Atlanta on schedule because we opted to take a morning hike before we hit the road).

Betsey’s. “Peace and Love, Y’all”

Putting in some miles in Pisgah National Forest…

I was keen to keep my socks dry, and I did! At least for the first half of the hike (darn slippery rocks)…

My new favorite swimming hole, at the top of Gragg Prong fall.

The reason we didn’t make it to Atlanta on schedule- I had to introduce James to one of my favorite spots- Big Lost Cove.

It goes without saying that Atlanta was a big change of scenery in comparison to the preceding few days. I actually didn’t see much of the city, save for the inside of the Sheraton Conference center, a few of the fine dining establishments, and Boyd Eaton’s gorgeous house where the presenters dinner was held. Prior to the official start of AHS, a number of the Physicians and Ancestral Health docs got together for a brief meeting. It was great to catch up with these like-minded Docs, and I was reminded, again, how refreshing it is to spend time with people who share passions and interests.

AHS itself was fantastic, save for a few AV snafus. I thoroughly enjoyed some of the plenary talks: namely Nassim Taleb’s antifragile talk, Gad Saad’s talk on The Consuming Instinct, and Geoffrey Miller’s talk on Sexual Fitness (not talking about “reps for time”). I was a bit surprised by Mel Konner’s and Boyd Eaton’s talk on the history of modern “paleo” diets, where they repeatedly said that our modern diet is much higher in saturated fat and lower in polyunsaturated fat than historic diets… I find it hard to believe that any diet that contains modern vegetable oils has anything other than an excess of polyunsaturated fats.

There were many excellent talks over the course of the conference, and it was often hard to pick which talk to attend out of a very tempting schedule. I look forward to catching some of the ones I missed online when the videos are posted. On that note, my talk on Dietary Fats and Fatty Liver Disease, went well. When the video becomes available I’ll try and post it here!

As much as I enjoyed the various lectures, workshops, and posters, the highlight of AHS was catching up with friends and making new ones. There is quite a vibrant online community of those interested in evolutionary and ancestral health, and AHS can sometimes seem like the interwebz in 3D. As someone who would happily trade days of online interactions for even brief face-to-face encounters, AHS was a social occasion that refilled my tanks and renewed my enthusiasm.

Back in May, on the Wilderness Medicine elective in Utah, our instructors expressed that one of the goals of the elective was to “stock good memories” for the rough times that were to follow in residency (all but 2 of the 12 students would be starting internship in the next month). I still have quite a bit of time until I start residency (though the march towards June of 2014 soldiers on), and my goal between now and then is to bank as many good memories as I can.

Stashing good memories (and looking for Hobbitses).

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Gather

Posted in Food, Life, Nature, tagged agriculture, berries, farming, Food, Gathering, Hiking, picking on July 11, 2013|

Time to take a break from breasts- though I think I may have one more post in me on that subject.

I’m a fan of a paleo diet. There, I said it. To me it is not “the” paleo diet, and there is no single set of “rules”, but I embrace the idea of thinking about our evolutionary past when talking about health and disease. Like it or not, what we eat (and of equal importance, what we don’t eat) is one of the major forces that shape our health. Let’s face it, it’s much easier to change what you eat than to change your genetics (and probably your job, your geographical location, and other things that affect health).

There’s been increased coverage of a paleo diet in the media of late- usually not a resounding endorsement, not that I’m surprised- and it’s sometimes referred to by other names such as “the caveman diet” (except our ancestors largely didn’t live in caves) or the hunter-gatherer diet.

I generally like (and use) the term ‘paleo’. For me (and many others), it’s a term that has developed a definition that we all understand. That being said, I also like the idea of talking about a ‘hunter-gatherer diet’. It gives a nod to seasonality, encourages us to think about naturally available quantities, and a personal involvement in the food we eat. Sure, a lot of people who “eat paleo” don’t hunt or gather their own food (though certainly some do), but it’s good to be mindful of when you might actually have access to different foods and in what amounts.

I’ve never been a hunter (though I love having friends that are, and appreciate the stock of venison I have in my chest freezer), but I’ve been gathering since I was little. I’ve been involved in two different types of “gathering”- spending a portion of my summer childhood raiding (or being put to work) picking in my family’s garden and also time in the woods scouting for wild edibles. It’s funny how times change: these days I love getting out in the sun to pick berries at a local pick-your-own place, but as a child I really thought of it as a chore (I’m guessing it’s mainly because when the plants are yours you don’t want to let anything go to waste so you pick whether you want to or not, and you also pick *everything* instead of just as much as you want).

Of course, picking quarts of strawberries at the local pick-your-own place is NOT gathering (in the truly ancestral sense of the word), but it’s fun (at least for me), and while I’m picking vitamin C I’m getting vitamin D for free. I’m also supporting local farming families, keeping money in the local community, and keeping an eye on how the food I eat is grown.

The farm I go to grows a variety of strawberries, I exclusively pick the “Early Glow” variety. They are, without a doubt, the best in the field, though arguable more tedious to pick since they are quite a bit smaller than most commercial varieties. They are well worth any extra effort, as the flavor is unparalleled (though their shelf life is very limited).

As a child, while I was duty bound to pick strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, and whatever else we had in the garden, I still would go out “exploring” with friends and bring home wild bounty. To this day wineberries are one of my favorite fruits. Seedy, waxy, and plentiful (if you happen to beat the birds to the punch), I would spend hours with my friends gathering these treats. I still find it difficult to pass a stand without stopping for a snack.

Stopped for a snack- I’m being a bad Pony Clubber, allowing my horse to grab a quick bite with the bit in her mouth, but it seemed unfair to stop for a snack for me and not let her grab a mouthful as well!

Wineberries are just ripening in my area, but I haven’t had a chance to get out and pick any yet. However a couple weekends ago I was out hiking on the Appalachian Trail (AT) and came across blueberries- LOTS of blueberries. I’d seen the green berries at other places earlier in the season, and fortuitously happened to be out on the Blue Mountain portion of the AT when the berries in the area were ripening.

These had caught my eye on the trail a week or so before I hit the motherload!

I felt a little bad for my hiking partner, since I seem pathologically incapable of walking past a good stand of berries without stopping to pick.

For a bit of comparison you can see the wild blueberries (or are they bilberries? [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vaccinium_myrtillus#Confusion_between_bilberries_and_American_blueberries]) next to some that I picked in my parents’ garden (this years crop are particularly large)

For a bit of comparison you can see the wild blueberries (or are they bilberries?) next to some that I picked in my parents’ garden (this years crop are particularly large)

Out on the AT, I don’t look all that out of place gathering handfuls of berries, but in the park opposite from my apartment I get some weird looks when I stand on tiptoe to pick the ripening Mulberries. As I’ve said, my drive to gather might be a little pathological, though I suspect it is a deeply human urge. Most of the kids that I’ve met have loved to gather food (berries, vegetables, eggs, etc.), but perhaps it’s novelty not nature…

When I was up in Maine a few weeks ago I went beach combing with a friend. To our excitement, while we were out at low tide we came across a few pools that housed beautiful large mussels. We were looking forward to cooking them up in some white wine until we discovered there was a red-tide warning for the area- what a shame!

Seafood can’t get much fresher than this…

Most recently I’ve been gathering watercress from a local stream. I know the thought of this makes my European friends cringe, but the liver flukes that make this practice a hazard in other countries don’t live in the US- or so I’ve been told.

In the fall I’ll be gathering chestnuts, a task I’ve been doing for years. My neighborhood has quite a few old Chinese Chestnut trees- I wonder if there was a local craze to plant them some decades back.

Best roasted, though I have been known to make a dark chocolate/chestnut mousse at times- don’t tell the paleo police!

A “paleo” diet isn’t about prehistoric reenactment. The point isn’t to only eat foods you’ve hunted or gathered, but personally I like having a role in sourcing the food that I eat, and I do enjoy time spent outside gathering foods. The food “gathered” at a pick your own berry farm certainly isn’t the same as the food our ancestors gathered (I’ll refer you back to the post I did on bananas– check out the difference between the wild and the domesticated fruit), but what you pick yourself will be infinitely fresher than what you buy at the supermarket.

As I was finishing up this post, I heard an interview on NPR with the author of a new book, entitled Eating on the Wild Side. Her premise seems to be that the plants we evolved eating were very different from their domesticated ancestors that we eat today, and that somewhere in the mix foods have lost some of their most valuable micronutrients *. I can’t speak on the book, but the interview is certainly worth a listen!

*Interestingly, some people have suggested that some of the nutrients that the author above touts can actually be problematic. You can check out Dr. Ede’s talk from the 2012 Ancestral Health Symposium exploring the darker side of plant foods.

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This sh*t is bananas…

Posted in Food, Life on January 27, 2013| 9 Comments »

Whenever I type the word “bananas”, I hear a certain Gwen Stefani song in my head… This post is going to be painful to type!

I just wanted to put up a quick post on one of Americans’ favorite fruits. According to the USDA, bananas are the most consumed fruit in the United States, accounting for 25% of fresh fruit consumption. Bananas are rich in potassium, magnesium, and manganese, and while some who embrace a low-carb lifestyle may find fault with them, they are without doubt a whole, real, food. While our modern domesticated varieties are very different from wild bananas (and no, the shape of the banana is NOT proof of creationism!), bananas can be part of a healthy diet for most people. Bananas are a staple of many traditional diets, and their leaves are also used for cooking in many cultures.

A wild banana, courtesy of Wikimedia commons. I wonder how they taste?

In America, the word banana is synonymous with the Cavendish banana, but this is certainly not the only variety and many argue it is not the best. “Best” is, of course, subjective. Choosing a “best” banana is like choosing a best apple*. Seasonality and freshness matter, as does personal preference.

Variety makes life interesting. Genetic variation is necessary for evolution. Food variation makes out diet more interesting (and broadens our nutrient intake while minimizing exposure to potential toxins). Over the past year or so, I’ve made it my goal to try as many varieties of banana as I can find- so far I’m doing pretty well.

Cavendish bananas (a triploid variant of Musa acuminata) can be found just about anywhere. Grocery stores, cafeterias, and many gas stations have these ubiquitous yellow fruit on offer year round.

At my local grocery store I can usually find other Musa varieties. Next to a small selection of yucca, aloe, and other somewhat “exotic” offerings I can almost always find plantains (a hybrid between Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana). They usually have green plantains, sometimes yellow, and occasionally brown. The color varies with ripeness. Green plantains are the least ripe and are not sweet, while yellow- or even better, dark brown- plantains are sweet. Plantains are best eaten cooked. (Personally I love to fry them up in coconut oil. The greens are great with a squeeze of lime, some chile, and salt, while the sweeter fruits are good plain or with a shake of cinnamon or cocoa.)

Occasionally my local supermarket has Niño bananas ( a diploid variant of Musa acuminata known by a number of other names), and I can almost always find these at the Asian supermarket I like to visit. I find that these small bananas have a similar taste, though slightly different texture, than Cavendish bananas.

At my favorite Asian supermarket I’ve also found Burro bananas, which (at least to me) seem like a hybrid between plantains and Cavendish. It can be eaten cooked or raw. To me they have a slightly tart, almost lemony, flavor when eaten fresh. They have a distinct shape- shorter than Cavendish and very angular.

This weekend, I found yet another type of banana to add to my list. I was visiting a friend on Long Island and took a trip through an ethnic supermarket that caters to the local Hispanic population. Like so many ethnic supermarkets, this store had a fabulous produce section- with a great variety of fruits & vegetables, all really fresh and reasonably priced. The meat department was also extensive, with lots of interesting cuts, including goat! (A friend and I were recently bemoaning the fact that you can rarely find goat in the US- I’ve only ever had it when my family bought whole animals from a local farmer).

At the store on Long Island I finally came across Red bananas (another triploid variant of Musa acuminata). As the name suggests, this variety is a dark red, almost purple. Otherwise, it looks like a slightly smaller Cavendish. I picked up a couple but I haven’t tried them yet as I don’t think they’re quite ripe.

The variety of different bananas I picked up. From left to right: Niños, Reds, Cavendish, and plantains.

I only have to find one more type of banana to knock off every variety on this list, and I will continue to keep my eyes open for other, unusual varieties. Some of my family members have tried Manzano bananas while visiting Hawaii, and as the name promises, they do taste a bit like apples (Manzano is spanish for apple).

Actually, it looks like Hawaii has many interesting types of bananas, and I’m in desperate need of some sunshine and relaxation… looks like it’s time to go look at plane tickets to Hawaii!!

I wish… I start an EMS elective tomorrow. I’m looking forward to working with first responders as we pick up and transport patients to our University Hospital. From all reports, this is an exciting elective!

*When it comes to apples, GoldRush are, without a doubt, my favorite, but the “best” apple on any given day depends on what is fresh, what is in season, and what you’re in the mood for!

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New Year in Dubai- part 1

Posted in Food, Life on January 17, 2013| 3 Comments »

As I let on in a recent post, I spent Christmas and the start of the New Year visiting my brother in Dubai and touring around the United Arab Emirates (UAE). This isn’t a travel blog, but while I was touring around the emirates and learning some of the history of the region I made some observations that I think are worth sharing- especially since I got a great tour of a part of the world that many will never visit. Apologies if this reads like a blog version of a vacation slideshow!

Dubai is an otherworldly place. Obviously built to be “the city of the future”, the skyline is chock-o-block with architectural masterpieces, though many have been stalled or vacant since the financial collapse of 2009. Put in any other city, many Dubai buildings would be iconic, but standing next to the world’s tallest building, the world’s only 7-star hotel (self proclaimed), and other masterpieces, otherwise stunning buildings start to look commonplace.

The tallest building in the world. It’s almost twice the height of the Empire State Building.

Burj Al Arab by night: Taken from Palm Jumeira- an entirely man made island in the shape of a palm tree (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palm_Islands). The Burj Al Arab is actually built on its own man-made island in the Gulf. *

Burj Al Arab by night: Taken from Palm Jumeira- an entirely man made island in the shape of a palm tree. The Burj Al Arab is actually built on its own man-made island in the Gulf. *

Old Town: While parts of the city look “authentic” (or what you might expect to see in a Middle Eastern city), the oldest building in Dubai is probably from the 60s or 70s. This complex, known as “Old Town”, was finished in 2007.

Other towers: My brother was able to give me fairly detailed background on many buildings around Dubai, many of which have been stalled or vacant since his arrival in the city 3 years ago. Their vacancy does not hinder their stunning architecture.

On the surface, there seems to be little “traditional living” or “ancestral health” wisdom to glean from Dubai. It is a very modern city with immigrants, corporations, and businesses from around the world. Within a block of my brother’s home you can get Kentucky Fried Chicken, Nando’s (a chicken restaurant originally from South Africa), and Al Tazaj (a chain BBQ chicken restaurant from Saudi Arabia) and that’s just to name the chicken restaurants (Popeye’s chicken is also popular, but there isn’t one within a block of my brother)! You also see The Cheesecake Factory, Texas Roadhouse, PF Chang’s and just about any American or international chain you could name (though I don’t think I saw a Chipotle).

I’m confident that if humans develop an extraterrestrial community, this will be the first chain available in outer space.*

Of course, Dubai only recently became a modern global city. Dubai changed rapidly from a small pearling center and regional trading port to a cosmopolitan global hub fuelled largely by the discovery of oil in the region. Dubai also developed laws and practices that encouraged rapid expansion of business and real-estate on a global scale . Older Emirati have truly seen it all, from the days of very basic living to modern global excess. As someone who is deeply interested in ancestral health, I asked around and read about the traditional ways of living in this part of the county. While no one today lives an “ancestral” lifestyle, the memory of traditional days is not yet forgotten.

The easiest place to start, of course, is food. Until relatively recently, the diet of the Middle East was limited to foods that could be locally produced or transported great distances without refrigeration. While traders would bring spices and rice, which was a staple of the diet, perishable food was limited to what is locally available- which isn’t much. On the shore, seafood was a staple. I was told by a local Emirati (a good friend of my brother) that a generation ago, the main meal of the day would be rice and fish. Fish, readily available from the sea, was relatively cheap, while meat was expensive. Today this has reversed and meat (usually lamb, but sometimes goat and increasingly beef) is cheaper and more commonly eaten while fish is now more expensive and less common.

One of the highlights of my trip to the United Arab Emirates (I spent time in Abu Dhabi, Fujairah, and Sharjah in addition to my time in Dubai) was an evening walking tour around Sharjah led by my brother’s friend Khalid. Khalid is a native Emirati, with a deep knowledge of the area as well as the history and culture of the region. He kindly took us on a tour of some of the markets of Sharjah, and graciously answered my endless questions about the food, history, culture, and religion (and occasional lack thereof) in the area.

The first stop on our tour of Sharjah was the local fish market, where merchants sell fresh catch from dawn until late in the evening (they get two deliveries of fish per day). Here we saw the wide variety of fish that are caught, sold, and eaten in the area.

The fish market in Sharjah**

I recognized a number of fish and marine life on offer. There were shark, rays, and tuna, as well as small reef fish (such as angel fish, parrot fish, and grunts) that I’m familiar with as a SCUBA diver. In Dubai, I saw Tiger Prawns (shrimp) larger than I’ve ever seen: almost a foot long. It appears that this species is on the seafood “red list” as, I’m sure, are other species I spied in the market. An interesting aspect of the fish market was a large station at the end of the market where men would prepare your purchase (fish, squid, or shrimp). It cost 1 Dirham (about $0.27 US) to have a fish cleaned, 2 Dirham to have a kilo of squid cleaned, or 3 Dirham to have a kilo of shrimp cleaned (the most expensive item on the list). As someone that peels her own shrimp, I recognize that ~$0.35/lb is a cheap price for cleaning shrimp!

Traditionally, fish was also dried and used for trading, fertilizer, and animal food. Dried fish would make its way to the oases in the desert (anything fresh from the coast would spoil before it could reach any inland populations) where it could be sold or traded for products of the oases. The #1 product of the oases has traditionally been dates.

The cultivation of date palms (Phoenix dactylifera) has been the most important form of agriculture in the area now known as the UAE. Date palms not only provide their owners with high calorie fruit, but also supply leaves that can be used to make fans and baskets, branches that can be used to make walls and roofs, bark fibers that are suitable for making rope and for stuffing pillows and saddles, and dead trunks that can be used as beams. Date fruits can be eaten fresh, dried, crushed for juice, or boiled and packed in bags made of palm leaves. Fruits stored in this way could be kept for a long time and were used as staple foods for men and animals on long journeys across the desert [1].

Palms of many uses. You can see in this open kitchen in a historical abode that palms trunks were sometimes used as beams and fronds were used as roofing or for walls.

Palms of many uses. You can see in this open kitchen in a historical abode that palm trunks can be used as beams and fronds used as roofing or walls.

This was a small building on the same homestead. Dates were placed on the ridged floor and a large trunk was used to crush them, with the juice running off into the depression where it could be collected.

This was in a small building on the same homestead. Dates were placed on the ridged floor and a large trunk was used to crush them, with the juice running off into the depression where it could be collected.

Today most dates are eaten whole- usually dried, but sometimes fresh when in season. There are MANY types of dates, a number of which I sampled. I’d be lying if I said I weren’t a date enthusiast (though it is a fondness I’ve only developed in the last couple years). Varieties have different characteristics, though they are all incredibly sweet (one shop keeper tried to tell me that a certain variety was lower in sugar and therefore “good for diabetics”. I think not…).

Date Poster: This is an incomplete list, but it gives you an idea of the variety available.

Many types of dates are available from different shops and stands in the UAE, but I definitely didn’t see many of the varieties that are shown above. I did see some unique dates, but there were a few varieties that I saw over and over again. I imagine that the diversity of dates is much like the diversity of apples available in the US. While you can get a good selection from growers and specialty markets, a few types make up the majority of the market. (As far as dates go, in the US I’ve only seen two types for sale in stores: Medjool and Deglet Nour. To me, the Deglet Nour is the Red Delcious of the date world- not worth bothering with- but maybe I’m picky.).

Date alley: Perhaps my favorite part of our Sharjah tour. With the exception of the stand directly on the right that sells coconuts, all of these stands sell dates.

Perhaps my favorite part of our Sharjah tour. With the exception of the stand directly on the right that sells coconuts, all of these stands sell dates.

One of the many date stands. Merchants were keen to tell you the price and source of dates.

The price of dates varied widely. At the street markets, I saw dates from 8-16 Dirham/kg (~ $1-$2/lb), in Waitrose (a nice supermarket) they were 22-35 Dirham/kg (~$3-$4/lb), and at fancy date stores at the Dubai Mall they were 165-240 Dirham/kg ($20-$40/lb)! I tasted dates from all sources and will say that the cheapest and the most expensive were the best- the ones from Waitrose were a disappointment. Lining them all up and having a blind taste test would be fun- I’ll put that on my list for next time!

The third and final local food that played a role in traditional diets is camel products- usually camel milk. If you haven’t seen it already, check out my recent post.

Camel milk of many colors: rose, cardamon, and saffron flavored alongside plain.

Though there has never been enough wildlife to support a population of hunter-gatherers in this part of the Middle East, there is (or was) some game that has historically been hunted. Such sources could not be relied upon, but provided much appreciated variety and sustenance when found. Traditionally, falconry was used for hunting. Falconry remains a deeply loved sport in the Emirates, one that is seen as part of Emirati heritage and supported by the Sheikhs.

Falconry remains a popular sport in the emirates.

Coffee also holds a special cultural significance in the UAE. Arabic coffee, usually spiced with Cardamom, is offered to guests as a sign of hospitality. The hotel where my brother lives (a common choice of housing) has dates and Arabic coffee on offer to guests at all times in the lobby. The coffee (at least to my taste) is rather weak, though the spice is pleasant.

While I’m interested in traditional diets, I’m also interested in what people are eating now. Maybe I’m a weird tourist (or maybe I’m just easily amused), but when I’m traveling I always love to take a trip through a local supermarket to see what people are eating. The Waitrose at the Dubai Mall did not let me down…

First to the meat department:

Grass fed beef from NZ and Grain fed beef from Australia. I really like that you can buy the two side by side. I wish I’d found two comparable cuts so I could compare the prices…

Pork Department: Islam is the national religion in the UAE, and laws are based around Sharia law. Muslims may not drink alcohol or eat pork (amongst other things). That being said, non-Muslims may buy pork at supermarkets and alcohol is served at hotels (though not in Sharjah).

Interesting finds in the pork department: The pork department isn’t just a meat counter- you can also find processed foods that include pork products. The Corn Bread has Pork Fat in it, but I couldn’t find an offending ingredient in the Pop-tarts (though I do find Pop-tarts offensive!). The bacon flavored crackers are obviously taboo!

I didn’t travel halfway around the world just to visit supermarkets. In addition to spending quality time with my brother and his family, I also got to see A LOT of sites in the surrounding emirates, but as this post is already getting rather long, maybe I’ll save that for next time!

Credit where credit due. I took most pics, but the ones marked by a * were taken by a friend Amber, and ** were taken by Khalid.

1. Heard-Bey, F., From Trucial States to United Arab Emirates. 2011, London: Motivate Publishing.

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An Offal Weekend

Posted in Food, Life, tagged cooking, Food, odd bits, Offal on January 13, 2013| 6 Comments »

As I’ve written before, I’m a fan of eating odd bits. If you’re going to eat meat, and you want to be ethical about it, I think you should make the effort to try and eat all the parts of an animal (or use them in some manner).

I realize this concept is not for everyone. I am one of those people who used to cringe at the thought of eating non-traditional (at least in the current western world) pieces of meat. The disconnect between animals and the plate has become so great that for some, the concept that meat comes from animals is so distant that they won’t eat meat with bones in it. People- meat comes from animals, animals have bones. But I digress…

My family raises cows, so I’m well aware of the importance of “hanging weight”- the weight of an animal’s carcass after it has been killed and eviscerated. If you buy an animal by the whole, half, or any other fraction, it’s likely that the cost is calculated based off of this number. This weight, however, does not include lots of other tasty (and incredibly nutritious) bits that an animal has to offer.

When I buy an animal from a farmer for butchering (or when I send my own animals to slaughter) I make sure I put in a request for lots of odd bits: I want the animal to be fully utilized, I want to get all the tasty bits, I want to get all the nutritious parts, and heck- I want to get my moneys worth! As a result, I sometimes end with a substantial stash of offal in my freezer (especially beef offal, as not everyone who buys beef from us wants the odd bits, though that is changing as we sell more meat to paleo and foodie eaters).

When I came home to my parents this weekend, I thought I’d have a go at eating some of odd bits… My photography is definitely not up to par with many food blogs, but hopefully I do these tasty bits justice (though it takes a better artist/photographer than me to make a raw beef tongue look anything other than kinda weird).

It all started on Friday night, when I decided it was time to experiment with some of the pork skin that I requested from the Berkshire pig I purchased this fall from a local farmer. I found this page and gave their method a try. The result was tasty, though perhaps a danger to my teeth!

Cracklings!

This set in motion a bit of a personal challenge to see how much offal I could put to good use this weekend. Next on the block was a beautiful smoked jowl from the same Berkshire pig as above. Jowl is a really fatty piece of the animal that makes BEAUTIFUL (albeit very fatty) bacon. It can also be cured in other styles such as the Italian Guanciale (which reminds me, I have a piece of jowl from another pig in my freezer that a friend cured into Guanciale at home (<– Worth checking out, if only for the pic of a curing pork jowl hanging from the ceiling). If you don’t request that the butcher save the jowl, I expect it ends up being ground into sausage- a shame for such a delicacy to end in anonymity.

A whole smoked pork jowl

I initially tried to slice this by hand, but quickly realized this was a job for my little deli-slicer.

Jowl bacon, fresh cut

As its winter, I’ve been using quite a bit of stock out of my freezer for soups and stews. It seemed like this weekend was a good time replenish my stores by making some collagen rich pork stock from pork trotters and neck bones.

Trotters and neck bone, to be made into stock.

I shared this pic on my personal facebook page and the general consensus there was “gross”. Although trotters don’t have the same panache as a standing rib roast, they do have a certain je ne sais quoi (and I wouldn’t call them gross).

A number of years ago my parents were visiting Paris. At a restaurant, they were offered a menu in French and English. My father’s grammar school French led him to believe that an item on the menu was “foot of pork”, but the English menu said “leg of pork”. When he inquired, the waiter assured him that it was leg of pork (I think you see where this if going…). When a trotter was brought to the table, my father was less than amused. It is worth noting that my parents are from England, bringing up theories of potential remnants of French-anglo animosity!

As I write this, the trotters have been simmering for almost 24hrs and have made three lovely batches of stock. I have some omnivorous scrap-disposal units that are looking forward to the remnants!

I used some of the stock to make a hearty soup for lunch today, which I paired with a luxurious beef marrowbone.

Marrowbone- I describe it to skeptics as being similar to a savory crème brulee.

I’m one of the few med students on my current rotation who consistently brings lunch. In preparation for this week, and in keeping with the offal theme, I decided to cook up a cow tongue. After it has simmered for a number of hours I’ll shred it and sauté it with an onion and some spices, eventually portioning it out with some mashed sweet potato.

Yes- it’s a tongue.

The final offal of the day is a meaty shinbone that I will stew up with a beef kidney, making the old British standby Steak and Kidney (minus the pudding). Kidneys were one of the last odd bits to make their way into my diet. As a child I would hear of this traditional British meal and cringe- funny how things can change (and how long it can take to get over childhood aversions!).

For those of us used to human anatomy, beef kidneys sure look WEIRD! (It’s important to trim a kidney well, you don’t want to be eating the calyx!)

I realize offal isn’t for everyone, but I hope this might inspire someone to give offal a chance. There are other great things to do with odd bits (imagine a post on offal that doesn’t talk about liver!), and with the help of the internet you can get all kinds of tips and recipes (or you can buy a book). Even if offal isn’t for you, I hope you can recognize that nose-to-tail eating is a responsible decision when thinking about the ethics of eating meat (even if you do find it a little gross).

(Here’s guessing that a number of my friends won’t be looking for dinner invites anytime soon!)

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