Category: Food

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What I’m Into Right Now: Oolong Tea

I just finished reading a great book called “The Longevity Plan:Seven Life-Transforming Lessons from Ancient China” and it got me thinking about my current fascination with Oolong Tea. The author discovered a remote region in China, known as “Longevity Village,” that has the highest concentration of people living over one hundred years of age. From it he derived a number of lessons regarding health and well-being. It sounds all “new age-y” but it’s actually not, which is good, because I’m not into that stuff. I’m into Jesus (but I DO read broadly, because leaders are learners).

The book doesn’t outright mention “Oolong Tea” but it sure got me wanting to blog about What I’m Into Right Now.

Oolong Tea. Sounds kinda funny. I forget exactly how I stumbled upon Oolong Tea, but I do know I read about it in a book around June of 2017, because my Amazon.com purchase of Oolong Tea was around that time.

There’s a lot of detailed information about Oolong Tea in Wikipedia, but that’s not what inspires me about this semi-green fermented tea. There are numerous kinds of tea in this big, big world, but in my research, Oolong tea is one of the most beneficial.

Some of the health benefits include the reduction of chronic health conditions such as heart diseases, inflammatory disorders, and high cholesterol levels. This last one is what got me. I’ve had high cholesterol for many years. It runs in my family, so I’ve been taking statins every day for a long time.

Now, I’m not a doctor, and I’ve never played one on TV, so this is just my experience and not to be taken for actual medical advise…but as I started to read about high cholesterol and look for alternatives to statins, I discovered some things that were very helpful to me.

First and foremost…REAL FOOD.  I am eating better (primarily vegetables and lean meats). I’m also working out consistently. In a nutshell:  moving more. Among a number of other lifestyle changes, I added Oolong Tea into my day. It is usually the first cup of “something” very early in the morning. I hold off on getting my Iced Grande Triple Espresso until after I’ve worked out (motivation…what ever works baby!).  I tend to get up most every morning between 5:15-5:30 am and have a cup of Oolong Tea first thing. Check out my previous blog on The Top Seven Things I Do Before 7 AM. 

Oolong tea is rich in antioxidants. It also contains vitamins and minerals such as calcium, manganese, copper, carotin, selenium, and potassium, as well as vitamin A, B, C, E, and vitamin K. Now to be honest:  most of that doesn’t thrill me. I don’t sit around trying to figure out how to get more vitamin K or selenium into my life. But I do think about my weight.

Ah, yes…weight. My cursory research has shown that Oolong tea is pretty effective at controlling the metabolism of fat in the body as well as reducing obesity. Apparently, the active components (polyphenols) in Oolong tea makes fat work for you (about stinking time!).

For me, it’s been working. In combination with eating better, moving more and other important things for weight loss, I’ve been drinking Oolong tea since June 2017 and am down 16 pounds (from 202 lbs to 186 lbs).

So, I like it. Now, it’s certainly not the Holy Grail, but, in the words of the old white-bearded guy from the Indiana Jones movie about the Holy Grail, I feel as if I’ve “chosen wisely.”

Cheers.

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What I’m Into Right Now: Ramen Noodles

Just spend a few moments on my Instagram feed and you’ll quickly realize that I am absolutely in love with Ramen. Now, classically, the next question I get asked after making such a claim is this:  “You really like that Top Ramen stuff?” To that I say emphatically:  “NO. That’s garbage.” I’m talking about authentic Japanese Ramen.

Wikipedia would describe it like this:  Ramen consists of Chinese-style wheat noodles served in a tonkotsu (pork bone broth), beef, miso or fish-based broth, often flavored with soy sauce or miso, and uses toppings such as sliced pork, dried seaweed (nori), and green onions.

I would describe it as my favorite food obsession right now.

If my memory serves me well, I recall experiencing my first bowl of ramen noodles in Los Angeles a few years ago. The only thing I had to gauge my expectations to was the cheap, nasty Top Ramen that I used to eat at Bible College in my 20’s. This was so much more. More Flavor (umami). More Depth. More interesting ingredients.

Since that first encounter in Los Angeles, I have been on a Ramen Hunt. I set a Summer of 2017 goal to eat at every Ramen joint in Portland. I estimated about 20 of them in the greater Portland area, and I was able to get to about 6-7 of them (with a few repeats). I also had a goal of losing 15 pounds, and it’s entirely possible these two goals we’re at odds! I’ve since eaten Ramen in New York, various places in Southern California, the Bay Area, Hawaii, and most recently a Ramen Crawl in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, MN, which has a strong Ramen game going on right now.

I get asked what my go-to places are in Portland. Here’s my Ramen Report:

  1. Kayo’s Ramen Bar. Order the signature TanTan Ramen, and add the soft-poached egg. You’ll thank me.
  2. Marukin Ramen. They have a rotating daily menu, with a couple standards offered every day. You can never go wrong with the Tonkotsu Red. It’s a bit spicy, but the flavor is amazing. If you go to the Marukin off of SE Ankeny in Portland, then you’re right next to my all time favorite food in Portland:  Nong’s Khao Man Gai.
  3. Boxer Ramen.  There are a number of locations throughout Portland. If you wanna blow your mind, order the $6 side of Okonomiyaki Tots.

That’s the latest Ramen Report. More to come, I’m sure of it!

Chow!

John