(Part 3) Best fresh pproduce according to redditors

I got 2 lbs of organic dates on Amazon for $18.

I used a piece of poplar from a recently cut down tree and inoculated it with these plugs: https://www.amazon.com/Oyster-Mushroom-Mycelium-Plug-Spawn/dp/B01I05DSFA
Just follow the instructions with the plug kit.
Here is a video of the technique I used.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRUgnoRiqck
Also, apparently these logs continue to make mushrooms for a couple years

I don’t know where you live and I think it’s pretty different for location and what stores you have available — I did a quick search online though and there’s an amazon product that’s 5lbs pitted, 0.27 cents per oz, and free shipping if you have amazon prime. There’s probably cheaper somewhere but that’s pretty good I think

> nd ground chili powder. I'm not pro-level enough to grind my own spices, other than pepper. I don't use cilantro in chili but I do love it for other things. The cocoa and coffee add background depth, they aren't really upfront flavors. I generally whisk some cocoa powder into some leftover black coffee from that morning's breakfast and stir it in after some of the other (beer usually) has been absorbed/cooked down. Good luck with it. I won 2nd place in the only chili cook-off I have ever entered with this chili. I cooked the beans the night before from dry, no cans, and pureed 3/4 of them to add body to the chili, and kept the other 1/4 whole. You could change that ratio if you like more whole beans in yours. I do but thought that the judges might not.

Another step beyond, but still fairly easy, is to take a giant spoonful of a Mole Negro paste or something like that. I do that and a whole can of chipotles in adobo for my pressure cooker chili, and it always turns out with a way greater depth of flavor than just chili powders.

maybe

https://www.amazon.com/Fresh-Banana-Leaves-Lbs-Platano/dp/B0771H1D5X/ref=sr_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1520479762&sr=8-1&keywords=banana+leaves

Ramen packet.
MCD pancake butter or two.
Carrot.
Fresh greenbeans/sugar snap peas (lots of grocery stores have them in loose bulk. Enough for X meals)
Sriracha packet (panda Express has them. Just ask do t have to buy anything)

Can do this as a soup or drained noodles. Add water , boil with sliced carrots and beans/peas. Few mins depending on your taste for softness. Add noodles cook the 3 min for them.
Optional: drain water (keep for soup)
Add ramen flavor packet and butter. Mix up and eat. (Sriracha as needed)

Garlic powder (very little) is also good but not required. Can make your own seasoning as well and ditch the ramen seasoning. I'd say play around at home either way. Lots of veggie options out there that are light and will keep a day or two.

Also, there are lots of ramens out there besides the basic ones at normal grocery stores. My city has a pretty big vietnamese community and their grocery stores have some pretty fancy ones. I'll find and link some as they are on amazon as well. These have 3, 4, 5 packets of seasonings/oils/spices and are pretty dang good (I tend to add veggies to most)

Dont like/want noodles? Rice works too. I'm sure there are other options as well. Cant think of any at the moment.


Oh yeah. Dried mushrooms. The asian market or Amazon should have those too. Great to add. Add towards end. Don't need too much hydration.

https://www.amazon.com/Indomie-Instant-Noodles-Certified-Original/dp/B00HXIXWKM/



https://www.amazon.com/Mama-Tom-Yum-Flavour-Noodles/dp/B000QFOXTS/ this ones spicy!

https://www.amazon.com/Wild-Mushroom-Gourmet-European-Mushrooms/dp/B075NVDRLY/

They don't ship to anywhere in the Americas. Salty af over here.

Edit: Lol, only Canada for some reason.

Edit 2: Found the same bean on amazon, cheaper too.

Use "club rolls" (basically mini sub rolls) for sandwiches. Pop them in the toaster oven whole and crisp up the outer crust before slicing and filling.

There's few cold-cut sandwiches that a bit of hot cherry pepper relish won't make better.

Yellow mustard is for hot dogs. For sandwiches, use a spicy deli mustard at minimum. But try some Löwensenf Extra Scharf if you can.

I mean, I can "stop by" Whole foods by going to Amazon Prime Now.

• Kale
  
• Squash
  
• Zucchini
  
• Red Pepper
  
  All organic, and I didn't have to even scoot my chair out.

I don’t know if this is what you anticipated but she says she gets hers on Amazon. Go figure

link

/u/atvar8 dried mango!

Absolutely! This is a mix of different super hots.

Fresh Super Hot Peppers - Mixed Box: Carolina Reapers, Ghost, Scorpion, ETC. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0765D3M7F/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_1aCQDbERC9SVE

I feel the "abs are made in the kitchen" mantra does not apply to me.

​

I've been unable to weight train or exercise meaningfully for 2 months because I'm recovering from a slipped disc in my back. That said, I walk / hike / lightly cycle all of the time — about 3x per week. I weigh about 178 lbs at 5'11. I have decent muscle mass, but plenty of average bodyfat distributed around my upper torso.

Yet... my diet is impeccable, or so I thought. Maybe I'm totally off-base, or it's just not working for me... but I just don't seem to shed body fat. It seems like my body vigorously holds onto it even while my muscles decline.

I essentially intermittently fast. I only eat between the hours of 4—8 PM, typically one large meal with some bits around it. Here is my diet.

​

• I eat zero processed food. No grains, no bread. I do eat rice. I've stopped eating potatoes and sweet potatoes (always gives me gas).
  
• I purchase only 95% organic ingredients from Whole Foods near my house.
  
• I only use organic extra virgin olive oil to cook with, as well as organic ghee. I do not cook with butter.
  
• The only spices I use are: salt, pepper, turmeric, chili powder, garlic, minced onions, vindaloo.
  
  ​
  
  
• Every single day I eat a full serving of sauteed organic leafy greens, I rotate between stuff like https://www.amazon.com/365-Everyday-Value-Organic-Spring/dp/B074H57S5G and the Super Greens, or spinach/arugula blends, etc. All I do is cook them with olive oil or ghee for a few minutes.
  
• I always additionally cook some bok choy, scallions, or asparagus.
  
• I always have about 3 pasture raised chicken eggs, scrambled with salt and pepper.
  
• I always have an additional organic grass-fed protein from a great local farmers market. Either ground beef, ground pork, lamb chop, etc. I also sometimes have these frozen patties from Tribali which range from chicken to beef: https://tribalifoods.com/
  
• I sprinkle in some organic sesame seeds for texture.
  
• Some days I'll cook 1 serving of white rice on the side.
  
  ​
  
  I typically then have a few little snacks around the meal, depends on the day. Sometimes I'll crack open a young coconut and eat the meat. Other times I'll eat those Oven Baked cheese snacks from Trader Joes which are high in protein (https://www.traderjoes.com/fearless-flyer/article/4847). I usually have a few bites of 85% or even 90% dark cacoa/chocolate.
  
  I mean... this is pretty lean, I'd say. I really try to emphasize leafy greens and quality proteins.
  
  But I just don't... have abs. I've been eating like this for at least 3 months. What am I doing wrong?

Try using some ginger. For a lot of us it removes the nausea. I couldn't do a lot of VR without it.

$7/lb is too expensive?. $3.60/lb is too expensive?

That doesn't look lactose free. It's low fat milk and banana puree.

Have you tried this?

I love bananas. It would be awesome if I could drink them. Sadly, I can't drink the product you linked.

Vegan: No parts made from animals (fish included). This includes dairy. For some real strict vegans, honey might be included.

Gluten free: Anything made with wheat, barley, or rye. This does include soy sauce and by extension a whole bunch of other Asian sauces that use soy sauce, such as oyster sauce, XO sauce, etc. Also, beverages made with wheat, barley, or rye, like beer.

In general, try to have a balance between a starch dish, a protein dish, and a salad of some sort. If you stick to rice, your protein dish is the only one that will have to be what you called "Normal, Vegetarian/Vegan and Gluten-free". You can double up on some days to make it easier for you. For example, your Normal dish can also be Gluten-Free. It'll free up some time if you just make two large batches of food.

Ask your friend how many people are gluten free, how many are vegan, how many are vegetarian. It'll help you balance what you need to make for the day. If you only have 2 or 3 vegans and you made 10 portions, that might be a lot of wasted food (some non vegans might eat it as well).

I've worked with a few gluten free soy sauce alternatives. Liquid Aminos is pretty good. Kikkoman is now selling a gluten free traditional soy sauce, but that might be expensive for 20-30 people.

For your vegan crowd, I haven't found a really good replacement for fish sauce yet. The closest is mushroom ketchup, which was historically made by the English who were trying to recreate fish sauce back in the day. Mushroom ketchup is also not gluten free, if you have someone who is both gluten-free and vegan.

If you had a way to keep soup hot for a long time (like a large crock pot), I would recommend making a congee bar. To keep the base safe for everyone, use vegetable stock and mushrooms to replace the usual chicken meat to flavor the rice. Have it surrounded by the usual ingredients of fried onions, fried garlic, a bottle of soy sauce, some shredded pork, scallions, etc. The unused toppings can be saved for noodles the next day.

Also, your vegan/vegetarian crowd might appreciate "Mock Duck" A local thai place has it as one of it's options. I'm a meat eater and I really enjoy it, as does my vegetarian friends.

For the actual cooking, I like to make a list on what needs to be done and when. Cooking 4-6 dishes can be difficult. If one slips your mind, you can end up behind schedule trying to fix a mistake. Try to see what can be made in advance and stored for refrigeration. Buy a lot of sternos and trays to keep your food warm.

Good luck!