{"id":11409,"date":"2020-03-26T11:20:21","date_gmt":"2020-03-26T18:20:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/oneingredientchef.com\/?p=11409"},"modified":"2020-10-01T09:46:21","modified_gmt":"2020-10-01T16:46:21","slug":"immunity-bowl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/oneingredientchef.com\/immunity-bowl\/","title":{"rendered":"The Immunity Bowl"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hey guys! I hope you’re all doing well amidst the craziness out there. Personally, I have been locked away in my One Ingredient Doomsday Bunker, but I wanted to quickly poke my head above ground to share a new recipe that might be useful in times like these. <\/p>\n

A lot of people are (rightly) concerned with their immune system right now, and this recipe is all about immunity. But first, a little background on the subject…<\/p>\n

Generally, the idea that there is some food or supplement that will boost your immune system and prevent you from getting sick is nonsense. <\/p>\n

A lot of the research on immunity is about deficiencies. Of course, if you are deficient in [folate \/ vitamin c \/ whatever], it will impair your immune system because your immune system isn’t an isolated thing, it’s interrelated with all other areas of your health. Folate might boost immunity (if you’re deficient) but will taking extra<\/em> folate give you any extra benefit? It’s unlikely.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, my view is that the best thing we can do to boost our immune system is to boost our overall healthfulness. Anything that makes our bodies healthier and more robust is likely to make our immune system stronger as well… good sleep, a healthy weight, reduced stress, exercise, sunshine, and of course eating a healthy diet with an abundance of plant food from across the spectrum of colors. <\/p>\n

Nevertheless, I took a deep dive this week into the research on which vitamins, minerals, and other phytonutrients have been shown to support immune function. Most of what I mentioned above holds true (i.e. make sure you’re generally eating a nutrient-rich diet, but taking extra won’t help). However, I was surprised to learn that there ARE a few exceptions that seem to have special powers at reducing the chances of getting sick and also speeding recovery once we do get sick. Namely, alliums (onions\/garlic) and zinc.<\/p>\n

With all of this in mind, I put together this amazing “immunity bowl” recipe! While it sounds like some kind of a prop from Survivor, it’s really just a delicious sesame rice bowl with tons of amazing flavors.<\/p>\n

Behind the colorful exterior, however, this bowl isn’t messing around. I designed the ingredient list to basically cover all the bases of immunity. It includes onions, garlic, and zinc-rich ingredients, and also a full spectrum of nutrient-dense foods including fiber, vitamin A, Vitamin C, B Vitamins, Vitamin E, and more. Check it out: <\/p>\n

Chickpeas<\/strong> \u2013 If you read my Complete Guide to Dietary Fiber<\/a>, it should come as no surprise that fiber \/ good gut health is like the first line of defense for immunity. There has also been some research that a high fiber diet supercharges immune cells, so this bowl has tons of chickpeas (and brown rice) for lots of fiber. Plus, chickpeas are a good source of zinc as well (see the pumpkin seeds section for more on that). <\/p>\n

Garlic & Onion<\/strong> \u2013 Again, garlic and onions are amazing for the immune system. Like Zinc, the compounds in garlic have immune-boosting properties. The catch? They need to be eaten raw and sometimes raw garlic can be a bit… much, so check out the recipe itself to see how I’m dealing with that. <\/p>\n

Mushrooms<\/strong> \u2013 Mushrooms have a lot of essential vitamins and minerals, and while the research is pretty complex<\/a>, they seem to have powerful phytochemical that boost immune function as well. <\/p>\n

Cruciferous Veggies<\/strong> \u2013 This bowl contains saut\u00e9ed kale and very lightly cooked broccoli because these cruciferous veggies are probably the overall healthiest foods on the planet, not only for their vitamin and nutrient density, but also for the way their enzymes interact with our digestive system to create powerful immune boosting functions (see this awesome video<\/a>). <\/p>\n

Pumpkin Seeds<\/strong> \u2013 Zinc is one of those minerals that has been shown to have direct benefits on cold viruses \u2013 it can help to both prevent and treat cold symptoms<\/a> and pumpkin seeds are packed with zinc (100% of the daily value in <\/p>\n

Bell Pepper<\/strong> \u2013 Bright red or orange bell peppers have 3x as much vitamin C as oranges, BUT the vitamins are heat-sensitive, so that’s why this recipe has us adding the pepper and broccoli (also high in Vitamin C and enzymes that boost immunity) right at the end to just lightly simmer them. <\/p>\n

Citrus<\/strong> \u2013 For additional vitamin C and some bright flavors to compliment the sesame, I used the delicious and in-season Sumo Citrus here but any type of orange or tangerine would be great. <\/p>\n

Avocado<\/strong> \u2013 The “Big Avocado” industry has tried really hard to make avocados seem like an immune-boosting food. Those claims seem dubious at best, but they DO have tons of vitamins and minerals, and you don’t have to tell me twice to put avocado in a recipe…<\/p>\n

What’s really great about this bowl is that literally all of the ingredients are substitutable. I know grocery stores aren’t fully stocked with everything we want these days and we’re all trying to make our ingredients last between trips, so this bowl is extremely flexible \u2013 you can use quinoa or millet instead of rice, you can omit the avocado or peppers, you can add berries or other fruit, you can switch up the spices, and I’m guessing it will STILL be delicious and full of immune-supporting nutrition.<\/p>\n

I hope you enjoy the bowl, and stay safe out there, guys! <\/p>\n

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Makes: 5+ servings<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Ingredients:<\/h4>\n
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