A diet rich in a variety of whole grains is one of the foundations of good health, and we are now realising more and more the nutritional benefits that whole grains can provide, from the cholesterol reducing properties of oats to the anti-oxidant content of brown rice.
Over the history of human evolution and in every part of the world endless local dishes based on staple grains cooked in every conceivable way have been developed; wild rice was puffed in fat and mixed with maple syrup, durum wheat flour was rolled into cous cous pellets and steamed above cooking meat while most commonly the grains were simply boiled in water or milk into a porridge. When well prepared, whole grains are among the most nutrient rich, and consequently valuable foods that we have and more than any other they link us to our past and to our history. Here at Planet Organic we stock a huge selection of organic whole grains, from pot barley to puffed amaranth, enough to have a different grain at every meal for a week.
The benefits of leaving well alone
We believe in foods being unrefined and unprocessed because at each processing stage something is lost. There is an immense difference between an organic whole wheat berry and refined white flour, with all the nutrients ground, bleached and treated out of it. Similarly, although organic white rice has not been bleached like much conventional rice, all white rice has had the valuable bran removed to make it softer and quicker to cook.
Wheat, like all whole grains consist of three separate parts, each of which has its own separate nutritional benefits. The outer husk, or bran, contains most of the mineral content as well as the fibre; the endosperm is the starchy energy store while the germ has all of the vitamin E. White flour is now milled to remove both the bran and the germ; the bran because it is what makes the flour brown, and the germ because the vitamin E oil will reduce the shelf life of the flour. Refined white flour is hence nutritionally empty, and like white rice has a high GL (glycaemic load) meaning the starches are quickly digested into simple sugars, causing a rapid rise in blood sugar levels
Our diets often become calorie rich but nutritionally poor as we have refined and processed the goodness out of our food, losing the taste along with it. Meanwhile we become attracted to the idea of superfoods with their amazing nutritional qualities, little realising that before we mistreated them our humble whole grains were some of the most super foods we had. In many societies brown rice or wholemeal bread were seen as poor peoples food – the rich would buy the more expensive white flour or white rice. We are now realising that in terms of our health none of us can afford to be so wasteful.
Getting the most from grains
Whole grains and unrefined flours are now coming into fashion as awareness of their health benefits increases. However, as so easily happens, we are revisiting traditional foods but ignoring traditional methods of preparing them. Whole grains are seeds, and as such are designed by nature to be both dormant and indigestible. Eating a whole wheat berry or oat groat raw will provide little in the way of usable nutrition. To get the most from grains, some need to be prepared in such a way as to release their stored potential.
Pre-soaking grains is a very good way to increase their nutritional value as well as their ease of digestion. Soaking them in water for 8-12 hours will remove the phytic acid present in the husk that can interfere with the absorption of the minerals they contain, and will also start the germination process. This activates the dormant energy and nutrients trapped in the seed. Historically grains were often left soaking in soured milk as the bacteria and enzymes in whole milk would initiate a mild fermentation, which again increases their health benefits. Now that whole, unpasteurised milk is difficult to get hold of, a spoonful of buttermilk, live yoghurt or kefir in water or milk will have the same effect.
Soaking in this way is perhaps of most benefit for the traditional breakfast grains, which also fits easily into most people’s lifestyles as a bowl of porridge can be left soaking with yoghurt overnight. This is very different from remembering to put the rice for dinner in to soak before going to work. A further benefit of preparing your porridge like this is that the fermentation will also make the milk itself more digestible, whether cow’s milk or soya milk that many people find difficult to digest in their natural states. Of course muesli can also be treated this way, but if you want to get the most from your whole grains then cooking them is recommended.
The simplest way to cook any grain is to boil it in water, milk or stock, and every agricultural society has a traditional porridge-like dish based on their staple grain. There is polenta in Italy made from maize meal and kasha in Russia from roasted buckwheat. In Tibet ground roasted barley is made into tsampa while belila is an Egyptian dish made from boiled wheat berries in milk, and is similar to frumenty, a dish from Medieval England. Boiling the grain softens it and starts to break it down, which like soaking makes it more easy to digest and consequently more nutritious.
A whole grain product will always be better for you than one made from refined white grains, with their high GL values, lack of dietary fibre and virtually empty nutritional value, but it may not be living up to its full potential. To get the most from whole grains; to enjoy them at their tastiest and to fully benefit from their nutritional content, it is worth respecting the old fashioned ways of cooking them.
The preparation and cooking of grains are amongst the most fundamental skills that we possess as a race. This is not sophisticated, high cuisine cookery – it is nourishment at its most simple and most satisfying. By cooking your own grains, making porridge for breakfast or baking your own bread you are taking control of your health and that of your loved ones, and partaking in a tradition that connects humanity as a whole, that links us to each other and to the earth.
Tags: grains, wheat, whole grains
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