In one of my trips, to the Southern United States I was invited to dine at a Churrascaria (“C”) or “The South American Steakhouse” for most people.
It brought back old memories of my trips to Latin America, where every time a US team visited we were taken to a steakhouse for dinner. Before I begin, here is the caveat, I am a born vegetarian, and practice it to the word and syllable.
Before you continue reading, Disclaimer: Next 2 paragraphs may be hazardous or even deadly to vegetarians. Proceed at your own risk.
(NOTE: Keep satire and humor in mind)
I bet Andrew Zimmermn or Anthony Bourdain would have been more eloquent in their description of the Churrascaria.
At my first trip to the big “C”, I was shocked beyond words but soon came to terms with the culture & the palette of the crowd around me. Isn’t it interesting when you can pick your “prey” before you pray for them…
Literally, I saw live animals and the people were allowed to pick their animal and most favorite part for dinner!?!
Too dumbfounded for words, I said the “Hanuman Chalisa” in my mind several times and prayed for the live animal and then for the “animal on the barbeque pit and then for the parts on the skewers and continued to pray long after the others had finished eating. I made the excuse that I was on a liquid diet due to a religious holiday and hence gulped down water by the ounces and then gallons.
So in my recent trip, I graciously denied the dinner invitation and settled for a Subway sandwich instead. As I stood in line I noticed the choices – Wheat, Whole Wheat, Honey Wheat, Italian ….well you know the run down…and with each choice there was Total calories, Carb Count, Fat calories, Cholesterol, Atkins Diet Rating, Weight Watchers grading, and there was a new addition – Glycemic Index.
I had heard about Glycemic Index and now that I was going to eat a sandwich I needed to know how it affected my lunch in question. I googled it on my Blackberry and here is what I learned –
“Not all carbohydrate foods are created equal, in fact they behave quite differently in our bodies. The glycemic index or GI describes this difference by ranking carbohydrates according to their effect on our blood glucose levels. Choosing low GI carbs - the ones that produce only small fluctuations in our blood glucose and insulin levels - is the secret to long-term health reducing your risk of heart disease and diabetes and is the key to sustainable weight loss. “
I was 2nd in line to get the sandwich, and by the time I finished my research, people had passed me to get their sandwich and were already eating. I settled for a Honey Wheat with Veggies & not knowing what GI it had, I devoured it pretty quickly. The “GI” guilt factor stuck to my mind.
Guilt , because now I keep thinking about every food I eat and its GI factor. Why cant things be simple?
Upon my return I went grocery shopping, and usually I am in the organic aisle looking for fat free foods, I went to look for pastas and I found Low Glycemic Index Pasta! My Healthy Food checklist which was usually Low Fat, Low Cholesterol, now needed a 3rd addition – Low GI. As I went around the grocery store, I saw more GI tracks ….GI .. GI….GI … and ended up buying Low GI food. Well, you pay for what you get and my budget was blown out of the water!
That’s when I began to wonder, “How come Lalaji’s shop that sold the best samosas tasted so good without the Low GI , Low Fat and Cholesterol” Or the Pani Pooris at the “Dinesh Food Stall” outside Andheri Railway Station that tasted so good despite the dirt, dust and sweat and recycled water! Well I bet the dirt, dust and sweat may have had a factor in taste and health. And I bet, it will take quite a few differential equations to get the GI factor on Dinesh’s Pani Pooris.
Then there was the Haldiram Ghasitaram Karachiwala shop on way to college and we would stop there to get a bite quite often. I don’t think, even now the menu board has nutritional markings on it, yet their chaat is one of the best I’ve ever tasted! Think about asking Bhole at HGK, “Bhole, Chaat ka GI kya hai”. I can imagine the look on Bholeram’s face, “Chale aaten hain chaat khane, pata nahi kahan se aye, Phirange. Arre Chaat khana hai to chaat khao , aloo aur pakode ke bare mein poocho to main bataoon.”
We had a favorite Bhel Puri shop in Goregaon, “Hasmukhbhai Ghanshyamdas Bhelpuriwala”. I have always felt that Mr. Hasmukh would be in the Guinness Book of records today if he had spent some prime cash on marketing his Bhel. He made it with ingredients straight out of a tin can in the attic. He would have jute sacks which always had flies and mosquitos gathered to savor the mamra, pooris, chillies, chutneys before “we” the customer got them.
Hasmukh had an assistant, Lotya. He was always a happy camper. Always talked about cricket, the matches and innings. Any stranger could start a dialogue with him on Sachin Tendulkar and he would keep going for hours. I cannot imagine walking into Hasmukh’s shop and going “Lotya, mala doon Bhel de re. Mala bhelchya GI aani cholesterol pan saang.” That will be last time Lotya will entertain me in his shop. He might even think I am an ET.
I remember going to the Rajdhani restaurant in the InOrbit Mall. They typically serve a 5 course meal, authentic Gujrathi Style. All you need is time and a stomach to hold & digest the food quickly so that you could relish the 5 courses. Should you or I even think about GI at this time?
I remember a hindi dialogue “Khao to Ji Bhar ke Khao, Jiyo to Ji Bhar ke Jiyo”.
I ask you, Indulgence in good food, is it a crime?
Not sure for how long I can forget the GI ..
I am back home now and ….Oh no!... It is back with a bang …. “Khao to GI Bhar ke Khao, GIyo to GI Bhar ke GIyo”…
Before you continue reading, Disclaimer: Next 2 paragraphs may be hazardous or even deadly to vegetarians. Proceed at your own risk.
(NOTE: Keep satire and humor in mind)
I bet Andrew Zimmermn or Anthony Bourdain would have been more eloquent in their description of the Churrascaria.
At my first trip to the big “C”, I was shocked beyond words but soon came to terms with the culture & the palette of the crowd around me. Isn’t it interesting when you can pick your “prey” before you pray for them…
Literally, I saw live animals and the people were allowed to pick their animal and most favorite part for dinner!?!
Too dumbfounded for words, I said the “Hanuman Chalisa” in my mind several times and prayed for the live animal and then for the “animal on the barbeque pit and then for the parts on the skewers and continued to pray long after the others had finished eating. I made the excuse that I was on a liquid diet due to a religious holiday and hence gulped down water by the ounces and then gallons.
So in my recent trip, I graciously denied the dinner invitation and settled for a Subway sandwich instead. As I stood in line I noticed the choices – Wheat, Whole Wheat, Honey Wheat, Italian ….well you know the run down…and with each choice there was Total calories, Carb Count, Fat calories, Cholesterol, Atkins Diet Rating, Weight Watchers grading, and there was a new addition – Glycemic Index.
I had heard about Glycemic Index and now that I was going to eat a sandwich I needed to know how it affected my lunch in question. I googled it on my Blackberry and here is what I learned –
“Not all carbohydrate foods are created equal, in fact they behave quite differently in our bodies. The glycemic index or GI describes this difference by ranking carbohydrates according to their effect on our blood glucose levels. Choosing low GI carbs - the ones that produce only small fluctuations in our blood glucose and insulin levels - is the secret to long-term health reducing your risk of heart disease and diabetes and is the key to sustainable weight loss. “
I was 2nd in line to get the sandwich, and by the time I finished my research, people had passed me to get their sandwich and were already eating. I settled for a Honey Wheat with Veggies & not knowing what GI it had, I devoured it pretty quickly. The “GI” guilt factor stuck to my mind.
Guilt , because now I keep thinking about every food I eat and its GI factor. Why cant things be simple?
Upon my return I went grocery shopping, and usually I am in the organic aisle looking for fat free foods, I went to look for pastas and I found Low Glycemic Index Pasta! My Healthy Food checklist which was usually Low Fat, Low Cholesterol, now needed a 3rd addition – Low GI. As I went around the grocery store, I saw more GI tracks ….GI .. GI….GI … and ended up buying Low GI food. Well, you pay for what you get and my budget was blown out of the water!
That’s when I began to wonder, “How come Lalaji’s shop that sold the best samosas tasted so good without the Low GI , Low Fat and Cholesterol” Or the Pani Pooris at the “Dinesh Food Stall” outside Andheri Railway Station that tasted so good despite the dirt, dust and sweat and recycled water! Well I bet the dirt, dust and sweat may have had a factor in taste and health. And I bet, it will take quite a few differential equations to get the GI factor on Dinesh’s Pani Pooris.
Then there was the Haldiram Ghasitaram Karachiwala shop on way to college and we would stop there to get a bite quite often. I don’t think, even now the menu board has nutritional markings on it, yet their chaat is one of the best I’ve ever tasted! Think about asking Bhole at HGK, “Bhole, Chaat ka GI kya hai”. I can imagine the look on Bholeram’s face, “Chale aaten hain chaat khane, pata nahi kahan se aye, Phirange. Arre Chaat khana hai to chaat khao , aloo aur pakode ke bare mein poocho to main bataoon.”
We had a favorite Bhel Puri shop in Goregaon, “Hasmukhbhai Ghanshyamdas Bhelpuriwala”. I have always felt that Mr. Hasmukh would be in the Guinness Book of records today if he had spent some prime cash on marketing his Bhel. He made it with ingredients straight out of a tin can in the attic. He would have jute sacks which always had flies and mosquitos gathered to savor the mamra, pooris, chillies, chutneys before “we” the customer got them.
Hasmukh had an assistant, Lotya. He was always a happy camper. Always talked about cricket, the matches and innings. Any stranger could start a dialogue with him on Sachin Tendulkar and he would keep going for hours. I cannot imagine walking into Hasmukh’s shop and going “Lotya, mala doon Bhel de re. Mala bhelchya GI aani cholesterol pan saang.” That will be last time Lotya will entertain me in his shop. He might even think I am an ET.
I remember going to the Rajdhani restaurant in the InOrbit Mall. They typically serve a 5 course meal, authentic Gujrathi Style. All you need is time and a stomach to hold & digest the food quickly so that you could relish the 5 courses. Should you or I even think about GI at this time?
I remember a hindi dialogue “Khao to Ji Bhar ke Khao, Jiyo to Ji Bhar ke Jiyo”.
I ask you, Indulgence in good food, is it a crime?
Not sure for how long I can forget the GI ..
I am back home now and ….Oh no!... It is back with a bang …. “Khao to GI Bhar ke Khao, GIyo to GI Bhar ke GIyo”…
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