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Inspiration: The Dr. Chef Cooks Up the Bonus Years
Well, first of all, I still practice medicine. But my interest in food goes back to the time when I was completing work on an M.D. and Ph.D. in the medical scientist training program at Stanford University. But in retrospect, it wasn’t the time I spent in the laboratory but the time I spent in the kitchen that was to have the greatest impact. Before coming to Stanford, I was enthusiastic about eating but had always left the cooking to others. That all changed when I met Chef Tong who owned a Chinese restaurant in Palo Alto California that soon became my favorite. To break the grind of laboratory research, I began working in his restaurant, learning the basics of restaurant cooking like how to quickly chop and prepared meats and vegetables with the ubiquitous Chinese cleaver. I quickly realized that authentic Chinese cuisine was much healthier than the standard American faire: the Chinese had a clear preference for vegetables, seafood, and soy dishes. Many recipes were simply steamed, and even stir fry recipes only require a tablespoon or less of oil. As a doctor I was intrigued by the obvious health benefits of Chinese cuisine, but as a food aficionado, I was delighted by the delicious meals I was learning to prepare. After I left the Bay Area I continued to cook at home. When I came to Phoenix I enrolled in the Culinary Arts Program at the Art Institute, where I learned the basics of classic French cooking, adding to my background in Asian cuisine. I loved the techniques and flavors of French cooking, but not the high saturated fats. So I often redid recipes, using less and more healthy fats while still keeping the great flavor. I began my career as an internist in a medical practice, where unfortunately time was money. And I was spending too much time with my patients talking in depth with them about about their lifestyle habits, especially their diets. That was a good thing for my patients, but a bad thing for a busy group, because the demands of a busy practice simply didn’t permit that kind of one on one counseling. It soon became clear that it was futile and inefficient to try to educate people about healthy cooking one patient at a time. Instead I began teaching cooking classes to small groups of people. At the same time I began to devote much of my time to research on nutrition and devising eating plans and techniques that were not only healthy, but would satisfy the most demanding of palates - mine! The result, the Bonus Years Foods Rx, is the culmination of those years of research and recipe development combined with today’s cutting edge science. Its all here the latest scientific studies supporting the Bonus Years Foods, how each of the Bonus Years Foods can have a profound impact on your health and longevity, a month of Bonus Years recipes, and a complete description of the simple techniques which all home cooks can easily master to help prepare healthy and delicious meals that rival the best restaurant cuisine. So sit back and enjoy your Bonus Years - you have earned it!! |
