Variety is Overrated

So, over the weekend I tried what many McDougallers do: simplify to an extreme. I was struck by what Jeff Novick has mentioned several times, namely simplicity in food choices works just fine. I was struck by the ideal of simplicity of Lent, and thought that choosing fewer dishes and flavors I could focus on eating to satisfy true hunger, and not mental “appetites”. We are often exhorted to eat a “wide variety” of foods so that all our nutrient needs will be met. But if you look at traditional cultures throughout history, you’ll se that most subsisted on relatively few foods that were well suited to the local climate. A couple of starchy staples seasoned with local spices and whatever fresh fruits and veggies were in season have held body and soul together for thousands of years. Without modern storage and distribution, choice was limited. And you know what? They did just fine, as long as food was plentiful. I think the modern nutritionista mandate to maximize variety is to simply get away from the main sources of SAD calories: meat, dairy, flour, sugar and oil, all of which are nutrient deficient. To the SAD, ANY whole, unrefined plant food is “variety”! In short, if we eliminate the above mentioned foods and stick to whole, unrefined starches, fruits, veggies, grains and legumes, we’ll be fine. We can eat very few different foods and do well. It’s not as hard as we make it out to be.

So my experiment was to simplify my menu so I used essentially all Latin flavors. I made a skillet bean and zucchini dish, crock pot chili, drunken beans, and tried a veg posole recipe. All dishes used essentially the same ingredients and flavorings. I decided that I would eat as much as I possibly could of these dishes before moving on. So that is all I ate, with a couple of exceptions, which were oatmeal or fresh fruit for breakfast and a green salad with split pea soup. I even had chili for breakfast once, it was great! Otherwise it was beans, corn, rice, tomatoes, peppers, squash, hominy, chili powder, potatoes, salsa and hot sauce. It tasted great.