Nuts and seeds are great. But I noticed that I was not feeling very well after eating them straight from the bag. So I decided to find the way how to eat nuts and keep my tummy happy at the same time. Maybe this post will be helpful for you too!? Let me know what do you think!
4 signs that you are not processing nuts well:
- Heavy feeling in your lower stomach after eating nuts
- Stomach pain
- Heartburn
- You can literally see bits of them in your poo (SORRY! I have no idea how to write about this indirectly 🙂 )
I remembered that during my Nutritional Therapy lectures in BCNH we studied that nuts&seeds contain lectins, phytates, and enzyme inhibitors (I will call this bunch LPEs), which may be one of the causes of the above mentioned conditions. I must mention, that “enzyme inhibitors” are good nature’s way of “protecting” them from heat, etc. before “right”conditions come (eg. rain) for the nuts to grow into trees.
By soaking nuts you can not only minimise the impact of LPEs, but also enhance the flavour of nuts!In a way, you are “tricking” the nature, by providing conditions when nuts&seeds may “relax” and start releasing all good minerals and micronutrients.
Also, you need to remember that roasted nuts from the shop are most likely not soaked first which means they still have LPEs. There are a few brands though which actually soak the nuts before they roast or dehydrate them, check out LivingRaw nuts, or Raw Ecstasy but they are not very cheap.
So, why not to try to prepare and “activate” your nuts yourself, it is super easy! Let me show it to you 🙂
Easy process for soaking nuts
- Rinse nuts/seeds with fresh water (better purified water, not from the tap)
- Put them in a bowl (better in a glass or ceramic bowl)
- Cover nuts with water (2 cups water/ 1 cup nuts) and put smth breathable on top (paper towel or tea towel)
- Let them stand for a few hours (during the night/day/ or 24 hours). If you have time or you are around, change the water a few times. If not, don’t worry about it 🙂
- Drain the water (which will look very dirty)
- Rinse again with fresh water (the water contains all those LPE which are acidic to the body, so rinse well!)
- Dry your clean and beautiful nuts on a sheet of paper towel or dehydrator (if you have one)
- Put in a bag or a glass bowl and keep in refrigerator for 3-4 days
Check out timings for each type of nut/seed here. But! Just not to overcomplicate things too much, a few hours would be good. For example, arrange all in the morning and it is ready for the evening or make preparations in the evening and the nuts are ready for breakfast!
And finally a recipe!!! 🙂
Soaked and roasted walnuts and pumpkin seeds
- Soaked pumpkin seeds (I made them overnight)
- Soaked walnuts (I made them overnight)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp rosmarin
- Pinch of dry basil
- Pinch of dry coriander
- Pinch of pepper
- Optional: 1 tbs bee polen
Preheat the oven for 200 C, mix all the spices and nuts in a dry bowl and put the mixture to the baking sheet. In 25-30 min the AWSOME nuts are ready to eat! 🙂
Note! It is better to add bee polen 10 min before the nuts are ready, so it doesn’t burn 🙂
Awesome Roasted nuts and seeds
OMGsoTasty 