Flu Killing Garlic Eggs
- Apr 27, 2018
- 3 min read
I have been fortunate enough to scape through the Canadian winter without getting sick. This has been a miraculous event given my tendency to run outside in negative degree temperature, share utensils with sick roommates, and sleep with my window open during snowstorms.
I put this down to a couple of good habits that I do everyday and some things I do once I start feeling a bit sick.
Daily habits:
Move your body. Even if it’s not a gym sesh, going on a long walk around the town.
Eat leafy greens. A handful of spinach and a handful of kale each day keeps the doctor away with their Vitamin C content (as well as heaps of their other nutrients).
Drink heaps of water. Nuff said.
Wash your hands all the time. Soon as you get home. Multiple times when cooking. Right before you eat. Make it a habit.
Generally just not eating crap – I’ve cut down on processed food, sugar and dairy since I’ve been here (#toopoortoaffordcheatmeals).
There have been some days when my throat has been a bit congested but nothing has progressed into a full blown cold or flu. I don’t really try things like eating extra oranges or other foods that are meant to be high in Vitamin C since I get more than enough from the foods I eat every day but I do take some of the following precautions:
Take a super hot bath/shower. If you’re having a bath, it should be so hot that it takes more time for you to adjust to the water than the amount of time you actually spend in the water.
Drink lemon, honey and ginger tea.
Only eat warm foods; both in temperature and in spice. Enjoy some miso soup or add cayenne pepper to your curry.
Gargle with Betadine mouthwash.
Go gentle on your body and switch a HIIT work out for a yoga routine.
Ease up on the dairy. Not too much of a problem since I can’t afford dairy in Quebec anyway...
Sleep.
Eat minced raw garlic.
If there’s one tip that I absolutely swear by it is the last one. But how do you go about eating raw garlic?
My Dad’s technique is cooking up creamy garlic prawns or putting a whole bulb into his signature dish, SpagBol. He recommends eating so much garlic you can feel it sweating out your pores.
I favour a less pungent method (plus his way still ends up cooking the garlic which destroys beneficial compounds). First, you can simply crush the garlic into a curry or meal right before it’s about to be served and stir it through. Second, you can make a tzatziki (plain Greek yoghurt, raw garlic, a touch of honey to take the edge off the tang, parsley, cucumber). Third, you make a gremolata.
My favourite when I’m sick is the gremolata on soft poached eggs and wilted greens. The whole dish is full of all things good and I love the way the egg yolk tastes with the garlicky herbs. Still, this recipe is quite strong so probs avoid breathing in people’s faces for the new few hours.
I generally end up eating this for at least one meal every day until my throat feels better or until I can feel the garlic coming out of my pores. When that happens, I know I’ve gone too far and need to ease up.
Gremolata Ingredients
4-6 big cloves of garlic
¼ bunch of parsley or coriander
The lightest splash of lemon juice or apple cider vinegar
The lightest splash of olive oil
Salt to taste
Sprinkle of parmesan or nutritional yeast (optional)
Method
1. Crush the garlic into a pestle and mortar. Add the chopped up herbs and all the other ingredients and smash. The garlic and herbs really are the heart of the gremolata so you don’t need a lot of liquids at all so go very easy on the oil and lemon juice. If you don’t have a pestle and mortar, just use a cup and an ice-cream scoop/rolling pin to crush it into a paste.
2. Wilt some greens.
3. Poach some eggs.
4. Put the eggs on the greens and the gremolata on the eggs. Sprinkle over any pumpkin seeds you have leftover in the cupboard that you need to get rid of before they expire.
5. Eat, recover and avoid the flu!
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