I love detoxes. I mentioned in the last post I was doing a smoothie detox. For three to four days all I eat are smoothies and soups. Usually they are all raw, but they are hardly skimpy. They are packed with lots of nuts and fats to keep me full and going. I like a smoothie cleanse over a juice cleanse since you are getting a larger range of foods. Emily from This Rawsome Vegan Life did one for 7 days, which is longer than I have ever done.
I usually do a detox after big family get togethers and holidays since I usually eat foods I wouldn’t normally eat. It is nice “reboot” for some eating habits. If I am suddenly craving beer and cake every single day, I will usually go on a detox. I find that it makes me want to eat healthier foods. I am still going to want to drink beer and eat baked goods, but I know I shouldn’t be eating them everyday.
Of coarse I don’t like the connection people make with loosing weight with detoxing. Yeah, most of the time you loose weight, but it isn’t permanent. A lot of water weight is loss and quickly gained back when transitioning back to a normal diet. Which is why I like how Emily refers to it as a “Liquid Feast,” since you are feeding your body.
Of coarse after awhile some of the detox items get to be too much. I start to crave certain styles of food. One being Korean. I am not sure why Korean style food isn’t included in more detoxes. There are many ingredients that are found in detoxes such as garlic, cabbage, chili peppers, and foods rich in probiotics. One such foods is kimchi. Homemade and some store bought kimchi have live active bacterial cultures, the same kind found in yogurts.
I mentioned in my last post to be careful choosing your kimchi. Making kimchi at home is pretty easy but takes lots time to ferment. Some major brands lack flavor, or have seafood in the mix. Look for vegetarian varieties, and make sure there aren’t any preservatives or coloring in them. This way you get the best kind for a detox.
The biggest problem with capturing the “korean” flavors is mimicking the taste of gochujang. It is bean paste that includes chili peppers. Although many fermented bean paste’s are healthy, most gochujangs that I ran into have many preservatives, and food colorings in it. To mimic the taste, I used miso with chili powder and a sweetener. The best part is that if you use miso that hasn’t been pasteurized, you will get even more probiotic benefits!
This soup is so yummy that I don’t need to be on a detox to make it. It is a great summer lunch soup since I don’t need to turn the oven on. Isn’t that the biggest life saver? I added a little kimchi and sesame seeds to make the photos look pretty. You will probably want to not include that if you are doing an all liquid cleanse.
- 1 tsp dulse or wakame seaweed
- 1 cup water*
- 1 large red bell pepper
- 1/4 an avocado
- 1/2 cup of homemade kimchi**
- 1 tbsp miso
- 1/2-1 tsp korean pepper
- 1/2 tsp grated ginger
- 1 tsp honey or agave
- 1 tsp black sesame seeds or paste
1 In a blender add all the ingredients, but putting in the water and seaweed first. This will help the seaweed soften and therefore blend better.2 Blend on high for at least a minute to ensure that the kimchi and bell pepper skins have been thoroughly broken down.
* If you want a hot soup, add boiling or near boiling water to the soup. It will kill some the natural bacteria in the miso and kimchi, but most ingredients are cold and will neutralize the temperature before killing all of them.** Try to use homemade kimchi, as it isn't pasteurized and doesn't have any preservatives. If you have to buy kimchi read the ingredients making sure there isn't any fish added to it.
