Aromatherapy For the Table

Are you the type that reaches for the salt shaker before even tasting the food? What’s the point in sitting down to a healthy meal and then drowning it in salt? Wouldn’t you rather taste the food rather than the salt? Cooking with essential oils and herbs is a much healthier and tastier way to prepare food.

Unless you’re under doctor’s orders to restrict sodium, you probably don’t worry about sodium in your diet. The biggest benefit of eating whole foods is that you control the ingredients. By it’s nature, processed food has had the taste processed out and food manufacturers compensate by adding copious amounts of sodium. So, even without adding sodium to your plate, your diet is probably already exceeding the normal limits of what the FDA recommends for salt intake.

While sodium is the flavor enhancer of choice for most households, many canned, processed, and even frozen foods are already full of this ingredient. In fact, a single fast food meal can supply more than twice your daily limit of sodium.

The biggest offenders for over-delivering on sodium are cheese, bacon, and soy sauce. Instead of infusing these ingredients, spice up your dish with ginger, rice vinegar, or lime juice.

Some foods mask their sodium content so that you don’t even know it’s in there. A Java Chip Frappuccino from Starbucks packs in 300 mg of sodium. Baked cookies, doughnuts, and bread can contain baking soda, which houses 1,259 mg of sodium per teaspoon.

Instead of regular iodized salt, try substituting sea salt. Unlike regular table salt, sea salt comes in chunks. It’s grainy and adds texture to food. Sea salt also has a stronger flavor than regular table salt so you do need to use as much of it. Sea salt works especially well for meats, fish, stews, and marinades. If you buy sea salt in grinders, you can control its coarseness.

This overdosing on salt leads to over 150,000 deaths each year, so it’s vital that you shake your sodium habit and learn to infuse flavor without risking your health. One way to add flavor without the negative side effects of salt, is to use herbs and essential oils to deliver taste.

Essential oils are powerful substances that have to be used with care. Any time you’re cooking with them, you should start with a 1 percent dilution which is equivalent to six drops of essential oil in one ounce of carrier oil such as olive oil. From there, you can adjust the dilution one or two drops for taste.

Other popular herbs for cooking are garlic, dill, basil, and parsley which also allow you to pull out the flavor of the food without having to rely on sodium to do the job for you.

When using essential oils in cooking, ONLY USE FOOD GRADE essential oils. Please carefully read all labeling before use. Essential oils should not be taken internally or placed on the skin directly without dilution, unless clearly designated as Food Grade. If non-food grade oils are improperly ingested, please contact a physician or visit your nearest emergency room immediately.

Chicken Grilled with Herbes de Provençe

Serving Size: 4

Ingredients:

* 4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, about 6 ounces each
* 2 tablespoons good quality fruity olive oil
* 5 drops culinary grade lavender essential oil
* 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
* 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* 1 tablespoon dried herbes de provençe

Instructions:

Rinse chicken breasts with cold water and pat dry with paper towels. Set aside. Stir together olive oil with lavender food grade essential oil. Reserve two teaspoons of the lavender olive oil in a small bowl.

Brush chicken breasts with lavender olive oil. Season both sides with salt, pepper and herbes de provençe. Grill over direct high heat or in a grill pan over high heat for three to four minutes per side. Remove chicken to serving platter and use a clean pastry brush to dab reserved lavender olive oil on chicken breasts. Garnish with fresh herbs, if desired.

Herbes de Provençe:

* 4 teaspoons dried thyme
* 3 teaspoons dried savory
* 2 teaspoons dried marjoram
* 2 teaspoons dried basil
* 1 teaspoons dried rosemary
* 1 teaspoon dried lavender flowers
* 1 dried bay leaf, crushed
* 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds, crushed

Instructions:

Crush or grind herbs together. Store in an air-tight container for up to three months.

Resource: Healthy Meal Planning
Video: Slow Food Nation