All I can say is it has been quite a year for Eat Well Shanghai.  Just a bit over a year ago, Eat Well Shanghai: the Guidebook was introduced to a welcoming audience.  Then Julie, the author and creator of Eat Well Shanghai, decided that it wasn’t enough just to have Shanghai eating well, she needed to introduce the world to the Eat Well philosphy. It wasn’t long after that, that Eat Well Global was born.

Eat Well Global, among other pursuits, is introducing a whole new approach to travel with nutrition travel apps for your iPhone and iPad. And of course, one of the first to hit the “shelves” is Eat Well China. 

 The Eat Well China app is perfect for anyone traveling and/or living in China.  The app has much of the information found in the Eat Well Shanghai Guidebook but we have expanded our resources to include Beijing and Guangzhou.

 On a business trip to Guangzhou and you want to find a good vegetarian restaurant, tap on the listings and several will pop up before your eyes.  You have a visitor coming that is allergic to gluten ? Tap on the special diets tab and find restaurants, support groups and Mandarin phrases to help you along.  How about you just want to take a cooking class in Shanghai or Beijing ?  Eat Well China has that information ready to download at the tap of your finger.

This app is different from the wonderful Eat Well Shanghai Guidebook, which is written for expats living in Shanghai, in that there is much more in-depth information about the cuisine of China.  If you want to know what that unusual fruit is in the market, chances are you will find it complete with photo and description on the Eat Well China App. Interested in the advantages of the Chinese diet over a western diet, the EWC app has that information too.

In my humble opinion, if you are living in Shanghai you should own both the Eat Well Shanghai Guidebook and the Eat Well China App. With both at your finger tips will be you ready to Eat Well anywhere you go in China.  And while we are on the subject, the Eat Well China app makes a great holiday present for any of your visitors this year.

The Eat Well China App is available from the iTunes store and the Eat Well Shanghai Guidebook is available from this site.  Just shoot an email to info@eatwellshanghai.com and we will deliver one to your door.

                              Eat Well, Live Well, Have Fun !

The one advantage to writing this blog is it gives me an excuse to try foods that I just haven’t taken the time to taste.  In the last few weeks you may have noticed the appearance in the wet markets and grocery stores of an  orange colored fruit that  resembles a tomato. This rather plain looking specimen is  the nutritionally remarkable persimmon fruit.

Turns out persimmons are one of the fall fruits  that packs a powerful nutritional  punch. This fruit is so good that in one study comparing the heart healthy benefits of apples to persimmons, persimmons came out tops in almost every category from having more fiber to being far richer in helpful anti-oxidants. Prompting one researcher to quip” a persimmon a day will keep more doctors away”.

Persimmons have been cultivated in China for “1000’s of years” and part of the Chinese diet for just as long. According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, persimmons are a “cold” food (yin energy) and  powerful in expelling pathogenic heat. Persimmons are used to treat diarrhea,high  blood pressure and hardening of the arteries among other ailments.

This time TCM aligns very well with western nutrition as the persimmon is a very good source of fiber, one medium fruit has 6 gms of fiber, nearly 25% of the recommended level for a heart healthy diet. Persimmons are rich in the anti-oxidants, beta-carotene and lycopene, both powerful anti-cancer agents . One persimmon provides over 50% of the recommended daily levels of vitamin A and 25 % of the recommended level of vitamin C. Vitamin A plays an important role in strenghtening your immune system while vitamin C is an important anti-oxidant , reducing inflammation that can lead to artery damage. 

 All this in a sweet, creamy fall fruit.   Persimmons are in season through November so don’t delay and treat yourself to a healthy bite today.          

Eat Well, Live Well, Have Fun !

I am sure you will agree that shopping day in Shanghai is often full of surprises.  The other day, while perusing the shelves for brown sugar I was drawn to this very pink package of ORGANIC brown sugar.  What fascinated me more than the big ORGANIC letters was the smaller print saying “For Women”.  Now this is interesting…

According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, brown sugar is a warming food ( yang energy) nourishing for blood and  helps to reinforce Qi (energy).  Brown sugar will also reduce gastrointestinal pain, promote blood circulation and production and fight blood stagnation.  All of which sounds very positive for a weary body.

TCM specifically recommends brown sugar tea for women with painful monthly cramping, women who have just given birth and the weak and the elderly. Plenty of candidates for nourishment on that list.

Apparently drinking brown sugar tea for menstrual cramps is something every Chinese woman knows.  And from my anecdotal survey the prevailing opinion is that it works.  Thanks for letting your western sisters in on the secret, ladies.

Back to the ORGANIC brown sugar.  Brown sugar in China is processed in a way that does not use any artificial additives or colors. The sugar cane is boiled for 5 -6 hours which gives the sugar the rich brown color. It is most often sold in cakes.  For the package I found the cake had been ground.  Of course just because they don’t add artificial stuff does not make it organic. To get the organic seal the brown sugar must be made from organically grown sugar cane.

It does not appear that this brown sugar, even though it is marked “For Women”,  contains any thing other than brown sugar.  According to TCM, the  magic ingredient is the brown sugar.  From what I can tell, any Chinese brown sugar will do for  a nice hot cup of the  pick-me-up tea.  Perhaps this pink packaging was just a not so subtle reminder to women to grab a bag for next month.  It definitely caught my eye.

Eat Well, Live Well, Have Fun !