Wisdio

You eat food everyday. But, are you really eating food? I mean food made in the natural environment, or made by some large industrial corporations in some food manufacturing facilities? In his Netfilx documentary series Cooked, Mike Pollan told us that the food industry has been trying to undermine cooking as an everyday practice. Some people have since lost the knowledge of cooking, that their pa...

In this episode, I studied why people don’t cook at home. Ken Albala said something very intuitive in his TED talk and I think it’s worth sharing. Also recent trend of ordering food from professional chefs may be one of the reasons that stopped us cooking at home. Check the links in the show notes below for more details. I actually found that recipes tend to give us exact amount, and exact instruc...

Have you ever been confused with so many types of squashes? Summer squash, winter squash, butternut squash, spaghetti squash, or don’t know the name squash…As winter is here already, we’re learning to bake a winter squash today! When I was younger, I didn’t really like winter squashes. I remember I couldn’t even tell the names of different squashes. I thought they were weird pumpkins. But in Canad...

Pancakes are very common in almost all countries. I believe you remember the pancakes you used to eat when you were little. As a child, did you like pancakes? I did. Maybe pancake was your very first food that you’ve made at home! But, do you know pancakes are different in different cultures? Because today is Canada’s National Child Day, we’re going to learn to make Canadian Pancakes! Let’s have a...

Frustrated peeling the skin of a baked sweet potato? Oh yes, I found it hard, too. But not now, because last December I learned this secret method at a local community kitchen. Be mindful, as we’ve learned in one of our previous episodes, of your environment. This way we will appreciate what we have already got, thus we will have more happiness. For the last few days, it’s been below 10 degrees ce...

Feeling exhausted and frustrated following the US presidential election? I get it. And we’re gonna learn a super quick and nutritious smoothie to stay healthy during this historical event. Up till this morning on November 6th, I still don’t see any official announcement in any of the major medias. So no wonder, if you have been following the election news since Nov 3rd, or even earlier, you must h...

What is the best salmon recipe? Well, we’ve learned salmon recipes baked salmon with maple syrup in last December. Some say it is the best baked salmon, or best oven baked salmon, but we want to try a new way today. Baked salmon with pesto, which is also very easy to make, delicious, and colourful. Let’s listen together. Your host Charlie Wang, based in Toronto Canada, is the founder of this podca...

What is basil pesto? What is pesto sauce? What is in pesto sauce? or What is pesto? I did not even know pesto before, not to mention how to make basil pesto. Luckily, Last year I went to a local Community Food Centre in Toronto and learned pesto ingredients, what to make with basil pesto, and other recipes pesto or recipes with pesto. Today we’re learning a pesto recipe basil, maybe the best pesto...

What are in your mind the best salad recipes? These days you may search online for best salads near me, cold salads, or fresh express salad kits. But do you know if you learn some quick salad recipes, you can make salad recipes healthy as or maybe better than in a restaurant! Actually today we’re learning a very special and famous salad, Bulgarian national Shopska Salad, recommended by a fellow li...

This weekend is the Canadian Thanksgiving. Are you thinking of making something special for your family or friends? I’ve been thinking what would be a traditional Thanksgiving dinner like for a typical French Canadian family. So I asked my good neighbour again for a recipe for a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. He recommended a few desserts because they are easy to make. Out of curiosity, I picked...

In last week’s episode, Frankie told us that he eats in small portions with a couple mid-day snacks. So you may wonder if you can make healthy snacks at home? Sure yes! What’s your favourite snacks? I bet many of you would say popcorns. Maybe you’ve seen popcorn poppers Walmart sells, or organic popcorn kernels on sale. Yes you can make air-popped popcorn for a healthy, crunchy snack. You can make...

Overweight already? Maybe for too long? You can, yes, you can lose weight, a lot of weight. How did I know? I’ll tell you in this episode. Frankie is my neighbour’s kid, who is 19. He plays baseball and football. Three years ago he weighed 344lb, and now 233lb. When I asked him how he successfully lost over 100lbs, he told me his personal story. To celebrate Frankie’s amazing achievement, today we...

Do you remember the first time when you cooked meat? How was the experience look like? Satisfied? Surprised? Or sad? The first time I cooked meat was a sad experience actually. At that time, I didn’t know to marinate meat before cooking. So the meat turned out tough and dry. Maybe you wonder how to used grilled steak marinade, heard of quick steak marinade, or simple steak marinade, but wondering...

Do you still remember what you were doing when you first heard about what happened on September 11, 2001? I bet yes. Do you know someone that has Post-traumatic stress disorders after that? Maybe not! What’re the causes of PTSD? According to Mayo Clinic, when you go through, see or learn about an event involving actual or threatened death, serious injury and so on. Wikipedia says it is a mental di...

What is the most frequently consumed canned vegetable in the US? And what is the second top vegetables sold? If your answer is tomato for both, you are absolutely correct! Is it better to cook tomatoes or eat them raw? According to BBC, research suggests that processing and cooking tomatoes can increase their nutrition value. Check the links in the show notes below for details on the health benefi...

Having pain in your eyes? Or blurred vision? I get it, because we all looked at phones and computers too much these days. Do you also have night blindness? A study on webmd.com showed us that deep orange and yellow vegetables and fruits are good foods for eye health, which help prevent night blindness. So today we are learning to make a traditional comforting West Indian side dish, braised cabbage...

COVID-19 pandemic causes mental health crisis in Americas, says WHO official recently. And Mayo Clinic told us mental health disorders including anxiety and depression, can worsen during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, do you know you can cook up your mental well-being? An article on Psychologytoday.com says that cooking is meditation with the promise of a good meal afterward. And the very process...

“Will we have a COVID vaccine next year tailored to the obese? No way,” “Will it still work in the obese? Our prediction is no.” Said an associate professor of nutrition at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill in an article on Kaiser Health News as well as CNNHealth last week. In other words, even if we have got vaccines already, they are known to be less effective in the obese. What? It s...

Summer is here and you never know how quickly summer will be gone, though its heat might have annoyed you. Do you want to make some dishes that are good for summertime? What is an easy and healthy recipe for the hot summer? Lily bulbs help relieve coughs, dry throats, moisten the lungs while Chinese pearl barley help remove heat. Check the links in the show notes below for more detailed benefits....

If you remember we said this before, aim to eat fatty fish like salmon twice a week. You can bake salmon, or make salmon and salad. Some of you may know salmon patties recipes canned salmon or other recipes canned salmon can make. Why canned salmon? Canned salmon is a great option because it is already cooked. Just drain the liquids, and it’s ready to eat. Canned salmon salad may be one of the bes...

Feeling record heat so far this summer? 2020 is expected to be the warmest year on record for the earth, said USATODAY. New York Times reported that the US is heading into a potentially blistering summer. How about some cold fruit flavored water? Maybe lime water is your favourite quencher for the summer, because it’s one of the flavor water. But do you know there are many health benefits lime wat...

According to Huffington Post, making yourself sick: health regrets, is one of the top 10 biggest life regrets. Not taking care of your body, is one of the 8 biggest regrets older people share, shown in a today.com article. “I Wish I Took Better Care of Myself.” said another website. Don’t want to have those similar regrets? Then pay attention to your daily diet, and also those of your family. Fort...

Drink juice or eat fresh fruit? Or juice the fruits at home? Harvard University says drinking juice can increase your total calorie consumption, and Mayo Clinic says juicing is no healthier than eating whole fruits. So next time try fruit salad with cool whip, or fresh fruit salad dressing, because fruit salad yummy yummy, and the best fruit salad may be this easy Thai fruit salad. I have made it,...

According to the American Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 647000 Americans die from heart disease each year or 1 in every 4 deaths. High blood pressure, high blood cholesterol and diabetes are key risk factors for heart disease. Managing this disease over the years has been a major challenge to many people globally. The good news here is that purple vegetables can reduce artery s...

Summer officially started a few days ago and one of the experiences that come with it is the heat. But are you annoyed by the heat especially while cooking during the hot season? Today we will be learning how to cook without heating up the house. One of my regular listeners sent me an e-mail with a question trying to know what food to prepare that will not require long cooking so as not to heat up...