Is it possible to go "true raw" (no dehydrated food, no blender, etc.)?

[MrsJohnnyG]

I am intrigued with researching how our earliest ancestors ate and I can't help but think that they had no blenders, no dehydrators, etc... so I'm wondering is it possible to go truly raw and not rely on those devices?

My ideal would be to have a large organic garden on our property as well as a variety of fruit trees (as feasible based on climate), berry shrubs, etc. Basically I would pick the fruit/veggies straight from the earth and eat them.

I would be open to sun-drying, but something in me keeps telling me that blenders, juicers, dehydrators etc. are modern devices and have no place in my idea of a truly raw diet.

Am I way off base? Is this totally unrealistic?

[violetsareblack]

It's possible because like you say, modern devices, at one point those things did not exist. I think the blending and dehydrating and gourmet raw dishes are here to make it easier on us who have been raised SAD and crave those types of food.

I actually own a crappy blender, a round - donut shaped dehydrator (think like Ronco) and can't afford to make expensive nut based gourmet meals like some on here and therefore I fall off the wagon a lot so this time around I plan to do just as you are talking about. Just simple, simple, simple, maybe a gourmet dessert here and there to ward off those cravings but I do know there's people out there that do it and in fact, I think there's a group of strict raw people who think dehydrating is a BIG no-no. I ran across a web site about that one day.

[Rawkinlocs]

It's possible...many people do it (I think) I know of a lot of folks who do not do dehydrated foods and recipes BUT, they may still make smoothies or salad dressings, etc.

But yeah, there are definitely people who eat just nothing but whole fruits and veggies with no blending, processing, etc. whatseover so I believe it can be done.

(Also, just for the record, please keep in mind the theme of this particular forum which is not really coming from a "purist" raw food diet but based on Alissa Cohen's book and dvd...which happens to involve those very things you're trying to avoid. Just a heads up for future posting! Thanks! :))

[cara4art]

Storm and Jinjee do exactly this, and no supplements either, and they seem to be doing just fine! But for those of us transitioning into the raw diet, a blender and a dehydrator are useful, and help us get in the raw foods with a great variety of textures and tastes making it a lot more enjoyable. Of course, simplest is just eating the fruits and veggies and seeds as they come, but not everyone is ready for that yet and may never be. In time though, many raw fooders from what I've read, actually do go simpler the longer they are raw, some even to the point of mono-meals. But I think what it boils down to as is repeated often here is to listen to your own body. If simple, "pure raw" is what it truly wants, then that's what you do. If on the other hand, your body wants somewhat more complex raw meals, do that.
I know for myself right now, I am loving my dehydrator and my trusty old blender, as I love to try out new things and play around with delicious healthy combos. I can see a food processor in my future as well. I have a couple of good slicers/shredders as well that add variety to raw food prep so I do like a few good kitchen gadgets! But even with these gadgets, my prep is not really complex as I'm on a budget, so I have to save the fancier things for a special treat, or if I'm having someone over who might be interested in trying some new food.

[StarFire]

Yep... Yep.. and Yep again!! There are people here in Hawaii that eat that way and have for years! and like Rawkinlocs said... some do love and have smoothies too... but I do know people that eat nothing but organic raw veggies from their garden or other organic gardens... and pick fruit right off the trees and enjoy every wonderful bite!!

anything is possible if you have the 'want to' !!

http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s43/FireStar_830/naked.jpg

[Rawkinlocs]

Storm and Jinjee do exactly this, and no supplements either, and they seem to be doing just fine! ...

Storm and Jinjee don't dehydrate, but they do use a Vitamix and food processor (their videos of them making strawberry shortcake, peach pie, etc. come to mind)

[MrsJohnnyG]

There are people here in Hawaii that eat that way and have for years! and like Rawkinlocs said... some do love and have smoothies too... but I do know people that eat nothing but organic raw veggies from their garden or other organic gardens... and pick fruit right off the trees and enjoy every wonderful bite!!
*sigh* That sounds like the garden of Eden to me... what a heavenly way of life! (Too bad I live in Georgia instead of Hawaii or another tropical locale... there's plenty of vegetation here, but it's mostly kudzu... hmm, wonder how kudzu would taste in a green smoothie??! lol)

Thanks, Rawkinlocs! I'm still exploring what form of raw lifestyle I intend to pursue. In the meantime, Alissa's book and DVD look amazing... and I WILL be dining at Grezzo when I head back to the Northeast this fall! YUM, I cannot wait!!! :D

[MOTH]

I am doing just as you say. I do best on a very simple, no technology diet. Grab and eat, that's what I like about raw!

I don't have a blender. I don't dehydrate food as dehydrated food makes me ill. I don't use my food processor. If a food is too hard to get inside (like coconut, or nuts) I simply don't eat them.

My tools are a serrated knife, a spoon, and a bowl.

I love eating this way.! It is the essence of raw to me.

[rawfoodistdavid]

My wife's been trying to lose weight for ages and has toyed with various diets. She's followed me into being raw and is perhaps up to over 60% raw and it's the first time I'm starting to notice weight 'drop off' her.

However, while I'm happy to eat simple salads, and call a carrot, apple and some nuts lunch, she wants something she can 'chew on'. Hence, we've now got a dehydrator.

I got tend towards the idea of eating things as close to nature as possible, the idea that we're created/evolved to eat what god/universal life force has provided.

However, we have to bear in mind that people's insides have effectively been remodelled during their lives by a diet of processed sludge. Is it any wonder that people's tummies go haywire after their first big green leafy salad in years (or their life)? I cut out packaged, chemically laced foods years ago but from the raw perspective my diet was still miles from what nature intended.

I think the transitional approach is best. So many people are eager to get the full benefits of a raw diet, they leap in half-learned. I'd start with enjoying juicing (if you can handle wine, or beer, or cola you can handle juice) and then on to smoothies, then maybe have a banana'n'greens based power smoothie by itself for breakfast. Start having a salad most meals, even as a side dish, and gradually increase the ratio of salad to everything else. Even if you end up eating MORE overall, that's better than giving yourself snack cravings. Start shifting from stodgy bread to grain-free crackers and breads. Ditch cheese, scale back milk until it's just a splash in a cup of coffee. Then start reducing the coffee intake. You get the idea.

'Cold turkey raw' my be fine if you were a vegan who already ate a lot of raw foods anyway, for lacto-veggies through to SAD devotees it's likely to cause all sorts of problems, none of which mean the goal of raw food is bad one.

When you're transitioning and your body getting ultimate nutrients it's very easy to end up, down the line, wanting little more than the 'true raw' to which the original poster alludes.

[coco]

it can be hard to get all the nutrients you need because modern produce just isn't as nutrient dense as it used to be. add to that the fact that many people have a compromised digestive system that doesn't absorb nutrients as well as it could and you run into issues. plus we are a culture of people "on the go", we don't sit around grazing all day long like our primate brothers and sisters so we need a little extra. that can come in the form or vitamin and mineral supplements or we can just have some juice and smoothies. i'll take the latter over the former any day.

[Rawmommie]

Absolutely! Many raw foodist find that the longer they are raw, the simpler they eat. I rarely use my juicer, blender, or dehydrator (usually just special occasions or holidays). As for getting enough nutrients, I think if you eat a variety you will do great! I had my blood workup done by a "non-believer" dr. and she had to eat her words when my protein, B vitamins, cholesterol, etc. came back perfect after 3 years raw!

[MangoMadness]

I couldn't afford a dehydrator and my only blender is a handheld one that isnt very good. I pretty much eat salads and fruit and sometimes grab handfuls of nuts. I can make smoothies out of a limited amount of ingredients with my blender, but smoothies make me feel abit clogged up.
Having said all of that, I do have a juicer and am currently on a juice fast. I think eating as you say is perfect, but, I think for me what I am trying to do is undo the damage of years of cooked food and toxins as quickly as I can.
Growing all of your own fruit and veg sounds great. Thats my next plan.

[MrsJohnnyG]

Wow, it's so encouraging from those of you who are doing this! Thank you for sharing your stories!


'Cold turkey raw' my be fine if you were a vegan who already ate a lot of raw foods anyway, for lacto-veggies through to SAD devotees it's likely to cause all sorts of problems, none of which mean the goal of raw food is bad one.
I have been a huge leafy-green-salad kinda girl for years, and my favorite snack for a long time has been raw broccoli or zucchini or some other crunchy veggie... although I have been consuming lightly cooked fish and poultry until I make the "100% raw leap," I wouldn't say I've consumed a true SAD diet for years. Any time I've eaten something from a can (yechhh!), I can taste all that salt and sugar in it and it makes me sick. So I think I'm quite ready for the leap (and am SO glad I found this forum!!).

Side note... this is going to be interesting, having a hubby who is fully immersed in the SAD way of eating. Our refrigerator is bursting with the most beautiful raw fruits and veggies... papayas and mangos and avocados and leafy greens filling both drawers and a shelf... it is a beautiful sight to me.

But dh opens the fridge yesterday and gasps "what IS all this?" He points to the avocados, then the gigantic papaya, going "and this... and THIS????"

He sighs, turns to me, and says "You've really gone off the deep end with this thing. Have you joined some online cult or something?"

all because of an AVOCADO? and a PAPAYA????????? LOLOLOLOL!!! Wonder what he'll think when he discovers the sprout garden growing on the back deck! Aye yai yai.

(Actually he is cool with it now. He was a vegan for many years, although his idea of veganism was beans and white rice... every. single. day. Yuck. No wonder he got turned off to it. Now that he's all-SAD-all-the-time, he has gained weight and has high cholesterol. At age 36!!! His doctor wants to put him on cholesterol meds... I said NO WAY. It's time to change to a healthy eating lifestyle. I'm hoping I can "convert" him to 100% raw too... eventually. :) )

[carolg]

Rawmommie,
Wow, perfect numbers. Congr. It took lots of hard work but you did it! Yeah!

I use a blender and sometimes food processor, but hardly my dehydrator that is waiting to be used. I sure wish I can one day part with it, but holding on for dear llife for some strange reason. Can't figure as it hardly gets used and has been fabulous all along--not one problem with Excalibur 9 tray either.

carolg

[Raspberry4]

It sounds like you are already on a good path towards healthy eating. Good luck with the hubby - I can tell you it CAN be done. I have a die-hard SAD hubby. Both boys are on gluten free (but still SAD) diets and my oldest just announced out of the blue Thursday that he will not be eating any more meat because it would be like eating the dog and that is not right. So now I have in the house meals of raw, SAD, gluten free, and vegetarian. Keeps me on my toes. But...I incorporate alot of the best of those into all of thier food to make it easier on me.

I would like to eat simpler, but I really enjoy blended raw smoothies and soups. I think I would get bored just eating food in its natural form (that is just MY opinion). Our ancestors did hunt and forage for food without all this equipment - I think if they had it, they would have used it too. ;)

Whatever you choose - have fun with it and you will do just fine. :)

[shashibala]

Though I think if our bodies were in great shape, simple raw would nourish us. Most of us are healing from a lifetime of nutrient poor foods. For the rebuilding process, blending, juicing, and grinding foods can be very helpful. Green juices and green smoothies are powerful healers. They allow our digestive systems to rest and and get the nutrition in fast even with gunked up innards.
I think it depends on how old we are and how much abuse our bodies have endured.

[DavidZaneMason]

I've been eating that way for many years. I certainly think it is do-able.

-David Z. Mason

[chilove]

Hello,

I eat this way 90% of the time (except for the occasional fruit smoothie or very simple raw soup) and LOVE it. It is so simple and easy I LOVE the pure taste of unadorned fruits and veggies now.

BUT Ive been 100% raw for several years. There is NO way I would have been able to (or even wanted to) be this eating this simply the first few years. I think that when you first go raw all the delicious recipes really help you stay satisfied and it SOOOOOOOOOOO important not to feel deprived. Raw is about wonderful abundance!

Blessings!

Audrey

[parsnip]

I think the only major obstacle to this, for me, would be getting enough greens. I'm just not interested in eating an entire bag of baby spinach as a salad, but I'm perfectly happy to put that much in a couple of smoothies.

Other than that, it's what I'm (slowly) working towards.

[MrsJohnnyG]

Great discussion, you guys! Thanks, everyone, for piping in! :)

I'm just not interested in eating an entire bag of baby spinach as a salad
Ahh... this is where I'm probably a little weird... nothing is more appealing to me than a HUUUUUUUGE plate of baby spinach piled up high, with some fresh red and green bell peppers, sprouts, baby carrots, and chopped onion and cucumber, with a spritz of fresh homemade raw dressing. I go through a huge bag of baby spinach or baby mixed greens every day. I'd rather eat it than drink it... nothing beats crunching the flavors between my teeth and savoring every bite! :D

BUT!!! to each their own... I can certainly understand why someone who didn't get pleasure out of eating huge quantities of greens would prefer to juice them!


Most of us are healing from a lifetime of nutrient poor foods. For the rebuilding process, blending, juicing, and grinding foods can be very helpful. Green juices and green smoothies are powerful healers. They allow our digestive systems to rest and and get the nutrition in fast even with gunked up innards.
I can understand that... I don't think this applies in my case though. Even before I decided to go 100% raw, I have always been at least 70% raw, and the rest of my diet (the cooked part) was high-fiber whole grains, beans, and other foods that keep your innards in good working order. I've never had any intestinal problems (in fact my dh was trying to explain constipation to me yesterday!! LOL - at age 36, I've never had that experience a single time in my life!).

That said, even though I don't have "gunked up innards" and have never been a victim of a true SAD, I do like the idea of juicing up some greens more as a supplement to what I've already been doing!

Thank you again for all the great input! :D

[Theogirl]

Want to hear something funny? My non-raw hubby told me last night that he's not going to "let" me eat anything unhealthy anymore! I succumbed to pizza last night and did NOT feel well. He said that he's tired of hearing me say I'm not feeling good after eating something I knew I shouldn't have in the first place! Felt a bit miffed at first, but he's right. Am I going to do this or not? Just some extra motivation for me! I water-fasted from last night until just now when I juiced 2 grapefruit. Sure tasted good!

[NoGMO!]

For the first 2 years I was happily raw with only a sharp knife. I had no appliances or internet feedback at all... later this site became very helpful and convenient. (I bought Alissa's book for family members that were new to raw) I eventually I was able to afford a dehydrator, vitamix, food processor, spiralizer, sprouter and coffee grinder just to finally try out. I used these alot for a couple of years, but now, not as much. I mainly use a vitamix and sprouter (or I just buy sprouts). I do use a grocery store, because I don't have a garden, yet! :)

[tiggerbounce]

There are many levels of raw and each person just has to decide what they think will work best for them. And this may change over time. Many say that the longer they are raw the less gourmet raw they become.

But it is entirely possible to eat simple raw if that is what you really feel is right for you. No one way is the right way. The right way is the one that works best for you.

It's all good, right?:D