If it's bottled, jarred, canned, frozen, packaged, brined, pickled, processed...

[Sharon in Colorado]

...then it's not 'raw'. 99.9% of the time.

That is, generally speaking, unless you bought if from a source that specializes in raw food.

[jenna rose]

-nods-

This should be stickied! :p

[Boysenberry]

WHAT????? :eek: What about organic fruit? Surely they don't blanch it or anything. Like blueberries? Frozen blueberries and peaches are the only ones we can get in the winter. Are you sure?

[Ariannah]

Berries don't get blanched before freezing, but there are some kinds of fruit that do. I know peaches do.

[Sharon in Colorado]

Just know they aren't 'raw', they can still be eaten you know.

It's a general rule of thumb. It may still be an optimal item to use, but technically it isn't raw.

[littleangelbear]

I realized this morning taking my morning Mangosteen juice that it's not 'raw', but I only drink 1-2 oz. per day and I just love the effects on my body. But, maybe after I am 100 percent raw longer, I won't need it any more (I was 70 percent and have been 100 percent for 5 days so far...yay).

Interesting to think about :)

[Rawkinlocs]

Sharon, I understand what you're saying and agree...but with the frozen fruit (that hasn't been blanched)..isn't it best to say that it's not fresh? I mean, when we would buy meat and put it in the freezer until ready to cook it, though it wasn't fresh as in just freshly killed and cut up (sorry for the graphicness yall), was it any less raw once thawed out? That meat is still raw until you cook it. But again, I DO get what you're trying to say.

[Sharon in Colorado]

Ya, I know what you mean Rawkinlocs. I guess I just get so tired of "is this or that raw". Sometimes I feel like saying, what's the difference. Like someone needs approval to eat a canned olive or something. Just eat the darned thing and move on, you know.

I have come to the point where I am allowing certain things that I know are not only not "raw" but probably aren't optimal for me to eat, but I'm eating them in transition because if I don't I may feel too deprived & start eating some cooked meals or something. I've stayed away from cooked in general except for a few minor things that compliment my diet. It's kept me away from cooked & processed grains and cooked meals and to me that's a good thing. I can't stand the way I feel eating processed cooked meals.

So I say, if you want to and need to, eat the frozen fruit (I do) and the bottled sauces and jarred & canned this and that, allow it to compliment your raw food, realizing it's not really "raw" but if you are going to eat it just have at it and move on.

I think if folks realize that if it didn't come from the ground it's not raw, as long as they know that, they can strive toward it. Allow themselves what they have to eat in order to get through their transitions and not worry so much about how legitamately "raw" something is.

[rawpriestess]

This reminds me of a story by Victoria Boutenko.

When they had only been raw a short time, her son Sergi had a sleep over and one of his friends wanted to bring something special for them all. He was very thoughtful and explained to his mom, they needed something raw, so she sent ice cream.

Victoria said they explained to the mom what raw really meant, thanked them for the sweet gesture then made some frozen banana ice cream instead.

They still tell this story so people will understand that not everyone understands what raw really means.

[Revvell]

I think if folks realize that if it didn't come from the ground it's not raw, as long as they know that, they can strive toward it.


If it comes from a tree which is stuck in the ground is it still raw?
:rolleyes:

R.

[Boysenberry]

I've told a couple of people that I eat raw now, and their reaction is shocked, "RAW????!!!" It is because they imagine raw cookies and cakes not raw veggies and fruit. I have to explain.

I am at a point that I don't want to eat it if it is not raw. This is an ongoing education for someone who has never heard of it before. A learning curve. I threw out the maple syrup when I found out it wasn't raw and switched to agave.

I like berries in my smoothies, but in winter I can only get them frozen. I don't need them to help me stay raw, and I would give them up if they have been cooked. What is the point to eating fruit that has been blanched?

I have an entire freezer full of frozen berries, all types, and frozen mangoes. How does one tell if the fruit has been blanched or not?

[Sharon in Colorado]

If it comes from a tree which is stuck in the ground is it still raw?
:rolleyes:

R.

Yes, but now you must eat the entire tree. Otherwise it's not a whole food. :rolleyes:

I read somewhere about a fellow who had to eat something from the ground at least 20 minutes or less than it was picked. Hey, I don't know anyone that extreme.

[swiddweas]

So, the frozen banannas I put in the freezer for my smoothies isn't raw :eek: At what time did they get processed into dead food?

I have frozen garbanzo beans, then de-frosted them and then soaked them for a day. They were then left to sprout. They sprouted! So, the moral to this story is.... freezing in and of itself doesn't seem to kill the life outta the food

Pattye :p

[Sharon in Colorado]

Patty you are right, I've done that too. In fact I keep my sprouting seeds in the freezer to keep them fresh.

I wonder though...if a fruit is frozen in the snow in nature, how would it compare to that from a tree?