SLC31-W2 | THE GREEN JOURNEY | Green Palate.

Hello friends and welcome to my green journey on green palate. Join me as I explore my green journey process.

Natural, organic and locally sourced ingredients exploration

For my green palate journey, I decided to make a simple native meal. I had to think of something that’s purely natural meaning that all the ingredients are organic, they are locally sourced and also would give that healthy and natural kick.

For this challenge I made fresh Ugba (African oil bean) sauce with boiled plantain. I had to get to a near by market to source out the ingredients I used. It was a quick stop over and here’s my recipe. I also had to add herbs to it for balance.

Items purchased

The items are purchased for my recipe is
Fresh peppers, onions, Ugba (sliced African oil bean seeds), utazi (fresh herb) and red oil and plantain

These are all natural ingredients with no refinements and they are very fresh and healthy.

Ingredients:

• Plantain
• Sliced African oil bean seeds
• Onions
• Pepper
• Red oil

Prices in steem and local currency

These are my ingredients prices in steem and my local currency and their total cost.

Ingredients	steem prices	local currency
Plantain	12.5	1000 Naira
Oil	11.3 steem	900 Naira
Ugba	6.3 steem	500 Naira
Pepper	2.5 steem	200 Naira
Onions	2.5 steem	200 Naira
Total	35.1 steem	2800

Preparation procedure

To prepare my food, I had to wash all the necessary ingredients and start preparing them. I washed the plantain before cutting it open to avoid dirts getting into the body. I peeled the plantains , cut them into twos and put them in a small pot and put it on fire to boil.

After putting the Plantain on fire, I went ahead to cut the fresh peppers. I had to use only three pieces to avoid being too spicy even though some persons love it spicy. I cut the fresh peppers up and set them aside. I also cut the onions. I love fresh onions and the taste it gives to food. I had to cut them in a circular shape to give natural aesthetics to the food. I cut up all the onions and set them aside.

I then washed the herbs (utazi) a very nutritious green and fresh herb. After washing it well, I cut it into pieces and set it aside. And also washed the sliced Ugba.

All my fresh, natural and locally sourced ingredients were ready to be used. By now the plantain was ready. I sieved out the water and allowed it to cool down. Then it was time to make the native Ugba sauce.

I put a small pot on fire and added red oil to it. I didn’t allow the oil to bleach so that it would retain its natural taste and freshness. So I had to put in onions immediately.

I also went ahead and put in the peppers, ugba and green herbs. I put them in quick succession so that they would all retain their freshness.

I added salt to taste and mixed it all and brought it down immediately. The native herbal sauce was ready to be served.

This is what my local and natural meal looked like.

My experience

	walking to the green area

My experience throughout this green journey was interesting. First I had to make up my mind on what natural food I cook make so as to have that green and fresh natures taste.

After getting that it was time to go to the market. I walked to the market, got the ingredients and got back home. These took about thirty minutes of walk as the market is close and the ingredients are readily available.

The making wasn’t so tedious. I made sure the ingredients are well cleaned because I didn’t heat it much so that it can maintain that natural freshness, texture and also the natural taste.

Eating this recipe was indeed a taste of natures goodness. The onions still retained it crunchiness and freshness because the heat wasn’t much. The raw onions I used to garnish it was an additional flavour and taste.

The utazi herbs gave it a perfect sweet bitter natural feeling and the pepper spiced it up. It was all a burst of freshness, sweetness and a tinge of nature’s bitterness merged together.

The crunch and natural feeling and taste of the ugba (oil bean seed) was exhilarating. I loved the way they all blended in my mouth and gave my taste buds a great feeling to relish. It was indeed a natural magic.

After making my food, I packed it up and then I took a walked to the green area where I enjoyed my meal. It was my first time trying out this kind of thing and it was refreshing. I actually had some person around the green environment but I didn’t mind as I was having a good time interacting with nature. The atmosphere was cool and fresh and the airy space felt good to mingle with.

After eating I had time to relax on the grass and also took a walk admiring the green area.

Share your honest thoughts about taste, freshness, and health

Taste makes all the difference. I am a big fan of tasty and natural food and this one really made me appreciate taste and organic eating more. Most of us are busy gulping down refined foods day in day out but this was a good opportunity to explore something unprocessed, natural and healthy.

The freshness of the ingredients was an extra addition. We all know that there this special feeling that comes from eating fresh food as against when the freshness is missing. I’d say that a meal where freshness, taste and healthy eating meets is worthy of exploration and this definitely met the requirements.

The taste and freshness of the onions, pepper, oil, Ugba and the herbs was a perfect blend of taste, freshness and natures goodness.

Nutritional Benefits of the ingredients

The ingredients I used for my cooking are packed with different nutritional benefits. And they include:

The Ugba (African oil bean seed) is rich in protein which helps the cell grow and repair. It’s also a good source of healthy fat which support heart condition. It aids digestion due to fermentation, a good energy source and also contains minerals like iron and calcium.

Pepper helps in boosting our metabolism and also helps to improve blood circulation. The captain content helps to reduce inflammation and pain.

Onions if good for our heart health and helps to also reduce sugar in the blood. It’s also rich in anti oxidants and improves our immune system.

Utazi (herb) is a sweet bitter herb that aids digestion of food, reduces the sugar level in the blood, has anti inflammatory properties and support respiratory health. It’s also helps to manage stomach upset.

Plantain is high dense staple food that’s rich in carbohydrates, fiber and vitamins. It support heart health, aids digestion and boosts immunity.

Taste

	Superb fresh taste

The food taste was superb and tasty with a good natural feel. I shared the food with my sister and she confirmed the fact that this was a special natural organic taste.

Freshness??

It was fresh and had a crunchy feel and texture. This was because I didn’t allow it to stay on the heat for long so that the freshness of the onions, pepper and ugba won’t be lost in the heat.

Health Benefits

It’s a nutritious meal as we have seen the different nutritional values of all the ingredients used in preparation of the my fresh and natural food. Its packed with vitamins and minerals of different functions.

Reflection

What better way to connect with nature than a fresh bite straight from the soil with it’s uncompromised freshness, organic and natural taste.

It’s time to say yes to more fresh, natural and organic eating for healthier living than refined foods. Freshness and natural taste should be a daily thing for us cos it would aid us to eat healthier and appreciate natures taste more.

Location cordinates

The green area where I enjoyed my meal is located at Bariga primary school, 49 Odunguwa street Bariga, Lagos. Its a beautiful place that attracts lots of people.

	The green area

Items	Description
Meal type	lunch
Time of meal	Ugba sauce and boiled plantain
City of green garden	Lagos
Country	Nigeria
Place	Bariga primary school
Adress	49 Odunguwa street Bariga, Lagos.
Goggle map location	map
Steem atlas

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