Whole grains include brown rice, whole wheat pasta & whole grain bread products & tortillas.
Whole grain products are better for you, and have more flavor, because they use the entire grain kernel. When the grains are milled, up to 80% of a grain’s nutrients (and taste) are lost. More specifically, what you loose is the bran (containing B vitamins and fiber) the germ (containing minerals, B vitamins, protein, vitamin E, and oils) and the endosperm (consisting mostly of starch, with some protein and other nutrients.) Another benefit is that whole grains make you feel significantly more full & satisfied, so you don’t snack between meals. Research, duplicated repeatedly over the past few decades, shows that people who regularly eat whole grains reduce many serious health risks, including heart disease, stroke, obesity, diabetes and certain cancers, and even acne. It also reduces inflammation, a contributing factor in many chronic diseases.
Once you’ve decided whole grains are for you, you are faced with at least two challenges:
1. shopping for and cooking whole grains requires some practice
2. finding restaurants that serve whole grains is a challenge
Whole grain breads are pretty common in any grocery store & sandwich shop. But I found only one restaurant that offers whole wheat hamburger buns, and that was at Barney’s in San Francisco, Oakland & Berkeley. It's important to note that many whole wheat products contain plenty of processed flour as well, so you have to check the ingredients carefully. And some whole wheat breads and baked goods can taste heavy or dry. So it takes some practice to learn which brands to choose for optimal health and taste.
Whole grain baked goods are surprisingly challenging to find. Look to health food stores, such as the Food Mill in Oakland, for whole grain muffins, cookies and carrot cake. Some bagel shops carry at least one whole grain bagel. But surprisingly, it’s a rare coffee shop or café that can offer you any whole grain choices at all, in fact I couldn’t find any!
Whole wheat pizza is a rare find, but Trader Joe’s, as well as the Food Mill in Oakland, carries whole wheat pizza dough (ready made, but uncooked.) I found several pizza restaurants serving it, including: Leaning Tower Of Pizza in Oakland, Blondies & Zachary’s in Berkeley, and surprisingly, Pizza hut has a whole wheat pizza called The Natural! Alternately, you can make the dough yourself with this recipe: Whole Wheat Pizza Dough.
Whole wheat pasta can be found in most grocery stores, but I couldn’t find a single restaurant that serves it. There are many brands of uncooked whole wheat pasta, but several are not very tasty, especially soy and other non-wheat varieties, so you will have to try a few brands before you find one you like. The good news is, there are some brands that can hardly be distinguished from traditional pasta! Note that cooking it requires more water and longer cook times than traditional pasta.
Whole wheat tortillas are not hard to find in grocery stores and some burrito shops now carry them, such as: World Wrapps in Santa Clara and Chilayo in San Francisco. But like pasta, when selecting a brand at the grocery store, you have to try a few brands to find one you like. Some taste very similar to traditional bleached flour varieties, and some taste awful, especially the low carb tortillas with soy flour.
Brown rice and brown rice sushi is becoming more common in Asian restaurants, such as: May Lees Chinese Restaurant in Mill Valley, Wayo Sushi or Sushi Bistro in SF, Homma’s in Palo Alto, and Musashi or Thai Delight Cuisine or Oriental Food to Go in Berkeley. Grocery stores, like Berkeley Bowl and Whole Foods, carry brown rice sushi as well. Of course uncooked brown rice has been available in grocery stores since the beginning of time, but most people don’t know that cooking it requires more water and longer cook times than white rice. Here’s a tasty recipe to get your started: Brown Rice Spring Vegetable Risotto.
BEAUTIFULL: I searched for, and personally called, at least 50 restaurants, café’s and fast food venues around the Bay Area, to find out if they offered whole grain options on their menu. Surprisingly, many healthy restaurants, elite bakeries, and vegetarian restaurants did not offer whole grain options (beyond whole wheat bread.) I have listed all of the restaurants I found that did offer whole grain options in the paragraphs above, except one. Beautifull in San Francisco is worth special mention. Every item on their menu is made with the healthiest possible ingredients, and every grain they use in every dish is whole grain. Their SF restaurant is open daily from 9:00am to 8:00pm, and they have plans to expand soon, with new locations in San Francisco, the East Bay, and the South Bay. My dream, for the health of us all, is that we will see more restaurants like Beautifull open all over the country.
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