Somre’s food Boss, Ezinne educates us AWAY from MSG seasoning cubes (NO MORE MSG)

To speak to my squaddies recently, I brought my friend and sister girl, Ezinne, CEO of Somre Foods, your one stop shop for spices, seeds, and herbs that help you kick out all these UNHEALTHY and DANGEROUS MSG cubes.

Through her expertise and education, Ezinne helped me kick MSG cubes away from my kitchen and life in July of 2020 and till now, I am MSG free at home. I don’t have control over foods outside my home but within, NO MSG cubes and sachets baby!

Ezinne and I

My Spices Haul

All natural spices above were bought from Ezinne and also from the market. I don’t only think Ezinne is great at her calling to free us from the dangerous MSG cubes, she is also ANOINTED for this thing. While she has had to learn more and more on the job, the foundation of her knowledge came directly from God, and those kind of giftings are rare.

So I got her in to educate my squad and hand them PRACTICAL replacements for those cubes. It was “WAWU” experience. I wanted to share with my blog readers too in the hopes to educate you out of MSG. Start with small changes please, and pace yourself.

I would also do my own original post sharing what I have learned as I stay off MSG cubes. The funny thing is we have been shouting about RED OIL and how it is not fitfam friendly, meanwhile the REAL enemy is those cubes you squeeze into your food.

Ish!!!

Forgive us, while we attempt to, by God’s grace, SET YOU FREE!!!

Ezinne takes over from here…

Talking about seasoning cubes, most people were born and grew into its usage and that is what makes it difficult to let go of that taste. I want us to know that taste is a perception; as we are learning to stay healthy and fit physically and spiritually, we can also build capacity to UNLEARN the fact that stock cubes are not good for our health.

I was a part of the pioneer squad group for CSL and CoachE’ said “your body is not a waste-bin, so why put thrash into it?” “Don’t be a foodie, be for JESUS!” Those words stuck with me till now.

A typical stock/seasoning cube contains salt, iodine, sugar, emulsifier, MSG (Monosodium glutamate) and yeast extract etx but MSG happens to be the main additive in them. Actually, there is a controversy over MSG globally. Some believe it is good while others think not. MSG was first discovered in seaweed by Kikunae Ikeda in 1908 and it was observed to enhance food taste. He patented it and started selling as “Ajinomoto”.

My quest for more knowledge on MSG led me to Dr Katherine Reid (a Biochemist) whose daughter had severe Autism. Based on her scientific background and research, she concluded on eliminating food stuff and meals containing MSG from her daughter’s diet. Gradually, her daughter improved and was later certified as free from autism.

Some people complain of headaches, weakness and dizziness as a result of MSG consumption. Personally I have a customer who complained of weakness anytime she consumed meals prepared with seasoning cubes and as soon as she stopped the weakness stopped.

Furthermore, there’s a certain subconscious part of the brain that controls appetite, body fat, storage and the burning of body fat. However, continuous consumption of high level of food containing MSG overexcites the brain cells and overtime damages certain parts of the brain.MSG makes the brain cells to signal to the body that it is in a state of starvation therefore appetite heightens and body metabolism begins to shut down.

Many brands hide MSG under several other ingredients in their products. Examples of such ingredients are yeast extract, malt extract, gelatine, hydrogenated fat etx. Sadly, almost all processed food products have it. Most fast foods are prepared with it. Any food product you buy that contains flavour enhancers and food colouring certainly contains MSG.

Our God is a good God and everything He created is good so there are a lot of natural materials in the market that we can use to cook our meals that are beneficial to our health. Hence my first advice to anyone who wants to embark on this journey is to pray and ask God for wisdom so you don’t get discouraged with taste along the line. Also you will need to work on your mind-set. Convince yourself that the food is healthy, tasty and not bland.

(CoachE’s note: The simple truth is we MUST retrain our taste buds please. Redefine what SWEET means. )

Natural alternatives for adding flavour to our meals are numerous starting with ONIONS. Onions is a game changer and because it is SWEET, it naturally improves the taste of any meal.

Onions

Native onions also known as control onions are also very good but must be used in little quantity because of its pungency.

Native Onions

Crayfish and fish powder are also very good especially for local dishes such as soups, porridges, beans and concoction rice (rice made locally with all kinds of stuff haha), etx. The fish powder is prepared by blending any type of dried fish of your preference. You can also buy the broken fishes from your local market and blend (these ones are cheaper)

The “Ogiris, Iru, Dawadawa” are also very beautiful options for local dishes too. Ask those market women who sell spices for them and be taking notes.

You can prepare a spice mix containing crayfish, dried fish and dried “Ogiri or Iru” blended and mixed together for local dishes.

Other additives for local dishes includes: fresh or dried scent leaves, fresh or dried prawns or shrimps, Stock fish also known as “Okporoko”

For rice, stew and pasta meals, you can make use of spices such as Garlic, Ginger, Turmeric, Fennel, Fenugreek, Cumin, Coriander, Nutmeg, and vegetables such as Spring onions, Carrots, Parsley etx

For stew in particular “Jansa seeds” are very good.

Jansa seeds

You can make your own natural stock and seasoning cubes depending on what taste or flavour you desire.

You boil your vegetables of choice (Carrot, Celery and Parsley etx) with chicken bones and spices of choice for few minutes, remove the bones, sieve and blend. You can choose to store the mixture in small air tight jars and freeze or you can turn them into cubes by spreading them on a flat surface and freeze. Then cut them into cubes when it’s frozen solid. Save the water as your liquid stock for meals too and store in an air tight container in your freezer.

You can use the above recipe and procedure but replace the bones or include beef or chicken meat.

(Then we let the squaddies ask her questions)

Q n A with Ezinne!!!

Q1 Should salt be eliminated from meals?

A1 No it shouldn’t but it must be used moderately.

Q2 What is the relationship between MSG and sugar?

A2 Most MSG containing seasoning cubes contain sugar so they can’t be trusted with our lives.

Q3 Are these natural spices safe for children?

A3 Yes they are but do not overload them with it.

Q4 Are peppers also considered as spices?

A4 yes they are very flavourful. “Habenero”, red, and green peppers all have their distinct flavours. The yellow small peppers are “Habanero” and are also called “Ose Nsukka”

Q5 CAN soy sauce be considered as a natural spice?

A5 No it is not, Soy sauce is just a liquid processed seasoning and they also contain MSG.

Q6 Does “Adobe spices” CONTAIN MSG?

A6 Do your research and read the labels properly to check for those other ingredients that are MSG indicators

Q7 What can be used to replace seasoning cubes in “Jollof” rice?

A7 Nutmeg is fantastic in “Jollof” rice alongside your natural liquid or cube stock.

Q8 what’s your opinion on Himalayan salt?

A8 Himalayan salt is a natural form of sea salt and it is less processed than the common iodized salt hence it a better option for people with serious health issues such as high blood pressure and hypertension.

Q9 since you said Onions is our number friend in this journey, what portions of onions do you recommend for cooking?

A9 I am an extremist with onions because I love it for its sweetness. I believe you can’t go wrong with onions .I would use 2 average bulbs for a cup of beans.

On a final note, do not go overboard with the salt, spices and vegetables else you mess up your meals. Withdraw gradually and incorporate the spices a little at a time, don’t just stop abruptly; add before you subtract.

Also try not to get overwhelmed, feel free to experiment and be creative but cook them in little quantities so you do waste your resources if it turns out not so well. Give your taste buds and that of your household time to adjust to the new flavours.

Ask questions…. The market women are your go to plug; you will find out that they are armed with a lot of knowledge. For instance, I learnt from them that black pepper is fantastic with chicken. Actually, this lifestyle is not expensive rather it is very affordable one no matter the size of your pocket. All the local “Mallams” around us sell these so called fancy spices, just ask. I also sell spices in bulk and spice mixes depending on what you desire.

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WOW!!!

I hope these really helped. Ezinne has all these spices packaged naturally so you can hook her up for ALL your spice needs mama.