296 - Secret Chef Hacks with Forks Over Knives Chef Del

Some oils are advertised as health foods. But no oil is really healthy, not even olive oil. If you don't want to spend your days eating steamed, poached, or boiled food and you think oil-free food is boring, this episode is for you. Today's guest, Chef Del Sroufe, will teach you how to sauté, stir-fry, bake, and roast without oil or butter. With 33 years of cooking experience, Chef Del is an expert in oil-free cooking methods. At eight years old, he was creating dishes from whatever he could find in their kitchen. By thirteen, he was flaunting his culinary talents by preparing family dinners. 

 

Chef Del worked at a premier vegetarian restaurant in Ohio, The King Avenue Coffeehouse. He later opened his bakery, Del’s Bread, serving delicious vegan pastries and assorted delicacies. In 2001, he transitioned from his bakery business to start a vegan Personal Chef Service. In 2006, Chef Del joined Wellness Forum Foods as Executive Chef, where he continued the tradition of delivering great-tasting plant-based meals to clients. He also teaches cooking classes and helps people transition to a healthy plant-based diet.

 

Chef Del is the author of Forks over Knives: The Cookbook, a New York Times Bestseller; Better than Vegan, the story of his struggle with weight loss and gain and how he managed to lose over 200 pounds on a low fat, plant-based diet, The China Study Quick and Easy Cookbook and The China Study Family Cookbook which contain flavorful whole food plant-based recipes.

 

“It's kind of a responsibility that I feel to help others because I'm selling food to people. I've been doing that for a long time, so it seems that it's my responsibility to at least let them know what they're getting themselves into and to be as honest as possible. So yeah, I feel a responsibility for that, and I feel lucky too that I got to do this, that I got to be. And if you ever join my weight loss group - I don't know, some people don't want to join it, it's a trigger for people - but you get to see this non-judgmental environment where we support each other, and we work together. That's a special place because you don't get that. I have people in my group who don't have any support from their real life, from their family, from their friends, from their spouses, from work, so the world is kind of antagonistic to what they're trying to do, and then they're trying to negotiate that. I have cancer survivors who are just a year later getting their spouses on board and their family on board because it's about survival.” - Chef Del

 

What we discuss in this episode:

- Chef Del's colorful cooking career and his plant-based journey in a vegetarian kitchen

- The true impact of health compartmentalization and unhealthy eating behavior

- How to prevent food from burning when you don't use oil

- Healthy substitute for food thickeners, butter, eggs, and cheese and tips to make vegan food more filling

- Chef Del's favorite herbs and spices for that much-needed flavor

- Tips to make veggies, fruits, and spices stay fresh longer, what type of milk to use for cooking and baking, how to make a great muffin, black bean brownie, and other delicious plant-based dishes.

- The long and tedious process of writing a cookbook and testing the recipes.

- Book recommendation: Eat More, Weigh Less: Dr. Dean Ornish's Life Choice Program for Losing Weight Safely While Eating Abundantly

 

Resources:

- Website: https://chefdelsroufe.com/

- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chefdelsroufe/

- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChefDelSroufe

- Buy Chef Del’s Books - https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B008VGSVMY/allbooks

 

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