The Many Benefits of Eating Comfort Food

There are many benefits to eating comfort food. A person would remember about a particular time, or event while growing up, eating the same comfort food when rough times come. Comfort food makes you somehow feel better...it is what you can call Soul food.

So what is comfort food? Why is there a need for us to eat them when we are feeling low, or when we are sick, in pain, or when we are tired? Science tries to explain our need for comfort food as a sort chemical reaction in the brain; wherein our brain releases certain "feel good" hormones into our bodies in order to compensate for those different negative feelings that we experience in our daily lives, like those I have previously mentioned. But is that all there is to it? If indeed it was induced by these hormones, then would there not be a universal agreement on what a comfort food is? For one person's comfort food may not be another person's comfort food.

Choosing comfort food is more of a personal or behavioral choice than chemical. It can be attributed to ones culture as well. They are tied to memories of events, and of places that remind us of happiness, security, safety, and comfort.

What are the benefits of comfort food?

1) It makes us feel safe: There is a sense of security when you are eating comfort food.

2) It makes us happy: When we remember those happier moments, eating the food that reminds us of those events that make us happy. Like when you won the game and you went out and had pizza.

3) It makes us feel better: When we are sick, it makes us feel better. It reminds me of my mother, who, whenever I was sick, she would cook my favorite soup- Boiled Beef and Pork Soup. Somehow, it always managed to make me recover from a flu or cold much quicker.

4) It makes us feel loved: When someone makes an effort to prepare comfort food for us, we feel that we are important and well loved.

5) It makes us grounded-:During rough times in our lives we seek to ground ourselves and find that sense of self that often gets lost when life becomes hectic and crazy.

6) It takes us back to our roots: Comfort food makes us remember who we are, and where we came from - we may not be able to go to those exact moments in time, but it helps us reminisce and relive those wonderful moments of feeling loved and comforted.

7) It gives us an opportunity to continue the tradition: We pass along to our children these wonderful recipes and memories that go along with them, they will repeat and relive them over and over again, and passing them along to generations to come.

Remembering and sharing:

My mother loved to cook; I remember when she was still alive she cooked everyday. From breakfast, lunch, and dinner, there was always something hearty waiting on the table for the family to dig in. One of my all time favorites is her Beef and Pork Nilaga also known as Boiled Beef and Pork Soup. Nilaga is a Tagalog (Philippine dialect) for Boiled.

Oftentimes, my mother would cook this food during rainy days when the Manila temperature is usually cooler. She also would cook this meal when one of her kids was sick. Somehow, like the chicken soup, this made us feel better, a true comfort food. I was so glad that when I grew older, she taught me how to cook this wonderful meal, not only do I get to enjoy this meal here in the U.S., I also get to share it with my husband and daughter. Whenever my daughter has a cold or is running a fever, she asks for Beef and/or Pork Nilaga, and she could eat it for days without getting tired of it.

Ingredients in making a potful enough to serve 12 hungry grown ups (I usually cook a potful so we can enjoy them for days or we can freeze and thaw later):

5 lbs of beef
5 lbs of pork
A bunch of baby bok choy (you can use baby or Napa cabbage as substitute)
5 big pieces of yellow potatoes
2 pieces of big tomatoes
2 pieces of ginger roots
A bunch of green onion leaves
2 tsp. Ground black pepper
5 tbsp Fish sauce to taste (you can also use salt if you prefer)

Steps: You can also check the slide show for step by step guide- http://www.associatedcontent.com/slideshow/836/how_to_cook_boiled_beef_and_pork_soup.html

A true comfort food, every time I cook this meal I remember my late mother on how she would always make us feel better with her cooking. When I smell its aroma, I almost feel her hugging me and then kissing my forehead as she used to back home- as a child eating this wonderful meal to make me feel better whenever I had a cold or flu. It is a true comfort food for me. I have passed along this recipe to my daughter, hoping she can continue with the tradition, and hopefully she would remember me and my mom; and when that day will come that she will have her own kids, she can cook it for them to enjoy and pass along to the next generations to come.