Cooking the perfect GAPS egg
Eggs are the easiest food to digest and their nourishment has been compared to breast milk because it can be absorbed almost 100 percent without needing digestion. Egg yolks provide many amino acids, vitamins (B1, B2, B6, B12, A, D & biotin), essential fatty acids, magnesium and zinc among many others. Eggs are particularly high in B12 essential for normal development of the nervous system and immunity. GAPS patients are commonly deficient in B12 and therefore become anemic.
Cholin – found in egg yolks provide an essential acid for the nervous system and liver function. The brain uses an important neurotransmitter called acethylcholin from cholin essential for cognitive function, attention, learning processes and memory. It also supports an over-stressed liver. It is without a doubt that many GAPS Patients overlap in this area with a poor functioning liver struggling to reduce the toxic burden as well as conditions associated with cognition and psychological disorders. Hence the importance in introducing many egg yolks to the GAPS Diet on a daily basis.
Free range organic eggs are the best source because they wont be fed antibiotics or have exposure to environmental chemicals. One of the best foods for treating adrenal fatigue is raw egg yolks. You can find good quality raw eggs that are sourced from a reliable farmer, or from your own raised chickens because you know exactly how they have been treated and what they eat. It is best to test your eggs for freshness and determine whether the egg yolks are healthy enough to eat. This can be done in several ways. Firstly, you can float the egg in water to see if it sinks or floats. If they sink to the bottom and lay flat on their sides, they’re very fresh. If they’re a few weeks old but still good to eat, they’ll stand on one end at the bottom of the bowl. If they float to the surface, they’re no longer fresh enough to eat. Whilst this method is useful, a more reliable test that Dr Natasha Campbell-McBride uses on her organic farm is to look at the egg white. If the white is runny, like water, it isn’t safe to eat the yolk raw. If the raw egg white holds its shape firmly with a thick jelly film, the raw egg yolk is generally safe to eat.
Some time ago, I learnt of an Australian certified organic poultry farmer who feeds his chickens and ducks soy because it is cheaper and this is another product we are trying very hard to avoid. High levels of soy reduce assimilation of calcium, magnesium, copper, iron and zinc. Soy foods also contain chemicals, stunt growth, increase the body’s need for vitamin D and interferes with protein digestion causing pancreatic disorders. The list of harmful effects from soy are exhaustive and you can find more information at the Western A. Price Foundation…
Another reason not to select commercially grown eggs is because they clean the egg with bleach. Eggs are porous which means some of the bleach will seep through to the inside of the eggs and that is what you will eat.
Grass-fed chickens will consume 30% of their calories from grass if provided the opportunity to be fully free range. Their pasture should be free of chemical inputs and good open spaces are required so that they can forage for their much needed protein from bugs and wild plants. Pasture fed chickens are high in omega 3 fatty acids and Dr Natasha advises on the best ratios for omega 3 to 6 as a 2:1 ratio however grain fed chickens exceed this ratio in abundance. Commercial eggs have been shown to produce as much as 19 times more omega 6 to omega 3. Organic pasture fed hens in contrast can produce eggs containing an omega 3 to 6 ratio of approximately one to one.
These ratios are important because too much omega 6 in our food sources interferes with the production of important prostaglandins resulting in a number of problems such as inflammation, high blood pressure, digestive problems, immune disorders and much more. This ratio is also relevant with our meat produce and this is the very reason why we support the Weston A Price principles with our preference for pasture fed animals to produce our meats, eggs and milk.
Food Sensitivity Test
Always do the food sensitivity test first before introducing the egg and follow the steps in the introduction diet on how to introduce them. Conduct the test with a well strained egg yolk first and then try it the following day with the egg white. The egg white is what most people who have food allergy to eggs react to.
Add an egg to every bowl of soup on the intro diet and this may mean several eggs a day. This is exactly what is needed for GAPS patients.
Ingredients
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- Cook the egg so that the egg white is cooked and the egg yolk is still runny. This may require your own testing on the stove because every stove type will generate different heat and some are more immediate than others. Once you have achieved the desired egg, try to remember the time it took to cook it and you will have the perfect egg every time.
- For the perfect GAPS egg to ensure teh white is cooked and egg yolk runny, we recommend 3-5 minutes as shown on the egg cooking time chart.
- Peal the egg shell under cold water whilst it is still hot but not too hot to touch. This makes for an easier way to peal the egg with out breakage, otherwise put it in an egg cup, slice off the top and scoop it out.
- Add an egg to every bowl of soup.
