Mood enhancing Foods

[Pan]

I don't think I mentioned that really great lychees make me absolutely joyous! That unique perfume and juicy, pulpy mixture of sweet and tangy!

[Zucchini Mama]

Risotto makes me feel very calm and grounded. I can get high off of masala chai. There was a place in Winnipeg called Pure Lard and his chai kept me awake and just about hallucinating half the night. Apparently too much nutmeg can make you hallucinate. Maybe the chef put some chili powder in there too. There was rumours of illegal substances in the mix, but that was never verified!

I say skip the Prozac and eat lots of good chocolate. I'm really into fair trade Cocoa Camino bars and I'm eating the dark chocolate with almonds right now.

A really exceptional meal makes me high, but I can also be depressed for a week afterwards because it's like a glimpse of paradise than vanishes and then makes the everyday world look so bland and grey.

I think I should read the book mentioned upthread called Potatoes not Prozac because my moods are definitely up and down with the food I eat. I also get Weltschmerz when I eat carelessly prepared food. Life is too short to spend it eating crappy food.

Another wierd thing that makes me high is iced black tea mixed with a bit of fruit juice, but I come down hard after that one.

Zuke

[maggiethecat]

Caviar. No wonder I'm depressed...those ambrosial fish eggs come around only once every couple of years.

Potatoes and Prozac together are unbeatable.

[ingridsf]

I can't find anything on Google to bear this out, so I offer only my rock-solid anecdotal evidence and the testimonial of chile-heads worldwide when I say that I get a buzz off of very hot peppers. I can be convinced that it's capiscum, or that it's my happiness in having my mouth afire, or both. Anyone know?

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I found out one day when I was inexplicably out of sorts that the smell of charring chilis perks me right up. Fortunately, I have a gas stove, a long fork and the foresight to keep a supply of jalapenos or serranos in the fridge.

Note: This is similar but not the same as the happiness that comes from eating burned edges of all kinds, or the chilis themselves.

[Ducky]

Caviar.  No wonder I'm depressed...those ambrosial fish eggs come around only once every couple of years.

Potatoes and Prozac together are unbeatable.

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How about caviar with mashed potatoes and prozac followed by a hash brownie? Great ideas Maggie!

[Paradasia]

In Asian cultures there is a common idea that many foods have either a “heating” or “cooling” effect on the body. In Malaysia one of the most “heaty” foods is the spiny and smelly tree fruit DURIAN.

The mention of mood-changing foods made me think of this, because in SE Asia they expound on the aphrodisiac qualities of Durian. I heard that the Malays even have a rational expression that goes something like:

“ When the Durian comes down from the tree, the sarongs (ie: dresses) come off”

From my experience, it seems true that this fruit has some type of stimulant effect, which I find a bit like having six-shots of espresso coffee. As for being an aphrodisiac, its doesn’t seem to do much for me; and frankly speaking since it creates a great deal of foul smelling intestinal gas I find myself always wanting to be alone after eating it.

I reckon it must have something addictive in it, because despite the negative effects, most people (including me) can’t seem to stop craving it. Once you get past the smell, the taste is quite interesting.

But don’t take my word on it. Why not you give it a try. Thai Durian is available frozen in specialty supermarkets throughout the USA, and the lucky Canucks can get it fresh (ie: double the smell) in Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto.

[Pan]

In Asian cultures there is a common idea that many foods have either a “heating” or “cooling” effect on the body.  In Malaysia one of the most “heaty” foods is the spiny and smelly tree fruit DURIAN.

The mention of mood-changing foods made me think of this, because in SE Asia they expound on the aphrodisiac qualities of Durian.  I heard that the Malays even have a rational expression that goes something like:

“ When the Durian comes down from the tree, the sarongs (ie: dresses) come off”[...]

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That's a peribahasa (traditional adage) I haven't learned. What is that in Malay? "Durian jatuh, sarong pulas"?

In two years of living in a kampung in Terengganu, I never remember hearing that durian is considered an aphrodisiac. I'm going to ask my anthropologist mother if anyone told her that. Heaty, yes, which is why eating too much of it upsets your stomach. Digestive upset is considered a function of humoral heat.

There's a thread on food and the humoral system on Adventures in Eating which you might be interested in reading and contributing to.