Fong Henry - Nom nom paleo: food for humans

Contrary to popular belief, Michelle Tam s Chinese name is not Nom Nom Paleo. She is, however, the cheeky food nerd behind the award-winning blog and bestselling iPad app by that name. In 2012, Saveur recognized Michelles site as the worlds Best Special Diets Food Blog.

When shes not cooking or writing, Michelle can be found chasing after her two young sons or slinging drugs as a nightshift hospital pharmacist. She earned a nutrition and food science degree from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Doctorate of Pharmacy from the University of California, San Francisco.

Henry Fong is Michelles husband and co-conspirator. An attorney by day, hes responsible for Nom Nom Paleos design and photography, which won a 2012 Homies Award from Apartment Therapy and The Kitchn for Best Food Photography on a Blog. Henry is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley, and Yale Law School. Nom Nom Paleo is not his Chinese name, either.

Cover design and illustrations: Henry Fong

www.nomnompaleo.com

Nom Nom Paleo copyright 2013 Michelle Tam & Henry Fong

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of reprints in the context of reviews.

This book is intended for general informational purposes only, and not as personal medical advice, medical opinion, diagnosis, or treatment.

Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC

an Andrews McMeel Universal company

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ISBN: - - 4494 - 5717 -

Library of Congress Control Number: 2013942801

Written, photographed, illustrated, and designed by Michelle Tam & Henry Fong with additional recipe contributions by Fiona Kennedy

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For more recipes and information, visit nomnompaleo.com

IVE ALWAYS SECRETLY DREAMED OF WRITING A COOKBOOK.

Of course, I knew it was a preposterous notion, so I never gave it much thoughtuntil I started receiving offers from book publishers. Naturally, I freaked out. I dont know how to do this, I told my husband. It was just a dumb dream.

Henry did his best to reassure me. Its not a dream if you can do it, he said encouragingly. Its a goal .

Yuck! I rolled my eyes. The motivational poster store called, and it wants its clichs back.

As usual, my spouse was unfazed. You should do it, Meech. Write the book. Ill help you. Itll be fun!

I knew he wasnt kidding. When Henrys not working, hes forever throwing himself into creative endeavors: printing T-shirts in the garage, devising ways to make spicy jerky using toy blocks and a box fan, teaching himself photography, or renovating the entire house. I suppose Im no slouch, either: for the past few years, Ive been consumed with recipe development and food writing. Together, we created Nom Nom Paleo, a website that gradually evolved from a lark to a popular online destination for real food enthusiasts.

But a cookbook ? We both have hectic careers: Im a clinical pharmacist at a large hospital, and hes a busy lawyer. We have two young sons who need to be fed and watered (and hugged, too). Besides, the last book Henry designed was his high school yearbook, and the last book I penned was for a fourth-grade homework assignment. It was dreamily entitled Someday .

Someday is today , Henry grinned. Yes, I married a clich-spewing machine.

Now, after more than a few buckets of blood, sweat, tears, and very strong coffee, our cookbook is finally in your hands. I hope you dig it as much as we do.

To be crystal clear, this is a cookbook, not a textbook. In these pages, you wont find scholarly explanations of biochemistry or pages of citations to research studies. (Interested in the science behind ancestral eating? Visit the Resources page on nomnompaleo.com.)

Instead, I wrote this book to share my favorite flavor-packed, nutrient-rich recipes for demanding foodies and picky kids alike. As a busy working mom and unrepentant food geek, I wanted to create a book that focuses on three of the most important things in my life: food, family, and fun. Thats why we crammed these pages full of photographs, cartoons, and tips for getting the clan back into the kitchen.

Frankly, I dont care if youre a committed Paleo eater or notour goal is to get everyone excited to cook and savor meals made with real, whole, nourishing foods. So if youve ever dreamed of eating more healthfully but without sacrificing flavor, remember:

Its not a dream if you can do it. Its a goal.

And this book was written to help you achieve it.

Oh, great . Now hes got me doing it.

MY NAME IS MICHELLE, AND IM A FOODAHOLIC.

My waking thoughts are preoccupied with food: finding it, cooking it, savoring it. Perhaps it's genetic: my family has always shared my obsession with all things gustatory. In Cantonesemy parents' native tonguemy mother, father, sister, and I can all be described as wai sek : we live to eat.

In fact, I like to think that my parents chose to settle in Northern California in part because of the region's collective enthusiasm for fresh ingredients and flavors. (Reality: they moved here from Hong Kong to be closer to relatives.) Regardless of how they ended up in the San Francisco Bay Area, my sister and I benefitted from growing up in the very heart of the slow food movement. Even as children, we knew in our bones that food is much, much more than fuel; it's one of the singular pleasures of life.

My love for food started with the tastes, sights, and aromas of my mother's kitchen. My mom was (and is) an excellent cook, and as a child, I was her little shadow as she prepared supper each night. It didn't take long for me to master the art of lingering next to her cutting board until she'd hand me a scrap of succulent roast duck or barbecued pork.

My mom's kitchen skills were enhanced by her uncanny ability to identify individual ingredients by taste and reverse-engineer recipes. I can make that, she'd say after trying a dish at a restaurant. I'd scoff, but she was always right. Through years of close observation, I managed to learn a thing or two from my motherand in particular, how to create splendid meals from pantry items: savory pan-fried chow mein, steaming bowls of soup noodles, and juicy dumplings with spicy dipping sauces.