Jeremy Siegel is co-host of Morning Edition at GBH News. Feedback? Questions? Story ideas? Reach out to Jeremy at jeremy_siegel@wgbh.org.
April 03, 2024
Jeremy Siegel: This is GBH is Morning Edition. There are a few places around the world where life expectancy is weirdly high. That includes Ikaria, a Greek island where people are 13 times more likely to live past the age of 80 than the rest of the world.
Diane Kochilas: I think we really embrace the idea of living life in the moment.
Siegel: That's Chef Diane Kochilas, whose family is from the island.
Kochilas: You know, it's about not being materialistic. I think that's the greatest description that I can think of when I think of what Ikaria has given me personally as somebody who lives there half the year and has been going there for more than 50 years.
Siegel: Ikaria is one of five designated blue zones in the world where people live the longest. And Kochilas details some of the food behind those statistics in her new cookbook, "The Ikaria Way." It's a collection of 100 plant based recipes aimed at capturing the island's culinary traditions, but in an approachable and doable way.
Kochilas: It's basically a collection of recipes inspired by Ikaria. So they're not necessarily traditional. Some of them would be new to Ikaria. For example, I have a few recipes with tofu. I'm also a great supporter and proponent of all the traditional foods of Greece, and regional cuisines and things that may not necessarily be that well-represented in the United States yet. But I also think that cooking is, you know, it's like language. It's always in flux. It's always changing.
Siegel: Ikaria has been referred to as the place where people forget to die. It has sky-high life expectancy compared to other places in the world that some people attribute to the diet there. What is it about this kind of food that's so special?
Kochilas: For one, it's not processed. That's, I think, very important. A lot of it is uber-fresh. People still provide their own food. They still grow their own food to a great extent. So many people who live on the island year-round have gardens. And those gardens provide the pantry, basically. And, you know, people do eat a lot of plant-based food on the island, but they also eat meat. You know, the difference is that the meat, for the most part, is not from animals that have been raised in industrial farming situations. They tend to be animals that are in their own backyard.
Siegel: But this book does focus on vegetarian recipes. It combines an Ikaria diet with a vegetarian diet. What made you want to write it?
Kochilas: A couple of things. For one, that's more or less the way that I eat, and more or less the way that I raised my now-adult children to eat. Although none of us is a vegetarian by definition, but we do eat a lot of plant-based food. I just started to think about the way that I eat. I also started to think about all of the diet insanity in the United States, and how people are so stressed out about what to cook for dinner and the quality of their food supply. And they're often at a loss for how to make something that's plant-based into a main course. For us in Greece, that's kind of a no-brainer, because so much of our food is, in fact, plant-based main courses.
Siegel: What advice do you have for someone who wants to be making vegetarian, healthy and enjoyable meals, but isn't growing things in their yard like they might be in Ikaria? How do you make something that's healthy, delicious, and doable?
Kochilas: I would say shop in the periphery of the supermarket where all the produce is. Understand what's local in your own area. Because it might not be what's in season, you know, in the Mediterranean, on a given month. So I think that's really important. Just understand what grows near you and what's in season. So you're basically looking for the freshest possible food when you do that. And I would also encourage people to incorporate beans in their diet. People tend to think that beans are difficult to repair or they're time-consuming. They're not. They're super easy. They're very inexpensive. There are a lot of great brands of good quality cans of beans out there if you want something more convenient. So I think that, you know, those are some of the things I would say to people.
Siegel: Diane, thank you so much for taking the time to talk with me today. Really appreciate it.
Kochilas: Thank you too. It was a great honor for me.
Siegel: Diane Kochilas is host of the PBS show My Greek Table, and her new book is called The Ikaria Way. You're listening to GBH News.
There are a few places around the world where life expectancy is weirdly high. That includes Ikaria, a Greek island where people are 13 times more likely to live past the age of 80 than the rest of the world. It is one of the world's five designated blue zones, where people live the longest.
Chef Diane Kochilas, whose family is from Ikaria, said those who live on the island “really embrace the idea of living life in the moment.”
“It's about not being materialistic. I think that's the greatest description that I can think of when I think of what Ikaria has given me personally as somebody who lives there half the year and has been going there for more than 50 years,” said Kochilas, host of the PBS show “My Greek Table.”
“I'm also a great supporter and proponent of all the traditional foods of Greece, and regional cuisines and things that may not necessarily be that well represented in the United States yet,” she said. “But I also think that cooking is, you know, it's like language. It's always in flux. It's always changing.”
So what is it about this kind of food that's so special?
“For one, it's not processed,” Kochilas said. “A lot of it is uber fresh. People still provide their own food. They still grow their own food to a great extent. So many people who live on the island year-round have gardens. And those gardens provide the pantry, basically.”
People on the island do not eat entirely plant-based diets, but the meat they consume tends to come from animals raised in their backyards, Kochilas said.
Kochilas said she chose to focus on vegetarian foods in her cookbook because that’s the way she likes to eat.
“I also started to think about all of the diet insanity in the United States, and how people are so stressed out about what to cook for dinner and the quality of their food supply,” Kochilas said. “And they're often at a loss for how to make something that's plant-based into a main course. For us in Greece, that's kind of a no-brainer, because so much of our food is, in fact, plant-based main courses.”
Her advice for people looking to change the way they eat: Focus on produce and learn about what food is fresh, local and in season.
“You're basically looking for the freshest possible food when you do that,” she said. “And I would also encourage people to incorporate beans in their diet. People tend to think that beans are difficult to prepare or they're time-consuming. They're not. They're super easy. They're very inexpensive. There are a lot of great brands of good quality cans of beans out there if you want something more convenient.”
'The Ikaria Way: 100 Delicious Plant-Based Recipes Inspired by My Homeland, the Greek Island of Longevity' by Diane Kochilas
Courtesy
Makes two servings
Ingredients: 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard 1⁄2 cup dry white wine 3 garlic cloves, minced 6 tablespoons extra-virgin Greek olive oil 1 (15-ounce / 425 g) can kidney or borlotti beans, rinsed and drained Greek sea salt to taste 1⁄3 cup fresh oregano or marjoram, leaves only, chopped 1⁄2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley 1⁄2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or more to taste
Directions: 1. Whisk together the lemon juice, mustard, wine, garlic, and half the olive oil in a medium bowl. Toss the beans into the mixture. Cover and let stand in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.
2. Transfer the beans and marinade to a large saucepan and bring to a simmer. Cook uncovered for a few minutes, until the alcohol in the wine cooks o. Adjust the taste with a little salt. Drizzle in the remaining olive oil and mix in the herbs and red pepper flakes.
3. Serve with a side of Greek yogurt or a small piece of feta, if desired.
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