Hello, Gang... Tony here.
I DO NOT RECOMMEND HIS RECIPE TO OUR FTS FAMILY!
See my post made earlier this morning (2014-04-16) for details.
Tony
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I am posting this here instead of with the side dishes 'cause it isn't your usual recipe.
I will get to the recipe eventually, I promise, but first I have to tell you some stuff that I learned by doing some studying on the subject. You may have heard of resistant starch, and considered it to be a scam. In some cases, I'm sure it is, especially if someone is trying to sell a product. But before you dismiss it out of hand, I hope you will hear me out on the subject of potatoes, and hopefully we can have a discussion and maybe some will be willing to do their own experiment, as I have done. I can't speak on the subject of whether or not other 'retrograded' food is a scam, only retrograded potatoes.
The different types of potatoes contain various amounts of resistant starch. Most people cannot digest resistant starch in their small intestine (which is where glucose absorption occurs). The resistant starch then travels to the large intestine while not raising the blood sugar level. That's great for Diabetics, but also good for anyone who is eating low carb, plus studies show that among other things, resistant starch can increase the body’s ability to burn fat. It can also improve insulin sensitivity and glucose tolerance, more good news for Diabetics.
In the digestion process, resistant starch in the large intestine is fermented, releasing a compliment of good bacteria and by-products that the body can use as a fuel source. It creates a beneficial short-chain fatty acid called butyrate. Butyrate may block the body’s ability to burn carbohydrates. Instead, the body burns both stored fat and recently consumed fat for energy.
Some people are 'retrograding' (converting) the starch in potatoes to resistant starch. Boiling the potatoes whole kicks the resistant starch factor up several notches, and new red potatoes already contain more resistant starch than, say, Idaho potatoes, so many of these people are using new red potatoes for this. On at least one diabetes forum, they have done their own experiments with it, with amazing results. I did a test of my own. I ate 1/2 cup of potato salad made with retrograded potatoes and here are my blood sugar readings:
Before eating - 104
1 hour - 107
2 hours - 92
3 hours - 89
If you don't know anything about Diabetes, let me tell you these numbers are amazing. 1/2 cup of potato salad that has not been retrograded would take my blood sugar well up over 150 or 175. Also note that 2 hours after eating it, my blood sugar is 12 points lower than it was before I ate. I have tested this many times since with equally good results. We are all different, and will all get different results, but I have seen the results of several who did their own test on the aforementioned diabetes forum, and all of the test results were excellent.
I understand that all or most of you count carbs, and it is impossible to know (at least at this time) how many carbs are in retrograded potato salad, but since it doesn't raise the blood sugar very much at all, there can't be many 'carbs that count' in this.
These instructions must be followed exactly as very slow cooling of the potatoes after cooking is important, as is the time they are to be refrigerated before eating. If you eat more than 1/2 cup, of course your blood sugar will be higher, so be sure to limit servings to 1/2 cup, and cook the potatoes whole.
Retrograded Potato Salad Recipe
Wash some small, new potatoes (skins on), cover with water, put on the lid, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes or until tender but not mushy. The potatoes must be cooled slowly. Remove from heat, pour off the water, leave the lid on and let cool on the counter without lifting the lid until room temperature. This could take a few hours. You can make the potato salad once they are room temperature, or wait until they are finished cooling in the refrigerator. Place the spuds in the fridge (and don't eat) for 24 hours. Leaving the skins on provides more fiber, or you can remove the skins. That's all there is to it. (Reheating retrograded potatoes makes the starch revert back, so don't reheat.)
