That, more or less, is the short answer to the supposedly incredibly complicated and confusing question of what we humans should eat in order to be maximally healthy. I hate to give away the game right here at the beginning of a long essay, and I confess that I'm tempted to complicate matters in the interest of keeping things going for a few thousand more words. I'll try to resist but will go ahead and add a couple more details to flesh out the advice. Like: A little meat won't kill you, though it's better approached as a side dish than as a main. And you're much better off eating whole fresh foods than processed food products. That's what I mean by the recommendation to eat "food."

Once, food was all you could eat, but today there are lots of other edible foodlike substances in the supermarket. These novel products of food science often come in packages festooned with health claims, which brings me to a related rule of thumb: if you're concerned about your health, you should probably avoid food products that make health claims. Why? Because a health claim on a food product is a good indication that it's not really food, and food is what you want to eat.

Kari leaves, Murraya koenigii, are as important to Asian food as bay leaves are to European food, but never try to substitute one for the other. Kari leaves, either fresh or dried, are usually the first ingredient added to the small amount of oil in which a dish is to be cooked, and the fragrance and flavor are unmistakable.

Purchasing and Storing: Fresh Kari leaves are usually found in Indian shops, in plastic bags in the refrigerator. They keep very well, but if not using the whole amount within a couple of weeks, dry them gently in a very low oven or in a dehydrator. Dried Kari leaves keep indefinitely in an airtight container, but the fresher they are, the better the flavor will be. Dried Kari leaves are pulverized and added to certain spice mixtures.

Try the Butternut squash recipe below to try out kari leaves.

Got a free weekday between now and February 8, and are interested in exploring L.A.'s Chinatown and the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) that is found there... follow the adventure I took last month exploring an intact herbal tradition right here in LA.

Start by catching the Amtrak train to Union Station. I like traveling "Green" when I can. This entire adventure can be easily complete on foot from the train station. Start out walking two blocks north on N. Alameda Street to Ord St. and you will arrive at the California Endowment's Center for Healthy Communities where the exhibit on TCM is located.

The exhibit is called "From the Abundant Pharmacy: Traditional Chinese Medicine in L.A.'s Chinatown" It runs till Friday, February 8, 2008. It is open for viewing 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday - Friday only. It is in the Big Sur Education Gallery which is just inside the door to your left. Look for the images of plants in the window. The exhibition features historical photographs, videotaped oral histories with Chinese herbalists, and objects from an herbalist's shop. The timeline of Chinese medicine in America was especially interesting. I wondered what the Ayurvedic timeline will look like one day.