Let me introduce our JOY Meals:

• What they are and

• why they’re called that.

JOY Meals are what I call the mood-boosting meals we eat at home. Just one of the important things we need during the pandemic and in adapting to the new normal way of life. Joy meals could help us get into a joyful state of mind, especially if we practice mindful eating.

You might have heard of the gut-brain connection and the human gut being considered the ‘second brain’ because it’s the only organ in the body that has its own nervous system.

It is what’s in the gut, the ‘good bacteria’ residing there that the joy meals support. And for a very good reason because a healthy population of those good bacteria is responsible for manufacturing 95% of the body’s serotonin. Serotonin is also called the happy chemical because of its impact on the well-being, happiness and the mood. The Joy Meal may itself boost the body’s serotonin level because serotonin is also found in some vegetables, meat, nuts and fungi that are used in the dish. The high-fiber content in joy meals also help maintain a healthy gut. A healthy gut equates to good immune system. It’s such a joy to live with a strong immunity specially during pandemic!

As a guide, here are the mood-boosting foods that you can make a meal from:

• Leafy greens and cruciferous veggies.
• Fermented foods
• Berries
• Nuts and seeds
• Mussels, clams and oysters
• Wild salmon (not the farmed ones)
• Eggs
• Organ meats

Soon, I will be sharing different Joy Meals we enjoy at home, with more details of their nutritional values. I hope you can spare the time to look. 🙂

Oh, just a trivial addition, the name Joy also happens to be close to my nickname ‘Jo’ but some people actually call me Joy. 🙂

Have a joyful time preparing your own joy meals!