Finding the right shampoo for my kids

Being the compulsive 'ingredient list' reader that I am, it took me a week to find a suitable and reasonably priced baby shampoo for my kids. It should not be that difficult, should it? Shampoos should fundamentally be just gentle soaps with conditioners. Living in the city (and not a coal mine or a grease factory) there is just sand and sweat that we need to get rid of from our hair.

Since my children play in the sand every single day, No Poo, just warm water in the hair is not for us. 

Next best option would be to go all natural - which costs an arm, a leg and then some. I don't get it. Why should something which should be a gentle soap with more coconut oil or some other oil, be THAT expensive because it is all natural? why? why? why? I refuse to pay for branding or support the 'will pay anything for the good stuff' movement.

After a fruitless search for a reasonably priced natural/organic shampoo, I started researching recipes for shampoos. What the heck, I will just make it myself...only to realise that Lye is not available in Singapore, I am not a chemist and it will take some iterations to get it right. My kids had gone 'No Poo' for a week at this point. 

I decided buy myself some time and went to look for the most benign mainstream product available and started reading up on what is in the shampoos and what does it do?

Water - 70 to 80% of all shampoos is water...dear old H₂O. No wonder they don't even make bar shampoos anymore! We will get to that another time.

The second most abundant ingredient is SLS or sodium lauryl sulfate or one of its ammonium salts. Nothing wrong with that. I checked the MSDS and all clear.....except for the fact that it is a harsh, harsh detergent. So harsh that it is used to scrub garage floors...but why is it in our shampoo? Because it is cheap.

Then there came Isopropyl alcohol, which is meant to cut the oil....the problem it works too well. It strips hair off its natural oils, which in turn causes your body to produce even more to compensate for that. The hair care/cosmetics industry does not cater to developed world urban population? huh?

Parabens - Parabens are preservatives. There is research that shows that at the concentrations in which they are used in the cosmetics, they are not carcinogenic or estrogen producing or endocrine disrupting...but then they are everywhere and all uses add up and a lifetime adds up and young children's skin adds up. I remain sceptical.

Next up...Butylene Glycol - a known skin irritant for a preservative. After cleaning my children's hair with a detergent, alcohol and a known skin irritant, I will need to condition it with silicones?

Then there were a host of fragrances and oils and thickeners and more…

I have to say, the fact that products containing all these unnecessary chemicals (derived from natural sources or made synthetically) are mainstream and that we have accepted this quality as the standard of our living is very disturbing. In the world that we live in, we expect our cosmetics to last for a 100 years without going bad and we put them in bottles that will last a 1000 years without going bad. The alternatives are alternatives and are priced as premium products should not be acceptable. It does not make sense.

We must demand better for ourselves and our families. 

I continue my research on making shampoo at home…

Spagetti ala puttanesca

My 15 minute go-to recipe.

Ingredients:

Fist full of Spaghetti
12-15 Cherry Tomatoes, halved
10-12 Olives, chopped
10-12 Capers
1 Clove of Garlic, minced
1/2 an Onion, chopped
1/2 tsp Red Chilli Flakes
1/2 cup Basil Leaves
1/4 cup Parmesan, grated or shaved
Salt and Pepper to taste
1 tbsp Olive Oil

Method:

1. In a pan of boiling water, add salt and a bit of olive oil. Boil spaghetti as per the instructions on the packet.

2. Heat up olive oil in a pan.

3. Add onions, garlic along with red chilli flakes till onions become translucent.

4. Add olives, capers, and cherry tomatoes. Cover and cook till the tomatoes become soft.

5. Add seasoning, basil leaves and the pasta. Toss to incorporate. Use pasta water to loosen the paste give it a silky texture.

6. Garnish with basil leaves and parmesan and serve with a salad.

Vegetarian Thai Green Curry

The aromas and the freshness of this curry has me swooning every single time. Chef Shalu Asnani taught me this recipe during a Thai Cooking Class at Little Green Kitchen, Singapore. Thanks Shalu.

Ingredients:

Curry Paste:

2 Stalks of Lemongrass, outer layer removed and minced

2-3 Thai Green Chilli, sliced (Chilli Padi, I omit when I am cooking for my kids)

2 Shallots (or 1 onion)

3 cloves Garlic

1 inch pieces Galangal (Use ginger, if galangal is not available)

4 Kaffir Lime Leaves

1/2 cup Fresh Coriander with Stems

1/2 tsp Ground White Pepper (Use bit less of black, of you don't have white on hand)

1/2 tsp Ground Coriander 

2 tbsp Soy Sauce

1/2 tsp Salt

1-2 tbsp Lime Juice

1 tsp Sugar

1-2 tbsp Coconut Milk (to blend)

Curry:

1 tbsp Vegetable Oil

1 and 1/2 cup Coconut milk

1/2 cup Water (warm)

1 Red Bell Pepper, diced

1 Carrot, sliced

4-5 Baby Eggplants, cubed (or 1/2 of a regular Indian Eggplant)

4-5 Baby Corns, chopped

1/2 cup French Beans, chopped

1/2 cup Tofu, cubed

1/2 cup Thai Basil Leaves, torn

2 Kaffir Lime Leaves, de-veined and shredded

2 Thai Red Chillies, sliced (optional)

Method:

1. Chop and place all the ingredients for the curry paste in a food processor. Process well to form a thick and smooth paste. Taste and adjust seasoning, especially salt, sugar and spice.

2. Heat oil in a pan and fry the paste till it becomes fragrant, 3-5 minutes.

3. Add coconut milk and keep cooking the paste on low heat, stirring frequently.

4. Add vegetables and water and simmer on low heat till the vegetables are cooked through.

5. Add some water if the curry is too thick.

6. Sprinkle basil and lime leaves and turn off the heat.

7. Garnish with red chillies and serve with brown rice.