FoodLove 8: Trevor and Lauren Koch
Episode 8: Meet Trevor and Lauren Koch, a culinary and hospitality couple with a young family on a healing journey through food and growing gardens. Trevor is a former culinary student of FoodLove host, Rufina. He has worked in kitchens in Wisconsin and Colorado as a sous chef, essential restaurant worker, and essential grocery store manager. Lauren is studying the healing properties of herbs.
Recently, Trevor shared with Rufina his ongoing journey out of depression and the personal battle with alcoholism that overtook his professional life. It cost him one job and impacted his family.
When Rufina asked Trevor to speak on the podcast, it was in part, because restaurant industry harbors many people managing both depression and substance abuse and in part, because she is very proud of Trevor and sees him for the multi-creative talent that he is. Lauren’s story made the picture of impacts, compassion, and resilience more complete. She too is multi-talented and creative.
Alcoholism in the midst of a pandemic and recent diagnoses of ADHD for both Lauren and Trevor have brought them both to a crossroads of self-awareness. Trevor and Lauren are navigating their way to emotional and mental health. In the process, they are reckoning with their own identities that were not fully seen or understood by others. It is from this place that they recognize what it means not to be fully seen, and the place from which they have begun to evolve how they re-educate themselves around race and how they raise their children despite what other family members might think. Their humility and courage in this pursuit of a better world is an important model for how we get to world peace despite the complexity of our lives and daily struggles, even for people who benefit from the privileges associated with being White.
Rufina and Trevor dedicate this show and the possible pathways to hope for people struggling with depression and substance abuse to their loving memory of Chef Todd Bowman,. Chef Todd shared a deep love of land, food, and connection among all people.
When we feel lost or alone in isolating depression, grounding ourselves in what we can make with our hands, how we can watch a seedling grow, or how we can genuinely support each other, can be a first step toward healing. These inquiries are part of FoodLove: The Space Between Terroir and the Tao of Food.
Though we didn’t talk about this recipe on air, Trevor shared a kitchari recipe adapted and modified from a few others that he and Lauren have been eating for their health. This is the recipe he would share in a re-imagined home economics curriculum. Follow and support Trevor and Lauren on Itnstagram @trevorcooks
Kitchari and Rice
Ingredients
Instructions
- For Kitchari:
- Add fresh garlic and ginger, coconut oil to a large pot over medium-high heat for approximately 5 minutes or until translucent and fragrant.
- Turn heat down to medium.
- Add beans and loose spices. Sauté for two minutes.
- Add 6-8 cups water, tea bag spices, and 1 teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil with lid slightly cracked open.
- Turn heat to medium-low. Cook and stir occasionally until beans split open, approximately 10-15 minutes.
- Add root vegetables and cook another 15-20 minutes or until soft.
- Add greens, lime juice with heat on low for approximately 10-15 minutes more.
- For Rice:
- Place all ingredients in instant and follow manufacturer directions to cook rice.
