In this weeks blog we’ll be delving into the lifestyle of probably the most well known martial artist of all time. We'll be discovering how they fueled their bodies before, during and after a martial arts workout, we’ll be finding out what they LOVED to eat as a treat and I’ll be showing you how we can recreate some of their Pre & Post Workout and Treat Meals in a simple step by step recipe guide. 

 

Food has been one of the largest influences in my life. As restaurateurs it kept my parents in work, it put a roof over our heads and obviously it put food on the family table. So being able to blend my 42-year journey in martial arts with my complete and utter passion for food is totally awesome. 

 

So today we celebrate in my opinion the greatest martial artist of all time, a man who literally made martial arts mainstream, a man who kick started so many individuals to express themselves completely, The Man, The Legend that is Bruce Lee. 

 

Being one of the few Jeet Kune Do instructors in the UK to teach for the Bruce Lee family I have made it my mission to investigate what Bruce ate to fuel his body enabling him to maintain his fanatical training regime. 

 

Bruce was very self-conscious of what food he would consume as if it didn’t fuel his body enabling him to train he wouldn’t bother eating it. A huge fan of Royal Jelly, Bruce would take a small vial before a demonstration saying that it gave him “Voom” and he would perform better with this instant hit of energy. 

 

Bruce’s favourite meals were of course Chinese as it offered him a wider choice of nutritious food he liked to eat, in the proportions he wanted - Vegetables, Meat and Carbohydrates. He also liked to eat Pasta and often Linda would cook him an Italian meal. 

Bruce was a huge fan of Tea and would pretty much drink it all day long; he preferred Liptons (Black Tea) and Linda would make a flask of Honey Tea for him to take on set when he was filming. 

 

“Bruce appreciated the 4000 years plus of Chinese Experimentation with herbs and teas” 

 

 

 

Method 

Steep the tea in boiling water so it becomes quite strong, then add Honey to your own taste. 

 

Bruce also supplemented his diet with either a Protein Shake or a fresh Juice drink. Way ahead of his time he had a juicer and Linda would create weird and wonderful juices for him. 

 

Linda Lee Cadwell - “Juice allows your body to quickly assimilate the many valuable nutrients found in food” 

Bruce Lee’s all time favourite meat dish contained beef. Whilst filming the Big Boss in Pakchong, Thailand, he wrote home frequently complaining there was very little beef, chicken or pork available and he was glad to have taken his vitamins with him. 

 

 

340g Fillet Beef 

1 Large spanish onion (thinly sliced) 

1 Clove garlic (minced) 

4 Spring Onions (lengthway cut in half and halved again into thin pieces) 

Salt to taste 

3 to 4 tbsp Oyster sauce 

1/2 tsp Salt (or to taste) 

3 to 4 tbsp Oyster Sauce 

1 tbsp veg oil 

1/2 tsp Sugar 

Sesame Oil 

Splash of fish or chicken stock (or water) 

1tsp cornflour 

 

Method 

 

Heat oil in a heavy based deep sided frying pan or wok. Add Beef and cook for approximately 1 minute, add onion & garlic, cook for a further minute or 2. Add the Salt, Oyster sauce, sugar and mix thoroughly then add the stock to create a sauce. To thicken mix the cornflour in a tiny bit of water to create a paste and pour over the now bubbling ingredients, constantly stirring at the same time. Finish with a dash of sesame oil.