By Su Aziz

CREAM, according to chef and proprietor of Cuisine Studio at Tropicana Club House in Petaling Jaya, Jean-Michel Fraisse, is not necessarily bad for diet.

"It depends on the association of the ingredients you're using," he added.

A believer of the Montignac method designed by Frenchman, Michel Montignac, that is based on the Glycemic Index (GI) of foods, Fraisse was able to trim down his own waistline significantly over a period of months.

Interestingly, cream is one of those products, according to Montignac's website, with zero GI since it contains no glucides or any carbohydrate just like fish.

Very simply, a GI measures carbohydrates in food from the perspective of its pure sugar or starch content in order to determine how they affect glycemia or blood sugar levels after meals.

Being mindful of what are the foods considered as high GI and low GI helps keep diabetes at bay and your weight in check.

For instance, beer has over 100 GI and bleached foods such as polished rice is only slightly under 100 which is considered high.

Most vegetables are merely 15 and vinegar is as low as five. Bear in mind though, that these GI estimates are approximate figures only.

GI estimates are used to create an awareness that being healthy does not mean compromising on delicious flavours.

"There is no need to go to a specialty shop to cook French food as you can use what is readily available from the market," said Fraisse.

"There is no recipe that cannot evolve. There are no rules when it comes to cooking. Everything is in your taste buds. Trust it. Listen to it. Prepare food with your heart and your taste, only then with your hands."

Fraisse's Pan Fried Fish with Vegetables in Saffron Sauce - Maximum GI: 20 per ingredient and minimum GI: 15 per ingredient

The amount of ingredients is up to you. Experiment with the basics. You can begin with:

- Any fish of your choice

- An assortment of courgette, leek, carrot, celery, thickly sliced

- A handful of spinach or bayam

- A handful of garlic and shallots, chopped

- Half a cup of cream

- Two to three tbsp of extra virgin oil or cooking oil

- A dash of saffron powder

- Salt and pepper to taste

Sauté the vegetables and shallots in oil over medium fire and cover the pot.

On a separate pan, heat oil. Sprinkle salt and pepper on your fish. Then sear the fish on the pan, skin side first maintaining it at medium heat.

Now, back to the pot. Lift the lid and add in your spinach and garlic before adding the cream and saffron powder.

Next, you turn over the fish and sear the other side. Once the fish is done, serve it up on a plate and spread the vegetables cooked in saffron sauce on top. Add salt to taste.

This is the French's version of our kuah masak lemak.

You can replace the cream with coconut milk but be aware that it will be a different GI standard.

This recipe works well with grilled chicken fillet which has zero GI.

The saffron in the cream sauce is an appetising factor, both visually and taste wise. Courgettes and carrots lend a sweetness to the dish.

Children will also enjoy this dish. I'd suggest holding back on the salt a little to teach your tastebuds to savour the other flavours.

A way to clean up your non-stick pan once you're done with the dish is to spread a handful of salt on it and wipe it down with a kitchen tissue.

"The salt is antibacterial," explained Fraisse.

It prevents abrasive scrubbing that allows chemicals of the non-stick layer to ooze out when heated.

This story was first published in the New Straits Times on Sept 1, 2008.