let's talk about ketchup

[John Coloccia]

Yes, ketchup. This is a bit long winded. Please, bear with me.

Ever notice that ketchup out of the squeeze bottles in your home just never really tastes right? You have ketchup at the boardwalk at the beach. It's ketchup. You get it at McDonalds in little packets(not that I ever eat there....but I remember!). It's ketchup! Ketchup ketchup ketchup. Wonderful, smooth, sweet, addictive ketchup!!

You try the stuff from the store. it says "Heinz". It's red. It looks like ketchup. It acts like ketchup. Stains like ketchup. Then you put it on you're fries, and it doesn't quite taste the same, does it? No? You convince yourself that it's all in your head. "Oh, it just tastes better out of the packet because it's not as cold".

Poppycock. Balderdash. Nonsense. Bah Humbug!

I recently travelled through Canada. No where of great note. Anyone familiar with Sault St Marie or Pembroke? There's a certain little town between Sault St Marie and Pembroke that was in our line of fire. We were hungry, and there, right there, was this wonderful little town...out of nowhere...with a marvelous little restaurant. And I do mean marvelous. The ambiance was great. The food was better. Cheap, too. I wish we didn't have so many miles to drive...I would have had a couple of beers and spent the night. Somewhere else...I don't think there was a hotel. Anyhow, the wife ordered fries with her meal, and thus began my revelation.

The ketchup...ah, the KETCHUP. Out of a squeeze bottle, just like my squeeze bottle home, came this glorious, smooth, sweet (with no after taste) ketchup. The ketchup of the gods. It's as though this waitress spent hours opening packets of ketchup to refill her "not packaged for resale" bottles, raided all the nearby boardwalks (there are no boardwalks, by the way), and delivered, for my french fry eating pleasure, the ketchup of my childhood. The ketchup that makes me think of sand and salt, or mom taking me for my McNuggets! Ketchup. Ahhhhhhhhh.

So what the heck?

A brief glance at the ingredients.....what's this? Liquid sugar? Liquid sugar? Where's my high fructose corn syrup?? Could this be the secret?

Yeah, you bet. High fructose corn syrup in your ketchup makes it taste like that garbage you have in you're refrigerator. You want it to taste good? Order you're ketchup from Canada. What's that you say? You don't want to order it from a distributor that will only sell it in cartons of 24? There's a solution.

Remember these words:

"Simply Heinz"

The Simply Heinz product is made with sugar. What's that? It's a new fangled substitute for high fructobladidiblah stuff. Yes, actual sugar. This is the ketchup I know and love.

For you hippies, there's a Heinz Organic as well.

The wife likes the Organic better. It's a bit thinner and has a stronger tomatoey flavor to it. The Simply Heinz has more of the "packet from the boardwalk" flavor to it (which I prefer). I now have both varieties in my fridge. The regular, ridiculously awful, Heinz merely languishes. We'll serve that to the guests at our next barbecue.

If I can save but one person from having to eat one more ruined french fry, I will have served my purpose on this planet.

[Rich Engelhardt]

I'll have to try it - the Simply Heinz.

My wife thinks I'm nuts because I won't touch anything other than Heinz.

Hunts - blech!!!!

Generic "house brand" - double blech!!!!

I guess I owe my wife an apology for even thinking - no matter how wistfully - that she'd been secretly sneaking other "stuff" into my half empty Heinz bottles ;)

[Mitchell Andrus]

John. Make your own.

http://www.pickyourown.org/ketchup.htm
http://www.seasonalchef.com/recipe0905e.htm
http://www.brooklynfarmhouse.com/2009/02/10/homemade-ketchup/

None of these are like the recipe my MIL used about 20 years ago. She had it in her head from when she was a girl on a farm, outhouse and all. It was pretty good as I remember. She only made it once.
.

[Gene Howe]

thanks for this post, John. I, too thought it was all in my mind.

[Zach England]

There are very few foods I HATE in all forms. They are, in order:

ketchup
mayonnaise
"miracle whip" (not sure that's food)



That's it I guess. I have never tried SPAM. I thought it was an urban legend until I was in my 20s and I went to Costco and saw it there. I honestly thought it didn't exist--that it was a joke like snipe hunting.

[Belinda Barfield]

Thanks so much for the info, John. When I was a very small child I ate ketchup on everything, even Cheetos. I actually had fries with my ketchup, not the other way around. When I was around five or so my evil cousin, Randy (may God rest his soul), told me that the key ingredient in ketchup was blood. :eek: I didn't touch ketchup again until about two years ago. Yes, I knew the truth much earlier but I couldn't remember why I liked ketchup. Now I'm a Heinz gal! Ditto on the Hunts = blech!!! I'll have to try Heinz in the little package as I must admit I have no idea if it tastes different. I will, however, defer to your wisdom on this.

[Kent A Bathurst]

John - thanks for the detailed alanysis. Much more useful than the 1,294th cabinet saw comparison. When are you tackling the store-bought versus ball park mustard conspiracy?

Zach - Dude. I think we need to see your birth certificate. If you ever head south to AZ, we'll have to put Sherrif Arpaio on your tail, and send you back wherever you came from. ;)

[Belinda Barfield]

John - thanks for the detailed alanysis. Much more useful than the 1,294th cabinet saw comparison. When are you tackling the store-bought versus ball park mustard conspiracy?

Zach - Dude. I think we need to see your birth certificate. If you ever head south to AZ, we'll have to put Sherrif Arpaio on your tail, and send you back wherever you came from. ;)


I think the mustard conspiracy should have it's own thread.

Kent, cut Young Zach a little slack! He's lived a very deprived life. He's never rolled change and cashed it in, and I bet he's never eaten Deviled Ham. :eek::D

[Mitchell Andrus]

Zack, dude.....

Spam. Slice it about 1/4", slowly fry it in butter til just a bit crusty. Serve on rye toast with mayo. Heart attack on a plate.

Really, Spam's not any worse than hot dogs, sausage, haggis, deviled ham.
.

[Zach England]

John - thanks for the detailed alanysis. Much more useful than the 1,294th cabinet saw comparison. When are you tackling the store-bought versus ball park mustard conspiracy?

Zach - Dude. I think we need to see your birth certificate. If you ever head south to AZ, we'll have to put Sherrif Arpaio on your tail, and send you back wherever you came from. ;)

I was actually born in Texas, if you can believe that.

[John Coloccia]

I think most, if not all, the packets today are HFCS these days. It's been a while since I've eaten fast food. I'm digging up memories from my childhood.

[Kent A Bathurst]

FYI - we are coming up on Vidalia Onion season not too long from now.

2 slices of bread. 1/2" slab of Vidalia onion. Lotsa mayo.

Lunch.

Beat that with a stick.

[Jerome Hanby]

FYI - we are coming up on Vidalia Onion season not too long from now.

2 slices of bread. 1/2" slab of Vidalia onion. Lotsa mayo.

Lunch.

Beat that with a stick.

You forgot the slab of home grown tomato still warm from where you pulled it off the vine! Life doesn't get much better.

[Belinda Barfield]

FYI - we are coming up on Vidalia Onion season not too long from now.

2 slices of bread. 1/2" slab of Vidalia onion. Lotsa mayo.

Lunch.

Beat that with a stick.


As a matter of fact, the Vidalia Onion Festival was a couple of weeks ago. Did you miss it, Kent?

[Art Mulder]

Yes, ketchup. This is a bit long winded. Please, bear with me.
...


If you want long winded on ketchup, you need to read Malcolm Gladwell's (He of "Outliers" and "Tipping Point" fame) article on ketchup (http://www.gladwell.com/2004/2004_09_06_a_ketchup.html).

(If you want to skip through, just read section 3, which talks a bit about the history of ketchup and how Heinz changed that, and section 4, which explains about the 5 primal tastes in the human palate)


If I can save but one person from having to eat one more ruined french fry, I will have served my purpose on this planet.
It's nice to have goals... :p


...art (who did not really know that his ketchup was any different than yours. I shall have to check the bottle ingredients. However I can say that "President's Choice" ketchup here is pretty close to Heinz.)

[Ben Franz]

I have to say, I respect anyone who can get fired up about something as basic as catsup. God is in the details! I had a friend once that collected mustard. She must have had 25 or 30 jars on hand and served it with almost everything. A few years ago I wanted to try making my own, just out of curiosity. I looked up recipes on eGullet and found some amazing threads with more information than I expected and some really creative mustards. I guess this topic caught my eye because it flies in the face of our modern, off the shelf, overly commercial, Costco-esque expectations.

Or, maybe, the catsup just tastes better. YMMV. :)

[Belinda Barfield]

I have to say, I respect anyone who can get fired up about something as basic as catsup. :)

Catsup . . . completely different from ketchup. :D

My aunt makes her own mayonnaise. It's more akin to something else, although I'm not sure what. It's very rich and very thick and I'm sure has more calories and fat than I'm allowed to have in an entire month.

BTW, very fresh white bread and Hellman's mayo on either side of a Dole pineapple ring. Yummy!! That's a good sammich! Peanut butter and honey runs a close second.

[Horton Brasses]

Pretty sure they sell ketchup with sugar at Whole Foods, probably some unsweetened overly healthy kinds too. Nevertheless, this is a good point and I will look for it. Now, if you're in Quebec eating fries: Did you get the poutine with your fries too? That stuff is good. Illegal in the USA, but delicious. I guess the rarity makes it tastier to me.

[Patrick Doody]

I think I read this on thegearpage this morning ;)

[Mike Cutler]

That's it I guess. I have never tried SPAM. I thought it was an urban legend until I was in my 20s and I went to Costco and saw it there. I honestly thought it didn't exist--that it was a joke like snipe hunting.

Uh-oh Zach. I got dispell another urban legend.
A Snipe is a migratory bird and there are hunting seasons for it. It is similar to a Woodcock but tends to fly low and away, whereas a Woodcock climbs in circles and drives your dog nuts.

[John Coloccia]

I think I read this on thegearpage this morning ;)

I've been known to cross-post :D

TGP brings out all the kooks. Great entertainment.

[Patrick Doody]

hehe, i thought i was going crazy for a minute there. Yeah the pub is funny, I don't even read any of the sub forums there anymore just the pub. I wonder what kind of ketchup John Mayer prefers?

[Mac McQuinn]

Just think, when you're sitting down at your local fast food burger joint.....
The Soda, Hamburger Bun and Ketchup are all fortified with HFCS and they say "safe in moderation"....moderation?:eek:

If you think your taste buds are getting old, try one of those Coca-Colas from Mexico....Good old cane sugar,:D All of a sudden you're 16 again and it's 1965....give or take:rolleyes:

Mac

[Doug W Swanson]

To me, Ketchup is not ketchup unless it is Heinz...

I have noticed a difference in the stuff from my fridge but it's still good!

Also, I love the Coke from Mexico. Our local Costco sells it by the case!

Spam is pretty good, too. Pan fried with a slice of Velveeta on white bread. Nummy!

JMHO!
Doug

[Mitchell Andrus]

Spam is pretty good, too. Pan fried with a slice of Velveeta.....

Velveeta. That's a kind of cheese, right?
.

[Kent A Bathurst]

You forgot the slab of home grown tomato still warm from where you pulled it off the vine! Life doesn't get much better.

Nope - I am a Vidalia Purist. Sorry, Jerome.

[Kent A Bathurst]

As a matter of fact, the Vidalia Onion Festival was a couple of weeks ago. Did you miss it, Kent?

Yeah - I missed it. Darn.

[Gene Howe]

You forgot the slab of home grown tomato still warm from where you pulled it off the vine! Life doesn't get much better.

Don't forget the Spam!

[Kent A Bathurst]

Velveeta. That's a kind of cheese, right?
.

Sorta. Comes from goats.

[Belinda Barfield]

Velveeta. That's a kind of cheese, right?
.

Not exactly. Velveeta is to cheese as Spam is to a good smoked Virginia ham. Although real cheese just doesn't work as well in sausage balls as Velveeta.

[Mitchell Andrus]

Sorta. Comes from goats.

Eat the box, feed the goo to the goats.
.

[Rich Engelhardt]

Nope - I am a Vidalia Purist.
LOL!
My wife thinks I'm from some other planet sometimes.

Eating one of my "Vidiala-which"'s is one of those times.

I slice off a couple of pieces of onion, then slice off one to stick in between them - dose of salt & I'm in heaven.

[Kent A Bathurst]

.......My wife thinks I'm from some other planet........

And your point is.....?:D

5 words that are the secret to long-term tranquility - "Yes, Dear. You're right, Dear."

[Eric DeSilva]

Although real cheese just doesn't work as well in sausage balls as Velveeta.

Wait. That sounds oddly tasty (or, perhaps I'm just hungry because my wife is visiting her sister and I'm eating three day old cold pizza).

How do you make 'em?

[Phil Thien]

If you think your taste buds are getting old, try one of those Coca-Colas from Mexico....Good old cane sugar,:D All of a sudden you're 16 again and it's 1965....give or take:rolleyes:

Mac

Now you're talking. I buy the tall bottles at my local specialty grocery store. They're glass (like they're supposed to be). About a buck a piece. I'm instantly transported to the early 70's.

[Michael Weber]

I prefer Delmonte (sp) . Was in Amsterdam recently and discovered the Dutch eat Mayonnaise on fries. Surprising good. Try it. Now I'm talking mayonnaise not Miracle Whip.

[Belinda Barfield]

Wait. That sounds oddly tasty (or, perhaps I'm just hungry because my wife is visiting her sister and I'm eating three day old cold pizza).

How do you make 'em?

Sorry, Eric, I'm just getting around to catching up on the Creek. Your wife is probably already home and you've had a decent meal by now. :D

I don't have the exact ingredient measurements in front of me but sausage balls are not rocket science. You'll need a one pound package of ground pork sausage (the better the brand the better the outcome), mild or hot - your choice, one regular size Velveeta cheese, and Bisquick.
If you want to use real cheese grate two cups or so of extra sharp cheddar, or cheese of your choice except Swiss or Provolone.

Remove the ground pork from the fridge about an hour before you want to start mixing the ingredients. Place the ground pork in a large bowl. Cut Velveeta into several chunks and add to the pork. Now comes the fun part - there is no other way to properly mix the pork and Velveeta than with your hands so get in there and smoosh it all up together until the Velveeta is incoporated into the pork. Add to this mixture 1/2 cup of Bisquick and repeat smooshing process, add another 1/2 cup and smoosh again. It should take about two cups of Bisquick, added 1/2 cup at a time, to get the proper consistency. The mixture should hold together and be relatively stiff.

Roll mixture into 1" balls and place on baking sheet. Bake at 350 for 20 to 25 minutes, or until brown. If you don't want to cook them immediately, or don't want to cook all of them, place the sausage balls on a wax paper coated baking sheet (if you have more than one layer separate them with wax paper), cover with plastic wrap and freeze. After freezing separate the into the serving size of your choice and store in the freezer in zip lock bags. Remove from freezer and bake when you need a snack. Baking
time will be a little longer since they are frozen.

CAUTION: this treat will not do your cholesterol numbers any good whatsoever.

If you like grits chop up the cook sausage balls in your grits and mix well . . . YUM!!

[Eric DeSilva]

CAUTION: this treat will not do your cholesterol numbers any good whatsoever.

Mmm. After the assault on my cholesterol from cooking Mother's Day dinner, this will be nuthin'. I made a Paul Prudhomme Cheesy-Chicken-Chili dish (what can you say about a dish that involves large quantities of fried chicken, heavy cream, sour cream, cheddar and monterey jack) and a lemon cheesecake for dessert. We were also snacking on aged gouda beforehand until the dog absconded with the 1lb block.

[Jon Lanier]

Don't upset Dragons, for you are crunchy and go good with (simply) ketchup!

[Bill Cunningham]

There's a certain little town between Sault St Marie and Pembroke that was in our line of fire.

Wow can you narrow it down a bit? that's 300+ miles between those towns/cities:D
If you really want to know about Canadian Ketchup, you gotta ask Stompin Tom..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rkZ62XvJHVQ

[John Coloccia]

Well, I did some searching. Do you have any idea how many things are named "Dragonfly" in Ontario? I do remember that was the name of the little cafe, though. I believe it's the one in Massey. That's the only one I can find that's about on our route. It's a bit west of Sudbury on 17.

Their food really was quite good considering that it's pretty much in the middle of nowhere.

[Bill Cunningham]

I'll have to keep that name in mind.. We get through that area every once in a while, and it's always nice to know where the food is good..

[John Coloccia]

I actually found a link:
http://www.dragonflyrestaurant.net/

That's definitely it.

[John Pratt]

News Flash. For those that like Heinz, heard today that they are going to change the recipe to make it a "healthier" food choice. I don't know what that will do to the taste, but why do they have to change what I like.

[Belinda Barfield]

News Flash. For those that like Heinz, heard today that they are going to change the recipe to make it a "healthier" food choice. I don't know what that will do to the taste, but why do they have to change what I like.

News flash . . . they're decreasing the sodium before they are forced to do so. :rolleyes:

[Darnell Hagen]

Welcome to the world of Canadian culinary delights. The ketchup is good, I also recommend the poutine, the Kraft Dinner, and to finish, the Coffee Crisp.

I heard that awhile back, about the sugar in Canadian ketchup. Apparently that's the reason why it needs to be "refrigerated after opening" here.

[John Coloccia]

Welcome to the world of Canadian culinary delights. The ketchup is good, I also recommend the poutine, the Kraft Dinner, and to finish, the Coffee Crisp.

I heard that awhile back, about the sugar in Canadian ketchup. Apparently that's the reason why it needs to be "refrigerated after opening" here.

The Simply Heinz and Organic Heinz products have expiration dates stamped on the cap. The regular Heinz, at least the one in my fridge, does not :)

[Dan Mages]

Ah... I remember the days when I was young and ketchup was a vegetable... Thank you President Regan!

I prefer Organic Heinz. It just tastes fresher. Regarding the reformulated version of Heinz, I have two words. New Coke.

Dan

[Bill Cunningham]

The Simply Heinz and Organic Heinz products have expiration dates stamped on the cap. The regular Heinz, at least the one in my fridge, does not :)

I'm not sure if I would like to eat 'anything' that does not come with a expiry date:eek: Or, for example something with a name like 'Cheese Food' as opposed to what? 'Cheese Paint"? Is Cheese food really food, or is it what you feed the cheese? Anything that is for human consumption/sustenance, yet has to be identified as 'food' in the name, is probably something that will cling to your arteries like snot on a finger tip.. Oooo maybe that pictures too vivid:rolleyes:

[Michael Trivette]

actually had an experation date

More of a guidline really.

as long as you arent more than 10 years out of date it should be fine

[Matt Walton]

Latecomer to this thread, but I going to comment on several different things that were discussed :)

First of all, there is a restaurant that has a location in Roanoke, TX called Twisted Root Burger Co. They make the best burger I have ever had (the western burger), and you can get it with curly fries which are amazing. Anyways, they make their own ketchup with ancho chiles.
Soda: Has anybody every had Jarritos sodas? They are Mexican sodas, and they have all kinds of wild flavors, like hibiscus and watermelon, the ones I can get come in a glass bottle, with a pop off cap, not a screw off. Speaking of which, pop off feel so much better when drinking them than screw of, I guess because of the thicker glass at the top.
Cheese: I am ashamed to have American cheese come from USA. Anything that says processed cheese food should have it in giant letters on the front, and maybe add a "like" in there as well "processed cheese like food". On the other side of the scale, there is fried homemade raw cheese. We have some friends out in McKinney, and they have cows (among other animals), so first they get milk (fresh raw milk = delicious), and then they make great cheese, and then they fry it. It's more of pan frying, not like the deep fried mozzarella sticks you get in resturants. Serve with lots of lime slices to squeeze yourself.

/rant

[John Coloccia]

There's a little diner out here called Shady Glen. Their specialty is cheese burgers with fried cheese. It's difficult to describe. I tried it once. Not my cup of tea, but it's certainly true that everything tastes better with fat. Ice cream tastes better with more fat. Heck, bacon fat tastes better with more bacon fat. LOL.

[Matt Walton]

Heck, bacon fat tastes better with more bacon fat. LOL.
Gee, I'll have to try that sometime.

Just curious, how many people's BORG stores have a hotdog stand outside? We have one outside every HD and Lowes around here.

[John Coloccia]

Gee, I'll have to try that sometime.

Just curious, how many people's BORG stores have a hotdog stand outside? We have one outside every HD and Lowes around here.

No hot dog stand, but my local HD has Dunkin Donuts in it.

[Rich Engelhardt]

I finally got around to trying the Simply Heinz.

WOW!!!!

Good stuff.

No aftertaste at all.

[Rick Markham]

Just think, when you're sitting down at your local fast food burger joint.....
The Soda, Hamburger Bun and Ketchup are all fortified with HFCS and they say "safe in moderation"....moderation?:eek:

If you think your taste buds are getting old, try one of those Coca-Colas from Mexico....Good old cane sugar,:D All of a sudden you're 16 again and it's 1965....give or take:rolleyes:

Mac

Mac, Coke hasn't done it yet, but Pepsi (which I absolutely hate) has started offering "throw back" products... aka made with sugar... Dr. Pepper tastes like it is freaking supposed to... it's really the only pepsi product I like. FWIW the throwback mountain dew even tastes good.

High fructose corn syrup has ruined alot of things. Having been a professional chef for many years, I have a beef with our society :D. Our craving for everything instantaneously and cheap has absolutely ruined what little true American cuisine there was. Can't get a hamburger from any major fast food restaurant that isn't "grey" after it is cooked. Burger King used to be "flame broiled" and they had broilers... now it is all just liquid smoke added in.

Don't even get me started on food...

Belinda, It's called Aioli... It's the real deal mayonaise and honestly it is probably better for you than the crap in a miracle whip jar, and even Hellmans, which is good stuff, but all the preservatives and stabilizers in everything ridiculous! If you want a true Aioli recipe, I will share ;) By the way, fresh basil Aioli, on just about ANY sandwich is AMAAAAAAAZING!!!

Kethchup honestly isn't really much my thing anymore, I will admit that on occasion I find it satisfying on my french fries. I don't eat it enough to buy it at the store, but will pick up a bottle of the Simply Heinz for my guests

[Glenn Vaughn]

If I can save but one person from having to eat one more ruined french fry, I will have served my purpose on this planet.

IMHO all french fries have been ruined since the switch to "healthy" cooking oils. In the good-old-days, when lard was used, deep fried foods tasted much better than they do now. Nowadays french fries become somewhat bitter as they cool down.

There are many things that are not as good as they used to be - usually because of the "new" methods of processing:

Whipping Cream - Why do they put skim milk into it? Only a few brands are just heavy cream (WalMart's Great Value is one and it is cheaper).

Tomatoes are picked green and don't taste the same after they are ripened.

Fruits are piucked before they are ripe so they can be shipped - once again the taste suffers. I have made 2 trips to Fiji and cannot stand most fruits here because of the poor flavor in comparison to the fresh picked fruits there.

Ham and bacon does n ot taste like ham any more - the water curing process just does not impart the flavor.

Chicken has a ton of liquid added to "enhance flavor".

Lots of beef as well has added liquid added. Even worse is the lack of aging of beef now. Aging reduces the liquid content and helps tenderize the beef.

I could go on and on but it depresses me.

[Rick Markham]

IMHO all french fries have been ruined since the switch to "healthy" cooking oils. In the good-old-days, when lard was used, deep fried foods tasted much better than they do now. Nowadays french fries become somewhat bitter as they cool down.

There are many things that are not as good as they used to be - usually because of the "new" methods of processing:

Whipping Cream - Why do they put skim milk into it? Only a few brands are just heavy cream (WalMart's Great Value is one and it is cheaper).

Tomatoes are picked green and don't taste the same after they are ripened.

Fruits are piucked before they are ripe so they can be shipped - once again the taste suffers. I have made 2 trips to Fiji and cannot stand most fruits here because of the poor flavor in comparison to the fresh picked fruits there.

Ham and bacon does n ot taste like ham any more - the water curing process just does not impart the flavor.

Chicken has a ton of liquid added to "enhance flavor".

Lots of beef as well has added liquid added. Even worse is the lack of aging of beef now. Aging reduces the liquid content and helps tenderize the beef.

I could go on and on but it depresses me.

Oh Glen... You've opened up my biggest pet peaves now... Tomatoes and Beef. If you notice the "vine ripened" ones don't taste the same either. Even the ones you plant at home don't taste the same as homegrown ones "used to" This is due to hybridization! They have been selectively bred to be pretty and round and not as easily bruised! Not for TASTE... Remember when tomatoes were big ugly funny shaped fruits, yes I went there, but they tasted amazing! The only way to get a decent tomato is to either grow an heirloom variety yourself, or find some local organic market that has them. Grrrrrr... tomatoes really burn me up... RUINED... RUINED I tell you!!!!

Beef is another one, ever since dry aging ceased to be common practice, and "wet aging" became industry standard the flavor has changed, as well as the tenderness. Less than 1% of beef is dry aged now... guess where it all goes... that's right 5 star restaurants! Most that serve that now, do it themselves. Honestly most people my age, and younger probably don't remember what dry aged beef tastes like. I do... It has an almost buttery flavor! Once again this is all done because of money. "Wet aging" is a total joke! The cow is slaughtered, the carcass is allowed to experience rigor, then it is cut and cryovac packaged. It is then "aged" for 30 days in the cryovac package. Essentially the biological action other than rigormortis is not allowed to happen. Dry aging causes the meat to lose 20-25% of its weight through loss of water. Thats 25% more they can charge you, and it requires an aging time 25% longer (6 Weeks)

My next rant is... the next time any of you buy beef at the giant superstore that's blue (not the borg) look at the label... a lot of their beef is injected it will say "contains up to 10% water" (or saline) can't remember which. Now that's why their beef tastes way different then everyone elses. The meat is pumped so they can legally (according to the FDA and USDA) add nitrites and Nitrates, which keep the beef rosy red longer than un injected meat. :mad:

[Charlie Reals]

I couldn't agree more Rick to take it a step further I would venture to say most folks under 45 have no idea what real chicken tastes like.:eek: I have a freezer full of real chicken:p

[Belinda Barfield]

Geez, now I'm so hungry!

I feel very fortunate to have grown up with a family that did things the "old fashioned" way. My parents always had a vegetable garden, including heirloom tomato varieties, so we ate fresh picked this morning veggies. One cousin had a dairy so, until the laws changed requiring pasturization of all milk products, we always had fresh whole milk. My great grandfather butchered his hogs and smoked hams, pork chops, sausage, etc. Another cousin still makes some of the best fresh and smoked sausage in the state. Long and short of it, I miss fresh, tasty food. It infuriates me to buy ground beef and then have to cook all the water out of it. It is completely tasteless unless "doctored".

[Matt Walton]

One cousin had a dairy so, until the laws changed requiring pasturization of all milk products, we always had fresh whole milk.
I'm not sure how the law works, but we have some friends who have a farm, and we get about 2 gallons of fresh whole milk a week. They also raised 200 chicks, and then put them in the freezer. Yeah. They're delicious.

[Charlie Reals]

I'm not sure how the law works, but we have some friends who have a farm, and we get about 2 gallons of fresh whole milk a week. They also raised 200 chicks, and then put them in the freezer. Yeah. They're delicious.
Usually the milk is pasteurized by the folks who bottle, not the Dairy. The dairy owner can give anything he wants to family and friends. I have been through this fight twice and won both times.
Boy howdy Matt, those table scrap fed chickens are good. Oh man what I'd give for fresh cream on cheerios :cool:

[Matt Walton]

Yeah, Boy!

[Belinda Barfield]

I'm not sure how the law works, but we have some friends who have a farm, and we get about 2 gallons of fresh whole milk a week. They also raised 200 chicks, and then put them in the freezer. Yeah. They're delicious.


Usually the milk is pasteurized by the folks who bottle, not the Dairy. The dairy owner can give anything he wants to family and friends. I have been through this fight twice and won both times.
Boy howdy Matt, those table scrap fed chickens are good. Oh man what I'd give for fresh cream on cheerios :cool:

Getting milk from the dairy was a number of years ago and I could very easily be confused on "the law". Something changed and my cousin could no longer sell "raw" milk. Maybe it had to be homogenized instead of pasteurized. Either way, we couldn't buy milk anymore. That fresh milk made the best chocolate milk in the world.

[Matt Walton]

Ok. I think what the law is, is that you have to pasteurize to sell, or that's what it officially is, anyways.

[Charlie Reals]

One dairy I worked on could only sell cream to the bottler, no whole milk. We separated it. The laws change so fast who really knows any more?

[Heather Thompson]

Food is a big issue for me, so is the environment, I helped my mom in the garden when I was three years old, we canned tomatoes, made fresh applesauce, cherry preserves, etc. Back then we used to go to Jim's Meat Market in Elmhurst to get good meat, that spoiled me for life. Today I grow all organic produce in Earth Boxes that are moved indoors in the cold months and put under grow lights that help with food in the winter. I buy all of our meat from a real old fashioned butcher in Elburn, the shop was there from 1904.

http://elburnmarket.com/about.htm

I also have a source for RAW milk within twenty miles of me, makes for a good bike ride with the trailer and ice chest in tow during the summer. I wish more people would stop buying industrial food and look at the issue of local and sustainable, it really makes a difference.

Heather

[Bill Cunningham]

We had a big court case around here a little while ago. A fellow was charged for selling raw milk, but he won his case. He had lots of cows, and he did not sell the milk, he sold shares in the cows, so everyone he was supplying milk to, was a owner of the cows. If you own the cow, you can drink 'whatever' comes out of it.. He is now legally supplying raw milk to members of his co-op cows.. This would scheme probably be legal in the U.S. too..

On the 'chicken' point, Some of the The KFC stores in Canada have changed their oil to a more 'healthy' oil. It tastes an awful lot like a lightweight machine oil smells.. Only one KFC in our area is using it, I don't buy there. Gee, now if you could only buy 'extra skin' :D