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Chocolate Tasting Techniques
First of all start with an empty stomach. This has never been too much of a stretch for me, I am always willing to sample chocolate before dinner. Next, have the chocolate at the recommended 66-77 °F. Finally allow the chocolate to sit in your mouth...
Don't Burn It - Roast It!
Despite plenty of evidence to the contrary, I still see recipes that insist you should cook meat at high temperature for the first twenty minutes or so to seal it and then lower the level for the rest of the cooking time.
This has become the...
Holiday Ham: Tips for Choosing
The holiday ham is the traditional centerpiece for Easter, Christmas, and other holiday gatherings. Almost any special meal warrants a holiday ham. Many options are available in choosing a holiday ham and in the quest to make the choice your holiday...
Need a New Recipe?
Are you tired of cooking the same old food day after day? Is
your freezer stocked with the usual items of hamburger, chicken,
and roast? Do the kids clamor to eat out rather than enjoy one
of your home-cooked meals? If so, you may be searching...
Russian Cuisine
Let them eat cake.
So said Marie Antoinette, Queen of France, upon being told that the peasants were rioting in the streets because they had no bread. It has been cited for over two centuries as an indictment of the arrogance of the aristocracy -...
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The French Paradox
The French, in terms of diet and disease, are a statistical enigma. They relish high fat food, consume alcohol regularly and often smoke - the very picture of the World Health Organisation's 'risk group'. High protein, meat based meals include duck, goose and pork - even cooked in fat as a preference! Butter, cream, pork fat and wine are regular ingredients.
Yet they have comparatively low rates of stomach and colon cancer and the second-lowest world incidence of heart disease after Japan. 'The French Paradox' is well known to nutritionists and reasons for this statistical enigma are emerging.
One of their pet names for the English is 'Les Ros Bif', in reference to the traditional overcooked Sunday roast dinner. French cooking is much lighter than British, leaving many of the valuable nutrients in the food, rather than throwing them out with the pan water. The French relish their food and eat widely, they often take the trouble to prepare meals from fresh, home-grown, organic produce, meaning they get more minerals and nutrients from food.
They also mix food elements to compliment each other, from a very wide base of ingredients that change with the seasons. High protein dishes are accompanied by generous salads and nutritious, easily assimilated soups are popular. Dried broad beans and chick peas are also part of winter staples, adding anti-oxidant beans and pulses to a wide diet. It is a well celebrated fact that the French eat everything!
Polyphenols in red wine and the intelligent French use of herbs in cooking help to break down fats in the food and aid digestion. Alcohol licensing laws in France also mean that
they tend not to 'binge drink' as much as countries with more restrictive licensing laws. The anti-oxidant properties of red wine in its moderate but steady intake are a contributing factor to French health.
Research in McDonalds restaurants in France also reveals interesting evidence. It was found in America that the average time it took a person to consume a burger was 11 minutes. In France this doubled to 22 minutes. In France eating is often a cultural and family activity. They take their time eating and conversation is an important part of sharing food. They make eating into a quality time. The French diet is 'Epicurean' compared to the American 'convenience' diet, where cheap, snack food is widely available wherever you go. The car centred culture of America also means its inhabitants sometimes lack exercise.
The French have an attitude to eating that is not fixated on health or medicalising food, just simple enjoyment of wholesome and fresh ingredients prepared well. People in rural France often value the whole process of food from growing it right through to preparing and eating. It is no surprise that internationally known French phrases include such as 'Bon appetit' or 'Joi de vivre'.
About the Author
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