Food 11

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Hello!  Thanks for taking the time out of you’re busy schedules to listen to me.  Welcome to Food for Thought on 88.9 KUCI in Irvine.  Today I’m going to talk really softly really close to the microphone, can you hear me? Yeah, it’ll be like I’m whispering right into you’re ears This kind of makes me think of sometimes when I’m watching tv, and theres some kind of romantic scene and the woman is saying to the man to whisper sweet nothings into her ear, and I think that if that were me I’d would go up to her ear and say in a whisper… nothing!  Okay trying to talk softly time is over, semi regular voice now.  I say semi because usually except for Fridays at this time my regular voice is this… get it? I don’t talk very much outside this show.  First up for today…

25 things chefs never tell you

Do restaurants recycle the bread basket? Are most of us bad tippers? Food Network Magazine surveyed chefs across the country — anonymously — to find out everything we’ve always wanted to know.

Chefs are pickier than you think.
Liver, sea urchin, tofu, eggplant, and oysters, of all things, topped the list of foods chefs hate most. Only 15% of chefs surveyed said they’d eat absolutely anything.

Still, chefs hate picky eaters.
More than 60% said requests for substitutions are annoying. Some of their biggest pet peeves: When customers pretend to be allergic to an ingredient, and when vegetarians make up rules, like “a little chicken stock is OK.”

When eating out in other restaurants, chefs say they avoid pasta and chicken.
Why? These dishes are often the most overpriced (and least interesting) on the menu. Said one chef, “I won’t pay $24 for half a chicken breast.” Said another, “I want something I can’t make myself.”

Chefs have expensive taste.
The restaurant chefs most often cited as the best in the country was The French Laundry in California’s Napa Valley. It ought to be — dinner there is $240 per person, before wine.

...and yet they like fast food.
Their favorite chain: Wendy’s. Culinary degrees aren’t necessarily the norm. Just half the chefs surveyed graduated from a cooking school. The rest got their training the old-fashioned way, by working their way up through the kitchen ranks.

Critics trump movie stars in the VIP pecking order.
A whopping 71% of chefs said they give special treatment to restaurant critics when they spot them; only 63% do the same for celebrities. Making out in the bathroom is old news. More than half of the chefs have found customers kissing — and much more — in the restaurant loo.

Roaches are more common than you think.
Yes, 75% of chefs said they’ve seen roaches in the kitchen. And yet, chefs swear their kitchens are clean. On a scale of 1 to 10, 85% of chefs ranked their kitchens an 8 or higher for cleanliness.

Only 13% of chefs have seen a cook do unsavory things to a customer’s food.
The most unbelievable tale: “Someone once ran a steak through a dishwasher after the diner sent it back twice. Ironically, the customer was happy with it then.”

Your bread basket might be recycled.
Three chefs admitted that uneaten bread from one basket goes right into another one.

Chefs work hard for low pay.
The chefs we surveyed work between 60 and 80 hours a week and almost all of them work holidays. Sixty-five percent reported making less than $75,000 a year. Waiters take home an average of $662 a week, often tax free.

“Vegetarian” is open to interpretation.
About 15% of chefs said their vegetarian dishes might not be completely vegetarian. Beware if you’re one of those super-picky vegan types: One chef reported seeing a cook pour lamb’s blood into a vegan’s primavera.

Paying for a last-minute reservation probably won’t work.
Only one chef said bribes will help you score a table when the restaurant is fully booked; he suggested “promising to buy a bottle of Dom Pérignon or Opus One.” A better bet: Being buddies with the chef.

Menu “specials” are often experimental dishes.
Contrary to popular belief — that specials are just a chef’s way of using up old ingredients — most chefs said they use specials to try out new ideas or serve seasonal ingredients. Only five chefs admitted that they try to empty out the fridge with their nightly specials.

The appropriate tip is 20%...
That’s what chefs leave when they eat out, and it’s the amount they think is fair.

...unless the service is really poor.
An astounding 90% of chefs said it’s fair to penalize bad waiters with a smaller tip.

That rule about not ordering fish on Sunday might be worth following.
Several chefs warned, “We don’t get fresh deliveries on Sunday.”

Chefs hate working on New Year’s Eve more than any other holiday.
Valentine’s Day was a close second, but don’t take that to mean chefs aren’t romantic: 54% of those surveyed said they like it when couples get engaged in their restaurant.

They secretly want to be Alton or Giada.
Nearly 60% of chefs said they’d want their own cooking show.

Chefs cook when they’re sick.
It’s a long-standing tradition in the restaurant industry: Cooks report to duty unless they’re practically hospitalized. Half of those we surveyed said they come to work sick, and they stay there through injuries, too. Many chefs have cut themselves on the job, gone to get stitches, and returned to work to finish out the night. Accidents definitely happen: Almost every chef we surveyed has been injured on the job in some way, and several chefs said they’re missing parts of their fingers.

The five-second rule actually applies.
A quarter of the chefs surveyed said they’d pick up food that dropped on the floor and cook it.

Your waiter is trying to influence your order.
Almost every chef surveyed (95%) said he or she urges servers to steer customers toward specific dishes on the menu each night.

Restaurants mark up wine by a lot more than you might expect.
Most chefs said that a bottle on their wine list costs 2½ times what the same one would cost in a wine store.

There’s a reason so many restaurants serve molten chocolate cake.
More than 75% of chefs said they take inspiration from other restaurant menus.

Next topic for today: Food trucks: not just ice cream trucks or for construction workers, anymore.

You’ve probably seen the food network show with the cool looking food trucks with the awesome paint jobs, trying to sell really cool foods that you probably picture being sold in a trendy restaurant but never being sold in a food truck right?  Well it seems that food trucks are becoming increasingly popular, now some familiar restaurant chains are starting to get in on the trend and are buying brightly painted food trucks and parading them around various towns trying to get customers.  In Los Angeles well established and upscale restaurants like Canter’s Deli which has been a permanent fixture on Fairfax avenue since 1931 is now serving potato pancakes, and matzo ball soup from a truck, and the borders grill restaurants also have two truck of their own serving gourmet tamales in paper cups to try and make it more convenient for pedestrian customers to eat.

If you’re looking for something more sweet to eat then the sprinkles cupcake chain added a truck as a new addition to it’s chain of stores last year.

Fatburger franchises have seven trucks on order to use in the US, and over seas thought I wasn’t aware the Fat burger had franchises in other countries. Johnny Rockets has one in Washington DC with plans for more around the country.

These mobile kitchens from established restaurants are nosing into line alongside vehicles run by renegade chefs, when I hear or read the words renegade chef I imagine some sort of action movie or TV show It would make a cool title to a movie.  Any way the restaurant chain trucks are offering food designed in corporate kitchens to compete with the wild and crazy offerings that have created buzz among foodies from coast to coast.

Culver City based Sizzler USA has ordered one truck to start an hopes to put more on the streets if it’s successful Sizzler will supposedly be trying to come up with types of food to offer during the 10 week period it will take to outfit the truck, some of the possibilities include their steaks dishes, fish and chips, and tri-tip sandwiches.

Catering trucks have long been lunch, and break time fixtures at factories, offices, and construction sites that didn’t have restaurants nearby.  The food of course wasn’t gourmet quality, usually stuff like instant ramen, or regular hot dogs, and chips, and soda.  Or they were ice cream trucks that catered to kids, and ice cream loving teens, college students like me, and adults.  There weren’t really any ice cream trucks in my neighbor hood since they seem to hang around lower income areas but whenever I was in a park or at a high school cross country meet I would go and get something. 

These catering trucks, and Ice cream trucks of course was the origins of the food truck but then the image was turned on it’s head in 2008 when chef Roy Choi hit the streets of LA with Kogi offering high-end combinations of Korean, Mexican and other ethnic foods.

Today about 4,000 food trucks are licensed to do business in LA county.  Roughly about 115 are the ones that are considered gourmet run by ambitious, and innovative renegade chefs that offer unique, and unusual foods and use twitter to let customers know where they’re parking on any given time, and day.  Which of course is why they’re popularity is on the rise since they’re new chef’s can use them to show they’re talent since it’s harder to be recognized when you’re working in the back of a restaurant with a bunch of other chefs while in a food truck the kitchen is right there and people can see you and there’s probably less people working with you, and if business is slow you can drive somewhere else. Food trucks allow also restaurants to bring food to people in congested areas or places that can’t support an actual stationary restaurant.  Though many of the independent, and renegade chefs with independent trucks eventually hope go mainstream and start their own actual restaurants which will probably sell the same things that they sell on their trucks plus more

The trend of course as I mentioned before has gone national thanks to the food network reality show where the seven teams drive around the country to make the best food and win over the most customers.  And since there seems to be a lot of benefits to this style of restaurant it’ll be here to stay at least for a decade or so.

Last week the California restaurant association held a meeting in Sacramento for restaurant owners and food truck owners.  The goal was to settle some tensions between the two factions since the restaurants see the trucks as siphoning off business.  But the other goal was to help get those restaurants into the truck business since they’re probably just jealous because they don’t have trucks.

The president of the restaurant association Jot Condie said that launching a truck is cheaper than setting up a stationary restaurant.  So a company that wanted to expand into a new town could send a truck there first to see if the residents like it or not.  Kind of like sending a spy or a scout to get info on the town.

This obviously means that for people in the food truck making industry, business is booming.  Arthur Djahani whose family owns Armenco Catering truck  Manufacturing in sun valley said that these days he receives 50-100 inquiries a week up from about only a dozen a week before the trend 2 years ago.  This is the company that’s making the truck for sizzler and has fielded inquiries from representatives of Shakey’s pizza, Poquito Mas, Johnny Rockets, and Koo Koo Roo.  Elma Eaton, co-owner of California Cart builder in Lake Elsinore said her company has out fitted 70 custom trucks over the last 18 months, putting in stoves, ovens, and cash registers.  This is the company that made seven for a fat burger franchise in Dubai, and the subway restaurants in Arizona.

Soon Southern California will be full of food trucks ranging from cheap non gourmet food to very high end exotic gourmet foods, and people in Southern California will be able to buy barbecued beef from a sizzler truck or a foot long from subway.

We’ll be right back after a short break… Welcome back everyone!  For those of you just tuning in this is food for thought on 88.9 KUCI.  We just talked about some thing’s chef’s won’t tell you, and food phobias Now here’s…

Food expiration dates: What do they really mean?

Are you one of those people who pour the milk down the drain on the expiration date?

Expiration dates on food products can protect consumer health, but those dates are really more about quality than safety, and if not properly understood, they can also encourage consumers to discard food that is perfectly safe to eat.

A recent poll of more than 2,000 adults showed that most of us discard food we believe is unsafe to eat, which is a good thing, of course, but it is important that we understand what food expiration dates mean before we dump our food -- and our money -- down the drain or into the garbage. On average, in the U.S. we waste about 14% of the food we buy each year. The average American family of four throws out around $600 worth of groceries every year. 

Which five foods are most often feared as being unsafe after the printed date? According to ShelfLifeAdvice.com, we are most wary of milk, cottage cheese, mayonnaise, yogurt, and eggs, and the site offers these helpful explanations:

·         Milk: If properly refrigerated, milk will remain safe, nutritious, and tasty for about a week after the sell-by date and will probably be safe to drink longer than that, though there’s a decline in nutritional value and taste.

·         Cottage cheese: Pasteurized cottage cheese lasts for 10-14 days after the date on the carton.

·         Mayonnaise: Unopened, refrigerated Kraft mayonnaise can be kept for 30 days after its expiration date or 3-4 months after opening, the company told ShelfLifeAdvice.

·         Yogurt: Yogurt will remain good 7-10 days after its sell-by date.

·         Eggs: Properly refrigerated eggs should last at least 3-5 weeks after the sell-by date, according to Professor Joe Regenstein, a food scientist at Cornell University. Note: Use of either a sell-by or expiration (EXP) date is not federally required, but may be state required, as defined by the egg laws in the state where the eggs are marketed.

The “Use-By” Date

The “use-by” or “best if used-by” date indicates the last day that the item is at its best quality as far as taste, texture, appearance, odor, and nutritional value. The decline after that is gradual. The use-by date refers to product that has not yet been opened.

The “Sell By” Date

The “sell by” date is not really a matter of food safety, but a notice to stores that the product should be taken off the shelf because it will begin to decline in quality after that date.

The Law

From the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA): “Product dating is not generally required by federal regulations. However, if a calendar date is used, it must express both the month and day of the month (and the year, in the case of shelf-stable and frozen products). If a calendar date is shown, immediately adjacent to the date must be a phrase explaining the meaning of that date such as "sell-by" or "use before."

There is no uniform or universally accepted system used for food dating in the United States. Although dating of some foods is required by more than 20 states, there are areas of the country where much of the food supply has some type of open date and other areas where almost no food is dated.”

Food-Borne Illness

Cross-contamination and unsanitary conditions are a primary cause of food-related illnesses, whether it occurs in the home or in a restaurant, and this is independent of any expiration date. The leading culprits are:

·         Improper hand-washing prior to food preparation.

·         Storing food at the wrong temperature.

·         Cooking food to an inadequate temperature.

·         Cross-contamination (raw meats that come into contact with salads, for instance).

·         Improper washing of fresh produce.

The Yuck Factor: Common Sense Approach to Food Safety

Aside from any expiration date or lack thereof, if a food item is moldy or if it smells and looks spoiled, err on the side of caution. If it makes you say, “yuck,” throw it away.

Honey Is…

Honey is honey, it’s just that simple.  A bottle of pure honey contains the natural sweet substance produced by honey bees from the nectar of plants or secretions of living parts of plants.  Nothing else.

When scientists begin to look for all of the elements found in this wonderful product of nature, they find a complex of naturally flavored sugars as well as trace enzymes, minerals, vitamins, and amino acids. Honey is made by bees in one of the world’s most efficient facilities, the beehive.  The 60,000 or so bees in a beehive may collectively travel as much as 55,000 miles and visit more than two million flowers to gather enough nectar to make just a pound of honey!

The color and flavor of honey differ depending on the bees’ nectar source (the blossoms).  In fact, there are more than 300 unique kinds of honey in the United States, originating from such diverse floral sources as Clover, Eucalyptus and Orange Blossoms.  In general, lighter colored honeys are mild in flavor, while darker honeys are usually more robust in flavor.

The Delicious Forms of Honey

Most of us know honey as a sweet, golden liquid. However, honey can be found in a variety of forms.

• Comb Honey - Comb honey is honey in its original form; that is, honey inside of the honeycomb.  The beeswax comb is edible!
• Cut Comb - Cut comb honey is liquid honey that has added chunks of the honey comb in the jar. This is also known as a liquid-cut comb combination.
• Liquid Honey - Free of visible crystals, liquid honey is extracted from the honey comb by centrifugal force, gravity or straining. Because liquid honey mixes easily into a variety of foods, it’s especially convenient for cooking and baking. Most of the honey produced in the United States is sold in the liquid form.
• Naturally Crystallized Honey - Naturally crystallized honey is honey in which part of the glucose content has spontaneously crystallized.  It is safe to eat.
• Whipped (or Cremed) Honey - While all honey will crystallize in time, whipped honey (also known as cremed honey) is brought to market in a crystallized state. The crystallization is controlled so that, at room temperature, the honey can be spread like butter or jelly. In many countries around the world, whipped honey is preferred to the liquid form especially at breakfast time.

Honey Color and Flavor

Honey is normally bought and sold in one of two ways: by variety or by color.  Most consumers, whether buying honey in a supermarket, at a farmer’s market, or directly from a beekeeper, will typically buy either a blend of pure honeys, the so-called Supermarket Store Brands or a particular honey varietal, such as the most common of all the varietals, Clover Honey.  The color and flavor of many honeys are linked; that is, the darker the honey, the more apt it is to taste stronger and more robust. The lighter colored honeys are usually more delicate and sweeter in flavor.  Sometimes people shop for a honey varietal simply because they like the flavor or it reminds them of the kind of honey they had when growing up or they like to impress their friends with a unique treasure!  Overall, these customers like the delicious flavors of honey; the color is irrelevant to them.

However industrial users, such as bakers, food processors, and beverage makers, will often buy honey by color.  Industrial users are typically driven by ingredient cost. The industrial users will often contact a major honey packer (bottler) and buy in large totes or 55 gallon drums.  While they want pure honey in the formulas, of course, they want the honey as an ingredient more for labeling purposes than for variety.  In addition, the functional aspects of the honey, for example, as an ingredient used in baking, doesn’t much change if the honey is light or dark.  Honey is hygroscopic and attracts moisture to the bread or dessert – a very valuable trait in baking.  Generally speaking a very light colored honey is much more expensive than a dark honey.  The baking company may specify a darker color grade such as amber honey, rather than a lighter colored honey such as a water-white honey.

A question that is often asked is how industrial grade honey is “made?”  Most people understand how bees will visit a particular field of flowers to get a certain variety, e.g. Sage honey, but they can’t quite understand how an Extra Light Amber color of honey is found.  Actually, the answer is rather simple. 

Many commercial beekeepers, rather than keeping track of to what flowers their bees might go, are simply content to collect whatever honey the bees bring in at the end of a season.  It’s a little more scientific than that, of course, but at the end of the season or month, or whatever the time period, the honey is collected and graded by color. 

One last quick point: we are amazed at the fact that there are more than 300 varieties of honey found in the United States.  However, only a small percentage of those honeys are popular.  It sometimes takes more of an effort to market a particular variety, e.g. Huajillo or Sunflower, than to simply collect those honeys and grade them into amber and extra light amber honey for industrial usage.

Honey Products

Honey products do not meet the compositional criteria for pure honey, but are products consisting in whole or in part of honey.

• Dried Honey - Dried honey is honey that has been dehydrated over very high heat, then mixed with starches or sugars to keep it free-flowing. It is not true honey.
• Flavored/Fruited Honey – Flavored or Fruited honey is honey that has either fruit, coloring or flavoring added. Though the fruits or flavoring may be quite delicious it is not pure.
• Infused Honey - Infused honey is honey that has had flavors of herbs, spices, peels, etc. added to it by steeping.

Specially Certified Honey

• Kosher Honey - Kosher honey is honey that is produced, processed and packaged in accordance with Jewish dietary regulations and certified by a Kosher organization.
• Organic Honey - Organic honey is honey that is produced, processed and packaged in accordance with USDA regulations on organic products and certified by a USDA certified agency or organization.

The Many Benefits of Honey

In addition to being a great natural sweetener, honey has a multitude of benefits that many people don’t know about.  Have you ever had an unrelenting sore throat? Honey has been proven to be a natural throat soother! Are you an athlete looking for a natural energy boost before the big game? Honey’s unique blend of natural sweeteners gives it the ability to provide quick energy in any circumstance. This section of the Web site will allow you to further explore these and other benefits of honey, and will also be a source for nutrition facts on this pure, natural sweetener.

Cosmetics

Honey Is A Sweet Treat For Skin

Manufacturers have used honey in everything from hand lotions and moisturizers to bar soaps and bubble baths. One reason they use honey is for its wholesome, all-natural image; more and more consumers are demanding cosmetics and personal care products made from natural ingredients. In the case of honey, however, image is just the beginning.

First, honey is a humectant, which means it attracts and retains moisture. This makes honey a natural fit in a variety of moisturizing products including cleansers, creams, shampoos and conditioners. It’s also got some anti-microbial properties.

Look for honey in store-bought beauty products or simply add a squeeze of honey to your moisturizer, shampoo or soap at home.  For some extra pampering, try whipping up a simple recipe yourself.

We also recommend the following tips for keeping skin at its pure and natural best.

• Protect Skin from the Sun: Use sunblock every day - not just when it’s sunny. Apply sunscreen 30 to 40 minutes before exposure to allow active ingredients to begin working.
• Cleanse Twice Daily: Cleansing in the morning removes waste excreted during the skin’s nocturnal self-cleansing process. In the evening, it ensures removal dirt, oil and makeup.
• Get Adequate Sleep: Your skin will tell you if you’re sleep deprived. Without adequate sleep, your body can’t restore and repair itself. Not only will you live longer, your skin will look better, too!
• Reduce Stress: Stress ages body tissue - especially skin tissue. Exercise, massage therapy, yoga, aromatherapy and meditation are highly effective against stress.

Natural Energy

Honey… Natural Energy

Honey is also a rich source of carbohydrates, providing 17 grams per tablespoon, which makes it ideal for your working muscles since carbohydrates are the primary fuel the body uses for energy. Carbohydrates are necessary in the diet to help maintain muscle glycogen, also known as stored carbohydrates, which are the most important fuel source for athletes to help them keep going. 

Whether you’re looking for an energy boost or just a sweet reward after a long workout, honey is a quick, easy, and delicious all-natural energy source!

Honey as an Athletic Aid

Pre-exercise: For years, sports nutritionists have recommended eating carbohydrates before an athletic activity for an added energy boost.  As with many carbohydrates, pure honey may be an effective form to ingest just prior to exercise. When honey is eaten before a workout or athletic activity, it is released into the system at a steady rate throughout the event.

During Exercise: Consuming carbohydrates, such as honey, during a workout helps your muscles stay nourished longer and delays fatigue, versus not using any aid or supplement. Next time you reach for a simple bottle of water, add some honey to it – it might give you that much-needed athletic boost!

Post-exercise: An optimal recovery plan is essential for any athlete. Research shows that ingesting a combination of carbohydrates and protein immediately following exercise (within 30 minutes) is ideal to refuel and decrease delayed-onset muscle soreness. Therefore, honey is a great source of carbohydrate to combine with post-workout protein supplements.  In addition to promoting muscle recuperation and glycogen restoration, carb-protein combinations sustain favorable blood sugar concentrations after training.

Usage Tips

When planning your athletic training program, remember that honey is a rich source of carbohydrates, providing 17 grams at just 64 calories per tablespoon. Combining honey with fruits, vegetables, lean meats, whole grains and other healthful foods can add to your total nutrition and give you a great natural energy boost. Try these tips to fuel your diet with the sweet goodness of honey!

• Staying hydrated is one of the most important tools for an athlete. Simply add honey to your bottle of water for an energy boost during your next workout.
• Snacks are a great way to add extra fruits and vegetables to your diet. Try mixing peanut butter and honey, or honey and light cream cheese, as a dip for fresh fruits or vegetables.
• Peanut butter and honey sandwiches on whole wheat bread are a great, high-energy snack to provide a good combination of carbohydrates, protein and fat.
• Since honey is a convenient, portable source of energy, take it with you for tournaments and long periods of activity to help sustain your energy levels.

Natural Throat Soother

Honey has been used as a home remedy for centuries to help alleviate some of the symptoms associated with a common cold. According to the American Association of Family Physicians, many things can cause a sore throat. These include infections with viruses, such as colds and flu; sinus drainage; allergies; or cigarette smoking, among others. Sore throats caused by bacteria such as streptococci, are usually treated with antibiotics. Always check with your doctor if you have a fever, or if symptoms continue for more than a few days.

Time is the most important healer of sore throats caused by viruses, but for relief of the irritating symptoms, try a spoonful of honey to soothe and coat your throat. Take a spoonful straight, as often as you need, to relieve the irritation. In between, keep up your liquids with a steaming cup of tea sweetened with honey. For added vitamin C, try mixing in orange, grapefruit or lemon juice.

A new study by a Penn State College of Medicine research team found that honey may offer parents an effective and safe alternative to over-the-counter cough medicine. The study found that a small dose of buckwheat honey given before bedtime provided better relief of nighttime cough and sleep difficulty in children than no treatment or dextromethorphan (DM), a cough suppressant found in many over-the-counter cold medications.

Be aware, of course, that honey should not be fed to infants under one year of age. Honey is a safe and wholesome food for older children and adults.

Nutrition Facts

Honey is composed primarily of carbohydrates (natural sugars) and water, as well as trace enzymes, minerals, vitamins, and amino acids. Providing 17 grams of carbohydrates and 64 calories per tablespoon, honey is an all-natural sweetener without any added ingredients.

Honey also contains a variety of flavonoids and phenolic acids, which act as antioxidants, scavenging and eliminating free radicals. Generally, darker honeys have higher antioxidant content than lighter honeys.

For a complete nutrient listing, please visit USDA’s National Nutrient Database, http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/search/.

Well that’s our show thanks for tuning in and listening! Up next is the OC show so you can stay tuned if you want.  As for me, I’m out of here!