What's in a McNugget and other fun food facts

[Hawkbit]

I've quit smoking, I've quit drinking (for the most part).  I've quit using drugs.  Hell, I've even cut out soda. 

I'll be damned if anyone is taking my black coffee.  From my cold, dead hands, motherfuckers. 

[Merusk]

Fuck nuking baked potatoes.  Stove or gtfo.  That is all. 

Microwave for 3 mins then convection oven for 15 > oven for 60-90 min and tastes the same.  Still get the crispy skin, too.

Oh, and everything's going to kill you.  It doesn't matter. We've spread chems across so much of the environment that there's no avoiding them. We just don't have old food to compare it to and scare the shit out of ourselves. 

[ghost]

It's really not that hard to cook decent food at home.  We both work and can generally manage to cook something decent for us and the kids in the time between getting home from work and bedtime for the boys.  Roasted veggies and potatoes the way Nebu described are pretty easy, and stir frying up some chicken takes no time at all.  I just can't bring myself to feed that fast food shit to them.  We will, on occasion, get Chipotle for dinner or Chick Fila, but that is pretty much the extent of our fast food eating. 

[Sheepherder]

Well, that one's not their fault, but fuck me.

The concern there is a tad overwrought.  Some of the most potent carcinogens in, for example, wood smoke (or tobacco, for that matter) are due to a process called pyrolysis: exposure to heat insufficient to cause oxidization but sufficient to cause other chemical changes.  Or, you know, cooking.

Humanity has had millenia to evolve some defenses against eating acrolein as a result of scorching food cooked in animal fat over an open fire before we ever though to use it to gas the poor fuckers manning the trenches on the western front.

[hal]

Your missing out if you don't nuke potatoes for baked. I mean if you look at the energy your buying nuking is free. Bake if you have invested in the natural gas/electric comp. 3 min 4 for huge and there done. In reality using air for heat transerir is the lose. Mike is much more efficient if your trying to heat something up.

[rattran]

Could you repeat that, in English?

[ezrast]

Conventional ovens are comparatively energy-inefficient.

[Tale]

Your missing out if you don't nuke potatoes for baked.

I have a thing called "The Potato Pot", given to me for my birthday, which works miracles with potatoes in the microwave. It's basically just a clay pot with a clay lid. Fill it with potatoes, microwave on high for 10 minutes, and they're perfect. None of the tough/leathery/soggy effect a microwave can have. They taste like they were steamed.

[Simond]

If McNuggets don't come from that any more I'm sure there's something equally repulsive that they're doing to the meat.  I don't even want to think about what's in the McRib.

We've already been over that. 

[TripleDES]

If people knew how everything's made, they'd starve to death. Anyone living in or around Germany probably heard the name Zentis, some fairly big manufacturer of jam, and shit like that. I've heard enough stories from a friend working there, about how bug infested it is and how the hygiene is handled. That still doesn't keep me from buying their shit, because other manufacturers are the same. I'd not eat a drop of mass produced jam ever again, were it that way.

It's that way in practically every industry. Myself I work in cable manufacturing. My company's one of the very few in Europe that manufacturers cabling for nuclear power plants. We have the LOCA certification (Loss of control accident, nice eh?) and give a guarantee of 40 years on them. Now if you knew what kludging's involved in the production of these, you'd become a radical treehugger stat.

And if it isn't shitty procedure and hygiene in production, it's science that shits on your plate. The most recent news is that processed meat increases the chances of pancreatic cancer considerably. Just when I finally started seemingly eating more "healthy" breakfasts, i.e. ham instead of Nutella and shit like that, they tell me my unhealthy ways were better.

[Merusk]

It's an interesting cycle, to be sure.  The more we remove ourselves from the preparation the more we get disgusted by the process and want to remove ourselves and ignore it, allowing the process to become even more disgusting and unhealthy.

[TripleDES]

Inconveniencing one self could improve things. Like buying from a butcher or a local vegetable and fruit store. But it stops at some products. I don't see anyone locally who makes jam or cheese for instance.

[Merusk]

Jam and Jellies are easy to do. Voodoolilly posts about doing it quite often on Facebook when items are in season.  My mom used to do it and pickles every two years or so as well.  Certainly something to look at doing if you're concerned about it.

Cheese, yeah, but so long as you're buying non-processed cheese or "cheese food" products you should be good.  Not that large amounts of cheese are good for you anyway.

[Fordel]

I wouldn't call it 'easy'. It's a lot of fucking labor to pickle/jar on any useful scale.

[Sheepherder]

Cheese, yeah, but so long as you're buying non-processed cheese or "cheese food" products you should be good.  Not that large amounts of cheese are good for you anyway.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/6413146/Eating-more-cheese-can-help-fat-people-lose-weight-study-claims.html

[TripleDES]

Holy shit I'm buying a whole damn wheel of cheese right now!

[MuffinMan]

For all we know about healthy eating, we don't know shit.

[Tale]

Cheese, yeah, but so long as you're buying non-processed cheese or "cheese food" products you should be good.  Not that large amounts of cheese are good for you anyway.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/6413146/Eating-more-cheese-can-help-fat-people-lose-weight-study-claims.html

"as long as during the weight loss period total energy intake is less than their requirements"

Meaning you have to keep doing a fuckload of exercise to burn off all the cheese fat, while eating less of it than you feel like eating. And then, only then, does it help you lose weight and keep it off.

Like when I cycled across France. Twice. Eating brie and camembert. And lost weight omg.

[Merusk]

Cheese, yeah, but so long as you're buying non-processed cheese or "cheese food" products you should be good.  Not that large amounts of cheese are good for you anyway.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/6413146/Eating-more-cheese-can-help-fat-people-lose-weight-study-claims.html

"as long as during the weight loss period total energy intake is less than their requirements"

Meaning you have to keep doing a fuckload of exercise to burn off all the cheese fat, while eating less of it than you feel like eating. And then, only then, does it help you lose weight and keep it off.

Like when I cycled across France. Twice. Eating brie and camembert. And lost weight omg.

Or.. "so long as calorie intake is less than energy expended."  Shit, why has nobody come on this before?  Eat fewer calories than you burn and you lose weight?! No Wai!

I didn't mean you'd get fat.. I was referring to other issues, like binding-up.

[apocrypha]

Re: the convenience thing.

I've long advocated that the best way to improve people's diets is to reduce working hours and increase pay. That would be massively more effective than any punitive taxation of unhealthy foods, education campaigns or Jamie fucking Oliver TV shows.

Universal free childcare would also have a huge impact on people's ability to cook proper meals.

[Sheepherder]

Meaning you have to keep doing a fuckload of exercise to burn off all the cheese fat, while eating less of it than you feel like eating. And then, only then, does it help you lose weight and keep it off.

Read the article again.

I didn't mean you'd get fat.. I was referring to other issues, like binding-up.

Yeah, I wouldn't be eating bricks of cheese.

[ghost]

Universal free childcare would also have a huge impact on people's ability to cook proper meals.

Discussion of this will circle into politics, but do you realize how unfeasible this really is? 

[Mosesandstick]

I believe quite a few European countries provide what we'd consider unbelievable amounts of childcare support. The theory is a woman's working wage will pay for childcare and then some.

[ghost]

I believe quite a few European countries provide what we'd consider unbelievable amounts of childcare support. The theory is a woman's working wage will pay for childcare and then some.

I understand the theory and I suspect that most here would agree with the sentiment.  However, I would personally like a gold plated Bentley.  It's just not going to happen.   

[Sky]

Inconveniencing one self could improve things. Like buying from a butcher or a local vegetable and fruit store. But it stops at some products. I don't see anyone locally who makes jam or cheese for instance.

My favorite cheese (bacon horseradish cheddar) is made about ten minutes from here and there is a fantastic mozzarella shop here in town. Jams and jellies are very common locally, from kitchens/small business/orchards/etc.

Potatoes: red potatoes steamed in the microwave in an olive oil/herb mix, then browned in the oven at high heat. Awesome crunchy outside and creamy interior.

As far as gross mass production: http://bottomline.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/05/9980804-mountain-dew-offers-odd-defense-in-mouse-charge

[01101010]

Inconveniencing one self could improve things. Like buying from a butcher or a local vegetable and fruit store. But it stops at some products. I don't see anyone locally who makes jam or cheese for instance.

My favorite cheese (bacon horseradish cheddar) is made about ten minutes from here and there is a fantastic mozzarella shop here in town. Jams and jellies are very common locally, from kitchens/small business/orchards/etc.

Potatoes: red potatoes steamed in the microwave in an olive oil/herb mix, then browned in the oven at high heat. Awesome crunchy outside and creamy interior.

As far as gross mass production: http://bottomline.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/05/9980804-mountain-dew-offers-odd-defense-in-mouse-charge

I loved that Mt.Dew article. Both shock factor and factual. The more you ingest of it, the greater your tolerances to the poison. Does wonders for Iocane!

[Der Helm]

He suggested minimizing the contact between the juice and your teeth by taking large gulps rather than small, frequent sips, then washing your mouth out with water.

My favourite part of that article.

[Merusk]

I've heard that quite often from my hygienist and dentist over the last several years because of my love for acidic beverages like OJ and grapefruit juice.  It's eating the fuck out of my teeth and apparently rinsing or just not drinking them are the only solutions.

[Mrbloodworth]

Me too. I fucking love my juice too. Dammit.

[ghost]

Juice is tasty, but its really just not that good for you.  There is an extremely high content of sugar which contributes to obesity and diabetes.  In addition, there are some very questionable methods of production for juice, and you tend to see things like arsenic and other strange chemicals in the juices.  Then there's the dental effects as well.  Juices are so high in sugar that they greatly contribute to decay rates and the erosion that you are seeing.  And all of this is topped off by the juice industry trying to cram it into us that juice is so healthy for kids. 

[Mrbloodworth]

Its better then that battery acid they call soft drinks.

[ghost]

Its better then that battery acid they call soft drinks.

It is less better than you think.....

[Selby]

Its better then that battery acid they call soft drinks.

We use coke to clean the battery terminals in the car still ;-)

[Bunk]

All this of course leads to the question - what the hell are we supposed to drink? And don't fucking say water...

Yes, I know everyone should drink (more) water.


I honestly think that the "healthiest" thing I drink on a regular basis is beer.

[Mrbloodworth]

Its better then that battery acid they call soft drinks.

It is less better than you think.....

I'm sorry. I do not believe any site that tells you to drink empty calories with no nutritional value ( Diet sodas ) over juice. No one should. I get the points about sugar content, and acidity. But ill stick to my juice. Thanks.