The USDA’s shorthand definition of a preservative is any substance that slows or stops the deterioration of food. The sugar we add to make jam to keep fruit from rotting is a preservative. So is the salt we use to cure ham. We’ve employed preservatives like sugar and salt for millennia.
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Think of a powdered food like ground cinnamon or cornmeal. What do you get if you add it to some water and mix them together? Something like a paste. Now imagine the powder is wheat flour. Mix it with water and it creates a dough that holds together, yet stretches. What makes wet wheat flour […]
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First things first. What’s a grain? The foods we call grains are the seeds of certain members of the grass family. Wheat, barley, oats, rye, rice, corn, sorghum, and millet are all grains. Each grain has three main components: (A) The endosperm: the starchy part that would feed a baby plant if the seed were […]
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For centuries, coarse, whole grain flours were the everyday norm for bread and porridge. White flours were a once-in-a-while treat for only the most special cakes or breads, reserved for the highest of holidays. As refined white flours became more readily available in the 20th century, Big Ag marketing departments promoted them by running a […]
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Here’s a general rule about good food that can help us all: the longer you keep food intact, the better the flavor will be.
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