Getting back to Crumbing

There are more issues that relate to crumbing, or breading, as it sometimes called than the food value of the crumbs.

One of the functions of crumbing, like battering fish with a flour and water mix, is to provide a casing for the food in which it cooks. Nearly always this implies the use of fat or oil in the food itself or in or on the pan in which it is being cooked. The casing then becomes a part of the meal and for the most part is deemed delicious and crisp and an essential part of the meal - what would fish and chips, and KFC, be without the crunch of the fat soaked surround? Another use of crumbs is adornment and one classic example is that of crumbing a leg or major joint of ham usually with a orange dyed or yellow dyed crumb.

P = Extract of Paprika  E160c

A = Extract of Annatto E160b

C = Extract of Curcumin E100;   

T = Extract of Turmeric (Spice)

K = Extract of Paprika (Spice)
One hopes these ‘extracts’ are harmless but what has the heat, mostly quite severe heat, plus any ‘burning’ effect done to them - how harmless are they after that?

There is therefore an ipso facto implication that a good deal of cooked oil or fat will be needed to produce the food in the proper manner.

   This immediately changes the ballgame when assessing calorific value of the food.

   This also means the crumbed casing has to be looked at objectively.

   The order of this crumbing could be a pretty good reflection of the entire food industry as whole, as all meat types, fresh and preserved, fish and vegetables are involved - even eggs in that invention called Scotch Eggs.

   This also raises the question of how to make people aware of how bad crumbing is for ones’ health.

Making your own dressings and sauces makes sense!

The shelves of the our food stores and supermarkets are stacked with sauces and dressings most of which have components which deteriorate quickly with time, the effect of daylight, overhead lighting and a range of preservatives to lengthen its shelf life

Think of mayonnaises - the backbone of which are oils - ideally they should be olive oil but most will be cheaper vegetable oils. Think of this oil - it could be old before manufacture and you can be sure that it will not be the best quality - then the exposure to the damaging atmosphere during manufacture - the intense mixing procedures and then the bottling - usually into clear containers allowing light to further damage or destroy the natural benefits that the oil might have. On top of all this the time it has sat on the shop shelf.

Yes, buying off the shelf is convenient but what you make will be better or become better as you get the hang of making such things yourself.

Remember the next second is the beginning of the rest of your life so make it a healthy one by rejecting rubbishy packaged sauces made by Big Foodie.

The more you do this, the more it will become second nature for you and then you will not find it an inconvenience anymore!