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Tonka beans – A delicious flavour with a toxic chemical

bbc.com

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Re: Tonka beans – A delicious flavour with a toxic chemical

#51

Post by Dylan16807 »

ashark wrote: post #7

TL;DR with the important stuff bumped (I hate, hate, hate clickbait and burying the lede): Tonka beans, containing the toxic-to-the-liver chemical Coumarin, are banned for use in food in the US but still used in some high-end restaurants and bakeries, leading to occasional FDA raids. The beans impart flavors akin to vanilla, lavender, cherries, and grass, due to their sharing some chemical components. They're probabl…

"Tonka beans have an intense flavour that chefs and food manufacturers have enthusiastically embraced. There’s just one problem – it contains a chemical that could, in large enough doses, kill you."

This is the first thing in the article. How is the lede buried?

Re: Tonka beans – A delicious flavour with a toxic chemical

#52

Post by [deleted] »

drspacemonkey wrote: post #48
have_faith wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>calamari and pork I think that's an urban legend

It is an urban legend. It takes FAR too much effort to mask the flavour to make it a cost-effective substitute. It's like the "McDonald's hamburger is really red meal worm" or "KFC is really genetically engineered boneless chicken monsters" myths.

[deleted]

Re: Tonka beans – A delicious flavour with a toxic chemical

#53

Post by woodrowbarlow »

scoates wrote: post #22

I had the pleasure of tasting a Tonka Bean IPA I brought back from Brazil a couple years ago. Immediately ordered some of the beans (thanks to my freedom as a Canadian (-: ). They're really great in crème brûlée.

do you just dust the top of the creme brulee with tonka shavings?

Re: Tonka beans – A delicious flavour with a toxic chemical

#54

Post by undersuit »

have_faith wrote: post #27
undersuit wrote: post #26

>“I was talking to a vanilla purveyor recently and he offered me tonka bean paste,” says Raquel. “I was like ‘If I want to use tonka bean, I’ll use tonka bean.’” One of my biggest issues with mislabeling foods. Sell me vanilla at the market price, sell me tonka at the market price, but don't sell my vanilla that is actually tonka at vanilla market prices. Same with scallops and stingray, crab and surimi, calamari and…

>calamari and pork I think that's an urban legend

I guess you're right[1]. The thought of the substitution wasn't really stopping me from eating calamari, it's more about how do I not get ripped off by unscrupulous merchants?

[1]http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/16/imitation-calamari-...

Re: Tonka beans – A delicious flavour with a toxic chemical

#55

Post by nyolfen »

drspacemonkey wrote: post #48
have_faith wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>calamari and pork I think that's an urban legend

It is an urban legend. It takes FAR too much effort to mask the flavour to make it a cost-effective substitute. It's like the "McDonald's hamburger is really red meal worm" or "KFC is really genetically engineered boneless chicken monsters" myths.

This American Life undertook a relatively serious investigation of this question (calamari 'rings' as pork rectum) and they basically came away with "inconclusive":

https://m.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/484/do...

Re: Tonka beans – A delicious flavour with a toxic chemical

#56

Post by mrob »

Dylan16807 wrote: post #50
avs733 wrote: post #2

I am somewhat appalled but not at all surprised to see click bait headlines leaking into the BBC's vernacular.

What makes you file it as click bait, exactly? I thought the headline gave me a very clear idea of what the article's contents would be. How would you improve it? Edit: Wait, the actual article says secret and on HN it says chemical. Hmm.

It's click bait because the most important information is missing from the title. It could be improved by changing it to "Tonka beans: delicious and toxic".

Re: Tonka beans – A delicious flavour with a toxic chemical

#57

Post by drspacemonkey »

nyolfen wrote: post #55
drspacemonkey wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is an urban legend. It takes FAR too much effort to mask the flavour to make it a cost-effective substitute. It's like the "McDonald's hamburger is really red meal worm" or "KFC is really genetically engineered boneless chicken monsters" myths.

This American Life undertook a relatively serious investigation of this question (calamari 'rings' as pork rectum) and they basically came away with "inconclusive": https://m.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/484/do...

I can't listen to it right now (I will later, because TAL is great), but did they do a blind taste test? I wish I could remember where I found it, but some curious foodies tried it and the pork rectum had a... let's call it "distinct" flavour that was unpleasant and difficult to mask.

Re: Tonka beans – A delicious flavour with a toxic chemical

#58

Post by olyjohn »

drspacemonkey wrote: post #48
have_faith wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>calamari and pork I think that's an urban legend

It is an urban legend. It takes FAR too much effort to mask the flavour to make it a cost-effective substitute. It's like the "McDonald's hamburger is really red meal worm" or "KFC is really genetically engineered boneless chicken monsters" myths.

There was an NPR story that dug way into this myth. And while they weren't able to track down any actual suppliers of pig bung, they did make their own pig bung Calimari supplied by a local butcher. IIRC, the blind taste testers all preferred the pig bung over the real deal, and they all considered themselves to be Calimari "snobs."

Re: Tonka beans – A delicious flavour with a toxic chemical

#60

Post by greggman »

drspacemonkey wrote: post #57
nyolfen wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This American Life undertook a relatively serious investigation of this question (calamari 'rings' as pork rectum) and they basically came away with "inconclusive": https://m.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/484/do...

I can't listen to it right now (I will later, because TAL is great), but did they do a blind taste test? I wish I could remember where I found it, but some curious foodies tried it and the pork rectum had a... let's call it "distinct" flavour that was unpleasant and difficult to mask.

yes they did. they were able to mask it. they also had some less masked but thought it would just be perceived as off squid.
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