Most Wasabi Is Fake [video] • Hacker News Board

Re: Most Wasabi Is Fake [video]

#61

Post by notyourday » Thu, Mar 21, 2019, 12:23 AM UTC

cortesoft wrote: post #28

peterwwillis wrote: post #10

Most sushi places don't prepare nigiri properly in my experience. Each piece of nigiri should have wasabi between the rice and seafood and a small amount of sauce on top, intended to be eaten fish-side-down. (SF probably has the most places that do it correctly outside NYC and LA) You're welcome to eat it however you like, but the ginger is generally speaking the palate cleanser while wasabi is historically both flav…

I always like the sushi, ginger, and soy sauce/wasabi mixture all in the same bite. Maybe I am weird, but I love that combination of flavors all at once.

That sort of makes all the fish taste the same or very similar.

Re: Most Wasabi Is Fake [video]

#62

Post by nkozyra » Thu, Mar 21, 2019, 12:23 AM UTC

dymk wrote: post #48

nkozyra wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> properly What does this mean, really? This always strikes me as snobbery signaling. Perhaps it's traditional, but does that make it "proper?" Why do only some cuisines have such constraints on what is "proper" or "authentic?"

Why do words mean anything? Why do we categorize anything into any number of buckets of arbitrary granularity? If I’m served a steak or a slab of raw salmon, am I gatekeeping or being snobby when I claim that I was not served sushi?

This isn't what we're talking about at all though.

Re: Most Wasabi Is Fake [video]

#63

Post by notyourday » Thu, Mar 21, 2019, 12:23 AM UTC

Mediterraneo10 wrote: post #3

So is most truffle oil. Canned reindeer meat in the Nordic countries can be up to 40% pork. Budget-brand soy sauce might actually be "soy sauce powder" mixed with water, as opposed to something straightforwardly brewed. If you travel the developing world, you may find that what is sold as chocolate actually has no cacao in it. Lots and lots of disappointments out there in the food world. I find reading labels careful…

There's no such thing as a non-synthetic truffle oil. It is not made from truffles what so ever.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truffle_oil

Re: Most Wasabi Is Fake [video]

#64

Post by jahewson » Thu, Mar 21, 2019, 12:24 AM UTC

theoh wrote: post #40

naravara wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

All because everyone wants champagne taste on a beer budget. It reminds me of a Frank Lloyd Wright quote when someone asked for a $5k house and he says “Are you sure you want a $5,000 house? Most people want a $10,000 house for $5,000.” They could just pitch these as cheaper substitutions and it wouldn’t be so annoying.

I checked this out. FLW actually said (in the 30s) "a 10k house for 5K", which translates to a 200k house for 100k today. source: https://www.jstor.org/stable/4633622

Yes indeed. Though most of his so-called $5k houses actually ended up costing around $20k.

Re: Most Wasabi Is Fake [video]

#65

Post by amingilani » Thu, Mar 21, 2019, 12:25 AM UTC

dymk wrote: post #48

nkozyra wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> properly What does this mean, really? This always strikes me as snobbery signaling. Perhaps it's traditional, but does that make it "proper?" Why do only some cuisines have such constraints on what is "proper" or "authentic?"

Why do words mean anything? Why do we categorize anything into any number of buckets of arbitrary granularity? If I’m served a steak or a slab of raw salmon, am I gatekeeping or being snobby when I claim that I was not served sushi?

I actually think this comment hits a point.

It may sound "snobbery" to some, but there are important distinctions to make between the levels of how well something is prepared. The two most important being "proper" and "improper". Burnt rice, rotten meat, and missing ingredients are definite examples of "improper".

And cuisines can definitely have constraints on authentic, e.g. hard shell tacos, while delicious, are definitively not "authentic" Mexican. Just like adding spices to my grandmother's (or my) chai is an easy way to lose your head.. it's just not right. Would you like it if your salad resembled more a pasta? Or if you were served pizza as a mixed vegetable platter?[0]

I don't think parent^3 was being a snob because he wasn't describing a wine as being "better" because it tastes "oaky". A statement like that is probably deserving of hate, because what does oak even taste like?

[0]: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/cifamerica/2011/no...

Re: Most Wasabi Is Fake [video]

#66

Post by slics » Thu, Mar 21, 2019, 12:27 AM UTC

Keep in mind, food tastes different in different regions. When I first arrived in the states, I had no idea what to do with ketchup or mustard or foods in the microwave bags. Back home (Europe) we grew everything ourselves in the garden and there was no need for processing the food or spices. In the states the food no longer is grown for taste, but for quantity. Looking at the video I appreciate the garden foods, the flavor and uniqueness. You must have an acquired taste for that kind of food/spice to really appreciate it and enjoy it.

Re: Most Wasabi Is Fake [video]

#67

Post by nvader » Thu, Mar 21, 2019, 12:27 AM UTC

derefr wrote: post #60

nkozyra wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> properly What does this mean, really? This always strikes me as snobbery signaling. Perhaps it's traditional, but does that make it "proper?" Why do only some cuisines have such constraints on what is "proper" or "authentic?"

The names of dishes (and ingredients) are culinary trade jargon, just like the names of the techniques used to prepare them. In order to achieve unambiguous communication between chefs across temporal and cultural distance, terms like "cacio e pepe" have to be taken to mean one fixed thing—one platonic ideal dish that someone hypothetically made at some point, that all such real dishes are attempts to recreate. Other…

Thank you for writing this. This is the content I come to Hacker News to read.

Re: Most Wasabi Is Fake [video]

#68

Post by jacobolus » Thu, Mar 21, 2019, 12:34 AM UTC

gotocake wrote: post #57

tptacek wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You could say the same thing about vanilla, for which Cooks Illustrated was infamously not able to triangle-test a meaningful preference between artificial and real in a baked goods panel (IIRC, the Milk Bar cookbook went a step further and specified recipes that only worked with artificial vanilla). Sometimes, the artificial ("beer-grade") version is a legit advance. A big problem with truffle oil is that it's too e…

The problem with most “truffle oil” is that it’s truly vile, and if you put it next to actual truffle infused oil no one would confuse the two. The problem is that so few people have actually had truffles, never mind truffle infused oil to know. To a greater or lesser extent the same is true for vanilla, although far more people have had the real deal as a reference point. Still vanillin is artificial, but hardly a t…

What do you think a good use for cassia cinnamon is? Those little hard candies?

Maybe it’s just that I spent a lot of time in Mexico growing up, but I think ceylon cinnamon is better for every purpose I can think of. I wouldn’t describe it as “floral” though.

My impression is that cassia cinnamon is usually used because it is cheaper.

Re: Most Wasabi Is Fake [video]

#69

Post by gotocake » Thu, Mar 21, 2019, 12:40 AM UTC

tptacek wrote: post #27

tru3_power wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Another one is Kobe beef. Real Kobe beef is from the city of Kobe in Japan and is only served in a handful of resturaunts in the US (I think 1 in NYC and a few in LV). So next time you see Kobe beef on the menu- you know it’s most likely a lie.

You can get A5 wagyu all over the place in the US. The "tell" that you're looking at fake "kobe beef" is when you could take the dish and swap "kobe" for "angus" and the dish would still make sense; so, for instance, a "kobe burger" always going to be silly and shady, and nobody would ever buy "certified angus nigiri".

I’d add that if you don’t like ultra-rare beer then it’s kind of a waste. I’m not a fan of anything that isn’t medium, and by that temp a lot of the fine marbling is effectively lost. In short, when I finally had some real A5 I realized it was totally wasted on me. If you liked carpaccio though, it would probably be amazing. I think too often people attach value judgements to grades or things, to wine and the like, when the truth is thst individual taste is highly variable. If you like a sensibly priced bottle of wine, rejoice, it’s a good wine for you. If you’re someone who skews to the high priced bottles then that’s going to be rough on the wallet, but again that’s your taste.

The biggest mistake we make with food and drink is to “want the best” instead of wanting the best for us. There is subsitute for trying lots of different types of food and drink and choosing what you like the taste of most, not what’s most applauded by experts or in vogue.

Re: Most Wasabi Is Fake [video]

#70

Post by hristov » Thu, Mar 21, 2019, 12:41 AM UTC

I had fresh real wasabi at a new york restaurant. To prove it was real, they would grate it right of the root over your plate, the way they do with expensive truffles. It was indeed very good. And yes it does hit your nose first.