How To Choose and Cook Pork Chops

Most consumers choose pork chops based on color and marbling. But those factors don’t make much difference when it comes to flavor, tenderness, and juiciness according to a University of Illinois study. Instead, cooking temperature is nearly all that matters when it comes to a delicious pork chop.

The USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service changed its long-held temperature recommendations for whole cuts of pork from 160 degrees Fahrenheit to 145 degrees in 2011.

Meat scientists at U of I tried to determine whether color, marbling, or degree of doneness in pork chops made for the best eating experience. They cut the loins into a whole series of pork chops, assigned them to proposed USDA quality grades for pork, then cooked them to the previous recommendation of 160 degrees and the new recommendation of 145.

Turns out, color and marbling doesn’t matter. Degree of doneness does. Cook them to 145, and you can make a very tasty, very juicy pork chop.

Source: Journal of Animal Science [DOI: 10.1093/jas/sky084] “Effect of packaging type during postmortem aging and degree of doneness on pork chop sensory traits of loins selected to vary in color and marbling.”

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Do Fatty Ice Creams Taste Better?

No. Contrary to conventional wisdom, most people can't tell the difference between high fat and lower fat ice creams.

In a series of taste tests, Penn State food scientists found participants unable to distinguish a 2 percent difference in fat levels in two vanilla ice cream samples in a 6 to 12 percent fat-level range. While participants were able to detect a 4 percent difference between ice cream with 6 and 10 percent fat levels, they could not detect a 4 percent fat difference in samples between 8 and 12 percent fat.

The researchers also found that fat levels did not significantly sway consumers' preferences in taste. The consumers' overall liking of an ice cream did not change when fat content dropped from 14 percent to 6 percent, for example.

The study challenge ice cream marketing that suggests ice cream with high fat levels are higher quality and better tasting products. Premium ice cream doesn't have to be high fat ice cream.

Sources: Journal of Dairy Science, Penn State News

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Is Corn on the Cob a Bad Food?

Yes, corn has plenty of starch. And Americans have more than a healthy portion of starch in their diets because they eat so many white potatoes, which account for 80 percent of all starchy vegetable consumption, as well as 25 percent of all the vegetables they eat. That’s a lot of potatoes.

Sweet corn's other worry is genetic modification. Almost all American field corn is genetically engineered to resist herbicides or to produce a proteins that kill insect pests.

But sweet corn is not the same as field corn and most of it is not genetically engineered, especially the varieties grown for fresh sales or sold in farmers markets.

And corn on the cob is a healthy treat in moderation, providing beneficial folate, beta carotene and thiamin along with other vitamins and minerals; it has more fiber than potatoes and contains zeaxanthin, an antioxidant that may protect against age-related eye disease, such as macular degeneration.

One medium-sized ear of corn has about 100 calories before the butter and salt. Make it healthier by using spray butter. Or, consider roasting cobs brushed with olive oil on the grill. Turn the cobs periodically and cook until the kernels are slightly charred. Instead of using salt, try pepper, garlic, or other herbs and spices for flavor.

Source: Ohio State University Extension

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Are Male Bell Peppers Better for Cooking?

Have you heard that male bell peppers are best for cooking? And that the females are sweeter but full of seeds?

Wrong! It's a myth. There are no male or female bell peppers; they have no gender.

Bell peppers grow from blossoms that have both male and female parts, and each pepper is produced through self-fertilization. These fruits of the pepper plant each contain ovaries that produce the seeds after pollination; those seeds will potentially become new pepper plants.

The bell pepper sex myth claims that male peppers have 3 lobes and female peppers have 4 lobes, which is how you find the sweeter females at the market.

Truth is, sweetness is more a factor of ripeness than sex. Bell peppers start out green, then ripen to yellow, then orange, then red, and in some cases turn purple. Thus red, orange, yellow, and purple bell peppers are generally sweeter than green bell peppers.

And the lobes on peppers are determined by growing conditions and genetics, so they don’t indicate the sweetness factor or sex of the pepper in any way.

Source: Ohio State University Extension

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Would You Eat Zombie Deer Meat?

Chronic Wasting Disease in free-ranging cervids, also known as “zombie deer disease,” rots the brains of deer, elk, and moose, causing them to act lethargic and less afraid of humans before dying, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Consequently, the CDC advises people to take precautions when dealing with deer or elk and the meat from those animals in areas where chronic wasting disease is confirmed within the wild herd.

The disease has been detected in at least 24 states in the continental United States, as well as two provinces in Canada. In addition, Chronic Wasting Disease has been reported in reindeer and moose in Norway and Finland, and a small number of imported cases have been reported in South Korea. The disease has also been found in farmed deer and elk.

The disease is most widepsread in Wyoming, Colorado, Nebrasks, Kansas, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania an Arkansas, according to the CDC.

Gabriel Karns, a visiting assistant professor of wildlife ecology and management in the School of Environment and Natural Resources says at this point people outside in areas designated as “chronic wasting disease-free in the wild” should not hesitate to eat venison from wild white-tailed deer

“While more cautious culinary approaches such as not cooking deer bone-in roasts from the neck region with spinal cord intact may eventually become a standard precaution, the fact remains that current evidence does not suggest that chronic wasting disease affects human health,” Karns explained.

Source: Gabriel Karns, visiting assistant professor of wildlife ecology and management in CFAES’ School of Environment and Natural Resources

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Mate Tea Kills Colon Cancer Cells

In a recent study, scientists at University of Illinois showed that human colon cancer cells die when exposed to bioactive compounds present in one cup of mate tea.

"The caffeine derivatives in mate tea not only induced death in human colon cancer cells, they also reduced important markers of inflammation," said Elvira de Mejia, a U of I associate professor of food chemistry and food toxicology. "That's important because inflammation can trigger the steps of cancer progression."

In the in vitro study, human colon cancer cells were isolated, purified, and then treated with caffeoylquinic acid (CQA) derivatives from mate tea. As the the CQA concentration increased, cancer cells died as a result of apoptosis.

The results of the study strongly suggest that the caffeine derivatives in mate tea have potential as anti-cancer agents and could also be helpful in other diseases associated with inflammation. Mate tea has long been consumed in South America for its medicinal properties

But, because the colon and its microflora play a major role in the absorption and metabolism of caffeine-related compounds, the anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer effects of mate tea may be most useful in the colon.

The scientists believe there's ample evidence to support drinking mate tea for its bioactive benefits, especially for those concerned about colon cancer.

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