Some ideas are repeated so often, we start believing they’re facts. This is especially true when it comes to food. From outdated culinary techniques to grandma’s favourite cooking tips and even some modern conspiracy theories, there’s a lot of information out there that could potentially ruin your dinner plans. But don’t worry, we’re here to debunk some of the most common misconceptions around food and set the record straight.
The harder myths to debunk are those that have a little bit of truth to them, like this one. Carrots are good for your eye health because they are packed with a form of vitamin A known as beta carotene. However, eating carrots won’t give you night vision or improve your eyesight. This myth first appeared as part of a military strategy. During the Second World War, a British propaganda campaign spread claims that the consumption of carrots was improving pilots’ eyesight, to hide new secret radar technology being used. Somehow, the world believed it.
MSG or monosodium glutamate is one controversial ingredient. Widely used in many Asian and Latin American cuisines, MSG is a food additive used to boost flavour. The belief it’s bad to consume is not only inaccurate, but rooted in a racist term coined in 1968: Chinese Restaurant Syndrome, which blamed Chinese restaurants and MSG for causing indigestion. There is no conclusive scientific evidence to back this claim, and MSG is naturally present in many common foods such as Parmesan. Not only is it not dangerous, but substituting some of your salt for it could be beneficial to reduce sodium intake.
While James Lewis Kraft (yes, Kraft as in Kraft mac 'n' cheese) may have popularised it, American cheese was first invented in Switzerland in 1911 when Walter Gerber and Fritz Stettler heated Emmental cheese with sodium citrate. They were looking to extended the shelf life of the cheese and inadvertently created a smoother cheese. However, while Kraft may not have been the first one to do it, he perfected the technique and made it the processed cheese we know (and secretly love) today.
We’ve all heard it: 'simmer the wine to allow the alcohol to evaporate,' is a common line in many cooking shows. As it turns out, several studies have proven it takes a very long time to fully evaporate alcohol. When cooking, some of it does evaporate, but not all of it. This is something to be mindful of when cooking for children, people who are staying away from alcohol for health, ethical or personal reasons or even for anyone planning to drive afterwards.
We’ve been told cooking vegetables destroys the nutrients, but this isn’t always the case. Several studies have proven cooking some vegetables allows for several nutrients and antioxidants to be better absorbed, while others, such as broccoli, are healthier raw. The simplest answer: eat your vegetables both ways and eat lots of them.
When acidic ingredients are cooked in a cast iron pan for a long time, some metallic molecules are released, imparting an unpleasant flavour and potentially damaging the pan’s seasoning. However, a test conducted by America’s Test Kitchen determined as long as the food is cooked for less than 30 minutes, this won’t happen. Even better, people with an enamelled cast iron pan don’t have to worry at all.
It’s hard to believe this myth became such a thing, but we all know how significant the spread of misinformation is. Looking at vegetables, broccoli has one of the highest protein contents, but you would have to eat a lot more of it than steak to achieve the same amount. Of course, broccoli is still a healthy option and there are ways to get your protein fix on a plant-based diet.
In the 2009 movie Julie & Julia, Julie is cooking mushrooms and saying how Julia’s secret is to never crowd the pan. However, this culinary advice is not as foolproof as you might think. According to Harold McGee, author of On Food and Cooking, crowding the pan allows for mushrooms to become less porous, soak up less oil and taste better overall. The experiment conducted at McGee’s class in the International Culinary Center showed crowded mushrooms were the way to go. Sorry, Julia!
Since we are on the subject of mushrooms, we might as well tackle this other myth. You can wash mushrooms and they won’t lose any flavour. The conditions in which mushrooms grow should be enough of an incentive to wash them, but Harold McGee also claims soaking your mushrooms before cooking makes them absorb less oil and taste better when cooked.
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Adding oil to pasta water when cooking does nothing to prevent pasta from sticking. The only thing that won’t be sticking to the pasta is the sauce. When oil is added to pasta water, it sits on top, having no effect at all on the pasta. As the pasta gets drained, it can get coated in the oil, which will make it slippery. The result: some well-sauced bowls and tasteless spaghetti. A better way to prevent sticking is stirring the pasta occasionally as it cooks.
There is no need to put the avocado pit into a bowl of delicious guacamole as it won’t prevent browning. The best ways to do it are to prevent oxygen from touching the surface by using cling film, olive oil or use acid, such as lemon or lime juice, to slow down the enzyme that causes the browning.
Potatoes are a magical ingredient: there are so many possibilities when it comes to cooking with them, but they are not able to selectively soak up salt if you've accidentally used too much. This food blogger made an experiment to test it. A potato may absorb some of the salt, but it will also absorb liquid, which means the salt concentration will remain almost equal. It's always better to season and taste on the go.
This is perhaps one of the most widely spread culinary myths, which is why Harold McGee has made it his mission to debunk it. The only factor that will directly affect how moist meat remains is the temperature it is cooked to. However, searing is a fantastic way of getting more flavour, all thanks to the Maillard reaction that releases new flavour compounds when meat is seared.
No one wants to spend time sifting flour. And don’t get us started on having to wash a sieve afterwards. Sifting does have its advantages though: it allows you to mix dry ingredients properly and get rid of any clumps. But as food production has evolved and flour is milled more evenly, sifting flour is not as necessary as it used to be. Keep in mind that if you are baking a light batter, you should still sift. For everything else, just stir your flour with a fork beforehand to break it apart and bake away.
This is an urban legend found in some corners of the internet. The myth started with an alleged lawsuit from Paxton vs Kellogg's around the evident lack of fruit in the cereal’s ingredient list. Except, the lawsuit is nowhere to be found and Froot Loops have been named this way since their first appearance in 1963.
A very sharp knife can feel scary to use, but they tend to be safer and easier to use. A dull blade means you will have to excerpt more force and this is when most accidents happen.
Protect your fingers by following some of our expert knife tips
‘Grape or grain but never the twain’ is a drinking proverb with no evidence to back it up. According to Difford’s Guide, no matter the origin of the alcohol consumed, the factor that determines how drunk or hungover someone gets is the amount of alcohol they consume. Whether it comes in a fruity cosmopolitan or a dark hoppy beer, the chemical makeup of alcohol is all the same.
Seeds are hotter than the flesh of a chilli pepper, which is why removing them is a good way to reduce the heat, but they are not the spiciest part: the pith and ribs are. Capsaicin, which is responsible for the heat, is stored in the pith and the ribs of the pepper and seeds get their heat from being nearby.
This one is a big no. Washing your chicken is completely unnecessary, as bacteria will be destroyed regardless as you cook your chicken. Furthermore, studies have shown that washing your chicken increases the chances of spreading bacteria, such as salmonella, all over your kitchen surfaces.
It’s an easy assumption to make that a product that has no animal origins will be vegan, but unfortunately this isn’t always the case. That’s why it’s important to read and understand food labels. Some wines use animal-based products for a process called fining to clarify and filter the wine. Egg whites, gelatin, casein – derived from milk – and fish bladders are normally used for this process. It is possible nowadays to use vegan-friendly alternatives for this process, but every winemaker has a different approach, so it’s better not to assume anything.
This one is another belonging to the pile of urban legends from the internet. It’s been so long-lasting, KFC once sued three Chinese companies for spreading misinformation claiming they used chickens with six legs and eight wings. No, to repeat, KFC does not use mutant chickens.
Castoreum is a secretion produced by beavers’ perineal castor sacs. It does smell strongly of vanilla and has been used in the food and cosmetics industry. However, castoreum is extremely difficult to get and therefore expensive, so its use is extremely rare, especially compared to the 20 million pounds (9,071 tonnes) of vanilla naturally harvested from real vanilla beans every year. The chances your vanilla ice cream is beaver-free are pretty high.
Those Instagrammers having breakfast in a pool in Bali certainly don’t think so. And they’re right, despite what many of our mothers insisted. Nutritionist Rebecca Scritchfield told the Washington Post that while it is possible to get a slight cramp after eating and swimming due to blood moving to your muscles instead of your digestive system, it will not disable anyone enough to drown them. There are also no recorded cases of drowning attributed to eating.
That post-Christmas-meal nap is fantastic, but turkey has been wrongly accused of being responsible. Turkey contains the amino acid tryptophan which is associated with chemicals that make people tired; this is where this myth stems from. But it turns out cheese contains it too – and gram for gram it contains more – yet no one seems to be taking cheese naps. The real culprit may just be the overindulgence of booze and carbs, or the fact it’s socially acceptable to nap after a big turkey dinner.
Milk is a good source of calcium, which in turn is good for your bones, so this one kind of makes sense. Yet, Stanford nutritional scientist Christopher Gardner states that while milk can help improve bone density, it doesn’t prevent them from fracturing. Several studies have been conducted that debunk this myth as well.
The short answer is you can’t, although this journalist tried it. Tarmac is a poor heat conductor. You would need a temperature of around 70°C (158°F) to cook an egg, but tarmac only reaches an approximate 62°C (144°F) on a sunny day. You may recall this news story where an egg was cooked using the heat radiating from the infamous walkie-talkie building in London. However, the heat from that was also melting cars so that was under unusual circumstances.
Water is a much better alternative to sugar-packed drinks, but that doesn’t mean anyone needs to obsess over how much water they drink in a day. There also isn’t a set amount for everyone as many studies have determined. A lot of the water we consume daily comes from fruit, vegetables, soups and even beer so technically you could also just eat nine cucumbers, although we wouldn’t recommend it.
Olive oil has a lower smoking point than most oils, which means it starts breaking apart and releasing compounds that may be considered harmful at higher temperatures. Or that’s what we’ve been told. However, recent studies have established this isn’t entirely true. Even if it were, it’s highly unlikely you will reach this point in your kitchen so feel free to heat your olive oil.
A pint of stout may certainly look more intimidating to some than a pale lager, but colour has nothing to do with the strength of a beer or its alcohol content. The colour is a reflection of the type of grain used, whereas the alcohol content depends on the amount of grain used, Craft Beer Club explains. If you want an accurate indicator of the strength of a beer, check out its ABV (alcohol by volume).
You no longer need to remember to marinate your meat the night before a barbecue. While marinades can certainly be useful, they are not very efficient at penetrating the meat. Not only is a long marinade unnecessary, but it can also be detrimental. An acidic marinade left for too long will weaken the protein bonds near the surface of the meat and turn it mushy.
Now take a look at brilliant barbecue side dishes to try this summer