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I bought some Simply Potatoes--and was surprised to see on the package directions: This product must be brought to 165 degrees for 2 minutes. Do not eat uncooked product.
Why? What bacteria resides in onions and potatoes? There were no eggs or meats involved...it just seems strange. I can only hope it got to the proper temp, since I haven't got one of those probe thermometers, and I'm not about to test every piece anyhow.
That's most likely CYA stuff required by their insurers.
TKramar, you are right, Five is a great choice. Thanks for mentioning it.
"From concentrate" is a total turn off to me. I just don't get the whole "concentrate"/"reconstitute" thing. Honestly, every time I drink stuff "from concentrate" I just taste colored, sugared water and a bunch of preservatives.
I know sometimes it is not possible as one might be busy, at work, etc. but I have a friend who says "Do you want juice? Do yourself a favor and eat some fruit."
I don't know why, exactly. I know that they want some uniformity, as well as--at least with orange juice--the ability to control how much pulp the drink has. I like mine pulpy.
I've had some sour orange juice from time to time, perhaps from a bad batch? I like it a little sweeter. But I do prefer juices that are comprised of as few ingredients as possible. Of course, they usually jack the price up so high that it's rare for me to be able to actually BUY it. Saw some juice the other day in the store that they wanted $3 a pint for! May not have even been a full pint. The brand was NAKED.
About 2 months ago we stopped buying bread. It seemed I was throwing away too much of it. I started buying "sandwich rounds" which come 8 to a package, are a bit smaller than bread and just perfect for us. They are firm, come in many varieties such as whole wheat, rye etc. No waste either. I can toast them as they are nice and thin and I have even made toasted cheese sandwiches out of them. Another great sandwich can be made from the mini-forcaccia that I get at the deli/bakery dept. There are no preservatives in those, so you need to eat them within a day or two. No more regular bread for me.
It is my understanding that in the USA, it is permissible to reconstitute a produce and claim it to be 100% pure. In fact, I've seen orange juice labels to that effect.
Reconstituting does affect the flavor, as anyone knows who has ever drunk a glass of reconstituted powdered milk. Or anybody who can remember ever having drunk a glass of fresh-squeezed orange juice. Nowadays, if you gave a kid a glass of fresh-squeezed orange juice, they are likely to say, "Yuck, this tastes funny---it doesn't taste like orange juice at all".
The economic reasons for reconstitution are obvious. It is much cheaper to ship a tank truck full of concentrated OJ to Chicago, and then put the tapwater back into it there. Or even within Florida, since oranges are seasonal, OJ can be available all year round only by concentrating the product, freezing it, and then restoring it when needed.
Consider yourself lucky that they even have to tell you whether it is reconstituted or not.
By the way, I reconstitute myself. I buy tomato paste, instead of tomato sauce, and add water. There is zero salt in tomato paste, so I can control the sodium content. Compare the cost of a jar of spaghetti sauce, with the cost of a can of tomato paste and add your own water and spices.
On Peanutbutter: The day I'm too lazy to stir a jar of peanutbutter to get the oil mixed with the solid, is the day I'm too lazy to deserve to eat. Barring physical disability, that's just..dang. Seriously lazy.
On Orange Juice: I don't really like orange juice, by itself. I prefer orange/grapefruit combined. And usually I find it much more palateable if I squeeze it myself. 1 Ruby red grapefruit, and the juice of 2 ripe blood oranges. Unrefrigerated, un-strained, no ice, in a tall glass. Heaven, and no commercial brand can imitate it.
As you live in Florida I am guessing you have a lot of oranges available for good prices, right?!
You would be surprised, not really, unless you know someone that has citrus growing in their yard.
I almost never am able to get a decent tangerine at a store or stand, at least I have a good friend that grows amazing ones!
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