White - The Soul Food

White - the language of food. Ice cream, cheese, coconut, mashed potatoes, yogurt, fish and rice are generally served in white china set in white table cloth and napkins by white jacketed wait staff.

White or near white colors are our favourite food colors. Restaurants and cafes in white suggest comfort, good nutrition, cleanliness and wholesomeness.

The next favourite color for diners is brown. Whole grains, bread, tea, beans come in this shade.

Of the opposite scale, blue and black kills the appetite. Can you recall any blue leafy vegetables?

Choosing Your Favourite Cut

Myth:
The colour of frozen meat (such as pork, beef and mutton) is usually darker because the meat is not fresh or of an inferior quality.

Fact:
The colour of meat, frozen or not, is affected by the presence or absence of oxygen. Frozen meat in vacuum sealed packaging is darker in colour because oxygen is not present. Vacuum packing prevents meat from becoming rancid and prolongs its shelf-life if meat is kept under proper refrigerated conditions. Once frozen meat is exposed to oxygen in the air, it will return to its original colour.

Source: http://www.ava.gov.sg/FoodSector/FrozenMeatInfo/Common+Myths+About+Frozen+Meat.htm

Degreening From Green To Orange

Green is unattractive. At least for citrus fruits like navel oranges, Valencia oranges, lemons and mandarin oranges.

We know that green oranges are generally immature. In order to make it appetizing, oranges are degreen to turn them from green to orange.

On a tree, oranges depends on the weather to change from green to orange color. Nature with a combination of temperature, humidity and gases to slowly turn the fruit to orange color.

Citrus Degreening are done to hasten the discoloration. Degreening chambers are used for hastening this process. Insulated from the natural envirnoment, harvested oranges are placed in such chambers and the parameters of an optimum weather conditions for turning the color from green to orange are then regulated, kept and monitored.

Temperature, humidity, oxygen, carbon dioxide and ethylene level are regulated to optimise the degreening process.

Remember to take your vitamin C.

********************************
RETA 6208 Training-Workshop on Postharvest Research and Technology Development
Training Manual on Postharvest Research and Technology Development for Tomato and Chilli in RETA 6208 Countries

The Power Fruit

Banana peel reveals the stage of ripeness. Bananas are harvested green and at this stage the green peel is firm. As soon as the banana stem is cut from the plant, ripening starts.

• Bananas are harvested green.
• They sweeten as they ripen, as the banana ripens, the peel color lightens and changes to yellow.
• During this process, the starch within the banana converts to sugar giving riper bananas their creamy, sweet taste.

Do not place bananas in your fridge, leave them on the counter is good enough. To hasten the ripening process you can place them in a brown paper bag and close it. The ethylene that's produced by the ripening process actually speeds the ripening process.

Watch the banana peel.

********************************
Check this Banana Color Chart - Suggested Guide For Banana Ripening.

New Zealand Journal of Crop and Horticultural Science, 2007, Vol. 35: 193–199 : Preliminary investigation into the uneven ripening of banana (Musa sp.) peel

Bread Talk

Why is flour whiteness important?

Flour color often affects the color of the finished product and is therefore one of many flour specifications required by bakers. Generally speaking, a bright white color flour is more
desirable for many products.

How does one measure flour whiteness? Get a glimpse of how it is done.

http://www.wheatflourbook.org/ produces an excellent book - Wheat Flour Testing Book. This guide is on Wheat and Flour Testing Methods : A Guide to Understanding Wheat and Flour Quality.

"Wheat and Flour Testing Methods: A Guide to Understanding Wheat and Flour Quality Version 2 provides an introduction to the analysis of wheat and flour in a clear and concise format. Basic information is presented on standardized testing procedures for wheat and flour quality characteristics as well as dough properties. Results from these tests are explained and applied to processing performance an product quality. Laboratory testing of a variety of wheat-based finished products is also included. The finished product formulations and processes described are laboratory testing protocols that are used to evaluate flour quality. They are model systems that may be used to predict commercial production for common uses of wheat flour worldwide"

Happy Baking.

Bread Winner

Every one of us loves bread. From the simple pandesal to the more exotic french breads, we do love to get a bite of this wonderful product. We know that the main raw material for bread is flour. But do you know that color of flour is being monitored by its manufacturer?

Yes, the whiteness is measured because the flour's whiteness do affect the quality of the bread. So the next time you have a bite of your favorite burger, think of how white the flour was used in your bun.