A random thread for food things that don't really warrant a thread of their own

[Cudzoziemiec]

Blueberries and bilberries are slightly different things, aren't they? AIUI, blueberries are a north American cultivated crop, whereas bilberries grow wild in northern Europe. I guess the names are used interchangeably though, and they're close enough.

I don't think I've ever picked bilberries in the wild. Not sure where I would find them round here either, though I wouldn't be surprised if they were in the woods next door.

Yes. Blueberries are also larger and they're white inside, whereas bilberries are dark purple, almost black, all the way through. I suppose bilberries must also be cultivated somewhere but in some parts of Europe there's quite an industry of harvesting them in the wild and using them for commercial products.

[Jakob W]

ISTR Jaffa Cakes the McVities brand do occasional variant flavours - lime ('slime green'?) around Halloween, and I'm sure I've seen blackberry ones as well.

I wonder whether the Polish jaffa cakes are a case of independent invention, or whether there's some direct influence there? I've noticed Lidl does them for their 'Eastern European' food weeks - I'm rather partial to the cherry-flavoured ones with dark chocolate.

[Cudzoziemiec]

It seems to be direct influence. The Polish Wikipedia page describes them as "a biscuit of the jaffa cake type" produced in Poland since 1976, and there's a newspaper article about a trade name dispute within Poland which says "The biscuits popularly known in Poland as delicje are a type of jaffa cake (sponge cake and jelly covered in chocolate) first made in England in 1927."
https://next.gazeta.pl/Kupujemy/1,124630,12938279,Koniec_wojny_o_delicje__Wedel_musi_wycofac_wszystkie.html
https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delicje_Szampańskie

[ian]

Blueberries and bilberries are slightly different things, aren't they? AIUI, blueberries are a north American cultivated crop, whereas bilberries grow wild in northern Europe. I guess the names are used interchangeably though, and they're close enough.

I don't think I've ever picked bilberries in the wild. Not sure where I would find them round here either, though I wouldn't be surprised if they were in the woods next door.

Yes. Blueberries are also larger and they're white inside, whereas bilberries are dark purple, almost black, all the way through. I suppose bilberries must also be cultivated somewhere but in some parts of Europe there's quite an industry of harvesting them in the wild and using them for commercial products.

I think bilberries from a group of closely related European plants, normally foraged, while blueberries are from North Americans and generally cultivated.

Though oddly, all the blueberries I see for sale in the supermarket seem to come from Poland.

[citoyen]

It seems to be direct influence. The Polish Wikipedia page describes them as "a biscuit of the jaffa cake type" produced in Poland since 1976, and there's a newspaper article about a trade name dispute within Poland which says "The biscuits popularly known in Poland as delicje are a type of jaffa cake (sponge cake and jelly covered in chocolate) first made in England in 1927."
https://next.gazeta.pl/Kupujemy/1,124630,12938279,Koniec_wojny_o_delicje__Wedel_musi_wycofac_wszystkie.html
https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delicje_Szampańskie

It's at this point that a smartarse points out that "Jaffa Cake" is not a protected brand name so may be used generically with impunity. Something to do with McVitie's forgetting to register it.

I'm sure we don't need to bother repeating the cake/biscuit thing.

[Cudzoziemiec]

Blueberries and bilberries are slightly different things, aren't they? AIUI, blueberries are a north American cultivated crop, whereas bilberries grow wild in northern Europe. I guess the names are used interchangeably though, and they're close enough.

I don't think I've ever picked bilberries in the wild. Not sure where I would find them round here either, though I wouldn't be surprised if they were in the woods next door.

Yes. Blueberries are also larger and they're white inside, whereas bilberries are dark purple, almost black, all the way through. I suppose bilberries must also be cultivated somewhere but in some parts of Europe there's quite an industry of harvesting them in the wild and using them for commercial products.

I think bilberries from a group of closely related European plants, normally foraged, while blueberries are from North Americans and generally cultivated.

Though oddly, all the blueberries I see for sale in the supermarket seem to come from Poland.

Sensibly, in Polish blueberry and bilberry and completely different words.

It seems to be direct influence. The Polish Wikipedia page describes them as "a biscuit of the jaffa cake type" produced in Poland since 1976, and there's a newspaper article about a trade name dispute within Poland which says "The biscuits popularly known in Poland as delicje are a type of jaffa cake (sponge cake and jelly covered in chocolate) first made in England in 1927."
https://next.gazeta.pl/Kupujemy/1,124630,12938279,Koniec_wojny_o_delicje__Wedel_musi_wycofac_wszystkie.html
https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delicje_Szampańskie

It's at this point that a smartarse points out that "Jaffa Cake" is not a protected brand name so may be used generically with impunity. Something to do with McVitie's forgetting to register it.

I'm sure we don't need to bother repeating the cake/biscuit thing.

Yeah, the trade dispute was to do with one company producing something that was deemed imitative in packaging and product of Delicje, which is a trade mark in Poland. All cakes and biscuits seem to be subject to the same VAT level over there, so no need to get into that!

[Pingu]

Blueberries and bilberries are slightly different things, aren't they? AIUI, blueberries are a north American cultivated crop, whereas bilberries grow wild in northern Europe. I guess the names are used interchangeably though, and they're close enough.

I don't think I've ever picked bilberries in the wild. Not sure where I would find them round here either, though I wouldn't be surprised if they were in the woods next door.

Yes. Blueberries are also larger and they're white inside, whereas bilberries are dark purple, almost black, all the way through. I suppose bilberries must also be cultivated somewhere but in some parts of Europe there's quite an industry of harvesting them in the wild and using them for commercial products.

I think bilberries from a group of closely related European plants, normally foraged, while blueberries are from North Americans and generally cultivated.

Though oddly, all the blueberries I see for sale in the supermarket seem to come from Poland.

It was blaeberries that Mrs P was pilfering.

 

[Cudzoziemiec]

Going back to rice, I've been looking in the Korean and Chinese shops nearby and in the centre and none of them have any rice that works out at under £2/kg unless you buy about 12kg. We don't really have anywhere to store that much and I don't think we eat it quick enough, it would probably go mouldy or something. So sticking with Tilda from the Co-op! And the Co-op's own label brown, which I like. Mind you, haven't checked Sweet Mart yet.

[Wowbagger]

Wikipedia.

Lots of names for the same thing.

The USAnian version is a different, but related, species.

They like heathland and acid soil, and in my experience tend to prefer uplands. They grow on places like Kinder Scout - often alongside heather.

[ian]

Because Waitrose didn't have the normal bog-standard wholemeal, I grabbed the Hovis wholemeal next to it.

What the actual fuck, it's like eating cake. The same shock you get when you eat bread in the US. Yup, there it is, fourth ingredient after flour, water, and yeast: caramelized sugar. I made the dangerous assumption that wholemeal bread would be like, you know, flour, water, yeast, bit of salt and a few 'improvers.'

It's foul. And another example of something masquerading as something healthy (wholemeal, innit) while being anything but.

[andyoxon]

After crushing a load of Tesco garlic into the sauce, I was surprised to see origin: China, on the label.   Other two packs are both from Spain.  In UK IoW is 'parently good for garlic.  Will have to be more careful when buying next time.

[Cudzoziemiec]

China is the world's largest garlic grower, supplying the majority of UK consumption, I read somewhere or other.

[ian]

It's easy to transport, will sit in a ship for several weeks without going off. China has the world's biggest garlic industry by far.

[Cudzoziemiec]

This is why your t-shirts and smartphones arrive with a slightly better aroma nowadays.

[ian]

The sheer volume of ship traffic through the Malacca Strait is something to behold.

[T42]

Cardamom
Coriander
Ginger
Cayenne pepper
Oregano
Dried garlic
Dried onion
Paprika
Quatre-épices
Salt
Mixed pepper (black, white, 3 others undefined) all ground together

^^^ Lunchtime kebab spice mix.  Any further suggestions?

[Jakob W]

Bit of cumin?

[T42]

Thought of that, but it's very assertive. Not sure it would work.

[Cudzoziemiec]

In what might be the last installment of the Rice Buyer's Bulletin, today the Co-op had specific "basmati" for the same price as generic "long grain". I'd suspect it of being the same stuff but it's visibly different. Which means Co-op basmati in a 1kg bag is cheaper than long grain varieties in bags up to 10kg or more from various Asian shops (though I've yet to check Stapleton Road).

[T42]

Funny how A can smell like B. Someone has just been round his field(s) with the muck spreader, but if I didn't know better I could have sworn he was using Roquefort.

[Cudzoziemiec]

Having posted a day or two ago in the Lockdown thread about no longer making bread, yesterday Mrs Cudzo asked me how to use it! But she wanted to use some gluten-free flour she'd got. So how to alter the recipe to allow for that? More yeast, presumably. Is it plain or wholemeal? Oh, it's not de-glutenised wheat flour, it's a mixture of rice, potato and maize flours. Well, I've no idea how that's going to behave except unpredictably. So it was no surprise when what emerged was an unrisen, seemingly unbaked and even unmixed, totally inedible mess. She's going to find some recipes on the internetz and bake it by hand.

[T42]

Gor bugger, they just doubled down on the Roquefort.

We plough the fields and slurry
So that the seed will grow up
The niff comes through the window
We praise the Lord and throw up.

Pass the pomander, m'dear.

[hellymedic]

Having posted a day or two ago in the Lockdown thread about no longer making bread, yesterday Mrs Cudzo asked me how to use it! But she wanted to use some gluten-free flour she'd got. So how to alter the recipe to allow for that? More yeast, presumably. Is it plain or wholemeal? Oh, it's not de-glutenised wheat flour, it's a mixture of rice, potato and maize flours. Well, I've no idea how that's going to behave except unpredictably. So it was no surprise when what emerged was an unrisen, seemingly unbaked and even unmixed, totally inedible mess. She's going to find some recipes on the internetz and bake it by hand.

I am merely speculating but:
Bread is a foam, with the gas usually held in place by gluten's properties.
Egg will stabilise a foam in the presence of heat, in the absence of gluten.

Suggest you add an egg or egg white to the mix...

[citoyen]

Try adding some xanthan gum. It kind of replicates the role of gluten.

There was some discussion of gluten-free bread upthread - iirc mrcharly had a recipe.

[Kim]

Our bread machine has a program for gluten free bread.  The destructions ask for a confusing combination of:

Milk
Eggs
Cider vinegar
Oil
Honey
Salt
Brown rice flour
Potato starch
Xanthan gum
Dry yeast (about twice the usual amount)

...which doesn't sound very bread-like to me.

Interestingly it's starting with the wet stuff and wanting the yeast last, rather than the usual yeast then flour then everything else.  It's also a relatively short (1:50) program.  Beyond that, who knows?

(It also suggests an alternative recipe comprised of water, oil, gluten-free bread mix and yeast.)