MSG. People will swear it gives them all manner of ailments
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I also love msg, but 2.4kg would probably last a decade in my pantry. I use it sparingly. How much do you use?
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It’s almost like a cheat code to make almost anything taste better!
But I also I don’t understand people who think that it literally is cheating and shouldn’t be used because of that. If msg is cheating, salt is also cheating.
For me, msg has become almost as important “tool” in the kitchen as salt.
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The holy trinity 🤤.
My understanding of “cheating” when it comes to cooking is that you’re becoming reliant on something that might be/become difficult to get ahold of. Pure salt is ubiquitous in western cuisine, so most would feel comfortable relying on it. That’s not the case with MSG.
Well if people won’t use it because it’s “cheating”. Then it’ll never make it to bw ubiquitious next to salt, like it imo deserves to be.
There’s glutamate, although not MSG, in breast milk. Also sugar in the form of lactose. That’s because that’s what gets babies to keep sucking.
MSG is naturally in certain foods too, like tomatos and seaweed.
Msg started from analyzing seaweed, thanks Japan
I bought a big pack of msg from the Asian supermarket and use it instead of normal salt for many things. My partner and I call it wonder salt.
(Of course, msg like normal salt or anything should be used in moderation lol)
I bought a big pack of msg from the Asian supermarket and use it instead of normal salt for many things. My partner and I call it wonder salt.
I hear the voices of my ancestors cry in confusion.
But seriously speaking, I’ve never encountered MSG being used in place of salt. We use it here to give food more of that nondescript meaty taste (aka umami).
Personally, if I need both salty and umami tastes I’d reach for soy or fish sauce first (depending on what’s being cooked). I’d only add MSG and/or salt if I really have to—usually to make minute adjustments.
I’m sorry for offending your ancestors. I hope they can find it in their hearts to forgive me lol
Tbh, I’m not very good at cooking and I rarely add salt to my food. If I want saltiness, I usually get it through ingredients like soy sauce, for example. I guess I don’t mean that I use the msg instead of salt, but I do use in foods where you might add salt, and I just happen to not since I added something else that serves a similar purpose. Does that make sense? But then, like I said, I’m not good at cooking and I just try to make things and experiment a bunch (a lot of experiments have failed horribly)
Also - maybe it also makes a difference that I eat vegan/vegetarian and I don’t always know how to fill in the “meaty” gap that I feel like can be missing.
The purpose of salt in cooking is as a flavour enhancer. It brings out the other flavours that already exist in the food. Salt is not a flavour. It’s why a lot of recipes call for salt to taste, as how much you add can vary a bit. Next time you cook something that tastes a bit dull, try adding a small amount of salt and note what it does to the flavours as you add more. If it tastes “salty” you probably added too much.
Source - I was a chef/cook for 9 years
That makes sense, thank you! I will try experimenting with salt later :)
They seem to be a lot more confused than angry, lol!
But yeah, thanks for the explanation about your use case. This, and your comment about using MSG on tomato-ey stuff has clarified things for me. The reason I brought up soy and fish sauces earlier is because they too, have MSG, and depending on the flavor profile I’m after, I might elect to use one or the other. That usually takes care of MSG in a lot of cases.
I just happen to not since I added something else that serves a similar purpose
… Taken that way, we both do a similar thing.
I eat vegan/vegetarian and I don’t always know how to fill in the “meaty” gap that I feel like can be missing.
Ah, that explains a lot, thanks! And I don’t really have experience in vegetarian/vegan cooking so I am afraid I can’t help with that. There are meat substitutes, of course, but the one I had experience with relied on gluten to achieve a meat-like texture. I’ve heard, too, that mushrooms can used to give that earthy taste that can be enhanced with MSG. Tofu as well. But please take these with a pinch of… MSG, lol!
I really appreciate the explanation! I’ve learned a lot from you and the others, and I have some ideas for things I want to try for the next time (which is probably very soon, since it’s almost lunch time lol)
I actually bought some mushroom sauce a couple of days ago, and I’m looking forward to giving that a go. I only recently discovered this amazing Asian supermarket near where I live (in Germany) and it has been so fun learning to use things I didn’t know I had such easy access to before!
My ancestors are happy to have reeled one in. HAHAHAHAHAHA!!
But yeah! Have fun exploring the various (weird) flavors that you can find in Asian supermarkets. Some of them might be a bit too weird for your tastebuds, but I think that’s part of the fun. You might also want to explore Buddhist vegetarian cooking as well, if you haven’t already, since there are a lot of techniques there might be useful for you.
I heard a lot about how msg can make stuff taste great, so I bought some a while back and I try it every now and then, but I can’t really tell the difference. If I use too much I do notice that it makes the taste worse. I don’t know if I’m doing it wrong.
Yeah, using too much is going to make your food taste gross, just like adding too much salt would too. I also think it might not be suitable for every dish, so I think there’s some experimentation required. For me, I like to add it to things that have a lot of tomato in them (like a sauce) or when I feel like there’s something “missing”. I find it rounds out the taste.
Maybe while you’re cooking, taste your food before and then immediately after adding some msg, taste it again. It won’t be like a huge, in your face difference - it’s pretty subtle imo. Then again everyone’s tastes and taste buds are different and it might just actually not be for you!
Yeah it just adds umami. Some dishes don’t want umami added. Whiskey really doesn’t from personal experience. Alcohol and curiosity are a dangerous combination
Wait, you added it to whiskey?? That sounds disgusting but also I love that you tried it lmfao
It was not quite disgusting but very not good. Adhd probably played a role in this decision lol
Mmm yes, I can relate. I have also eaten weird shit because my brain had weird ideas.
I remember when I was looking up diet videos years ago everyone was VEHEMETLY advocating against MSG and how bad it was for you, especially for diabetics. I’m still not entirely sure what to believe, but I know MSG isn’t as bad as everyone thought it was.
MSG isn’t “bad” at all, it’s just another ingredient really. The campaign against it was entirely bullshit that was driven by racism against Asian people because it’s a common ingredient in Chinese food.
It’s basically just salt. Salt can be bad for you if you eat too much of it. Don’t over salt your food and you’re fine.
That was the conclusion i came to, it’s just another seasoning like paprika or salt. The opposition to it is what keeps me skeptical, if it’s just a seasoning why are people so randomly against it? I think it’s because it’s used in lots of fast food.
It’s rooted in racism. Chinese American food was cheap and delicious, steadily growing in popularity. Non-Chinese restaurant owners viewed us as a threat. So the racists among them used dubious studies, which have since been discredited, to try to spread this myth that Chinese food was unhealthy because it contained MSG.
Of course it was all a fabrication. People would claim to feel bloated/sick even after eating Chinese food containing no MSG, probably because it tastes so damn good and people are bad at eating in moderation. Likewise, people could eat non-Chinese food containing MSG and somehow there are minimal complaints.
My family’s restaurant was put through the ringer over this in the 80’s-90’s and almost went out of business, but thankfully the science prevailed in the end.
That’s actually a misconception within a misconception.
It’s not that MSG allergies don’t exist, it is that they are often downplayed for the same reason that Celiac’s disease is downplayed. When a few people fake or overexaggerate their symptoms, credibility is taken from the rest of us who actually suffer from it. Now people are always quick to invalidate those who are symptomatic.
Yes, it’s true that some of the rumors around MSG are racially motivated, and that some people who claim to be affected are lying. But that doesn’t mean that MSG related symptoms aren’t real for the rest of us. Speaking as someone who is from Hong Kong, grew up with MSG, and absolutely loves the taste of it, but developed health conditions that were comorbid with MSG intolerance.
As a chronic pain and migraine sufferer, large quantities of MSG is a common trigger for migraines (or headaches when I’m lucky). I’ve been blind tested before with someone else’s help using the same quantities of salt vs MSG in a cellulose capsule. Each time, I would happen to be fine after taking the salt capsule with a glass of water. But after taking the MSG capsule with a glass of water, I would have have a headache or a painfully tense sensation around my head. This was done multiple times across separate days to rule out confounding factors.
It’s likely true that for the vast majority of people MSG doesn’t trigger a reaction. However, a few of us have an intolerance and we are frequently dismissed and medically gaslit. Please believe us. I’m so tired of people telling me that what I’m experiencing isn’t real. I wish it didn’t have to be real so I could go back to eating whatever I want and not worry about migraines.
I remember reading something from Chef John being against MSG (he was commenting within one of his YouTube videos). But not for health reasons. He just felt the flavor punch it gave lead to addictive overeating.
I’m like bitch, that delicious food you showcase does the same thing, you don’t hear me bitching about it.
I love the taste of msg, unfortunately over the past few years it seems to have become a trigger for my migraines. I miss eating noodles with msg.
Had a gnarly migraine yesterday after having msg. Hope its not msg causing it, so tasty 😩
I sometimes eat it knowingly and then question all my life decisions once the migraine sets in 🤣
Weed
To be fair, a lot of research had been held up by it being federally illegal.
I think enough people have used it for long enough that we can assume it’s relatively harmless but we can’t say it’s completely harmless just because the studies haven’t been done.
It isn’t harmless. I’m not saying you shouldn’t use it. In all likelihood, it’s less harmful than tobacco or alcohol, but we shouldn’t pretend it’s completely harmless.
What people always forget is that it’s the dosage that makes the poison. Weed might very well be harmless for recreational use, but recreational use does not mean trying to out smoke Snoop Dog.
Give a 50mg gummy to a weed newbie and everybody’s having a bad night.
That’s a very good point, along with usage. Weed might have practically no effect if you consume it non-regularly but might have significant effect when you do every day.
Snoop dog doesn’t even smoke that much lol, dab smokers probably injest way more THC per day than snoop dog.
Nothing is completely harmless… aspirin and paracetamol is far more dangerous than marijuana.
I’d love to see the data on this if you have it. Isn’t weed more long term impact than the others you listed?
According to people like you even a water is more dangerous than weed. Weed is dangerous, that’s a fact. Not more than alcohol, but it’s dangerous.
Water is far more dangerous than weed - you can literally kill yourself by drinking too much of it.
I mean with the CSU/CDU out of the way, they might finally get around to doing it.
It is a softdrug, not a harddrug, but it’s a drug nonetheless. It has the potential to destroy your life, but the potentiol is just very low. You should always treat it with respect. Saying “weed is harmless” is respectless. Think of the bullied nerd in highschool who is regarded as a harmless loser. He get’s bullied every day, because he never fights back. Until he snaps some day and becomes a top ranking highschool shooter. If you abuse weed long enough, it will change you and it will ruin you.
Weed does not agree with me at all, it sends me into truly horrifying attacks of paranoia. It effects people differently so yeah it’s definitely not “completely harmless.”
Socialism.
Careful, friend. Once you start giving a shit about people who don’t have much money it’s a slippery slope
Yeah…good trolling there.
The government providing a baseline existence for it’s people is like super fucking dangerous.
Dangerous to the profit margin of a lot of companies, maybe.
There are already programs. Run by a government that obviously can’t help. We don’t need to share our wealth, if we were provided wealth through real jobs. With a paycheck to buy whatever it is you need and be able to save. Less taxes, less inflation. It’s the government chopping your wealth at your knees too “feed” other people will only make it harder to become financially well set for your chosen life style.
as a chemist by trade: all sorts of random chemicals
also some people believe that microwaves are harmful and 5g towers will turn all your frogs gay or something like that. gee i wish they were consistent in their beliefs, if they were i’d never find them on internet
Microwaves are harmful. Unless you mean the device. Which still can be harmful if it’s broken. Edit: I see the good old Reddit behavior of downvoting facts is back.
Or dropped on someone
maybe if you manage to get microwave burn, these can be nasty. otherwise no
Only sort of, it’s not ionizing radiation so it can only burn you. Internally.
Climbing, the gear is all rated to lift 2 tonnes, so a medium sized car. It won’t snap with you on it.
Edit: sorry this is misleading, climbing is not harmless, and a lot can go wrong even with good equipment. The point I wanted to convey was that equipment failure is an unlikely cause of problems for climbing
I’m a climber and while yes, the gear is very well made and over engineered climbing is still quite dangerous. That rope could be rated for 500KN but if you repel off the end of it you’re still going for a fall.
You’re right, my first post was a bit over reaching
I had a huge carabiner holding a free climbing rope fail on me at my local climbing gym. Dumped me at least 15’ and I broke my foot. Definitely a weird one off but it’s not always the rope that fails.
ah that is unfortunate, they probably hadn’t inspected it in a while
I don’t think it’s the ropes that are used that make climbing dangerous…
what is it in your opinion?
Using the equipment incorrectly.
Or other forms of inexperience. If you were climbing a rock face and didn’t realize the part you were trusting your life to wasn’t as stable as you thought it would be and your attachments give out.
And sometimes bad luck. RIP my uncle, who has been climbing for decades until one day he fell to his death.
Agreed
Muslims.
Most US cities are not as dangerous as the news makes them out to be.
Spiders.
Even black widows basically have to be harassed into biting.
ITT: people that don’t know what completely harmless means
Are you going to make me log back into reddit to find the most upvotes comment to this question?
LGBTQ people and drag queens.
Speak for yourself, sis. I’m a dangerous homosexual. 💅🔪
The most dangerous thing about drag shows is that a Christian can show up with a gun
“Christian”
Nah, quotes not necessary.
True Scotsman Fallacy detected.
This is a great quote. I may have to borrow it.
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Well dressed people that can often dance (in high heels) and sing and are comfortable in their bodies. What the hell
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First the gay agenda, now the trans agenda, when will the agendas end?!?
I’m telling ya, it’s all a part of Big Agenda…
Can we go back to the simple, front picture changing, neato math/science fact having, paper agenda instead? I’ll even have my mom sign in daily it we can agree to this.
Resist Big Agenda! Spontaneity only!
Reading in the dark.
Not dangerous but definitely becomes more difficult the older I get.
I do this a lot (reading books on my phone before I sleep)
it does but damage the eyes?
It doesn’t damage them, just makes them more tired. Sleep can fix that, though.
People who are dependent on opiates and opioids.
Some people who are in a lot of pain legitimately need the medicine in order to have a normal life. It doesn’t make us high, it makes us ‘normal’ because we actually require the medicine to bring us to normal levels of activity.
Just because someone is physically dependent on the medicine, does not make them an addict too
Most of us would rather never take another pill in our lives if we were suddenly healed.
Eating mushrooms you find wherever
Threads
/s
Like, the movie?
