1. La Pizza e La Pasta Cibollettino
Volume I
October
16, 2015
Close Up on the
Plant Kingdom
Nightshades
For years, nightshades were feared the world over due to
their poisonous properties. Plants like the dangerous
belladonna are known for chemical
properties, which induce deep sleep or
even death. After Hernan Cortez
brought tomatoes back to Europe from
the New World, many refused to ingest
them for years, due to their resemblance
of another popular fruit and relative of
the belladonna the eggplant.
After years of research and
experimentation, eggplants and
tomatoes began to lose their bad rep,
particularly in Italy, where the tomato is
known as “pomodoro,” a conjunction of
the words pomi di oro, meaning golden apple. Most
tomatoes widely produced tomatoes are red in color, but
they originally started out a greenish-yellow color and
evolved over time after much experimentation and cross
breeding.
Nightshades aren’t known to cause typical anaphylaxis, as
do some of the more major allergens such as wheat, soy,
shellfish or peanuts. More often people experience
gastrointestinal distress, such as those with some form of
IBS. However, they can still be very troublesome, making it
all the more important that Eatalian kitchens do their due
diligence for customers with these issues, as nightshades
are all around us!
What a nut! Or is it…?
Although possessing the partly made up of the word “nut,”
peanuts are actually considered a legume, part of the bean
family, or fabaceae as they are called in Latin. While
possessing a texture similar to hazelnuts, peanuts are more
closely related to fava beans or peas.
Unlike other legumes which tend to
grow above ground, peanuts grow
under the ground in groups, but still
maintain the traditional pod form as
other legumes.
Yo Polpo,
don’t be such
a crab!
Even an octopus can get a little crabby from time to time.
And he has a valid reason; he’s part crab. Octopi and crabs
are part of the phylum arthropoda. Aside from sharing
similar genes, crabs and octopi have quite different physical
make-ups. Crabs, just as all
other crustaceans, have an
exoskeleton, making them rather
similar to scorpions and spiders.
Octopi and other cephalopods
such as cuttlefish or squid have
no spine at all. But regardless of
their physical make-up, these
oceanic arthropods are all
considered shellfish and chefs must exert extreme caution
to not contaminate the food of a consumer with this very
lethal allergy.
DUCT. TAPE. ALLERGY.
They can NOT be serious…
All joking aside, food allergies are very serious. As many as 15 million Americans have food allergies: 9 million people, 4% of
American adults have food allergies, and nearly 6 million children, which makes up for 8% of all children in the US. According to a
study released in 2013 by the US Center for Disease Control, food allergies in children increased by a whopping 50% from 1997 to
2011 alone.
There are eight specific foods that account for 90% of all food related allergies: Milk, Eggs, Peanuts, Tree Nuts, Wheat, Soy, Fish and
Shellfish. The largest portion of children tend to be sensitive to milk, eggs and peanuts. Allergies to milk, eggs, wheat and soy end
some times resolve themselves after early childhood, but should they persist past 5-7 years of age, it is likely they will persist for a
lifetime. Allergies to fish, shellfish, tree nuts and peanuts are typically last a lifetime and will require extra special attention,
especially when dining out.
Most people with serious food allergies are aware that they have them. When dining out, it is imperative for consumers to
communicate their allergies to service staff. For some, casual skin contact does not pose a major issue, but some people cannot
even breathe in the same room as a contaminant. Foods that exude oils such as soy beans, peanuts or tree nuts must be thoroughly
washed off of the skin with soap and water before a chef can proceed to prepare a dish, antibacterial gel will not do. This also
applies to a chef’s entire station; every surface must be decontaminated before continuing to prepare food for a consumer with
these specific issues.
One might think this is a lot of pomp and circumstance for an allergy to one simple ingredient, especially if it’s not even found in
the kitchen. However, the animal and plant kingdoms are complex and often surprising. For example, if a person is allergic to
tomatoes, there is also a chance they are allergic to bell peppers, eggplant, and even potatoes, all coming from the family
solanaceae. And in other cases, a person who might be deathly allergic to shrimp, might not react to other members of the phylum
arthropoda, i.e.: mussels, scallops, cuttlefish, octopus. But no matter what the allergy, be it as broad as the aforementioned allergy
to nightshades or the very specific shrimp allergy, you can never be too cautious, and all the more important as a food service
person to educate ones self on the vast idiosyncrasies of the plant and animal kingdoms, and all the contaminants therein. _
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