Search

Today, different reasons such as people's interest in different cultures, their increasing awareness about healthy life, their tendency to natural foods and their desire to experience gastronomic experiences increase the demand for local cuisines. In our country, especially in recent years, gastronomy competitions and herb festivals also significantly affect the tourism attraction of the region where they are held. A wide variety of food plants that grow abundantly in rich floristic areas such as Ida Mountain, Madra Mountain and Ulus Mountain in Balıkesir province are an important gastronomically important resource. In this study; Edible herbs that grow naturally in Balıkesir have been identified and the dishes used by the local people and other ethnobotanic uses have been revealed. As a result of the research, it was determined that 45 genera and 56 taxa belonging to 21 families were used in food. It has been observed that the leaves and aboveground parts are used more in food. Roasting (from 36 taxa), herbs (from 24 taxa) and salad (from 22 taxa) are the most common types of dishes made from wild herbs, while the least-cooked meals are whipping (from 3 taxa), pouring (from 1 taxon), and stuffing (from 1 taxon). has been placed. In addition, it was determined that one species (Foeniculum vulgare) was used as a spice and 8 species were used medicinally, except for herb dishes. When we look at the consumption patterns and cooking techniques of herbs, it has been seen that mostly salad, olive oil roasting and boiling cooking methods are used. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Non-typhoidal Salmonellae are common foodborne pathogens that can cause gastroenteritis and other illnesses in people. This is the first study to assess the transfer of Salmonella enterica from raw chicken carcasses to ready-to-eat chicken salad in Cambodia. Twelve focus group discussions in four Cambodian provinces collected information on typical household ways of preparing salad. The results informed four laboratory experiments that mimicked household practices, using chicken carcasses inoculated with Salmonella. We developed four scenarios encompassing the range of practices, varying by order of washing (chicken or vegetables first) and change of chopping utensils (same utensils or different). Even though raw carcasses were washed twice, Salmonella was isolated from 32 out of 36 chicken samples (88.9%, 95% CI: 73.0–96.4) and two out of 18 vegetable samples (11.1%, 95% CI: 1.9–36.1). Salmonella was detected on cutting boards (66.7%), knives (50.0%) and hands (22.2%) after one wash; cross-contamination was significantly higher on cutting boards than on knives or hands (p-value < 0.05). The ready-to-eat chicken salad was contaminated in scenario 1 (wash vegetables first, use same utensils), 2 (wash vegetables first, use different utensils) and 3 (wash chicken first, use same utensils) but not 4 (wash chicken first, use different utensils) (77.8%, 11.1%, 22.2% and 0%, respectively). There was significantly higher Salmonella cross-contamination in scenario 1 (wash vegetables first, use same utensils) than in the other three scenarios. These results show how different hygiene practices influence the risk of pathogens contaminating chicken salad. This information could decrease the risk of foodborne disease in Cambodia and provides inputs to a quantitative risk assessment model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Verjuice is an unfermented juice produced by pressing unripe grapes used as acidifying in food preparations. In this study, the drivers of consumers’ liking of three acidic salad seasonings (verjuice, lemon juice, and white wine vinegar) were compared by Check-All-That-Apply test. Results showed that overall liking scores were not different for salads seasoned with verjuice and lemon juice, whereas they were significantly higher for those seasoned with vinegar. The liking was associated with moderate sweetness and vinegar aroma typical of vinegar, while it was opposed to lemon aroma, astringent, bitter, high acidity, aqueous viscosity, yellowish color of seasoning, herbaceous, and vegetable aroma typical of lemon juice and verjuice. The approach used resulted appropriate to identify the drivers of liking. Results showed that verjuice can be a valid alternative to common acidic salad seasoning, and indicated the directions for future improvements of this product. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Raw salads are regularly implicated in food-borne disease outbreaks globally. Consumption of kachumbari, a raw vegetable salad, alongside roast meat is widespread in Kenya. The aim of this study was to evaluate the bacteriological quality of kachumbari samples (n=39) collected from a cross section of roasted meat eateries in Kenya. The United Kingdom’s Health Protection Agency guidelines were used to infer safety of the salads due to lack of local criteria for microbiological safety of ready-to-eat fresh produce placed in the market. Based on Escherichia coli counts, 14 (35.9%) of the samples were of satisfactory microbial quality (<20 CFU/g), 7 (17.9%) in the borderline (20–≤102 CFU/g), and 18 (46.2%) unsatisfactory (>102 CFU/g). All samples examined for staphylococci had counts falling within the borderline range (20–≤104 CFU/g). Collectively, 3 (7.7%) of the sampled salads were classified as potentially harmful to health and/or unfit for human consumption due to the presumptive presence of 2 (5.1%) Campylobacter spp. and 1 (2.6%) E. coli O157. Salmonella was not detected in any of the samples. The presence of hygiene indicator microorganisms and pathogens demonstrates that kachumbari salads present a public health risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, pasta with dried Eruca vesicaria leaves commonly known as Rocket salad and spinach leaves flours were prepared. Samples were evaluated for its chemical composition, cooking quality, textural, colour and consumer acceptance. Results showed that pasta with Eruca vesicaria had the highest dietary fibre content (5.30-9.50 g/100 g) and the lowest fat content (2.13-2.80 g/100 g). The optimally cooked pasta with 5% of leaves (stored 30 days) and pasta with 10% of leaves (stored 14 days) have good cooking quality with cooking loss ≤8%. The green colour and textural characteristics of pastas were stable during all period at 4 °C. Textural characteristics of pasta with rocket and spinach were similar. Pasta with 10% of rocket leaves has presented the highest overall acceptability score. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]