Cleaning out grinders with bread is a common practice here in Asia. Whether it be meat grinders or spice grinders. In another post I've warned against store-bought ground beef that is not safe on a gluten-free diet. When is comes to spices, I give the same caution.
I have also seen Uyghers in Central Asian markets feed naan (flat-bread) through their spice grinders whenever they grind a different spice. The bread absorbs the previous spice's odor prior to grinding a new spice, so as not to get chili tasting cinnamon, etc. However, this also introduces gluten into your ground spice.
Therefore, buy your spices already ground from a manufacturer you trust, or buy them whole and grind them yourself. Freshly ground spices are not only gluten-free but bursting with flavor that will enhance whatever dish you are making. For grinding at home, use a spice grinder, blender, magic bullet, or coffee grinder. Or, if you don't need them ground super well, a good old fashioned mortar and pestle should do the trick.
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October 17, 2011
October 10, 2011
WARNING: ground beef is NOT gluten-free
Lasagna, tacos, hamburgers, chili . . . ground beef is an absolute staple in many of our favorite foods. However, months after I had started my gluten-free diet in China, I was still having issues. The culprit? Store bought ground beef. After talking to the butchers at the grocery store, I discovered that they "clean" their meat grinders by running a few slices of bread through it at the end of the day. A fantastic time-saving solution for them, but unfortunately a big cross-contamination disaster.
The solution? Grind your own beef. Meat grinders are very cheap to purchase and simple to use. Then, you buy a slab of beef, cut it into approximately 2 inch square pieces, and feed it through the grinder. This option also lets you choose what quality of beef you want (I usually ask for whatever cut has the least amount of fat). Rather than using bread, I recommend simply washing the meat grinder immediately after use, to avoid raw meat getting dried on to all those moving parts. Ground spices are also affected by this practice. Click here to read more.
The solution? Grind your own beef. Meat grinders are very cheap to purchase and simple to use. Then, you buy a slab of beef, cut it into approximately 2 inch square pieces, and feed it through the grinder. This option also lets you choose what quality of beef you want (I usually ask for whatever cut has the least amount of fat). Rather than using bread, I recommend simply washing the meat grinder immediately after use, to avoid raw meat getting dried on to all those moving parts. Ground spices are also affected by this practice. Click here to read more.
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