Giles and Alex hit Japan - June 2022
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Haha yeah we’re most certainly conditioned to deeply fear raw chicken here. I have friends who wash it with soap and water before cooking (I don’t go that far, but it still gives me the heebie jeebies).
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From the U.S. CDC: In fact, about 1 in every 25 packages of chicken at the grocery store are contaminated with Salmonella…
It’s fairly well documented that American meat processing is subpar. I’m not surprised that that is the case in the USA.
E.coli is often linked to leafy greens in American (and UK for that matter) supermarkets, does that mean we should stop eating salad too?
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Matt said it best, we are instilled from a very young age to be wary of raw chicken. That’s a hard thing to break and it’s almost like a fear of snakes or spiders.
Re: greens I’m wary of that too…if in doubt we rinse it or toss it. Probably unjustified but the thought of severe abdominal cramps and everything that goes with it does not sound like fun…
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Haha yeah I’d try the rare chicken in Japan. I’d probably have a pretty hard time with it, though — my brain is just straight-up trained to be skeeved out by that texture
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From the U.S. CDC: In fact, about 1 in every 25 packages of chicken at the grocery store are contaminated with Salmonella…
It’s fairly well documented that American meat processing is subpar. I’m not surprised that that is the case in the USA.
E.coli is often linked to leafy greens in American (and UK for that matter) supermarkets, does that mean we should stop eating salad too?
It’s funny, most of us know this but it just isn’t the same. Seeing raw chicken is kind of like seeing a snake. My brain is just trained to be grossed out by it.
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Seeing raw chicken is kind of like seeing a snake.
This made me howl hahahahaha
But yep, 100% re: salad. I'm well aware of that issue and eat like 2 big boxes of the pre-washed salad every week, never give it any additional washes, and never bat an eyelash.
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Haha yeah I’d try the rare chicken in Japan. I’d probably have a pretty hard time with it, though — my brain is just straight-up trained to be skeeved out by that texture
As an American, I am afraid to admit I was unaware humans could even eat raw chicken safely. I don't think I could handle it anywhere, anytime…I don't get out much
It all comes from the fear instilled while we were young, like the other gents have stated.
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Raw chicken just doesn't sound appealing to me, but then again, there was a time I would have said that about beef tartare or beef carpaccio and now I'm hungry having mentioned them. I am sure they tenderize somehow because otherwise it sounds like eating bland rubber that will make you sick.
I now am recalling Gordon Ramsey on one of those stupid cooking shows "EET'S RAW YA DONKAY… YA GUNNA KILL SOMEONE!!!" regarding undercooked chicken.
I do tend to cook my pork tinged pink in the center, which is a practice that used to be verboten, in part due to fears of trichinosis, which isn't super likely these days to my understanding.
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I do tend to cook my pork tinged pink in the center, which is a practice that used to be verboten, in part due to fears of trichinosis, which isn't super likely these days to my understanding.
Totally true. One of the best culinary purchases I've ever made, if not the best, is a Thermapen. I remember cooking pork tenderloin and nailing it right at 145 for the first time. It was completely revelatory. I just thought about all the ropey, overdone stuff my parents had fed me in my youth and thought holy shit, we've been doing it all wrong haha…
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I've had beef carpaccio and love it, but have never tried tartare…Is it good?
Oh it's SO good. With a quail egg, maybe some capers and some good toast. Damn I'm hungry now too.
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Great discussion of perceptions…
RAW CHICKEN???? THAT IS GROSS!!!
That would’ve been our likely reactions to raw fish 40 or so years ago. The sushi worldwide fad took care of that right?
Any guesses which will be the first major european or US city to offer specialty raw chicken?
Probably a hamburger shop across the street from some IH retailer!!! -
There have been restaurants serving chicken sashimi in NYC for years.
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Perhaps the main reason for going to Japan was to discuss the future of Iron Heart. Haraki is a shade older than me and wants to cut back a bit. He has never really had a solid succession plan, this has been a concern for years.
I can't say too much at the moment, but we have an amazing way forward, in many ways better than mine, Paula's or Alex's wildest dreams.
Suffice to say, I truly believe we have a solution that will secure the future of Iron Heart for many years to come, will allow us to grow and secure the long-term future for all of our staff, both in the UK and back in Japan.
There's many a slip betwixt cup and lip, and we still have a lot of details to work out, but we are in a good place….
