Did you know you can eat lye

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sodium hydroxide is an ingredient in many foods. hard pretzels and ripe olives just to name two. and used in a zillion things as a pH adjuster - toothpaste, eye drops...
 
tasha said:
lutefisk is vile. very popular here in minnesota.

god is it ever just VILE. its like nasty gelatin fish gone bad. with a lye taste. oy.
 
Ever had these?

mandarin-oranges-10-can.jpg


:p How do you think they get the skins off?
 
why the ack?


I never really gave much thought as to how they got the skins off. It's a little disturbing to think of them sitting in a mixture of drain cleaner. I am interested where things come from, but then sometimes I wish I didn't know once I find out!!
 
carebear said:
sodium hydroxide is an ingredient in many foods. hard pretzels and ripe olives just to name two. and used in a zillion things as a pH adjuster - toothpaste, eye drops...

I must be naive, never knew all this, I was watching something on TV the other day and they tried the lutefisk. Mmm, must read more labels.
 
I got food grade lye from essential depot just so I could make German pretzels and then never got around to it before I used up all the lye LOL

I didn't know that about mandarin oranges though - I figured they went through a machine peeler? Thought I saw a How it's Made episode where they did that.

ETA: must have been something else I was thinking of:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandarin_orange
Canned mandarin segments are peeled to remove the white pith prior to canning; otherwise, they turn bitter. Segments are peeled using a chemical process. First, the segments are scalded in hot water to loosen the skin; then they are bathed in a lye solution which digests the albedo and membranes. Finally, the segments undergo several rinses in plain water.

Pretty cool!
 
Bubbly Buddha said:
why the ack?


I never really gave much thought as to how they got the skins off. It's a little disturbing to think of them sitting in a mixture of drain cleaner. I am interested where things come from, but then sometimes I wish I didn't know once I find out!!

But it's not just drain cleaner is the way I think of it. And actually isn't a good drain cleaner at all for a major clog. I love mandarin oranges with cottage cheese. I also heart soft pretzels.

I have some cleansing cream with lye listed in it and when I wear more eye makeup than usual I use it but am careful not to get it in my eyes like it says on the label. It could sting and is really oily.
 
Hazel said:
[I loved tapioca when I was young until my brother told me it was fish eyes. :shock: It was years before I ate it again.

:lol: :lol: :lol:

Lye is also used to process hominy, and in the hair conditioner I use as well. It's also used to process chocolate. Ever heard of Dutch Processed chocolate? It's processed with lye. No need to freak out over it, though. It's perfectly safe when used and handled within the proper boundaries of whichever application it's being used for. Like bleach, for instance. I would never drink it out of the container, but I sometimes use a diluted solution of it to sanitise things that I eat off of. It's also in my city's water supply that people drink and bathe in.

It's good to remember all of these things that lye is used in and for because they make for a great defense whenever anybody comes up to you and says in horror, "Gasp! You use lye in your soap?!" :lol:

IrishLass :)
 
IrishLass said:
It's good to remember all of these things that lye is used in and for because they make for a great defense whenever anybody comes up to you and says in horror, "Gasp! You use lye in your soap?!" :lol:

IrishLass :)

Love this! I've had people Gasp at me about the lye in soap too. I never knew about the mandarin oranges. Wow!

The board never ceases to amaze me with all the knowledge that oozes out of it on a regular basis.

Cool. Just way cool.
 

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