What’s different about CulinaryLore and BuzzFeed? Well, a lot, but one key difference is that the content here is based on research and experience and not sourced from the quotes of random folks on the web. With that in mind, I thought I’d review some of the supposed cooking myths in a BuzzFeed article titled Irritating Food and Cooking Myths. The myths concern such things as garlic, unsalted butter, draining cooked ground beef, instant pot recipes, superfoods, sifting flour, and more. Technically, it’s a list from a Reddit thread.
Myth 1: You Should Use Garlic First
Quote: “That you should add garlic first to a recipe. So much of my early cooking life was made so much more difficult by thinking that garlic always had to go in at the start. Most of the time, I was fighting for my life trying to keep said garlic from burning.” — u/mincepryshkin-
This is not a myth because it never was a thing. There was never any general recommendation to add garlic first. In fact, when sauteing your flavoring ingredients like onions, celery, (the holy trinity, etc.), any experienced cook will tell you to add your garlic at the end of the saute while lowering the heat to avoid burning the garlic. Once the garlic is added to a liquid mixture, there is no need to fear burning it or rendering it bitter.
If you cook in stages to build flavor, you would then add the garlic last in this stage. Otherwise, you can of course add garlic at different times to a dish. You just have to ensure it is fully cooked to avoid a strong, raw garlic taste.
Verdict: Not an actual myth
Myth 2: You Have to Drain Ground Beef After Browning It
Quote: “That you should drain the fat when cooking ground beef. So many recipes will tell you to do this. Hell no! Fat is flavor! Use the rendered fat to cook up the veggies you’ll use in the dish, and the end results will be so much better.” — u/Waterstealer
There are a couple of problems here. One, when you brown ground beef, it doesn’t only give off fat, it also gives off a lot of water. So, if you want to use it to cook vegetables after you’ve browned the beef, you’ll have to cook off the excess liquid first or you’ll be boiling your veggies.
This means you will have to either remove the ground beef from the fat in spoonfuls or drain the ground beef into a colander while catching the fat in a bowl. This is an extra step that many home cooks will not want to bother with. It dirties a bowl, for one.
And, if you are not cooking and vegetables for which you might utilize the beef fat, then you absolutely should drain ground beef before using it or the resulting dish will be very greasy and offputting.
Verdict: Technically true but incomplete advice
Myth 3: Superfoods are Not Magic
Quote: “That superfoods are some sort of ‘magic’ food. Anything billed as a superfood may just have slightly more nutrients than other foods. They’re not magic — they don’t make other, unhealthy foods healthier when paired together.” — u/Morall_tach
I’ll go a step further. There is no scientifically valid method for rating the nutritional value of a single food on a scale. The human body needs too many nutrients, including macronutrients like protein, fats, and carbohydrates (some would debate carbohydrates). We cannot survive, in fact, without fat in our diet and we also must derive certain fatty acids from the food we eat. Many so-called superfoods are deficient in fat, among other nutrients.
No single food can scientifically be called ‘super’ anything. Most superfoods are rated as super because they contain more of a certain handful of micronutrients, or even just one. The rest of the information you will find concerning such foods is hyped-up nonsense and magical thinking.
Verdict: Absolutely Correct
Myth 4: You Need to Sift Flour Before Baking
Quote: “Unless the flour you’re baking with is ancient or full of noticeable lumps, there’s no need to sift it each and every time you use it. Just make sure you’re thoroughly whisking it into your batter or dough, and there will be virtually no difference in texture.” — Ross Yoder
I couldn’t agree more. I’ve written an article saying the same thing. These two articles will explain in detail why you can ignore the age-old advice about sifting flour except in very specific circumstances.
As I concluded in the second linked article, “It is questionable whether there is a need to sift today’s flours. If a recipe calls for flour, sifted, then you should sift to be more certain you will have the right amount of measured flour, at the end. Otherwise, it is hard to say sifting will actually make a difference.”
Verdict: I agree!
Do You Really Need to Sift Together Dry Ingredients for Baking?
Myth 5: You Should Wash Chicken Before Cooking It
Quote: “That you should wash chicken before cooking it. Experts actually agree you usually don’t need to wash chicken. Everyone we spoke to — including a USDA rep, a germ expert, and a prominent NYC chef — discouraged the practice. Lots of people do it, but it can often be more harmful than helpful.” — Michelle No
This is true. Experts do advise that you should not wash chicken before cooking it because you will likely be spreading germs in water droplets, therefore causing cross-contamination with other foods in your kitchen.
You can read a thorough overview of why should should not rinse chicken, here.
Verdict: Correct
Myth 6: You Should Not Wash Mushrooms With Water
Quote: “That rule about ‘never cleaning mushrooms with water,’ comes from standard prep practices in commercial kitchens (which don’t even apply to most people). If you’re using your mushrooms right away — which, if you’re cooking at home, you probably are — rinsing with water is fine! If they’ll sit in the fridge for hours or days after being washed, that’s when they’ll get slimy and gross.” — u/TitsAndWhiskey
It is true. You certainly can and should rinse mushrooms with water. I do not know what the person is talking about concerning commercial cooking. It’s a myth everywhere. Mushrooms are grown in dirt and sometimes even poop. Wash them. Heck, even soak them if you want.
Mushrooms are already chock-full of water. It is a myth that they will take on a lot more water if you rinse them. And, when you properly cook them, they will shed this water, anyway. You can read all about it, here.
Verdict: True!
Myth 7: That MSG Is Bad For You
Quote: “That MSG is bad for you. And the most hilarious thing about this is that the people who claim MSG is bad have no idea that it’s naturally occurring in some of the foods they buy.” — u/Squeakyriddle
I’m beginning to think this Reddit thread is full of knowledgeable people. What, are they all CulinaryLore readers? This person is absolutely correct. There is no scientifically valid reason to think that MSG used in Chinese restaurants, or anywhere else, is bad for you. The so-called Chinese Restaurant Syndrome, caused by added MSG, does not exist.
The quote mentions natural glutamate in foods. You can find out more about glutamates, MSG, and myths associated with it, in this article that is about ketchup but mostly about MSG.
Verdict: Correct!
Myth 8: The best Way to Get Potassium is From a Banana
Quote: “That the best way to get potassium is by eating a single banana. There are tons of foods with higher levels of potassium than bananas — including potatoes and many leafy greens.” — shelleye
Very true. For example, avocados, sweet potatoes, and spinach have more potassium than a banana. In fact, an average coconut’s worth of coconut water has more potassium than a banana. And, no, you cannot get a potassium overdose from eating too many bananas. Here’s why.
Verdict: Correct again!
Myth 9: You Must Cook With Unsalted Butter
Quote: “That you should cook with unsalted butter. When a recipe calls for unsalted butter, I always use salted butter in place of it. I find that it just makes everything taste so much better, especially when used in sweet baked goods.” — u/Frequent_Artichoke
I agree with this, in principle. A capable home cook has no need to worry about whether their salt is salted or unsalted. And, yes, salted butter tastes better because…salt. It can matter, at times, depending on what you’re cooking so as standalone advice, it suffers from the same problem as the ground beef myth, above. It lacks context and is incomplete. But, I’m nitpicking. Most of the usual reasons for never cooking with salted butter are not relevant to the home cook. However, there are times when unsalted butter is best, and it’s usually while baking.
Verdict: Truish, good general advice, but lacks context
Should You Use Unsalted Butter?
Myth 10: You Should Store Butter in the Fridge
Quote: “That butter should always be stored in the refrigerator. Despite this popular opinion, various health authorities actually say it’s perfectly fine to store a good quality butter for up to 10 days outside of the fridge, as long as the room is moderately cool.” — Michelle No
You disappoint me, Michelle. You did so well with the washing chicken myth. Eh, what do you think happens to that butter within those 10 days? You can go without a bath for ten days too, but should you?
I’m not sure what health authorities are referred to but citing unnamed ‘authorities’ is not a proper citation, to be sure. The USDA says you can “safely” store butter for one or two days outside the refrigerator, and that only applies to regular salted butter, not whipped or unsalted.
Notice I put quotes around the word “safely.” If you leave butter out at room temperature, it will begin to go rancid very quickly, much more quickly than in the fridge. Now, if you keep it out for a few days, it probably will not make you sick. But, it will not taste very good. And if you leave it out too long, well, you’ll know it, because the result will not be nice. This is similar to the storing eggs at room temperature debate.
Personally, I don’t understand all the belly-aching about storing things in the fridge. Even cheap fridges have little butter compartments. If you want to soften butter, take it out in advance and leave it at room temperature for up to four hours. Anything longer than that and the butter will start to collect off flavors through oxidation.
Just ask yourself: Do you want butter that stays good for months in the fridge, or years in the freezer? Or do you want butter that starts getting rank after a day but is technically safe to eat?
Verdict: Silly
Overall Conclusion
There are 30 myths listed. I’ve only covered ten of them. But, go Reddit! I have to say I’m impressed. Despite a few missteps, most of the myths, and bits of advice are sound and some of it is downright perfect. It doesn’t necessarily get better as the list goes on and I fail to see why some of the myths listed are so “irritating,” but, for a list generated from the random quotes of people on a Reddit thread, it’s quite impressive. The problem is the lack of context and subtlety. You could do worse, though!
One Other Mention: Quick and Easy Cooking
I wanted to highlight one particular quote because it concerns a myth that I find mighty irritating myself, the myth of quick and easy ten-minute meals.
Quote: Most internet recipes severely underrate how long things take (for example, they will write that water boils in five minutes, a pan full of sauce reduces by half in 10 minutes, chicken browns on one side in two or three minutes…LIES! Everything takes at least twice as long usually. Rachael Ray and her 30 Minute Meals is probably the worst offender. The timing is straight up fiction.” — u/Ray_Kramer
Yep, yep, and yep. Ray has hit the nail on the head with that one. Quick and easy meals done in ten minutes is a marketing gimmick. It’s meant to make the cooking on Food TV seem accessible (another myth, that people watch food TV because they intend to cook the food presented), and sell cookbooks. And, yeah, Rachael Ray is the worst offender. Which leads me to an ironic conclusion:
If “Real” Cooking Was Quick and Easy, We Wouldn’t Need Cookbooks
Related Food and Cooking Myths
Does Keeping the Pit in a Half Avocado Really Keep it From Browning?
When Cheese Gets Moldy, Is It Okay to Cut Off the Mold and Eat the Cheese?
Does Adding Salt to Water Make Pasta (and other foods) Cook Faster?
Is it OK to Eat Expired Canned Foods? How Long Do They Last?