Six months ago, I wrote about my frustration with finding seafood that didn't contain tripolyphosphate, a chemical that when added to meat and especially seafood, allows it to soak up and retain water. I was annoyed because the fish would shrink and never sear, and I was paying full price for 20% water instead of meat.
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A little update since I published this diary about not being able to find seafood that isn't soaked in Tripolyphosphates.
I have been shopping more carefully. At one store, the "on sale" chicken breasts said nothing about containing TPP. I didn't notice the little label on the bottom of the package that stated that these chicken pieces had TPP added. Won't be buying chicken from that store any more.
At a different store, I took a look at pork chops last week that acknowledged that there was "solution" added to the meat. What kind of pork chops need "solution"?? The kind that are watery when you cook them, shrink too much and won't brown up nicely on the grill! I have long been suspicious of the meat at that store, the packages always bulged, and I guesses that was because they were adding CO (carbon monoxide) before sealing to prevent the meat from turning brown. I bought some produce and kitty litter, but I will continue to avoid their "fresh" meat section.
For xmas my partner and I got a big mixer; the kind that has a meat grinder attachment available, which we also purchased. I waited until chuck steaks were on sale at a third store and bought a couple of big ones. Some got made into stew, but the rest went through the grinder. My partner complemented the burgers for the first time since before pink slime! I had to agree, these burgers were good!
I have discovered two more kinds of seafood available at fourth local grocery store. There is organic shrimp in two sizes and salmon portions that are processed in America, not China. They also carry dry scallops which I have purchased before. I cannot afford to pay for these items very often, but now when I do, I know that I will enjoy the seafood.
This same store wraps much of their meat in heat sealed plastic with some kind of liquid inside. The steaks wouldn't grill up right, so I am guessing "solution" is also being added before packaging and doesn't completely soak into each piece of beef before sale. I am not interested in buying that stuff! Meat needs to be dry before cooking. I broil/grill by how firm the meat is to indicate how done it is; I overcook the beef when it is too soft from excess added fluid.
I have also discovered the TPP chemical is added to some canned foods, but I didn't buy them, so I don't remember what they were.
So, I am eating a little better, and avoiding the TPP. You can see that I have many choices for purchasing good food, but I have to travel to different stores and be a careful reader of labels. It is hard to avoid chemical additives in food, primarily because the best food is also the costliest. I still need to grow my own as much as possible and also, go fishing more often so I can freeze some for the off season!.