Is raw milk healthier than pasteurized?

Question

Obviously, pasteurization is useful since it reduces organisms in the milk, but how frequent were milk-related illnesses before pasteurization, and what other nutrients and flavours are lost in the process.

If one can get milk from a local source with a quick turnaround, so the milk is not sitting through the packaging/shipping process for a long time, how bad are the dangers?

Asked by Eclipse

Answer

Healthier is a loaded word in this case. The raw milk camp claims a richer flavor, more nutrients, and less allergies. The pasteurized camp claims just as nutritious, with better texture, but safer. Once all the practicalities of producing, distributing, and ensuring the quality of large quantities of milk come into play, the debate becomes fierce. What happens when there are many raw milk producers? If someone reacts badly to raw milk, who is liable? What are the observed health benefits in large population studies?

In the raw milk debate I like the format adopted by the Michigan Fresh Unprocessed Whole Milk Workgroup

Answered by papin

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What is the difference between pancetta and bacon?

Question

I see pancetta next to the bacon at a local butcher and was wondering what the difference was between the two?

Answer

I addition to what Tabiasopdenbrouw said, and more to the point of usage/taste:

1. Bacon is typically cut thinner and ends up crispier than pancetta.
2. Both are often rendered for their fat before adding onions, peppers, etc... to the pan to pick up those pork fat flavors.
3. Pancetta is often saltier in flavor though this is usually the case because the pancetta is cut thicker or into dices, so you get bigger bites of it and thus more salt. This is the biggest different between the two.

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Where can I find a quality comparison for Zwilling Knives?

Question

I'm trying to find comparisons between various knives from Zwilling. I know the difference between the lines: JA Henckels International tends to be of different build quality as compared to Zwilling.

However, I'm having trouble differentiating between the different knives from within the Zwilling brand. For instance, sets are named things like Cuisine, Gourmet, Signature, Four Star, and Professional S.

Even the Zwilling website doesn't really offer too much information about the specific lines. In fact, it doesn't even list some of the lines I've seen for sale, such as Gourmet. Can anyone provide info about these knives, or a link to further descriptions and comparisons?

Answer

There's a serious dearth of information about the differences between the Henckels product lines, but from what I can tell:

• The biggest difference is the handle design, which impacts the balance. You'll want to hold the knives to find which is right for you.
• Stamped blades are used in the following lines: Twin Signature, Twin Gourmet, International Everedge, International Everedge Plus, International Fine Edge Pro, International Fine Edge Synergy, International Eversharp. Source: Henckels Site.
• Forged blades are used for the following lines: Twin Profection, Twin Four Star and Four Star II, Twin Cuisine, Twin Professional S, Twin Select, International Classic, International Forged Premio, and International Forged Synergy. Sources: Henckels site, Squidoo, Amazon
• Microserrated blades are used in the following product lines: Eversharp Pro, Everedge, Everedge Plus (Source: Henckels International website)
• All but the Twin Cermax line are X50CrMoV15 steel, hardened to 54-56 HRC (some reports say up to 57 Rockwell C). This means they're slightly softer than Wusthof (which now hardens many of their products to 58 HRC), but less brittle.
• Twin Cermax uses special, superhard (66 HRC) MC66 steel, meaning they take a sharper edge and hold it MUCH longer than the other lines. This is probably a clone of the ZDP-189 supersteel. (source)

The microserrated blades aid in slicing, but hurt the ability to chop and mince. They WILL help retain a cutting edge longer, but also cannot be sharpened normally.

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