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To Reduce the Health Risk of Barbecuing Meat, Just Add Beer
PolygamousRanchKid (1290638) writes "Grilling meat gives it great flavour. This taste, though, comes at a price, since the process creates molecules called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) which damage DNA and thus increase the eater's chances of developing colon cancer. But a group of researchers led by Isabel Ferreira of the University of Porto, in Portugal, think they have found a way around the problem. When barbecuing meat, they suggest, you should add beer. The PAHs created by grilling form from molecules called free radicals which, in turn, form from fat and protein in the intense heat of this type of cooking. One way of stopping PAH-formation, then, might be to apply chemicals called antioxidants that mop up free radicals. And beer is rich in these, in the shape of melanoidins, which form when barley is roasted."
(The paper on which this report is based, sadly paywalled.)
Whoever posted this summary really should have added that. There are other places where one might consider adding beer that would be less effective. You don't have to get past the paywall to find that.
Damn_registrars has no butt-hole. Damn_registrars has no use for a butt-hole.
What a stupid article. Beer is hardly the best source of antioxidants. Blueberries would be a far better choice.
"Eat antioxidants to prevent cancer" ....well thank you captain obvious, we have known this for many years!
What kind of imbecile conflates grilling and barbecue?
"polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) which damage DNA and thus increase the eater's chances of developing colon cancer"
Pretty rare to start with, so I suspect it's from "one in a million" to "1.5 in a million".
We have actual things to worry about, grilling isn't one of them.
but in Europe people have been BBQ with Beer for decades. It's a default style of BBQ when you don't have any special marinades or sauces.
It just took them this long to run a scientific study about it (I guess someone finally asked the question WHY).
Point being, everyone always disses folklore/common sense, and even though people did not know why they were basting with Beer, now we all know.
If you want to drink the Beer instead, that's your prerogative, but I say, bring enough for both drinking and basting. :)
Step 1: souse self in beer
Step 2: barbecue meat
Step 3: enjoy!
I volunteer to be the subject.
Yes.
Can drinking beer the same time as eating these foods have any effect? I already do that.
plenty of hard clinical studies showing no link whatsoever between free radicals and cancer (or other claimed bad effects like aging).
the 1970s called, they want their junk science back.
Apologies if asking sounds like blasphemy, but it's still an honest question.
File under 'M' for 'Manic ranting'
Apologies if asking sounds like blasphemy, but it's still an honest question.
Surely, you'd accept death gratefully
I agree - DDT is just awful unless sweetened with a little saccharin.
W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.
No, but you can pump it up your colon with a garden hose...
== Jez ==
Do you miss Firefox? Try Pale Moon.
Don't use the good beer. Use the Miller Light that's been sitting in your fridge since someone brought it over months ago.
W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.
There is an incredible variety of beer - it's just fermented grain flavored with anything you like. They can be bitter, sweet, or just about any other flavor - some companies even flavor them with massive amounts of sugar and flavorings like a soda... It is hard to believe that you don't like any of them.
W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.
Grilling and barbecuing are not the same thing
This posting is provided 'AS IS' without warranty of any kind, implied or otherwise.
Since we're discussing Porto, try the local delicacy which is an artery-hardening meat sandwich featuring beer gravy!
Oh no! We're all gonna die if we eat BBQ'd meat.
As with anything like this, the worry warts will probably buy into it.
Remember when they said: Saccharin, DDT, and the zillion of other things that are suppose to be bad for you?
My mother grew up in the deep back woods of east Texas during the 30's. A very big part of her diet growing up was various forms of smoked, dried, and grilled meat. A *lot* of such meat, often that was about all her diet was in a day, either by itself or was the main flavoring component. Many members of her family, both close and extended including herself and both her parents developed and died from colon and intestinal cancers. Her younger brother is suffering from it now. Many of the people who lived around her did, too. The thing is, once her family got out of that situation (improved economy, moving to the big city, etc) and ate a much more varied diet that didn't depend on smoked meat, the amount of familial colon and intestinal cancer has dropped down to almost nothing. That's good news for me and my siblings, of course. Dying from colon cancer is not my favored way of death, to be honest. It was a rough way to see my mom go.
-> I dislike sigs...
cooking with beer is not the same as drinking it, you should be just fine. My brother hates beer but loves when I make chilli because I use a good stout in it
have you seen my sig? there are many others like it but none that are the same
As far as colon cancer is concerned, there is a lot of common sense here. I doubt a tiny little factor like anti-oxidants on your beef is going to make much difference if you're an overweight smoker in your 50s. Having beer around might encourage you to drink heavily, which is listed there as increasing risk. So. If you already like beer marinade then great. If you don't, then there's virtually no reason to use a recipe you don't like. Concentrate on the elephant in the room before addressing the mouse.
For all intensive purposes, "whom" is no longer a word. That begs the question, "who cares"?
There you wouldn't care about getting dying from cancer because there would be no reason to live.
Now lets have some under 21's use this to be able to buy beer.
It may make for an interesting court case.
I've tried quite a few.... never found one that I liked. Not saying that none could ever possibly exist that I'd find palatable, but I imagine that any that do are probably really exotic and cost an impractical amount to use for something like marinade.
File under 'M' for 'Manic ranting'
That's because you drink cheap crap beer.
I thought all experiments should have a control group, but BBQ without beer... Has that ever been tried before? Can than be credited with two discoveries?
Dip it in chocolate for extra protection, but make sure the meat it coated in salt first so you can soak up more chocolate.
That is true. For those who don't yet know the difference, here's a quote from Wikipedia:
In the United States, to grill is to cook meat relatively quickly using the direct heat imparted by a charcoal or propane fire, while barbecue is similar to baking and is a much slower method utilizing the indirect heat imparted by the smoke of a wood-fueled fire, often requiring an extended period of several hours.
One can cook a steak (or shrimp) on a barbecue. In many places that's known as barbecuing.
Around here the term "grilling a deer" means you need to take your car to the body shop.
My wife hates beer, but she loves those sweet malt beverages. I do brats on the grill that were first boiled in beer and I add beer to chile and stews and she never complains (or notices, for that matter).
W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.
I'm afraid that I'm not enough of a stoner to know whether you are being sarcastic or not. But Miller Light is not "bad" as in low-quality, it just doesn't have a whole lot of flavor and so goes unused. SAB knows how to brew and their products are very high-quality and consistent.
W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.
My situation is the opposite... I don't like beer, but my wife does. Conversely, however, she dislikes the taste that beer gives to something when it is used as marinade... she'd rather just eat the meat and drink the beer.
File under 'M' for 'Manic ranting'
You *douse* the meat with beer should it catch fire. If it doesn't then you souse yourself with it instead.
"Wait. Something's happening. It's opening up! My God, it's full of apricots!"
When the message is drink more beer I'm willing to accept an article at face value.
According to my physician father, the first proven case of an environmental cause for cancer was that of smoked meat and fish in Iceland causing colon cancer. This is a long established relationship, not a recent fad.
They are consistent and what their customers want, they remain piss.
John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
Bullshit. If it contains anything but water, malted barley, hops and yeast it is a cereal malt beverage, like Zima and American Budweiser.
John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
In many places the display is known as 'the computer' and the computer is known as 'the harddrive'. Do you want to be one of those people?
John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
http://topdocumentaryfilms.com...
Even when the experts all agree, they may well be mistaken. --- Bertrand Russell.
Those people are from Porto, they just ask to not waste port wine for the marinades.
They are using this technique ever since here in Holland with horrible results. In fact the more beer the higher the accident rates.
-- 29A the number of the Beast
Indeed. I had a neighbour who gupled down a bottle of DDT. That's why I refer to him using the past tense. ;)
Don't you agree that a stuff that's meant to kill bugs should be a poison? At least taht's what Captain Obvious told me the last time I saw him
or maybe we could use butter and marmelade to kill plagues. You are the expert, maybe you can convinve Monsanto ;)
-- 29A the number of the Beast
By cooking over a low heat first you ensure that the meat is cooked evenly throughout, and then you sear the outside over a very hot grill. Otherwise you end up with raw inside and black outside. By searing last you get the flavour and evenly cooked meat.
The other option is chocolate which is even higher in antioxidants! Chocolate BBQ Ribs!
If it comes down to eating grilled steak and getting colon cancer or eating beer-flavored steak and maybe not?
I'll choose colon cancer.
Chas - The one, the only.
THANK GOD!!!
Correlation does not equal causation. Repeat this until you understand it. Darwin weeps to see science misused in this way - although as a Texan, you dumbasses have never understood science anyway.
Thanks, troll. I didn't make the correlation, a good number of oncologists have. They and their associates have seen a lot of it over the years. Diets heavy in smoked and grilled meat do have a correlation with increased chances of colon and intestinal cancers, especially if those diets start early in life.
And I never said *I* was a Texan, thanks for asking. Proud native Floridian. Some might suggest that's not any better, but hey... :)
-> I dislike sigs...
Yup, we have a really good one in Quebec, called Du Bleuet
I've got better things to do tonight than die.
There are a HUGE range of beverages with vastly varying flavors which fall into the category of "beer". How many styles have you tried? There are lots of alternatives to the fizzy yellow stuff sold in 30 packs.
I can imagine that a big imperial stout, doppelbock, or barleywine might make a great marinade for steak.
Remember "News for Nerds, Stuff that Matters"? Help make it a reality again! http://soylentnews.org
Depends on the *quantity*. Wine is actually good for the cardiovascular system in reasonable quantities...
I've got better things to do tonight than die.
Ever wondered why our dentition is the way it is? Because we are omnivores, meaning we *have* to eat meat also. We are not built to eat only plants.
I've got better things to do tonight than die.
How did this get modded up? Colon cancer is one of the most common cancers, has a crappy longer term survival rate (compared to other cancers), and is one of the cancers that is easier to prevent or deal with by catching risk factors early. Lifestyle is far from a minor effect too, as rates vary a lot from country to country, with higher rates present in developed, western countries.
Again confirming the postulate that being a vegan makes you an asshole.
Jesus was all right but his disciples were thick and ordinary. -John Lennon
Aren't we the stickler for government regulations! I don't really care if the alcohol exceeds some government mandate or if the "wrong" grain is used. It's all beer.
W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.
I agree, which is why it sits in my fridge so long. It's still a perfectly sound ingredient for something like a stew or (I imagine) a steak marinade.
W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.
Drink the freaking beer, you are all good.
It tastes great!
My ism, it's full of beliefs.
Don't use the good beer. Use the Miller Light that's been sitting in your fridge since someone brought it over months ago.
I banish thee to the firey pits of culinary hell.
If it's not good enough to drink, it's not good enough to cook with.
Save that crap beer for the people you don't like your brother in law or that annoying friend who never brings his own beer.
Calling someone a "hater" only means you can not rationally rebut their argument.
Perhaps I used the wrong word. It's not "bad" beer, it's just not overly flavorful. I will drink it, and even enjoy it, if given no other options. I might even select it preferentially to some of the overly hoppy stuff that is popular these days.
W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.
Well, there's no winning that. If the boss doesn't like beer marinade, it's a non-starter :)
W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.
Yeah, many steakhouses use a very hot broiler (salamander), which effectively provides massive radiant heat while also acting like an oven. (Butter, more than salt, is often the "secret" ingredient, though a decent amount of salt too.) Those places are most interested in cooking as fast as possible, but IMO don't produce the best steaks, particularly if they are thick-cut. (I've had really expensive thick steaks that were positively ruined in restaurants that way... terribly burnt on the outside, raw in the middle.) There are various other options, but a short hot grilling period combined with slower cooking before or after (whether in an oven, sous vide, or some other low heat place) will often make the best steak.
This. Cook with what's good to drink. Same goes for wine, I hear, but I don't really drink it that much.
I use Westvleteren when cooking, which should annoy any beer snobs out there. :)
If his was the only evidence, certainly, charcoal grilled meats have been linked with digestive system cancers for a while now (Japan and hibachi grilled fish.. stomach cancer, grilled steaks intestinal and bowel cancer).
You whining about it is like someone whining about a person who smoked all their lives and all the other possible causes for lung cancer..
Nice causative link though, you being a clueless asshole makes people dislike you, and mod you troll.
He tried to kill me with a forklift!
My father-in-law in Lubbock, Texas ate back-yard barbeque almost every day, and despised what he called "rabbit food" - that is, anything green. Grilled meat, mashed potatoes, and bread-and-butter and beer pretty much made up his diet. He died of stomach cancer before his 55th birthday. Anecdotal, yes, but the agony of the last few months of his life was educational, and the rest of the family has taken care to eat a better diet since then.
Use it as a hair rinse or setting gel. Works great, and believe it or not it doesn't leave an odor.
I generally like to try stuff from local breweries. I'm like a kid in a candy store in those beer distributors. I've had "bad" beer, where I've actually had to refuse it - mostly from dirty taps. But I've also had some homemade beer that I think would fit the universal definition of "bad". The big brewers simply don't make mistakes that lead to "bad" beer, but they definitely make beer that I subjectively don't really like. Miller Light is one of those, but so are the vast majority of these double and triple hopped things that burn a hole in my stomach.
W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.
This thing is full of ifs and maybes. This is neither news nor science. It is speculation.
There is no "-1 offended" or "-1 you don't agree with me" mod options for a reason.
Would it not be just as effective to pair a meal with a few good beers? Does the beer have to be added when cooking or can said beer be added while eating?
Hope is the currency of fools
I think you mean to say "welcome death gratefully."
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Most people outside of the southeast use the term "barbecuing" to mean the same thing as grilling. Oddly enough though they use the term BBQ usually to mean what people in the midwest and texas refer to as BBQ.
For example, 20 years ago, virtually no one outside of the southeast referred to pulled pork as BBQ. For most people it meant ribs, or in Texas - brisket, or quite often chicken (not smoked chicken.) Interestingly, Hawaiians have Kalua pork which is roughly equivalent, but doesn't use a barbecue.
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Don't use the good beer. Use the Miller Light that's been sitting in your fridge since someone brought it over months ago.
Next question: Does Coors count as beer for these purposes? We know it doesn't count count as beer for personal consumption, but I'm wondering if the same principle holds for cooking meat with it. Clearly further study is called for.
Presuming you are talking about Coors Light... I've never tried it for cooking, but it might be so far in the "water" side of the spectrum that it no longer imparts any flavor at all. :)
W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.
Exactly. All not beer.
John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
I'm going to drink a nice red grape beer with my steak dinner. Maybe put some Irish distilled beer into coffee.
John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
Most people would consider fermented fruit some kind of wine. I've had something described as barley wine before, but it was just very strong beer.
Whiskey and beer wort is very similar, so you might be on to something with the "distilled beer" comment. Never heard it described like that but it gets the point across. If you go on a whiskey tour, they introduce you to the mash, wort, and brewing process before getting into distillation. I think most people would insist on having their beer fermented, though :)
Even the Germans gave up pretending beer was only made from barley. The wheat prohibition ("purity law") was political anyway.
W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.
Germans never had a law outlawing wheat beer. They were just not allowed to call it beer. Which is fair, wheat 'beer' tastes so bad it is actually improved by adding fruit and/or leaving the yeast in it.
Claims that the purity law was passed to prevent the use of all the wheat, making beer, is just neo-prohibitionist nonsense.
John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
I like wheat beer. I don't like fruit in beer in general, and in fact despise the trend of sticking a wedge of citrus on the glass.
Either you or Wikipedia is wrong. If it is Wikipedia, please get in there and fix it rather than wasting your time correcting just me :)
The Reinheitsgebot was introduced in part to prevent price competition with bakers for wheat and rye. The restriction of grains to barley was meant to ensure the availability of affordable bread, as the more valuable wheat and rye were reserved for use by bakers.
W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.
Didn't ban anything. Just couldn't call it beer.
I'm not trying to get Coors banned. Just accurately labeled (fucking close to water).
John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
In my experience, it essentially tastes like the container it is served in (typically aluminum).
I'm not sure I've ever had it in a can. I must have, I just don't remember. The only time I have it is when a bar my dad likes has "wing nights" with cheap pitchers of Coors Light. Between the burning tongue and my penchant for "anything on draft", it's not the end of the world.
W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.