Fwd: Spicing up meat for a safer barbecue

If spring is here, outdoor eating isn't far behind - so if you're buying for a barbecue put some rosemary and mint on the shopping list too.

New research published in the latest issue of The Journal of Food Science has found that marinating meat in spice blends containing the antioxidants rosmarinic acid (found in mint) and carnasol and carnosic acid (both found in rosemary) reduced the formation of potentially harmful chemicals by up to 80 per cent. The chemicals are HCAs, short for heterocyclic amines, which are suspect carcinogens created when muscle foods - from meat, poultry or fish - are cooked at high temperatures.Barbecueing seems to produce the most HCAs, followed by pan-frying and grilling. 'Suspect' means there's evidence from animal studies that HCAs are carcinogenic and have been linked to cancer of the colon, but the evidence in human studies isn't clear, according to the Cancer Council NSW.

The idea that pre-barbecue marinating can reduce HCAs isn't new - but what's reassuring is that this new study is building the evidence that how we cook and prepare meat might reduce any risks of HCA - and do so in a way that makes the food more enjoyable, not less. An earlier study from Lawrence Livermore University in the US found that marinating chicken in a mix of olive oil, cider vinegar, garlic, mustard, lemon juice and salt reduced HCAs too, while research from the University of Hawaii gave the thumbs up to two marinades - one with teriyaki sauce and another with turmeric and garlic.

(Source: smh)