Saturday, July 26, 2008

Food Jargon of the Day: Chewable Ice and The Chew Belt

Chewable Ice
Tiny, pellet-sized "cublets" created by ice makers to satisfy compulsive ice chewers. Developed by Scotsman Ice Systems, chewable ice is sold under a variety of brands including Chewblet, Nugget Ice and Pearl Ice.

The Chew Belt
a.k.a. the Southern U.S., home to the greatest concentration of compulsive ice chewers.

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Food Jargon of the Day: Entomophagy

Entomophagy
The practice of dining on insects.

According to a recent article posted at The Economist.com, the practice of dining on bugs is common in over 100 countries with insects providing more nutrients than beef or fish (gram for gram, that is). Oddly enough, feasting on insects also makes good ecological sense: bug consumption has little environmental impact and insect dining can even help bolster crop production. To that end, the Thai government encourages its citizens to collect and eat locusts to protect local crops and even distributes recipes for how to cook the insects. More info on bug cuisine and cricket farming in the Khon Kaen area of Thailand can be found at 36shots.com.

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Food Jargon Watch: Lazy Locavores and Urban Farmers

Lazy Locavore
City dwellers who insist on eating food grown close to home, but have no inclination to get their hands dirty. Culled from Kim Severson's July 22nd NY Times article, "A Locally Grown Diet With Fuss but No Muss." Lazy locavores hire personal gardeners to plant, weed, and harvest their backyard veggie plots, invest in animal shares at local farms, and employ personal chefs to deliver fully cooked "local" meals, right to their doors.

Severson's article has sparked a lively discussion on the comfood listserv as well as a great op ed piece by Josh Friedland, at The Food Section.

Urban Farmers
City dwellers who have a small space next to their homes for growing food for themselves and/or small-scale city-based farmers, who produce crops for sale. Distinguished from lazy locavores by their desire to actually get their hands dirty. For more info on urban farming visit CityFarmer.org or read this May 2008 NY Times article.