Food additives abound but one that I find in the most unlikely food ingredients is carrageenan. For example, I would love to try your buttermilk biscuits, but there again -- in the buttermilk -- is added carrageenan. I have yet to find one brand of buttermilk (and most other dairy products other than 'plain' milk) without that additive.
I realize this is a controversial topic. I'm interested in knowing how you approach this additive.
Have a question for Milk Street experts?
Get trusted advice from the cooks, editors, and recipe developers behind Milk Street.
Don’t have an account?Sign up
Join the conversation
Sign in to join the conversation.
COMMENTS
Jacqueline F.
July 6, 2019
Thanks for your thoughts and insights; I'm in a small northern Utah area that's not progressive in anything, let alone foods, so I guess I'm stuck with lemon juice in milk instead of buttermilk for Milk Street's Buttermilk Biscuits!
\)).
NPR's April 4, 2018 article, 'USDA Defies Advisors, Allows Carrageenan To Keep Organic Label', noted that "The U.S. Department of Agriculture has decided that organic food companies can keep using an emulsifier called carrageenan in foods like ice cream and high-protein drinks, despite a vote by an influential organic advisory committee to ban the ingredient." . No mention of it being injected into 'fresh' raw chicken!
Thanks to last year's USDA decision I guess consumers (and cancer survivors) like me are on their own if they want to avoid carrageenan's questionable safety. I'll just continue relying on product labels and boycotting those that contain carrageenan (including certified organic) since I'm perfectly capable of shaking a bottle to redistribute milk solids and I'd rather go without than support any poultry company that requires the use of an additive.\]

