That was probably fave, lonza e pecorino. And you are lucky. The Italians have as many uses for fava broad beans as we have slang for getting drunk. They serve the very first of the tender, new-season beans with prawns, garlic and spaghettini. In Sicily, dried fava beans are cooked with fennel and onions to make a thick green stew called maccu. If you see it on a menu — order it. In Le Marche in Italy, I have had young broad beans, in the pod, served with cured pork loin, known there as lonza, and slices of pecorino.
The flavours work brilliantly together. Modern chefs are steaming and cooling the beans and serving them with grated pecorino, olive oil and pepper. It is a winning combination.
With new-season broad beans just about to hit the shelves, keep it in mind. Send your vexing culinary conundrums to brainfood richardcornish. The problem is that once my tree is bare, and my friends have also handed over their spare fruit I really struggle with paying for citrus.
Citrus fruit has wax applied to help prolong the shelf life, reduce the fruit drying out and to make it look shiny and pretty. Citrus has a naturally waxy coating when it is fresh off the tree. Coatings used on fruits and vegetables must meet FDA food additive regulations for safety. In the States, at least, it appears that fruit wax is regulated.
Now, that doesn't mean it's healthy cigarettes and gasoline are also regulated , but it should be a decent voucher of safety. Of course, history shows that the government doesn't always know best Waxes generally cannot be removed by regular washing.
If consumers prefer not to consume waxes--even though the waxes are safe--they can buy un-waxed commodities or can peel the fruit or vegetable, thereby removing any coating. In the end, we are talking about spending energy worrying about a drop of wax. I wager that one Taco Bell taco is worse for you than all of the fruit wax man-made or otherwise you will consume in a year. As far as flavor goes But of course they would say that.
The Food and Drug Administration has approved several waxes for such use, made from shellacs, paraffins, palm oil derivatives and synthetic resins. Those ingredients are also in waxes for your car and kitchen floor, but as far as anyone knows, the waxes used on produce are safe. The caveat is necessary because the FDA has never adequately tested them for safety. Before , food additives were not tested, but were permitted if there was no evidence of hazard.
There are 21 fruits and vegetables that may be waxed: apples, avocados, bell peppers, cantaloupes, cucumbers, eggplants, grapefruits, lemons, limes, melons, oranges, parsnips, passion fruits, peaches, pineapples, pumpkins, rutabagas, squashes, sweet potatoes, tomatoes and turnips.
The waxes sometimes contain fungicides. Both the waxes and the fungicides are used to prevent spoilage, the former to retard moisture loss and prevent shriveling, the latter to prevent mold. Any fungicide allowed on the produce as it is grown may also be applied after harvesting, whether under the wax, in combination with it or alone. Seven fungicides are approved for use on food crops after harvesting. Of those only one, benomyl, has undergone a complete review by the EPA.
The agency says it has insufficent evidence of human risk in the others:. The EPA has classified benomyl a possible human carcinogen. In test animals, the chemical has caused birth defects, low sperm counts and mutations. The EPA says the risks are so small that they are outweighed by the benefits.
Benomyl is registered for post-harvest use on apples, apricots, bananas, cherries, citrus fruits, mushrooms, nectarines, peaches, pears, pineapples and plums, either with wax or alone. Here is what they both have to say:.
In relation to the waxes used as food additives: Beeswax, white and yellow E , Candelilla wax E , Carnauba wax E , Microcrystalline wax E , these have been recently re -evaluated by EFSA in to for their use as glazing agent on the surface of several fruits including citrus fruits, apples and pears. EFSA considers that these as food additives are safe for the consumer. Chris Steinbach, the regulations take into consideration the normal consumption for additives.
Since it is possible that these components might be consumed they must be generally safe or proven safe if consumed in moderation. I find neither of these replies entirely satisfactory. The FDA's reply is perhaps the best. It's reassuring to know that treated citrus peel is "safe if consumed in moderation". On the other hand, what is moderate consumption? I eat lemon curd about three times a week. Would that be considered excessive consumption? Their carefully worded reply only touches a few very specific food additives used as wax and leaves untouched the wider question of whether citrus peel that has been subject to other treatments is safe to eat.
When I get time I'll ask for clarifications, but don't hold your breath waiting for an update; it took a full 20 months for DG SANCO to supply me with the paragraph quoted above. Apart from anything else, it is really hard to grate waxed lemons. I think the processors wax fruit to enhance its appearance and to increase sales, which makes sense, as sales are their raison d'etre.
I have read great chefs who resent the wax and seek out unwaxed fruit. Sign up to join this community. The best answers are voted up and rise to the top. Stack Overflow for Teams — Collaborate and share knowledge with a private group. Create a free Team What is Teams? Learn more. Does wax on citrus fruit make the zest unsafe to eat or compromise its flavor?
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