Ingredients Archives - Matt Dursum

Diving Into the Ingredients That Make Us: Cassava

By wayfarersoliloquy | May 11, 2023May 11, 2023 by wayfarersoliloquy

Words by Matt Dursum Cassava, Yuca, Manioc, no matter what you call it, Manihot esculenta is one of the most important sources of carbohydrates in the world. It’s also delicious and versatile. Cassava is a tuber vegetable, similar to potatoes. Growing just below the soil surface, its tubers store nutrients and water for the plant to feed off during the next season’s regrowth. The plant itself, tall and lanky, produces edible leaves and can survive…

Diving Into the Ingredients That Make Us: Apples

By wayfarersoliloquy | March 10, 2023March 10, 2023 by wayfarersoliloquy

Words by Matt Dursum No matter where you buy produce in the world, you’re sure to find apples. The usual varieties like Golden Delicious, Macintosh, and Red Delicious are ubiquitous worldwide, but this is just the boring surface of the apple’s diversity. When scientists published the genome of the apple tree in 2010, it created quite a shock. The apple, as it turns out, has twice as many genes as us, 57,000 in all. This…

Ingredients

Diving Into The Ingredients That Make Us: The Tomato

By wayfarersoliloquy | December 22, 2022December 22, 2022 by wayfarersoliloquy

Words by Matt Dursum There’s nothing like a tomato. Almost every culture loves them. They give Italian pasta sauces, Mexican salsas, coastal ceviches, and spicy north Indian Masala gravies their rich umami. They’re also a base ingredient for most salads that make it on the dinner table. But what are they and where do they come from? From a Forest Vine to an Ancient Staple These tasty little fruits belong to the species Solanum lycopersicum,…

Food Ingredients

Diving Into the Ingredients That Make Us: The Chili Pepper

By wayfarersoliloquy | December 2, 2022December 2, 2022 by wayfarersoliloquy

There’s a fruit out there which causes excruciating pain upon contact, racing heartbeat, uncontrollable sweating and mucus, and ghastly intestinal distress. And, we eat it. Some of us with great joy. Of course, I’m talking about the chili pepper. It’s a polarizing ingredient, but without it, our food cultures wouldn’t be the same. The Tiny Fruit of Death Chili peppers, including sweet bell peppers, belong to the genus Capsicum. These seed bearing fruits are native…

Food Ingredients North America

Diving Into the Ingredients That Make Us: Cranberries

By wayfarersoliloquy | November 25, 2022November 25, 2022 by wayfarersoliloquy

Words by Matt Dursum Cranberries, the tart and slightly bitter berries that many people eat only once a year in canned form. Why do we consume them and where do they come from? For this week’s article, let’s look closely at the berries that so many of us only eat in canned form. The Original American Superfood The American cranberry, Vaccinium macrocarpon, is a small shrub native to the Northeastern United States. Every fall, fruit…

Category: Ingredients