Friday, October 23, 2009

Who took the plain out of plain breadcrumbs?

I needed plain breadcrumbs to complete the chili-breading recipe I wrote about the other day (see post, "Chili chicken, pork and seafood"). I usually grab and run, but I was at the ShopRite in Paramus to buy antibiotic-free Readington Farms chicken at 25% off and to pick up some other stuff, so stopped to read ingredients. (A home-improvement store in being built on the land being cleared near the store; it was a parking lot, not covered by trees, as I had feared.)

One plain breadcrumbs I looked at had high fructose corn syrup and grated cheese, plus a long list of other ingredients I didn't want. Another shopper pointed out Jason-brand breadcrumbs, which I had never heard of, and the ingredients list was the shortest of all, but they were the most expensive, more than $4 for the large cannister.

I ended up buying 4C seasoned, Japanese-style, panko breadcrumbs, which were on sale and had a relatively short ingredients list, including grated pecorino-romano cheese and spices.

I bought Readington Farms leg quarters for $1.11 a pound and a roaster for $1.81 a pound. I also found another brand of Campari tomatoes that were pesticide-free, like the Canadian ones sold under the Sunset brand at some ShopRites and Fairway Market. These were grown in the U.S., but are sold under the Euro Fresh Farms brand, "The Foodies' Favorite." The small, deep-red globes on the vine were $4.99 for two pounds.

6 comments:

  1. I never noticed the ingredients, I usually pick up Colonna, 4C or Corrado's brand. I have never noticed the ingredients, I will have ot take a look.

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  2. You'll be surprised. Now, they list an ingredient like wheat flour and then in parantheses, list all the components of that ingredient. The high fructose corn syrup really threw me. But there is lots of strange stuff in plain breadcrumbs.

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  3. How did you like the Campari tomatoes?

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  4. I love the Campari tomatoes; they are small and sweet and taste great. Plus no pesticides. What's not to like? I eat them every day.

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  5. I too love Campari tomatoes, but have recently discovered that the "pesticide free" marking on the label is no longer there. These are the 2 lb. packages sold under the Sunset name, and are a product of Mexico. Maybe it's the season (mid-January), or the region--Mexico versus Canada, but the label is definitely missing the "pesticide free" marking that has always been there in the past.

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  6. There seems to be two versions: one without pesticides and one with. But lately, I've only seen them with (pesticides or herbicides).

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