Rice, Salt and Wheat

Rice

What is rice?

For nearly half the world’s population, rice is life. Rice provides one of the main sources of calories for billions of people. It is a staple, a comfort food, a side dish and a main meal. In fact, rice is so integral to many cultures around the world it is often intermingled with mythologies, gods and goddesses, ceremonies and celebrations. It’s also a highly nutritious component of a healthy diet, if you choose the right source.

How Rice Grows Conventionally

Little rice seedlings are reverently hand planted in a small backyard paddy in Kyoto, Japan. Space age technology computers, lasers and airplanes are used to prepare the soil and sow the rice seeds on mega farms in eastern Texas. Both ways rice will still miraculously emerge from its meadow-like sea, transforming the dark glassy surface of the paddy into a shimmering chartreuse blanket. As the seedlings mature, they draw nutrients from the paddy water. The same water keeps the weed population under control. Eventually small green flowers take shape and the wind pollinates the plants. The paddies of rice change from green to golden yellow to the familiar pale honey color of parched straw.

The levees are opened, the water is drained and the soil is given time to set. In the United States where the rice industry is thoroughly mechanized, a giant combine with an air conditioned cab for the operator, rolls across the field cutting the plants and separating the rough or paddy rice from the straw. The rough rice is transported to enormous dryers where the moisture content is reduced. The rice is now ready for milling. The milling process, although it can be extremely high tech and efficient, is really very simple. Converted or parboiled rice is steam pressure treated before it is hulled. The hull is removed in a sheller which is basically two rubber rollers that remove the hulls by friction. The rice emerges as brown rice. The bran is removed from the brown rice by abrasion as the grains are forced to rub against each other. Broken grains are sorted out as the rice is sifted through a series of screens. In the most sophisticated of mills a laser scanner spots discolored kernels and almost simultaneously manages to blast them aside with a stream of pressurized air.

Type of rice:

Long Grain

Long-grain rice is about four or five times as long as it is wide. Typical length varies between 7 to 9 millimeters.

Medium Grain

Medium-grain rice is about three times as long as it is wide, measuring about two millimeters.

Short Grain

Short-grain rice is less than twice as long as it is wide, with fat, round grains that are higher in starch.

Source :

http://www.lotusfoods.com/index.php/health-nutrition/all-about-rice/ http://www.riceland.com/all-about-rice/

Wheat

What is wheat?

Wheat is one of the world's most commonly consumed cereal grains. It comes from a type of grass (Triticum) that is grown in countless varieties worldwide. Bread wheat, or common wheat, is the most common species. Several other closely related species include durum, spelt, emmer, einkorn, and Khorasan wheat.

White and whole wheat flour are key ingredients in baked goods, such as bread. Other wheat-based foods include pasta, noodles, semolina, bulgur, and couscous. Wheat is highly controversial because it contains a protein called gluten, which can trigger a harmful immune response in predisposed individuals. However, for people who tolerate it, whole-grain wheat can be a rich source of various antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and fibers.

How to storage wheat

Wheat is one of the longest storing food items around. Whole wheat kernels will store longer and better than when ground up into flour. When storing your wheat at home, make sure it is in containers specifically identified on the label as food storage containers. Round containers are best when storing wheat since wheat gives off heat and square containers stacked closely together may not allow this heat to escape.

It is important that wheat doesn’t have a moisture content level higher than 10 percent. A higher moisture content than this causes damage to the wheat and exposure to oxygen may cause some forms of bacteria to grow. Storing wheat in a cool, dry place is the easiest way to keep moisture content low. A properly used oxygen absorber will also keep exposure to oxygen minimal.

A storage temperature of 40-60° F results in fresher wheat. However, 60° F and above is still acceptable. Food storage containers should not be stored directly on a cement floor to prevent rusting and pest contamination. Wheat should also be stored away from apples, onions, potatoes, etc., since the odor or flavor may transfer to the wheat.

Nutrition fact

Wheat is packed with vitamins and minerals. Unfortunately, processing used to produce and refine white flour removes most of the valuable nutrients. Wheat kernels have three main divisions; the bran, the endosperm, and the inner embryo or wheat germ. The bran layer constitutes 14% of the wheat kernel and is removed when producing white flour. The bran is packed with vitamins A, C, and E, calcium, iron, and iodine. The bran also happens to be the best source of dietary fiber which aids in digestion and helps ward off disease. The wheat germ layer is an excellent source of vitamin E, as well as other vitamins and protein. Many important nutrients are removed when layers are separated during processing. For this reason, it makes sense to put whole wheat back into your diet.

Pound for pound, wheat is one of the least expensive foods available. And, since grain products will expand in your stomach--satisfying you even if you eat less--using wheat products can help you stretch your budget by eliminating the need for store-bought, overpriced, and over-processed goods. If you are concerned that your food storage may be lacking in protein, a good supply of wheat and beans will form a complete protein. Just a half cup of uncooked wheat contains 8 to 10 grams of protein. So, not only will wheat give you the protein needed for muscle growth and repair, but you will have a low-fat complex carbohydrate to give your body the energy it needs to make it through the day.

If you still aren’t convinced of the importance of storing and using wheat, check out our recipe section. As you begin to use wheat regularly you may be surprised by its versatility, and you will soon see that wheat really is the staff of life.

Source :

http://www.healthline.com/nutrition/foods/wheat 
https://beprepared.com/blog/5997/all-about-wheat/

Salt

What is salt?

Salt is the only mineral that people eat—it's the only dietary mineral that's really a mineral. It's a common substance that's been sought by animals and humans alike since the beginning of time. Salt comes from the sea and from solid layers underground.

History of salt

As far back as 6050 BC, salt has been an important and integral part of the world’s history, as it has been interwoven into countless civilizations. Used as a part of Egyptian religious offerings and valuable trade between the Phoenicians and their Mediterranean empire, salt and history have been inextricably intertwined for millennia, with great importance placed on salt by many different cultures. Even today, the history of salt touches our daily lives. The word “salary” was derived from the word “salt.” Salt was highly valued and its production was legally restricted in ancient times, so it was historically used as a method of trade and currency. The word “salad” also originated from “salt,” and began with the early Romans salting their leafy greens and vegetables. Undeniably, the history of salt is both broad and unique, leaving its indelible mark in cultures across the globe.

Most people probably think of salt as simply that white granular seasoning found in saltshakers on virtually every dining table.

It is that, surely, but it is far more. It is an essential element in the diet of not only humans but of animals, and even of many plants. It is one of the most effective and most widely used of all food preservatives. Its industrial and other uses are almost without number. Salt has great current interest as the subject of humorous cartoons, poetry and filmmaking.

The fact is that throughout history, salt—called sodium chloride by chemists—has been such an important element of life that it has been the subject of many stories, fables, folktales and fairy tales. It served as money at various times and places, and it has been the cause of bitter warfare. Offering bread and salt to visitors, in many cultures, is traditional etiquette. While records show the importance of salt in commerce in medieval times and earlier, in some places like the Sahara and in Nepal, salt trading today gives a glimpse of what life may have been like centuries ago.

Salt was in general use long before the beginning of recorded history, and dating back to around 2700 B.C. the earliest known treatise on pharmacology was published in China. A major portion of this writing is devoted to a discussion of more than 40 kinds of salt, including descriptions of two methods of salt extraction that are similar to processes used today. Salt production has been important in China for two millennia or more, and the Chinese, like many other governments over time, realized that taxing salt would could be a major revenue source. Nomads spreading westward were known to carry salt, and Egyptian art from as long ago as 1450 B.C. records salt making.

Salt was of crucial importance economically. The expression “not worth his salt” stems from the practice of trading slaves for salt in ancient Greece. Special salt rations given to early Roman soldiers were known as "salarium argentum," the forerunner of the English word "salary." References to salt can be found in languages around the globe, particularly regarding salt used for food. From the Latin "sal," for example, come such other derived words as "sauce" and "sausage." Salt was an important trading commodity carried by explorers.

Salt has played a vital part in religious ritual in many cultures, symbolizing purity. There are more than 30 references to salt in the Bible, including the well-known expression "salt of the earth." Additionally, there are many other literary and religious references to salt, including use of salt on altars representing purity, and use of "holy salt" by the Unification Church.

Salt making encompasses much of the history of the United Kingdom, particularly in the Cheshire area. Medieval European records document salt making concessions. In continental Europe, Venice rose to economic greatness through its salt monopoly. Salt making was important in the Adriatic/Balkans region as well (the present border between Slovenia and Croatia); in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Tuzla is actually named for "tuz," the Turkish word for salt. The same is true for Salzburg, Austria, which has made its four salt mines major tourist attractions.

Similarly in Bolivia, the main salt producing region is a tourist attraction and includes one hotel constructed entirely of salt. The grand designs of Philip II of Spain came undone through the Dutch Revolt at the end of the 16th Century; one of the keys, according to Montesquieu, was the successful Dutch blockade of Iberian salt works, which led directly to Spanish bankruptcy. Salt making was (and still is) important in Holland, as well. France has always been a major producer of salt and any discussion of salt making and distribution in France includes discussion of the gabelle, the salt tax that was a significant contributor to the French Revolution. The salt remains just as important today.

The magnitude of the gabelle is astounding; from 1630 to 1710, the tax increased from 14 times the cost of production to 140 times the cost of production, according to Pierre Laszlo in his book Salt: Grain of Life (Columbia Univ. Press). You may be familiar with the phrase: "Siberian salt mines," although salt making takes place in many places across Russia. In the Middle East, the Jordanian town of As-Salt, located on the road between Amman and Jerusalem, was known as Saltus in Byzantine times and was the seat of a bishopric. Later destroyed by the Mongols, it was rebuilt by the Mamluke sultan Baybars I in the 13th century; the ruins of his fortress remain today.

Indian history recalls the prominent role of salt (including the Great Hedge and its role in the British salt starvation policy) and Mahatma Gandhi’s resistance to British colonial rule. Additionally, salt played a key role in the history of West Africa, particularly during the great trading empire of Mali (13th-16th Centuries) — and it still does.

Salt has played a prominent role in the European exploration of North America and subsequent American history, Canadian history, and Mexican history, as well. The first Native Americans "discovered" by Europeans in the Caribbean were harvesting sea salt on St. Maarten.

When the major European fishing fleets discovered the Grand Banks of Newfoundland at the end of the 15th century, the Portuguese and Spanish fleets used the "wet" method of salting their fish onboard, while the French and English fleets used the "dry" or "shore" salting method of drying their catch on racks onshore. Due to this early food processing, French and British fishermen became the first European inhabitants of North America since the Vikings a half-century earlier. Had it not been for the practice of salting fish, Europeans might have confined their fishing to the coasts of Europe and delayed "discovery" of the New World.

Salt motivated the American pioneers. The American Revolution had heroes who were salt makers and part of the British strategy was to deny the American rebels access to salt. Salt was on the mind of William Clark in the groundbreaking Lewis and Clark expedition to the Pacific Northwest. The first patent issued by the British crown to an American settler gave Samuel Winslow of the Massachusetts Bay Colony the exclusive right for ten years to make salt by his particular method. The Land Act of 1795 included a provision for salt reservations (to prevent monopolies), as did an earlier treaty between the Iroquois' Onondaga tribe and the state of New York. New York has always been important in salt production. The famed Erie Canal, opened in 1825, was known as "the ditch that salt built" because salt, a bulky product presenting major transportation difficulties, was its principal cargo. Syracuse, NY, is proud of its salt history and its nickname, "Salt City." Salt production has been important in Michigan and West Virginia for more than a century. Salt played an important role on the U.S. frontier, including areas like Illinois and Nebraska, although they no longer have commercial salt production.

Salt played a key role in the Civil War, as well. In 1864, Union forces made a forced march and fought a 36-hour battle to capture Saltville, Virginia, the site of an important salt processing plant thought essential to sustaining the South's beleaguered armies. Civilian distress over the lack of salt in the wartime Confederacy undermined rebel morale, too. The important role of salt in the history of Kansas is captured in a salt museum in Hutchinson, KS. The vast distances in the American West sometimes required passage over extensive salt flats.

In Canada, Windsor Salt is more than a century old. In the American West, a "salt war" was fought at El Paso, TX and we know that Nevada was known as more than a silver state. Many cities, counties, land features and other landmarks reflect the importance of salt. Salt, of course, has many uses; some techniques using salt such as production of "salt prints" in 19th Century photography have been superseded by new technologies, but others have not. However, not all American "salt history" is so old. Salt-glazed pottery is still popular. Salt is even associated with the struggle for women's rights in the U.S.

Salt also had military significance. For instance, it is recorded that thousands of Napoleon's troops died during his retreat from Moscow because their wounds would not heal due to the lack of salt. In 1777, the British Lord Howe was jubilant when he succeeded in capturing General Washington's salt supply.

Similarly throughout history, salt has been subjected to governmental monopoly and special taxes. French kings developed a salt monopoly by selling exclusive rights to produce it to a favored few who exploited that right to the point that the scarcity of salt contributed to the French Revolution. Salt taxes long supported British monarchs and thousands of British people were imprisoned for smuggling salt. In modern times, Mahatma Gandhi defied British salt laws as a means of mobilizing popular support for self-rule in India. In recent years, the promotion of free trade through the World Trade Organization has led to abolition of many national monopolies, for example, in Taiwan.

Type of salt:

1. Table Salt

Table salt – the most common – is harvested from salt deposits found underground. It’s highly refined and finely ground, with impurities and trace minerals removed in the process. It’s also treated with an anti-caking agent to keep from clumping.

Most table salt is iodized, meaning iodine has been added to prevent iodine deficiency, which can (and does, in much of the world) cause hypothyroidism and other maladies.

2. Kosher Salt

Koshering salt – or kosher salt, in the U.S. – is flakier and coarser-grained than regular table salt. Its large grain size makes it perfect for sprinkling on top of meat, where it releases a surprising blast of flavor. Kosher salt also dissolves quickly, making it a perfect all-purpose cooking salt.

However, most kosher salt does not containn any added iodine, and only rarely any anti-caking agents. Despite the name, all kosher salt is not certified kosher. Rather, it’s used in the koshering process, when surface fluids are removed from meat through desiccation.

3. Sea Salt

Harvested from evaporated sea water, sea salt is usually unrefined and coarser-grained than table salt. It also contains some of the minerals from where it was harvested – zinc, potassium and iron among them – which give sea salt a more complex flavor profile.

“Sea salt” is a pretty broad term, as it includes some of the specialty salts described below. Sprinkle it on top of foods for a different mouth feel and bigger burst of flavor than table salt.

4. Himalayan Pink Salt

Of the different types of salt, Himalayan salt is the purest form of salt in the world and is harvested by hand from Khewra Salt Mine in the Himalayan Mountains of Pakistan. Its color ranges from off-white to deep pink. Rich in minerals – it contains the 84 natural minerals and elements found in the human body – Himalayan salt is used in spa treatments, as well as the kitchen.

Its mineral content gives it a bolder flavor than many other salts, so use it as a cooking and finishing salt – or to add a bit of flair to a salt-rimmed margarita! Slabs of the stuff are used for cooking and serving (Himalayan salt retains temperature for hours), and unfinished pieces often appear in shops as lamps.

5. Celtic Sea Salt

Also known as sel gris (French for “grey salt”), Celtic sea salt is harvested from the bottom of tidal ponds off the coast of France. The salt crystals are raked out after sinking; this, plus the mineral-rich seawater its extracted from, gives Celtic salt its moist, chunky grains, grey hue and briny taste.

It’s great on fish and meat as both a cooking and finishing salt, as well as for baking.

6. Fleur De Sel

Literally “flower of salt,” fluer de sel is a sea salt hand-harvested from tidal pools off the coast of Brittany, France. Paper-thin salt crystals are delicately drawn from the water’s surface, much like cream is taken from milk. This can only be done on sunny, dry days with a slight breeze, and only with traditional wooden rakes. Because of its scarcity and labor-intensive harvesting, fleur de sel is the most expensive salt (five pounds will run you a cool $80), earning it the nickname “the caviar of salts.”

It retains moisture, and has blue-grey tint,from its high mineral content and oceanic beginnings. If you can afford it, use fleur de sel as a finishing salt to add an impressive dash of flavor to meat, seafood, vegetables, even sweets like chocolate and caramel.

7. Kala Namak

Kala namak (“black salt” in Nepalese) is Himalayan salt that’s been packed in a jar with charcoal, herbs, seeds and bark, then fired in a furnace for a full 24 hours before it’s cooled, stored and aged.

This process gives kala namak its reddish-black color, its pungent, salty taste and a faint, sulfurous aroma of eggs. It’s often used in vegan and vegetarian dishes to give egg-free dishes the taste of egg, as well as in Ayurvedic practice.

8. Flake Salt

Harvested from salt water through evaporation, boiling or other means, flake salt is thin and irregularly shaped with a bright, salty taste and very low mineral content.

This shapes means the crunchy flake salt dissolves quickly, resulting in a “pop” of flavor. Of the different types of salt, use it as a finishing salt, especially on meats.

9. Black Hawaiian Salt

Also known as black lava salt, black Hawaiian salt is a sea salt harvested from – you guessed it – the volcanic islands of Hawaii. It gets its deep, black color from the addition of activated charcoal.

Coarse-grained and crunchy, black Hawaiian salt is great for finishing pork and seafood.

10. Red Hawaiian Salt

Also called alaea salt, this unrefined, red Hawaiian salt gets its name and color from the reddish, iron-rich volcanic clay alaea.

Used for centuries in ceremonial ways for cleansing, purification and the blessing of tools, red Hawaiian salt is also great in the kitchen, adding an attractive finish and robust flavor to seafood and meat, as well as traditional island dishes like poke and pipikaula, a Hawaiian jerky.

11. Smoked Salt

Slow-smoked up to two weeks over a wood fire (usually hickory, mesquite, apple, oak or alder wood), smoked salt adds an intense and, yes, smoky flavor to dishes.

Depending on the time smoked and the wood used, tastes will vary from brand to brand. Smoked salt is the best of the different types of salt to use for flavoring meats and heartier vegetables, like potatoes.

12. Pickling Salt

Used for pickling and brining, pickling salt does not contain any added iodine or anti-caking agents, nor many of the trace minerals of sea salt, which can cause ugly discoloration of the preserved food.

Source:

https://www.thoughtco.com/all-about-salt-1441186 

https://www.seasalt.com/history-of-salt 

https://www.google.co.id/amp/www.wideopeneats.com/12-different-types-salt-use/amp/