What you must do if you love bread but worried about cancer
If you're a bread lover and have read the CSE report you should be concerned. If you're a bread lover and haven't read the CSE report, you should read it here. The report has merely publicised a not so hidden aspect of the commercial bread industry. An aspect that's dirty and unethical. An aspect that prioritises profit over nutrition. An aspect that reveals the extent to which corporations will go to maximise their returns.
The bread that is today bought in stores has nothing in common with the bread that's been around for thousands of years. Till about 130 years ago, bread was made with just four ingredients - flour, water, salt and yeast - all natural. The leavening agent was made of fermented flour that was essentially a culture of wild yeast and good bacteria. This is what Sourdough Bread is all about and purists often refer to this as real bread.
On the contrary, the bread that is available ubiquitously is made with commercial yeast and a cocktail of chemicals that produces something that looks like bread, but is far from it and one that we really shouldn't be consuming frequently.
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So, if you're a bread lover, what should you be wary of?
1) Additives: There are tons of these that are used indiscriminately - from stuff to keep the flour fresh and extend the shelf life to stuff that softens the crumb and strengthens the dough. All this helps corporations deliver "more with less" while you think you're buying something thats good for you. When was the last time you read the ingredients listed on the bread you bought? Please do so every time you buy a loaf and if you see something that your grandmother never used or something that sounds like gobbledegook, chances are it isn't good for you.
2) Commercial Yeast: Corporations love this because it works fast and consistently. This is a strain of yeast that has been isolated and engineered in a laboratory for quick action. So while naturally fermented bread takes minimum seven to eight hours from flour to bread, commercially yeasted bread is normally out in about three hours.
The obvious downside to this is that the flour doesn't break down completely and isn't pre-processed before being baked leading to the kind of health issues that we hear of today and that has spun off a gluten-free industry. Bread has been around for thousands of years and we haven't heard of gluten intolerance then. How come? What also add's to the problem is that a lot of the wheat that we eat are mono crops that have been 'engineered' in labs for predictable harvests and that doesn't help either.
And what should you do?
1) Stop buying the commercial crap that is being dished out. That's one way to pressurise the corporations and bread bakers of their moral responsibility.
2) Look for small bakers who're passionate about the bread they bake and are committed to good food. Most bakeries, unfortunately, will not fall into this category.
3) Start baking your own bread and stop outsourcing your requirement of bread to commercial players.
The last option isn't rocket science as most of you probably think, but I must confess it is simple, not easy. But then, swimming wasn't easy and nether was riding a bicycle the first time around. As a species, we have prioritised convenience and speed over everything else. And while there are benefits, there is also a price to pay.
I love bread and have always wondered why store-bought bread never has any character. Then I started baking bread at home 2 years ago and I figured out why they taste like Kleenex.
A year ago, I moved onto sour dough and I can't eat the commercially yeasted bread now. Most friends and family who come home are amazed at the complexity of the flavour and the texture of real bread. Even folks who're gluten-intolerant have no issues eating sourdough bread. And yes, this bread also has a low glycemic index making it easy for diabetics to enjoy them without the normal after-effects.
So, stop outsourcing your daily bread and start baking them yourselves.
If I can do it - so can you!