What's wrong with eating raw coriander?

cozmik

I bought a packet of ground coriander spice and it's says on the label that it should never be eaten raw and should be cooked for at least 3 minutes at 63c but it doesn't give a reason why. Does anyone know what that's about?

Thanks!

Minder

Possible presence of listeria which is destroyed at similar tempertures. But as to how or why the spice would be contaminated.....dunno!

heggie

never heard that, always eat the herb close to raw

Saruman

Nothing i imagine, it might be just in case of any contamination to cover themselves. For one thing, you do not cook Salsa and coriander (cilantro) is an essential ingredient. Also lots of other Asian dishes use it uncooked so im sure its fine.

coffield3

I remember reading that if you do there might be a possibility of getting the runs :eek:

The Hill Billy

heggie wrote: »

never heard that, always eat the herb close to raw

Saruman wrote: »

Nothing i imagine, it might be just in case of any contamination to cover themselves. For one thing, you do not cook Salsa and coriander (cilantro) is an essential ingredient. Also lots of other Asian dishes use it uncooked so im sure its fine.

Folks - I think that the OP is referring to ground coriander seeds - not the leafy green herb.

OP - I've no idea why the producer is recommending the specific cooking time. Minder's suggestion is the most probable though.

cozmik

Thanks for the replies all!

Here's a link to the spice in question.

http://www.spicesofindia.co.uk/acatalog/Indian-Food-TRS-Coriander-Ground-Dhania.html

Hill Billy wrote: »

Minder's suggestion is the most probable though.

Wow I had no idea there was such a health risk.

Check this out

http://www.food.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2008/apr/dillseeds

Saruman

I must have missed that he was talking about powder form corriander
I have a big bag of the stuff but only use it when cooking. Never thought to eat it uncooked as it does not taste too good.. yes i think i tried it raw but can not think when i would actually use it raw.

The Hill Billy

Most, if not all, ground spices need cooking in order to get their full flavour. In indian cookery the spices (ground or whole) are usually added at the very start of cooking in order to release their essential oils. Adding spices late in the cooking process can lead to the dish having a bitter flavour, especially in the case of ground chilli powder. The exception to this rule is garam masala which is sometimes added late in the cooking process.

Tip of the day: If you're cooking a curry & you find that it doesn't have enough "heat" - don't add more chilli powder, add some ground white pepper instead. This will give the effect of more heat without the dish becoming bitter.

Minder

cozmik wrote: »

Wow I had no idea there was such a health risk.

Check this out

http://www.food.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2008/apr/dillseeds

I imagine that these contaminants are as a result of poor standards in food production rather than an inherent risk. There is a googley page that describes the case for irradiating coriander. Irradiation sterilises the bacteria making it impossible for it to reproduce - it doesn't address the issue at the source - why is it contaminated in the first place. One reason why we should never allow meats to be irradiated.....

Krusty_Clown

General rule of thumb is to cook spices for a few minutes, in order to avoid Delhi belly, hence the curry paste, etc., which tend to get added quite early during the cooking process.

Spices can also be of dubious origins/standards. Remember the Sudan 1 red colourant scare not so long ago, which was included in Chilli Powder? Guess which company manufactured the Chilli Powder? The same company who prepared your ground coriander... Not sure how much cooking you need to do to remove carcinogens though!

cozmik

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

Spices can also be of dubious origins/standards. Remember the Sudan 1 red colourant scare not so long ago, which was included in Chilli Powder? Guess which company manufactured the Chilli Powder? The same company who prepared your ground coriander...

Interesting...

Thanks Krusty!

Krusty_Clown

cozmik wrote: »

Interesting...

Don't let that put you off. I buy their stuff all the time and it's never done me any harm (apart from a facial tic, and a numbness down my left side).