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Gauri Khan restaurant dispute: Is iodine a silly way to test fake cheese?
A YouTuber recently shared on social media, in which an iodine testing was done on the cheese dish at Shah Rukh Khan’s wife’s Mumbai restaurant – which he called fake. Fake cheese-also known as synthetic or analog cheese-is made with non-dairy materials such as vegetable oils, starch and additives instead of dairy milk. A simple iodine test can help you understand between real and fake, but is it a foolish method? Read on to know more.
Analog is also known as cheese, it is a product that mimics the appearance and taste of cheese, but is made with non-decay materials
A food blogger recently went to Gauri Khan’s famous Mumbai restaurant, ToriWhere, after testing the cheese – they called it fake. YouTuber Sarthak Sachdeva said that the purity of cheese in Khan’s luxury restaurant was “fake”. He conducted an iodine test on a cheese dish that he ordered, indicating that it was not pure.
But ToriIodine darkened the cheese – a popular teletel signal of the appearance of starch. In mistrust, Sarathak, on his social media account, where he shared the video of the entire process, said, “Shahrukh Khan’s restaurant serves fake cheese.”
What is fake cheese?
Also known as analog or synthetic cheese, it is a product that mimics the appearance and taste of cheese, but is made with non-deciry materials such as vegetable oils, starch and additives instead of dairy milk.
While it is cheaper to produce, analog cheese lacks nutritional benefits of real cheese and may have unhealthy additives. Analog cheese is also designed to be similar to the genuine in texture and taste – and therefore, it makes it extremely difficult to distinguish for consumers.
What are health concerns with analog cheese?
Fake cheese contains trans fats – which, according to doctors, reduce significant health risks, which increases the risk of heart disease and stroke due to inflammation and insulin resistance. They also elevate LDL, or poor cholesterol levels, and HDL, or good cholesterol, causing cholesterol buildup to the arteries.
Additionally, they are associated with type 2 diabetes, inflammation and even some cancers. Analog cheese also causes digestive issues such as inflammation, constipation and indigestion, resulting in vomiting, diarrhea and nausea.
Does iodine test accurately prove the purity of cheese?
After the post of Sarathak went viral, Tori Claiming an official refutation, “Iodine test reflects the presence of starch, not the authenticity of the cheese. As the dish involves soy-based material, this response is expected. We stand by the purity of our cheese and the integrity of our ingredients on Torii.”
Experts say that the presence of starch in cheese indicates adulteration – as it is not a natural component of pure cheese.
However, it is not clear what the other material was in the dish that Sarathak ordered, which means that due to their appearance, the iodine test may not have fully indicated the purity of the cheese.
How is iodine test conducted?
The test, which detects the presence of starch, is conducted with the help of adding the iodine solution to a sample containing starch, and then the solution will become blue-black. If there is no starch, the iodine solution will remain its original brown color.
This test is usually used to identify starch in food products or determine the maturity of fruits such as apples.
How to identify fake cheese?
Even though selling analog cheese is not illegal in India, according to FSSAI, analog cheese is not mentioned or label analog paneer as “non-decay”. However, you can easily find out which is real
- The natural cheese made from dairy milk curd process has a firm texture with a milky odor. You can check the texture, and if it is granulated and crumbly, the cheese is real. On the other hand, analog cheese will be highly rubber or emotional.
- Your regular milk cheese becomes brown on heat, while synthetic cheese breaks down and melts.
- You can also test the toring cheese to the boiled cheese to cool in the water. Add some toring lentils to the water and let it sit for 5-10 minutes. If the water turns light red, the cheese may be contaminated. If there is no change in color, you can safely enjoy your cheese.
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Shahrukh KhanSarathak SachdevaHDLFSSAIToriFake cheese synthetic analogFake cheese contains unhealthy additivesInflammation and insulin resistanceRay bad cholesterol levelsDigestive issues inflammation constipation indigestion
