Comment: Emails from America: Food gets technical
Feeling hungry? The wacky wonderful world of food in the USA
10 July 2009 18:16 GMT / By Stuart Miles
If you've ever wondered what it would be like to live in Willie Wonka's chocolate factory then visit an American supermarket as some of the things I've seen look just as if they came out of the book by Roald Dahl.
While you can't get the everlasting gobstopper, well not that I've seen so far, you can get colour-changing ice cream. Yep, just like those Global Hypercolor t-shirts from the 1990s, Baskin Robbins (they make 31 flavours of ice cream, don't you know) has released an ice cream that changes as you lick it. If it changes when you lick it, what does it do to you on the inside?
Then there are the numerous foods and drinks with brand names that don't actually say what they are. I mean, what is Cheese Whip, what is Mountain Dew, or Gatorade? Could you actually tell me what is in Miracle Whip?
Turns out Miracle Whip, made by Kraft food, is low-fat mayonnaise with sugar (how does that work?).
So what's this got to do with a technology and gadget news and reviews site? Well, the amount of technology that goes into all this must be pretty impressive. Walk into a British supermarket and while you can get a number of crazy items, I've yet to see cinnamon bun shaped breakfast cereal or sliced cinnamon bun loaf bread for example.
I mean, how do you even go about creating pre-made cakes in a tin that all you have to do is pop open and put on a baking tray?
And that's before you get to the array of kitchen gadgets designed to help you prepare, cook and even eat all this food.
If you thought the height of your kitchen gadgets was your cafetiere (they don't have them here) then you haven't seen the skillets, grills, omelette makers, electronic can (I mean tin) openers you can pick up at your local Target.
Need a device to help you cut your bagel? No problem, the bagel cutter will load up your bagel and slice it in two perfectly - even though most bagels come pre-cut.
How about a snow cone maker? You surely need one of those, or maybe an ice shaver (sounds painful). What about a waffle maker that promises to "add sweet, light, crispy decadence to your weekend brunches," or one of my favourite pointless gadgets the "Roasted Garlic Express" a device that lets you roast up to 4 garlic bulbs at once in less than 30 minutes. The device boasts that 30 minutes is "half of what it takes in a regular oven", I'm not sure about you, but I've never really been in a rush for my roasted garlic.
Then there is the all-in-one breakie maker as well as the Back to Basic Egg ‘N Muffin 4-Slice Toaster/2 Egg Cooker, as it suggests a device that will let you cook four muffins and fry two eggs at the same time. Wow.
It's only when you see all this up close you can understand why Americans love their food - I mean what's not to like about TGI Friday fries and ketchup crisps?
That love of food seems to have shifted into a plethora of baking programs on television and a new found love for cupcakes. Aside from the Food channel, a station dedicated to eating, there are many more not showing you how to make food, but just letting you watch other people work in a bakers or some other food establishment.
But the problem I seem to be having is that while the food is intriguing (I've yet to come out of the supermarket without seeing something that shocks me on a food technology front), most of the time I am left feeling hungry and scared.
Where's the fruit? I asked in one supermarket, only to be given such a strange look that I had to run for the car as quick as I could.
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