Cooking meat over fire is a good kind of processing. 
Chocolate is a processed evil
ctviggen
(Bob M)
#42
I listened to this podcast:
She’s not fond of oxalates. The problem is that they stay in you for a while. So, it becomes difficult to determine how long it takes to get rid of them. About the only thing I eat with them is chocolate (at least at those levels), but high percentage chocolate (85%+) has high oxalates.
Dipper_Actual
(CharleyD)
#43
Yes I believe if we were all driven by our own enlightened self-interest, we wouldn’t abuse cacao (I think I spelled it right this time) and no one would choose to mix it with sugar and fat to make chocolate. And make addicts of us with it. Unfortunately, the genie is out of the bottle on that one.
I will never recommend that cacao be controlled like opiates. The cost, personal and national, would not be worth it. Can you image how gleefully the government would prosecute a War on Cacao, like the War on Drugs?
In the end, I think yeah it ought to be used situationally, acutely, not chronically. That way it works when you need it to.
ctviggen
(Bob M)
#44
So, I stopped eating my 85%+ chocolate to see what would happen and a pin in my left hip went away, to the point where I ran on asphalt for about 40 minutes on flat shoes (no cushioning), with no issues. I then restarted eating chocolate again, and now my pain is back. It’s still unclear to me whether it’s chocolate (and more specifically oxalates in the chocolate), but I’m going to test not eating chocolate again to see what happens. (Other than chocolate, I pretty much just eat meat, some dairy, some vegetables.)
SecondBreakfast
#45
Cacao powder, organic or dutched, can also be used in savory applications. My personal favorite is adding a couple TBS into chili powder, garlic, herbs and applying it as a dry rub on brisket. There is a depth of flavor to experience there.
As for negative reactions upon consumption - that could be said for a lot of foods. Feed me shellfish, I’ll break out in hives. Feed me corn or hominy, it’ll darn near kill me. I have two close friends who are very allergic to chocolate. Just the tiniest bit gives them days of massive headaches, mood changes, and physical illness. Sometimes, you just have to experiment a bit to figure out what triggers negative reactions, and avoid those things.
ctviggen
(Bob M)
#46
Totally true. Sadly, one thing that gives me immediate allergic reactions is hot/spicy food. I love it, but my body does not. I have it periodically, but that’s it. For me, it might have to be the same with chocolate. I’ll continue to test to see…
