Foods You Might Not Eat If You Knew How They Were Cooked

Many consumers are unaware of the production methods of hot dogs. The Manual actually refers to a hot dog as a phallic meat medley. Some assert that hot dogs contain lips and buttholes, though that theory may be a bit hyperbolic. Hot dogs are made using scraps and trimmings from a variety of different animals, which may include cows, pigs, or chickens. The cheaper the hot dog, the more likely it is to contain mechanically separated meat. 

Mechanically separated meat is essentially a meat purée made by pressing the meat from any bones that remain after butchering and may include skin, fat, and gristle. According to USDA requirements, a hot dog should only contain less than 20 percent mechanically separated meat; however, that's still a lot of unidentifiable meat sludge. In order to make the franks, these trimmings are combined with starches and seasonings and emulsified into a batter, which is then cased in cellulose to form those identical hot dogs.

It's perhaps not surprising that a lot of highly processed foods contain questionable ingredients. But did you know that some nostalgic, home-cooked meals are just as tough on the stomach? Consider Thanksgiving dinner and its most typical centerpiece: The roast turkey. Turkey in and of itself isn't necessarily any better or worse than any other meat. But in the United States, where white meat is prized, turkeys have been bred to be breast-heavy in order to make it impossible for these birds to run, fly, or even mate. 

The size of a turkey tom's breast is so enormous that it would actually crush the hen if the pair attempted to copulate as nature intended. As a result, domesticated turkeys must be bred using artificial insemination. Concerns surrounding this cruel treatment may already turn you off turkey. You may be further horrified to learn that much like many animals raised for slaughter, 85 and 90 percent of turkeys are raised on factory farms. Knowing this may have you opting for nut roast or humanely-raised heritage turkey birds.

The ethical and health issues plaguing the meat industry seem enough to turn anyone to plant-based options, but there are some stomach-turning problems afoot here too. When Impossible first proudly released its plant-based beef, it seemed like a boon for anyone who wanted to cut down on meat production without compromising on the flavor, texture, color, and mouthfeel of a perfectly cooked rare burger. But the reality of the contents of plant-based products like the Impossible Burger is far from appetizing.

The highly-processed patties are made using technology that isolates a protein that contains heme, an iron-rich molecule that makes the juices of meat red. Heme from soy is inserted into a specific yeast that's genetically engineered to create even more heme as a waste product. The burger is then combined with textured wheat protein and loads of emulsifiers and stabilizers to give the burger the right texture. The resulting burger may be vegan, but it's a bit of a stretch to call it truly plant-based.

Octopuses might not be as cute as piglets or veal calves, but consuming such a smart animal may indeed give you pause or indigestion. Octopuses exhibit far greater intelligence and natural curiosity than many other animals. Despite being fairly solitary animals, they can also cooperate with other octopuses, and even with other species, to hunt and track down hidden prey, and they are also able to learn by watching another octopus carry out a task. 

They are notable in their ability to use what one scientist terms "conditional discrimination," which means that octopuses can make modifying choices depending on the context, and research has shown that the cephalopods are even capable of planning, reasoning, and problem-solving. Additionally, octopus farming is an inhumane practice that poses many risks to the environment. Octopus farming tends to have negative impacts on marine environments: Since octopuses are carnivores, they have to be fed other fish, which further depletes ecosystems. 

Subway bread may not have quite the same olfactory power as Lush products, but it also bore almost all of the marketing pain when a widely-circulated petition started in 2014 by blogger Vani Hari made the rounds, accusing the sandwich chain of using the "yoga mat chemical" azodicarbonamide in its sandwich bases. But while Subway phased out the chemical almost immediately after the media frenzy, it turns out Subway wasn't the only company taking advantage of the chemical's bubble-forming properties as a leavening agent.

Azodicarbonamide is a chemical additive: Its proclivity for forming bubbles in foams and plastics does indeed convey a bouncy texture to yoga mats, but it also pops up in anything from hair straighteners to pesticides. It remains popular as a leavening agent and whitener, notably, at Arby's, where it is used in the chain's croissants. Not only is it hard to reconcile the presence of the chemical that is in our yoga mats as forming the squishy base of a ham-and-cheddar croissant, but research has linked this chemical to cancer in lab animals, particularly when heated, so we'll give these croissants a pass, merci beaucoup.

Some strange additives and processes are obscured by the industries that use them. However, New Hampshire's Tamworth Distilling is wholly forthcoming in its use of beaver butt juice. Castoreum is a substance extracted from a beaver's castor sac, which is located near (but not in) the anal gland. The castor sacs are used to expel a scent used to mark a beaver's territory, and in the case of beavers, that substance has a musky vanilla aroma. 

Castoretum has been used since ancient Roman times. It was a fairly widespread stand-in for vanilla until beaver trapping fell from grace as a thriving industry. These days, using beaver castoretum requires a process involving hand-milking the castor sacs of anesthetized beavers. But this small, artisanal company leans into the oddity of this historic ingredient with its whiskey. According to the producers, sastoretum imparts a leathery flavor reminiscent of raspberry and vanilla to the finished whiskey. Cheers? We guess?

Strawberries — and berries in general — are one of the poster children of healthy eating: rich in antioxidants, vitamin C ... and pesticides? Indeed, according to the Environmental Working Group's (EWG) latest Dirty Dozen list, which ranks produce with the most pesticide contamination based on USDA testing data, conventionally grown strawberries are the most contaminated produce item consumed in the United States. They rank just above other "healthy" produce items like spinach, kale, collard greens, and cherries. 

Many of the foods on the Dirty Dozen list showed contamination levels in over 90% of tested samples. Per the report, chemicals that have long been banned by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency were commonly detected. A former senior vice president of research at EWG explains that these may be endocrine disruptors and even lead to life-threatening ailments like cancer (via ABC 7). The takeaway from this annual list should not be to avoid strawberries entirely. Rather, seeing as a majority of conventionally grown produce sold nationwide contains pesticide residue, the EWG urges consumers to seek out organic produce whenever possible, especially when it comes to items at the top of its list.

Chocolate may be considered a superfood and peanuts may be rich in protein, but if you're looking for those antioxidant benefits, don't go reaching for a chocolate-covered Payday. If you take a closer look at the label, you'll notice that Payday isn't described as being covered with chocolate but rather as "chocolatey." This indicates a loophole that allows producers of cheap chocolate-flavored candy to avoid adding enough chocolate liquor to the product to actually make it true chocolate. The resulting candy lacks the same mouthfeel as the real stuff since it is made with vegetable oil rather than cocoa butter.

Of course, Payday is not the only culprit of such trickery. Good Humor uses a "chocolate-flavored coating" on its original ice cream bars; even Butterfinger ironically uses no cocoa butter to make its peanut buttery treat. If only the real thing will do, examine the ingredient list to ensure that either "chocolate liquor" or "cocoa" and "cocoa butter" appear.