|
Post by macmex on Oct 30, 2019 8:31:43 GMT -6
Well, okra coffee is just okay. Unlike garbanzo or soy "coffee," there's no way I'd accept it as a replacement for regular coffee. At my first sip, I thought for a moment that I was going to have the same experience as with Roselle. It had a very slight taste which reminded me of the "turpentine flavor" of Roselle "coffee." But it was so slight, that I wondered if it was all just psychosomatic, "Maybe it's just my imagination..." But it wasn't. It did have some similarity to the Roselle "coffee," but it was tolerable. I drank two cups before work. If I didn't have regular coffee or soy or garbanzo to make another substitute, I'd consider okra "coffee," but it didn't really float my boat, so to speak.
|
|
|
Post by glen on Oct 30, 2019 10:44:26 GMT -6
George, thanx for going to all the trouble to do this experiment. You did indeed take a hit for the team so to speak. I have to thank Ron as well for donating the seed so we could try this experiment. Using okra seed to make coffee is historical and is documented in our history going back to the 1800's during the Civil War. I always wondered if okra seed could be used as a coffee substitute. Now we know. The conclusion I am going with is that okra coffee sucks. However, it could be used as a hot beverage in times of hardship or shortages. George, you are a trooper. You drank 2 cups? The second was just to make sure you didn't like it? When I worked for the Dept of Corrections the institution I worked for used coffee mixed with chicory. I don't even know what chicory is. However, it is a common coffee substitute. The institutional coffee was horrible. None of the inmates drank it. I remember seeing chicory coffee in the grocery stores when I was very young and I remember trying it and not liking it then as well. Its much cheaper.
|
|
|
Post by glen on Oct 30, 2019 10:48:03 GMT -6
George, this experiment was really important enough that it belongs in a thread of its own.
|
|
|
Post by macmex on Oct 30, 2019 14:03:47 GMT -6
I'll have to investigate how to modify things. This morning I donned my administrator's hat (account) and tried to rename the thread to something like "coffee substitutes." But I was not successful. Will see what I can do.
I would recommend garbanzo (chick pea) or soy coffee substitute. It is good.
Chicory is perhaps better than real coffee, other than I'm pretty sure it has no caffeine. Chicory is a wild plant with blue flowers, also known as "Ragged Sailors." The root, which is a tap root is toasted and ground to make a coffee substitute. I have tried it and liked it. I've also made a coffee substitute using dandelion roots. I did this with my kids, when they were small. We all thought it was great!
Wikipedia article about chicory
|
|
|
Post by macmex on Oct 31, 2019 7:13:48 GMT -6
My parents, at around 82 years of age, both had severe memory issues and, in terms of independent living, they crashed. They couldn't do it anymore. The "crash" was so unexpected and abrupt that none of the family prepared for it ahead of time (except my father, who paid a high premium for a policy providing full healthcare and lodging, in case of memory issues). So, one day they simply had to leave their home. My brother and sister-in-law, in NJ have been faithfully sorting and selling off their stuff, setting aside some things for each kid in the family. I don't know what happened to the lamp. I suspect it went out in a garage sale.
I'm not sure what you meant by asking about my friends. Please clarify.
|
|
|
Post by macmex on Nov 1, 2019 8:02:44 GMT -6
Well, those seeds had expired by the time my folks couldn't enjoy them in the lamp. We are far, far away from NJ and it's not only hard to remember things to ask of relatives, who are doing the actual work, but I believe it would be wrong to do so. I am just grateful that my parents are well cared for and that my brother and his family are doing such a good job. The best way to reconnect with "my friends" would be to find the seeds in viable form and start growing them. But, I can no longer keep up with all those varieties. I have to enjoy what I can and try to ensure that others are in good hands.
Old Friends in the Garden
|
|
|
Post by glen on Nov 1, 2019 12:02:46 GMT -6
George, I am very sorry that your folks are going thru some stuff now and have to move out of their house. That can be devastating. I wish them the best and hope they like their new quarters.
|
|
|
Post by heavyhitterokra on Nov 15, 2019 23:05:19 GMT -6
George, Thanks, for sharing the okra coffee experiment. Those were also some really great photos; they showed lots of colorful detail. (If a picture is worth a thousand words) then, a good picture ought to be worth even more. The okra seeds that popped like popcorn were probably the result of the several days that it rained, prior to me harvesting the pods. I think they got somewhere near 7" or 8" of steady downpour before I was able to get out there to them in the muddy garden. Some of them were so wet that they actually germinated in the pods, during the few days of dying that followed harvest. That factor may have skewed the experiment? I've been told that popcorn "pops" because of the moisture trapped inside the kernel that in turn, forms high-pressure steam internally until the kernel literally explodes when heated. Maybe, the 2018 seeds would roast less violently? Possibly resulting in better flavor. I wish I could taste or smell. It's making me crazy that I can't experiment with different materials and different techniques, because I would have no way of telling if there was any improvement. (To me, your okra coffee tasted just fine). I can't tell it from the real thing any more than a blind man could tell a Picasso from a Rembrandt ... As far as I was concerned, your okra coffee turned out just as good as any Columbian blend I've ever tasted. Thank you, for your time and dedication. I really appreciate the sacrifices you've made, and the effort that you put into getting this report out to the rest of us.
|
|
|
Post by macmex on Nov 16, 2019 6:21:27 GMT -6
Thanks Ron. I am trying to be extra careful and detailed, with at least a couple projects, every year, and then record my findings. This experiment might merit another "go," as Josh doubled the amount of okra "coffee" and says that the result was better.
I'm kind of sensitive to giving negative feedback on varieties and things like this experiment, as people tend to put too much weight on such feedback. It's always safest to give a variety or an experiment the benefit of the doubt, especially varieties. One little change in circumstances can make a variety perform differently/poorly, whereas the same variety might do great with one little change in environment.
|
|
|
Post by heavyhitterokra on Nov 16, 2019 8:57:02 GMT -6
It might behoove us to use okra coffee as a way to 'save money on coffee' by mixing it 50/50 with the store bought stuff? Just a thought ...
Do you remember how long you roasted your seeds at 450 degrees? I have an oven separate from my house that doesn't care about smoke, because no one lives in my Summer Kitchen.
|
|
|
Post by macmex on Nov 17, 2019 6:04:06 GMT -6
I don't remember, as I didn't time it. This is like baking, it's done when "it's done." The way you know that it's done is that it smokes and turns dark in color, though, with toasting okra, I had a harder time seeing that it was dark in color, as the seed coat didn't change color very much. The interior of the seed changed color.
Smoke is a decent indicator that it's done. When it smokes pretty good, it's ready.
|
|
|
Post by glen on Nov 17, 2019 12:20:13 GMT -6
We have a product in Panama called Flor de Chiriqui. Its a coffee blend. The first ingredient is maize. But, its mixed with coffee. Second ingredient is coffee. Product sells for about 1.75 per lb. Its not real popular but this product is sold in most grocery stores here. I bought a half lb for a buck. It is not as good as genuine coffee. But, in a situation where food prices were high I would buy it to save money like Ron says. I would also drink a cup of okra coffee mixed with real coffee if I had too. Right now I can still afford a real cup of coffee so I won't be doing this yet. This isn't a prepper sight. However, in my reading, global economy's are in serious and steady decline right now. This problem hasn't manifested itself in the US yet. Many analyst's say that it will spread to the US though in the next year or so. If the government decides to borrow increased amounts of money to try and deal with this, more food inflation will visit. Its good to know how to survive in hard times. Famine is something that has always been a part of human life and this is not going to change in our life-times.
|
|