Recent Posts
Culture August 30, 2017
Move out of the way turkey, bologna's coming through.
On October 24, sandwich lovers everywhere rejoice for National Bologna Day. Just for one day turkey, ham and even chicken are forgotten and bologna reigns king/queen.
ENTITY uncovers the juiciest facts behind bologna.
The Huffington Post reports that bologna has a mix of meats, fat, salt and spices. It is then formed into a sausage-like patty. American companies, however, tend to keep hush-hush of what is actually in their bologna so they can continue selling bologna. They were also very ambiguous about the spices that went into bologna.
Bologna’s birth place was in Bologna, Italy and is known as Mortadella. Now known as a famous lunch meat, bologna used to serve as a daily meal that the Roman Army would consume. When he came to Italy, Napoleon loved the meat blend so much that he took it back to France with him.
Now in Italy though, it is served as meatballs instead of a flat patty.
In 2015, Italy celebrated a day full of meats, bologna being one of them, in honor of the queen of Salumi. The city of Bologna holds a four-day event festival that is filled with taste and passion.
Bologna became much more prominent during the Great Depression because it was cheaper. Since it was made from the cheaper parts of animals and even organs of an animal, it served as a way less expensive meat compared to ham or salami.
Bologna really became popular when it turned into packaged bologna in the 20th century. One of the most popular bologna companies, Oscar Mayer, became one of the first pioneers in vacuum-sealed packaging.
David Richardson, Editor of the British Columbia Medical Journal, says that he loved bologna so much that he ate it nearly every single day when he was younger. He found it interesting that people who grew up with foods such as Wonder Bread and bologna are less overweight than this generation.
“… I don’t think it’s got so much to do with the food as it does inactivity,” said Richardson.
He also states that even though bologna is not ideal, it won’t kill you “…but I don’t think anyone has shortened their life expectancy.”
Some experts are against eating bologna and advise people to completely keep away from it. Holistic nutritionist Joy McCarthy shared thoughts about bologna and healthier alternatives with ChatLaine.
“Bologna is basically cooked sausage made of cured beef, pork or a mixture of the two with added spices, salt, chemicals and preservatives — avoid! Ultimately, there isn’t much difference between any of these factory-farmed processed meats. The difference nutritionally is whether it’s certified organic or factory-farmed meat. Animals that are raised on a pasture tend to have a higher ratio of omega-3 fatty acids, and are fed food free of pesticides,” said McCarthy.
Bologna contains an ingredient called sodium nitrate. Sodium nitrate is what makes the bologna pink. You can also find sodium nitrate in other processed meats such as hot dogs, pepperoni, ham and bacon. It is important to keep in mind that consuming large amounts of sodium nitrate can be dangerous for your health. Botulism can be the result of large amounts of sodium intake.
One place that bologna will be welcomed with open arms is in the Midwest. Writer Sara Bir wrote on Serious Eats that the Midwest does not pride itself in packaged bologna, but on real, artisanal bologna.
David Cheng commented on GQ Magazine saying he is confused as to why people do not craft bologna. “This blows my mind — we have craft doughnuts, beet pickles, beef jerky.. .but no bologna?” Cheng told GQ.
So when you’re deciding which sandwich meat is best, the best choice you could choose is a healthy one.
