2008.04.30
McCormick does it again
Here you see the latest new product from McCormick, the spice company. It's a "crusting blend" made with panko bread crumbs.
The blends come in three flavors: French onion, pepper and herb; Italian herb and cheese and garlic, lemon and rosemary.
The blends are used for creating a tasty crust on chicken, fish, pork or beef. I pried mine open and took a wiff and it smelled pretty good.
Since I've been covering food, I've noticed that the McCormick folks always seem to be riding the wave of the latest trend in spices. I know that's their job, but I have grown to appreciate the way they try to bring gourmet spice options to the grocery store at a fairly affordable price for everyday cooks.
First, they had the smoked paprika everyone's using. Then, they introduced a line of gourmet salts and salt blends. I have some of their French grey salt and Mediterranean spiced sea salt in my cabinet at home.
Panko is an extremely popular breading ingredient these days, so I'm not surprised to see this product. I do think that at 6.5 oz., the containers are a little small. How many chicken breasts do you suppose that'll coat?
When I tasted a pinch of the Italian herb and cheese, I noticed that it is quite pungent. Perhaps one could mix the crusting blend with a little plain panko to stretch it further.
If anyone tries one of these blends, please let us know what you think!
I am going to the store today and will pick up one or two of these to try. They look easy enough to use.
I have a friend that works as a waitress at Chef Mickey's restaurant in Orlando (in the Contemporary Resort at WDW) and she picks on the chef there - asking him if he used those ready made McCormick spices or his own special blends. She doesn't really like McCormick spices and usually adorns her food with fresh herbs and even fancy spices.
Convenience is my friend on most days and I will try anything if it will make my food easier to make.
Comment by Amy Hanek — April 30, 2008 @ 10:39 am
I thought panko was a game on the Price is Right! I miss Bob Barker.
Comment by Greg — April 30, 2008 @ 1:54 pm
Greg, wasn't that Planko? Ha ha ha ha!
Comment by Lindsey — April 30, 2008 @ 2:15 pm
NOOOO it was PLINKO!!
Comment by Lori — April 30, 2008 @ 3:20 pm
Thanks for the laugh guys.:-)
Comment by Debbie — April 30, 2008 @ 4:05 pm
It's good to have fun. We can't be too serious all the time like the folks over on the American Idol blog. Those folks are way too serious!
Comment by Greg — May 1, 2008 @ 1:01 pm
I love this job.
Comment by Lindsey — May 1, 2008 @ 1:44 pm
I am quite envious of you.
Comment by Lori — May 1, 2008 @ 4:12 pm
Uh oh Lindsey! They posted a link to this blog on the American Idol blog. I think I made them mad because they aren't having as much fun as we do over here. Of course how can you not have fun when food is involved! I hope I didn't start a blog war. Don't worry though, I think you and Jenny can team up and take them!
Comment by Greg — May 1, 2008 @ 5:01 pm
Lindsey - I don't even work here and I have to agree...
Comment by Amy Hanek — May 1, 2008 @ 5:16 pm
Greg, even if you did start a blog war, I'm sure we'd win.
Comment by Lindsey — May 2, 2008 @ 1:01 pm
Greg, this has nothing to do w/food, but you are so right about people being too serious. I have a coworker who is much too serious for her own good. I sent her a story from Dave Barry's blog, that I thought was funny. She sends back this serious reply, and wasn't sure what one of his comments had to do with the rest... When I told her, the story was a joke, she got a little upset. Life is waaay to short to take seriously all the time.
Lindsey, aside from having to eat the bad chips today, Oh Boy do i envy your job!
Comment by Debbie — May 2, 2008 @ 5:53 pm
Hey! I resemble that remark!
I was the guest blogger for this past week!
Comment by Amy Hanek — May 3, 2008 @ 12:38 pm
I've tried them all - McCormick, Clubhouse, No Name, President's Choice, etc. etc.
The best spices and blends I have encountered so far are from a Canadian company called Epicure Selections. You do pay a bit more, but you will also find that they last much longer and have no preservatives like MSG or Sodiums, and very rarely contain yeast or other additives.
Companies like McCormick are absolute giants making over 4 billion a year in revenue. They can crush their competitors because so much of their business is vertically integrated and they typically buys the source of the spice, or enter into a contractual relationship that guarantees exclusivity. Much like what Walmart does, they consistently get their suppliers to lower their costs year after year. To keep pace with this policy, suppliers often cut corners by introducing cheaper genetically modified (GMO) strains, and by adding cheaper filler to meet their targets.
The result of this for the average customer is that when they go to a store, they either have McCormicks or Clubhouse. These products are of the same company, one positioned as premium, the other not so much.
And while i'm not trying to be too critical of either of them, I know that they are the world's largest spice company, and have read that they put a lot of pressure on their suppliers to meet these unrealistic targets which does result in crap being put in their products.
People, it's important to support the smaller companies that operate their businesses in a more ethical manner. This is why I choose Epicure Selections spices over what the grocery stores offers.
Since using them, I have lost weight, and so has my family. I feel so good knowing that I am providing healthy, good food. Epicure Selections preserves their spices naturally, using age old methods like air drying, and using the sun.
Support the little people!
http://www.EpicureSelections.com
Comment by Patricia — May 19, 2009 @ 2:59 pm