Are street-sold potatoes cooked with drain cleaner powder?

Instead of cooking normally, the potato pieces can be cooked by soaking in water and drain cleaner for 20 minutes. Is this the way to cook the types of potatoes we usually eat?

Potatoes are cooked without boiling.

A girl named CCĐ. shared: “Have you ever seen a bag of boiled corn, contained in a plastic bag, covered with a pineapple sack? Someone told me it was boiled with septic tank powder.”

Potatoes cooked in just 20 minutes thanks to drain cleaner powder. Photo: FBNV

To verify the above information, D. used a piece of raw potato, then put it in a plastic bag, mixed a spoonful of drain cleaner powder with water, and tied the bag tightly. After 20 minutes, the potato showed signs of being cooked.

The above experiment terrified many people and they also did the same experiment with corn, potatoes, and cassava. Many people got the same results as D. and called for a “boycott” of these favorite foods.

Responding to the question of whether or not to use drain cleaner powder to cook potatoes/corn/cassava, Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Duy Thinh, an officer of the Institute of Biotechnology - Food Technology (Hanoi University of Science and Technology) said that he had not received this information, but the nature of drain cleaner powder is to generate heat, soften and decompose waste and dirt clogged in the drain. Therefore, when we conduct the above experiment, there will be a reaction in which the potatoes become soft, but to cook them and sell them on the market as is happening now is another matter.

According to Associate Professor Dr. Tran Hong Con, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Natural Sciences, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, there are many types of drain cleaner powder, to analyze their harmful effects and toxicity, it is necessary to identify and analyze each of its components. If it is used to soak and cook food as reported, then the authorities need to intervene because in essence, this is not an additive used in food.

“We need to be careful when confirming whether street vendors use these chemicals to ripen their products before selling them to customers because in fact, there is no evidence of this. It could just be a rumor that affects their livelihood,” Associate Professor Thinh said.

Because before, the information about using batteries to boil corn that caused confusion for many people was actually just a baseless rumor.

“Batteries are not allowed to be used in the production and processing of any food because they contain many chemicals, including heavy metals such as lead, mercury, cadmium, etc., which are very toxic to the brain, kidneys, digestive system and reproductive system of humans. However, batteries do not have the effect of cooking food like that because the reactions that occur are insignificant. It is also not easy to find batteries to put in the pot. Meanwhile, they can openly use NaHCO3 salt to cook food quickly,” he analyzed.

Can chemicals be used to cook food?

According to Associate Professor Con, the use of catalysts to cook food quickly and reduce cooking time is not new.

In fact, for a long time, to make corn, potatoes, peanuts, beans, and banh chung cook quickly, people have known how to use salt medicine to treat stomach diseases (NaHCO3) still sold in pharmacies to put in the pot, reducing cooking time to only 1/3 or 1/2 of the actual time.

According to the regulations of the Ministry of Health, you can use 1-2 tablespoons in 1 kg of food. This type of salt is a permitted substance, safe for the digestive system.

Sharing the same opinion, Associate Professor Thinh also said that sodium hydrogen carbonate - NaHCO3 has the effect of adjusting acidity, preventing caking and creating foam. Therefore, the paste is often used to cook food quickly, saving time and cooking energy.

"Many types of powder sold on the market today are this type of salt," Associate Professor Thinh affirmed.

According to Zing.vn