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Control Small Black Midges in Potted Plants

If small black flies buzz around when you water your potted plants, then you are probably dealing with an infestation of so-called fungus gnats. Fungus gnats look very similar to fruit flies and are often confused with them. In any case, normal mosquitoes are much larger.

Fungus gnats have small black bodies, however, and are mostly found around potted plants. They multiply in the plant soil. The fungus gnat lays its eggs in the bottom of the potted plant. There the larvae hatch and feed on dead roots and leaves. Sometimes they nibble on young roots and can damage a plant.

How do you know if your plants are infested with fungus gnats?

Fungus gnats usually crawl on the surface of potted plant soil. If you move or water the plant, they buzz. The larvae can be found about 1 cm deep in the ground. They are about 5 mm long, white with a blackhead.

What to do against fungus gnat infestation?

  • Repot affected plants. This reduces larvae infestation.
  • Cover the surface of the potting soil with a 1-2 cm thick layer of quartz sand. The insects do not lay their eggs in the sand.
  • Fungus gnats love wet soil. So keep your plants as dry as possible. Always water from below.
  • Keep your plants free of fallen leaves. The insects feed on dead plant parts.
  • Lay yellow sticky paper around the infested plants. There are also yellow boards or yellow stickers available in stores. The insects are attracted to the bright color and stick to the panels.
  • For biological pest control, there are SF nematodes (Steinernema feltiae nematodes) and BTI (Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis). Nematodes are tiny roundworms that feed on the sciarid larva. BTI is a bacterium that produces so-called stomach poison and kills the larvae. Both beneficial insects are harmless to humans and pets and are freely available in stores.

  • Check any newly potted plants for infestation before bringing them indoors.

Fungus gnats are annoying little pests that can spoil the fun of your potted plants. But don’t despair. With the tips and tricks above, you can get rid of the little black flies in no time at all and be able to enjoy your plant splendor again.

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Insider Tip Black Garlic: What Can The Fermented Bulb do – and What Does it Taste Like?

Black garlic is an absolute insider tip for the kitchen. But how does the black tuber taste and what else can it do?

What is black garlic?

Black garlic or “Black Garlic” is a delicacy in Japan, China and Korea and belongs in every good kitchen there. But in the meantime, the black tuber has gradually become better known and, above all, more popular. However, the black bulb is not a special variety, but rather ordinary garlic (Allium sativum).

But where does the unusual color come from? The reason lies in the processing of the garlic. It is fermented for weeks in high humidity and heat. As a result, the sugar and amino acids contained in the garlic are converted into tanning substances, so-called melanoidins. The result: the tubers gradually turn black.

This fermented garlic is much easier on the stomach because it contains fewer polysaccharides. The fermentation also gives it a very special taste of vanilla, caramel or even plum and some liquorice

This is how you can ferment your garlic yourself

If you want to make your own fermented garlic yourself, you’ll need to prepare it a little differently. Because a week-long fermentation in the oven would be far too expensive. But if you can do without the black color, there are two simple production methods in particular:
With honey: peel the garlic and press it lightly. Then put it in a jar with a wire seal and pour honey over it until the jar is about 2/3 full. Keep the jar in a dark place for several weeks, turning it from time to time. Once the garlic has completely sunk in the honey, it’s done.
With salt: Make a saline solution by stirring 3 grams of salt into 100 milliliters of water. Place the peeled garlic cloves back into a mason jar and fill it 2/3 full with the brine. Now the jar is well sealed and put in the fridge for about four weeks. In the first few days you should open it briefly once a day and then close it tightly again.
Depending on your taste, you will like the sweet or salty variant of fermenting your garlic better. Try it yourself and then test your garlic in the kitchen.

Black garlic in the kitchen: the healthy black bulb goes well with it

Conventional garlic is inherently very aromatic and healthy. The little toes are antibacterial, can prevent cardiovascular diseases and are also considered a natural cholesterol-lowering agent. These are just some of the tuber’s effects. However, so-called secondary plant substances are still produced in the garlic as a result of the fermentation. They protect our cells and slow down free radicals. In addition, probiotics are produced, which protect both our intestinal flora and the immune system.

The Black Garlic is particularly popular in Asian dishes and is ideal for sauces and marinades. But in the meantime it is also becoming increasingly popular for pasta dishes. For example, you can also cook the classic spaghetti aglio e olio with black garlic. It is also ideal as “black” garlic butter. Serve them with fish, meat or potatoes, for example.

In addition to the flavor component, the black garlic is also ideal for decoration. However, you should rather use a copy from the Asian store. Like regular garlic, don’t use too much if you don’t tolerate it well or if you’re taking blood-thinning medication. Garlic can enhance the effects of such drugs. Otherwise you are doing something good for yourself, your health and your palate with black garlic!

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Black Food: What’s the Truth About Black Food?

Black Food is the name of a new nutritional trend that is increasingly focusing on black foods. What’s up with this trend? But above all: What is inside the black foods?

black food? If you first think of black currywurst with black fries or black burgers in brown bread – you’re actually right.

It actually started with a charred hot dog in a black bun, the photo of which went viral on social media. There is now hardly any food that someone has not already colored black – and not necessarily by charring.

What makes food black?

Black food is primarily about the food being black. Regardless of how they got their black coloring. Because the color can be “grown up” in a natural way or added later. The most common colorings in black foods are:

Anthocyanins: These are natural plant pigments that make fruits and vegetables appear blue, purple, or almost black. Blackberries, for example, contain a lot of anthocyanins.
Iron(II) gluconate or iron(II) lactate: Both substances have an oxidizing effect and cause foodstuffs treated with them to turn a deep black. Cheap black olives are colored like this, you can recognize the subsequent coloring by additive numbers such as E579
Sepia: The dark “ink” of the squid is actually used to ward off enemies and has long colored Italian pasta specialties black.
activated charcoal
In addition to these commonly used food colorings, there are exotic variants. For example, the charcoal from burned coconuts, but from a chemical point of view this is nothing more than carbon.

What are the health benefits of black foods?

Black food is said to be healthy, so healthy in fact that even ice cream that’s been dyed black is advertised as “healthier.” Black foods are also said to detoxify, be good for the kidneys, prevent cancer and be particularly rich in vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals.

Activated charcoal black food

Foods colored with activated charcoal are the cheapest of the newfangled black foods. Activated charcoal is an approved food coloring (E number E153) and is added to many industrially produced foods to “pretty color” them. For example, jams and jellies with little fruit content

This does not make any product healthier – only blacker. Because activated charcoal is able to bind toxins, black food foods colored with charcoal are often advertised with additional benefits such as “detoxifying” or “detox”. However, a healthy body is already well equipped with the liver and kidneys to eliminate harmful substances.

The small amount of activated charcoal in black food doesn’t really matter – and nobody has to “detox” and “purify” anyway. In addition, activated charcoal is mainly used to make foods that are unhealthy per se “black & healthy”: French fries, currywurst and burger buns are not healthier if they are colored “raven black”.

ferrous gluconate and ferrous lactate

Olives and other foods colored black with ferrous gluconate or ferrous lactate do not confer any additional health benefit from the color. Olives colored black with ferrous gluconate (E579) are colored because they were not given time to ripen and were harvested green. You can easily recognize this by the fact that the core is still light green.

Iron(II) lactate (E585), like iron(II) gluconate, is only approved in the EU as a coloring for olives, but it is very well absorbed by the body and is therefore used to fortify foods with iron. This cannot then be recognized from the colour, because iron(II) gluconate is actually green-yellowish, the black color of the olives is only caused by oxidation. Here, too, the black color does not bring any added health value.

Natural dye sepia

Sepia, also known as “squid ink”, has now also established itself as a natural coloring agent for pasta in German kitchens. In homeopathy, sepia is used, for example, for gynecological disorders or diseases of the respiratory tract. However, there is still no scientifically proven knowledge on this.

Anyone who does not suffer from gynecological disorders or other diseases that Sepia helps against in homeopathy has no health benefit from the consumption of squid ink. On the contrary: the cream sauce that is often served with black pasta is not particularly healthy.

Incidentally, sepia does not have an E number, but it must be included in the list of ingredients because it can cause allergies.

Black food thanks to anthocyanins

Anthocyanins belong to the flavonoids, are secondary plant substances and are therefore fundamentally healthy. The more flavonoids and healthy phytochemicals we take in, the better. Anthocyanins are not only responsible for the almost black coloring of fruit and vegetables, but also for the dark red color of cherries, grapes and hibiscus blossoms.

However, there are over 8,000 flavonoids, and all of them have been said to have antioxidant effects. They all fundamentally reduce the risk of cancer and cardiovascular diseases – regardless of their color. So there is no point in limiting yourself to black fruits and vegetables. Fruits and vegetables are inherently healthier than junk food and highly processed foods.

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Black Pepper – Effect and Application of The Medicinal Spice

Apart from salt, no other spice is used as frequently in German cuisine as black pepper. What many people don’t know, however, is that black pepper has long been considered a remedy and has numerous health benefits.

How is black pepper different from other types of pepper?

Whether white, green, red or black pepper – all come from the same plant species, the pepper bush (Piper nigrum). Depending on the time of harvest and further processing, the peppercorns then get their specific color.

For the black pepper, the unripe, green peppercorns are harvested and stored in heaps for a few days. The grains are then dried in the sun.

The types of pepper differ not only in appearance, but also in the degree of sharpness, the taste and the composition of their components. White and black pepper are the hottest and have the highest levels of piperine — see why this ingredient is so important below.

use in the kitchen

From sweet to savory – pepper goes well with almost every dish. So it is not surprising that it is the second most used spice in German cuisine after salt. At least one type of pepper is therefore included in numerous spice mixtures.

The black pepper has a particularly hot aroma and a light citrus note. White pepper, on the other hand, is less aromatic and fruity, while green pepper is mild and has a light herbal note. The fully ripe red pepper is rarely eaten in this country due to its perishability.

Tip: Pepper that has already been ground has already lost large parts of its ingredients and aroma. Therefore, always use whole grains that you grind freshly just before use.

Black pepper – the most important active ingredients

Pepper contains over 200 different components. From a medical point of view, the most interesting is the alkaloid piperine. Numerous health-promoting effects are attributed to this ingredient. The traditional areas of application range from colds and flu to digestive problems and diabetes to rheumatic diseases and muscle pain.

Recent human studies have demonstrated its digestive, antidiabetic, anticarcinogenic and antiasthmatic effects, among other things. Also, it is scientifically proven that piperine promotes the absorption of nutrients as well

antifungal
antioxidant
expectorant
anti-inflammatory
antimicrobial
works (see review from 2017). The Federal Center for Nutrition emphasizes above all the digestive effect – since piperine stimulates the saliva and gastric juice secretion. The list of potential applications is impressively long.

Other important ingredients are various essential oils, flavonoids and various piperine derivatives.
An English-language Open Access Scientific Report from India provides a comprehensive overview of the numerous active ingredients and areas of application of black pepper.

Piperine as a bioenhancer

Piperine also deserves special attention because it increases the bioavailability of various other components. Such substances are called bioenhancers. Piperine was the first bioenhancer identified in 1979 – and is still considered the most effective substance of this kind.

The most prominent partner substance whose bioavailability is increased by piperine: curcumin, the most important active ingredient in turmeric. When combined with piperine, the effectiveness of curcumin is increased by up to 20 times. That is why it is often recommended to add some black pepper to turmeric for medicinal purposes – as is done with the healing golden milk. Black pepper is also said to increase the bioavailability of selenium, vitamin A and vitamin C.

Use black pepper effectively and safely

If you want to benefit from the health effects of black pepper, you can of course add the spice to your food as usual. You should not cook the pepper at the same time, but only add it to the finished dish at the end.

However, if you want to use the black pepper specifically for colds and illnesses, you can use a higher dose. The already mentioned golden milk with a high pepper content is ideal for this. You can also add freshly ground pepper to your tea – for example in combination with fresh turmeric. Pepper is also popular with colds when combined with hot milk and honey.

possible side effects

In general, black pepper is considered very safe. However, you should never consume the ground spice individually, as the particles could get into the lungs and irritate them severely. If you suffer from acute stomach or intestinal problems, you should discuss the application with your doctor beforehand. You should also avoid large amounts of black pepper during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

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Black Sesame: How Healthy it is and How You Can Use it

Black sesame is rather unknown in this country. The small grains are full of nutrients. We explain to you what makes it so healthy and how you can process it.

Black sesame is mainly harvested around the Himalayas. It is considered the original form of sesame and contains a particularly large number of nutrients. People have been using it as a remedy and healthy ingredient in kitchens for thousands of years. Black sesame tastes stronger than the more familiar, white version of the seeds. You can also use black sesame oil for cooking and as a natural remedy.

What makes black sesame so healthy?

Black sesame is considered cholesterol-lowering, nutrient-rich and bone-strengthening. The many valuable ingredients in the small grains are responsible for this.

Black sesame contains a lot of calcium. With a calcium content of 800 milligrams per 100 grams, sesame contains more calcium than dairy products. It is therefore a good source of nutrients for people who follow a vegan diet or cannot consume cow’s milk for health reasons. Another plus is the high iron content of black sesame. It also contains B vitamins, vitamin A, magnesium, zinc and selenium.

Furthermore, black sesame is said to have an antioxidant effect. This protects the body from free radical attacks.

Black sesame is low in carbohydrates and high in plant-based protein. This makes it a reliable source of protein and attractive for strength athletes, especially for athletes who eat vegan.

The contained proteins and amino acids contribute to a healthy and strong growth of hair and nails as well as to an optimal function of cells and muscles. Because black sesame is high in fiber, it helps to regulate the intestinal flora naturally.

How to process black sesame

In order to benefit from the valuable ingredients in the granules, it is best to eat them raw. Black sesame is a delicious component in smoothies, salads and muesli. If you like, you can also eat black sesame pure. A guideline is one to two teaspoons per day. The following recipe shows you how to prepare two servings of black sesame salad. You need:
2 beetroots
2 carrots
2 hands full of green lettuce of your choice (overview of the types of lettuce)
1 onion
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp mustard
Salt
pepper
2 tbsp black sesame seeds
You should plan about 20 minutes to prepare the salad:
Peel the beets and grate them finely. Since beetroot stains heavily, we recommend wearing gloves when processing it.
Grate the carrots too.
Wash the lettuce and spin dry. Tear the lettuce into bite-sized pieces.
Peel the onion and cut into rings.
Whisk together olive oil, balsamic vinegar, mustard, salt, and pepper to form a dressing.
Pour the dressing over the salad and mix well.
Toast the sesame seeds in a pan for 2-3 minutes. You don’t need to add any oil. Alternatively, you can also sprinkle the raw sesame seeds over the salad.
Garnish the salad with the black sesame seeds.

Bake sesame puff pastry sticks: recipe

The puff pastry sticks are easy to prepare. They are a great accompaniment to soups and a tasty component on the party buffet. You need:
1 pack of puff pastry (or make your own)
Salt
2 tbsp black sesame seeds
Preparation:
Roll out the puff pastry and brush it with some water.
Cut the puff pastry into narrow strips.
Sprinkle the puff pastry strips with salt and sesame seeds.
Spread the strips on a baking sheet. Bake the whole thing for about 20 minutes at 180 degrees top/bottom heat. The puff pastry sticks are good when they are lightly brown in color.
You can of course vary the sticks, for example with chilli flakes, garlic or oregano.

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Mulberries: Black, Red, and White Mulberries are so Healthy

Mulberries are considered a superfood because they have many beneficial properties. We explain why the red, black and white berries are so healthy.

Red, black and white mulberries

Mulberries were originally native to Asia and North America. The white mulberry trees were planted for the production of silk, since silk moths feed exclusively on the leaves of the plant.

Three varieties – red, black and white mulberries – have been known in Europe since Roman times. Here the berries are ripe in August and September. The white and red mulberries grow in Germany because they can withstand frost, in contrast to the black mulberry tree. Mulberry trees grow best in wine-growing regions, as they require similar climatic conditions as grapes.

The fruits of a plant ripen one after the other and cannot be harvested at the same time. Since they are hardly grown industrially in Germany, it is not easy to find fresh mulberries. The fresh berries are soft and spoil quickly, so they are more likely to be sold dried or processed.

Mulberries as a superfood

Mulberries are often traded as a superfood because they have many healthy nutrients. For example, the berries contain the following properties:
Vitamin C: With 100 grams of mulberries you cover about 10 percent of your daily requirement of vitamin C – they contain 100 milligrams of the nutrient. While vitamin C is not uncommon, it is an all the more important vitamin that strengthens your immune system.
Potassium: Mulberries contain 260 milligrams of potassium per 100 grams. Potassium is important for blood pressure and the cardiovascular system.
Trace elements: Mulberries also contain the important trace elements zinc and iron. Ones are mainly found in the black and red mulberries.
Antioxidant resveratol: The substance is said to have numerous health-promoting properties: resveratol is said to strengthen the nerves and protect against negative influences and is used as an anti-aging product because it is said to slow down the aging process. However, the consumer advice center warns that these effects have not been sufficiently documented. Antioxidants also protect against free radicals.
Mulberries are said to have an expectorant effect. Therefore, the juice of the berries is said to be helpful for colds, for example.

Mulberries in the kitchen

You can eat fresh fruit with delicious desserts such as quark, ice cream or nice cream. You can also use mulberries – similar to blueberries – for baking muffins or a cake. Simply spread them in the finished dough before baking. Mulberries in the German trade probably do not come from overseas because they are very sensitive and do not tolerate long transport routes. However, you should make sure that the berries were not imported from another continent.

However, since mulberries are rarely found fresh in Germany, they are more often found in processed form. For example, you can find mulberry jam or jelly in the supermarket. You can buy mulberry juice to relieve colds.

The white mulberries are mainly traded dried. This variety is also available from German cultivation. White mulberries are suitable, for example, for homemade muesli or muesli bars. But they also go great in a nut mix for in between.

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Black Rice: Peculiarities and Nutritional Values of The “Forbidden” Type of Rice

Black rice is a rarity among rice varieties – not only because it is also called “forbidden rice”. Here you can learn more about black rice and what makes it so special.

Black rice has been cultivated in China for centuries. There it is also known as “Forbidden Rice”. In the past, its cultivation was so complex and delicate that for a long time only the emperor was allowed to enjoy it.

Black Rice: Origin and Cultivation

In addition to China, the main growing areas for black rice are Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia. But black rice is now also being cultivated in Europe: Black Venere rice or Venus rice grows in the Italian Piedmont region. This is a cross between Chinese black rice and a native Italian variety adapted to the European climate. Black rice grows even closer in the Austrian Burgenland – even in organic quality.

Black rice is often confused with wild rice or paddy rice, which is also black. But wild rice is a different plant species. Botanically, wild rice is an aquatic grass species and belongs to the genus Zizania, while black rice belongs to the genus Oryza.

Taste and Appearance of Black Rice

There are slight color gradations among the black rice varieties:
Vietnamese black rice has a slightly red shimmer.
Indonesian black rice has a brown tinge.
Chinese black rice is the only one that is truly black.
Black rice is always whole grain rice. Because it gets its extraordinary color from a natural pigmentation of the outer grain layers. The plant pigments anthocyanins, which give plants an intensive red, violet or blue color, are responsible for this. If you peeled the rice, it would be white. It is usually commercially available as brown rice. That means it has been dehulled, but not sanded or peeled.

In terms of taste, the black rice offers a mixture of nut and cereal aromas. Black rice is quite aromatic in taste and still has a crunchy bite after cooking. In Asia it is often used in the sticky rice variant for desserts, for example for rice pudding made from black rice with mango. You can also use black rice as a side dish for stir-fries or as a filling for hollowed and baked butternut squash.

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Black Garlic: What’s Behind The “Black Garlic” Trend

Black garlic is touted as the culinary delicacy in some delicatessens. In addition to the unique taste, “Black Garlic” is also said to be extremely healthy. We’ll tell you what’s up.

Black garlic – what is it?

Black garlic is not a separate plant species, but ordinary white garlic (Allium sativum). The bulb gets its black color from a special fermentation process.

To produce black garlic, it is exposed to a temperature of 60 to 80 degrees for several weeks at a high humidity of 80 to 90 percent. This fermentation process is often used in food production and is responsible for turning garlic black.

Incidentally, black garlic has long been popular in Asian cuisine. Now he is penetrating more and more into the European market.

Taste and uses of Black Garlic

Black garlic is mainly advertised because of its extraordinary taste: in terms of taste, it has very little to do with ordinary garlic. Instead, the Black Garlic comes up with sweet and sour nuances of liquorice, balsamic vinegar and plum compote. The consistency is soft, almost jelly-like.

You can use the black garlic in many different ways: it goes well with pasta and rice dishes, dishes with meat and fish, but also various salads. It is also well suited for marinades. Thanks to its unusual appearance, Black Garlic is also a great garnish.

The big advantage: Black garlic does not produce the typical garlic-like bad breath and – unlike fresh garlic – does not have a pungent taste.

Black garlic is so healthy

It seems like a marketing gimmick that the industry wants to sell us the Black Garlic as even more healing. But actually: numerous studies have now researched how and why black garlic is so healthy.

The health-important ingredient allicin is hardly present in black garlic, as it has been converted into antioxidant compounds by fermentation. These include bioactive alkaloids and flavanoids.
The antioxidant effect of black garlic is significantly higher than that of normal garlic.
In addition, black garlic is considered anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer and anti-allergic. Black Garlic can also be more effective than its usual form in type 2 diabetes.
Since the fermented garlic also contains fewer fructans, it is also easier on the stomach and intestines.

A culinary delicacy with a poor eco-balance?

Compared to garlic in its usual form, black garlic has a number of advantages: it is easier to digest, can be used in many ways, does not cause bad breath and also has health potential. You should have tried it at least once because of its very special aroma and taste combination alone.

In addition to all the good aspects, we only see the downside of black garlic in its eco-balance: The Black Garlic offered in this country mostly comes from southern Spain, sometimes even from China or Korea – even though garlic is native to us. Due to the long transport routes, you should make sure that you use regional providers if possible.

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Black Garlic: Kiss-Proof Health Bomb

At my harvest, nothing works without garlic (Allium Sativum) – the widespread tuber, which is actually an onion or leek plant, is used in our team on an inflationary basis because of its taste and its extensive powers. When you get a cold it is eaten raw before breakfast, it is almost never missing from lunch and some of us would like to smuggle it into dessert. No wonder we delved deeper into the world of garlic. We made an exciting discovery: “Black Garlic” is the name of our new favorite.

The variant, which is still rarely found on the vegetable shelf, is not a separate garlic genus, but “normal” garlic that has gone through a complex process of refinement. This refinement has properties that are praised in terms of appearance, taste and health and scores with understatement for sensitive noses.

Garlic: Health Benefits and a Small Catch

If for some it is indispensable in the kitchen, for others it is an absolute NO GO – the garlic divides minds.

The health properties of the spice plant are clearly convincing. The so-called toes of the plant from Asia have a proven antibacterial, blood pressure-lowering and blood-thinning effect and are used in many cultures around the world, e.g. B. by the ancient Egyptians or Romans, used as a medicinal plant for a long time. It is also said to have preventive and soothing properties for colon cancer.

While the smell of raw garlic is usually despised, fried or baked it can make you want more. However, when consumed, garlic can put the olfactory buds of the social environment to a severe test, which is why many people wave their hands at an important appointment or at a romantic dinner. Who would want to chase their opponent into the distance with acrid vapors or garlic flags?

The reason for the unpleasant smell: It is precisely the health-promoting, organic sulfur compounds that are produced by the starting material allicin that are responsible for the fact that garlic often leaves a “lasting impression”.

The “little black one” is always convincing

Knobi fans have reason to be happy thanks to the “black garlic”: After the conversion through the so-called “Maillard reaction”, the black bulb does not produce stubborn vapors or odors and shines in this area with restraint – rating: kissable.

The chemical reaction that occurs when the garlic is stored for four to six weeks under heat (55-65°C) is also beneficial for the other senses: the garlic shines elegantly in a dark robe and surprises with subtle, sweetish notes of liquorice and balsamic vinegar -, preserved plum, fig and caramel notes – a taste adventure for every palate. Sugars and amino acids are responsible for this, which produce yellow-brown to black nitrogenous compounds during the long fermentation process, similar to fried onions. Another plus point: According to scientific knowledge, black garlic has a higher antioxidant content than white garlic and is recommended for oxidative stress, such as during the menopause.

The purchase price, which at first glance is a bit high, is due to the complex finishing process, which is practiced worldwide above all by the Koreans and South Americans.

Already knew?

Some people experience digestive problems after eating regular garlic.
Steffi’s tip: Before processing, take out the strand in the middle of the toe if it is green and pronounced, this has proven to be helpful 😉
In order for it to develop its full health effect, the cell walls of conventional garlic have to be destroyed. It is advisable to “bump” or press and then take a ten-minute rest before processing. Incidentally, garlic does not like high and long heat.
As with almost all foods, most of the nutrients are ingested in their raw form – this is much easier to absorb with black garlic than with white garlic.

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Black Ivory Coffee

The trend towards exclusive fine coffees continues: After “Kopi Luwag”, the coffee produced in Vietnam and Indonesia, which gets its special taste from the digestion of viverrid cats, which eat the beans and then excrete them, there is now “Black Ivory” – ” black ivory”. The variety obtained in Thailand, on the other hand, migrates through the digestive tract of much larger animals. As the name suggests, in this case elephants are the purveyors of good taste. The Golden Triangle Asian Elephant Foundation runs the production of the luxury coffee in Chiang Saen, in northern Thailand, on behalf of the Canadian Blake Dinkin, where former working elephants are kept as part of a sanctuary. This “retirement home” has set itself the task of offering the animals a protected habitat. A mahout, a caretaker, is responsible for each pachyderm, who takes care of the care and food of the respective elephant. The process for obtaining the “Black Ivory” is a lengthy one: the Arabica beans harvested at 1500 meters are processed in a mixture of fruit and rice for the animals and fed to them. Some of the beans eaten in this way, however, are chewed up by the elephants.

Around 33 kilos of raw beans are therefore required for one kilo of “Black Ivory”. The animals allegedly do not feel the effect of the caffeine, as this can only unfold when the finished coffee is brewed, it is said. The coffee doesn’t harm the elephants otherwise, according to John Roberts of the Elephant Foundation. During the digestive process, special proteins contained in the beans are broken down in the stomach of the pachyderm, which ultimately decomposes and reduces the bitter substances in the coffee. This is also the reason for the particularly mild, almost flowery taste of the coffee. The beans take about a day to cross the elephant’s gastrointestinal tract. When the animals excrete them, the beans are painstakingly harvested from the dung by the mahouts and their families.

The precious commodity must then be washed, dried and roasted. Of course, this complex process has its price: a cup of the fine coffee variety costs around 34 euros. For a kilo of “Black Ivory” the connoisseur has to shell out around 850 euros. This year they received a good 50 kilograms of coffee produced in this way, but this turnover should be increased in the next few years.

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