Thinking about the post below, concerning the prevalence of meat consumption worldwide, I had a tangential thought I’ll share with you. The DrsC enjoy watching a pair of PBS-TV cooking shows - America’s Test Kitchen and Cook’s Country.
Since both have identical formats and largely identical on-air talent, it is unclear why there are two, and what I write applies to both. From time to time they will feature vegetarian main dishes, often prepared by a tall, chirpy chef named Becky Hays.
What strikes me is the lengths to which vegetarian cooks go to try to achieve a ‘meaty’ flavor without meat. You hear that soy products like soy sauce and miso have it. Also aged cheeses, tomatoes, and mushrooms have this characteristic, called “umami.” The Healthline.com site reports:
Scientifically speaking, umami refers to the taste of glutamate, inosinate, or guanylate. Glutamate — or glutamic acid — is a common amino acid in vegetable and animal proteins. Inosinate is mainly found in meats, while guanylate is more abundant in plants
What does working hard to achieve a meaty flavor without using meat tell you? Why bother? Because humans crave what is most easily found in meat. Vegetarian cooks go to somewhat extreme lengths to satisfy this craving.
My conclusion: the primates we call “humans” evolved from herbivore to omnivore and became the “killer ape.” In our natural state, we remain just that. Most of us are comfortable with our meat-eating legacy, some are not.
As human population growth is leveling off, I see no particular reason we need to change our diet. The world can support us as we are now, and those who choose not to eat meat are free to follow that path.
