Awas Makanan Dicemari Kulat!

Jika terdedah kepada Aflatoksin pada aras yang tinggi dan berpanjangan, ia boleh menyebabkan barah hati dan keracunan makanan. Sekiranya seseorang berpenyakit hepar atau mempunyai jangkitan virus hepatitis B, dia juga lebih berisiko.

Antara kumpulan makanan yang biasa dicemari Aflatoksin adalah, kacang tanah, pistachio, mentega kacang, badam, jagung, beras, gandum, sekoi, minyak kacang soya, minyak jagung, minyak biji matahari, cili, lada hitam, kunyit, halia, ketumbar dan sebagainya.

Sebab itu, cara penyimpanan bahan makanan ini perlu dititikberatkan; jangan dilonggokkan dalam kuantiti yang banyak tanpa pengaliran udara yang baik. Sebaiknya, simpan kekacang, bijiran dan rempah ratus di tempat yang kering, dalam bekas kedap udara.

Semasa membeli juga, pilihlah yang dalam keadaan baik dan segar, tanpa tanda-tanda rosak seperti ditumbuhi kulat, dan tiada perubahan dari segi fizikal.

Sejuk Beku - Apa Anda Perlu Tahu

Apa yang boleh disejuk beku?

Hampir semua makanan boleh disejuk beku. Beberapa pengecualian ialah makanan dalam tin atau butir telur. Untuk makanan dalam tin, anda boleh menyimpannya di bahagian sejuk beku setelah mengeluarkannya.

Sesetengah makanan tidak sesuai disejuk beku kerana kualitinya terjejas apabila dinyah beku, contohnya mayonis atau sos krim. Daging dan ayam mentah pula masih boleh dikekalkan kualitinya jika disejuk beku berbanding yang telah dimasak. Ini kerana daging dan ayam hilang kelembapannya semasa proses memasak.

Adakah makanan yang disejuk beku selamat?

Makanan yang disimpan pada suhu 0 darjah Farenheit adalah selamat, bagaimanapun kualitinya terjejas apabila terlalu lama disimpan. Apabila makanan disejuk beku gerakan molekul diperlahankan, menyebabkan mikrob-mikrob menjadi dorman atau terpendam. Makanan yang disimpan di bahagian sejuk beku kekal lebih lama kerana pembiakan mikroorganisme yang menyebabkan kerosakan dan penyakit terhalang.

Bolehkah sejuk beku memusnahkan bakteria dan parasit?

Mikrob seperti bakteria, yis dan kulat dalam makanan tidak aktif semasa disejuk beku, tetapi setelah dikeluarkan dari peti sejuk dan berada dalam keadaan yang sesuai, mikrob-mikrob ini boleh aktif semula malah membiak pada tahap yang membahayakan kesihatan. Makanan yang dinyah beku perlu dikendalikan dengan baik kerana dalam mikroorganisme yang terdapat di dalam makanan itu membiak pada kadar biasa.

Sesetengah parasit seperti Trichina boleh mati pada suhu bawah kosong, tetapi peti sejuk biasa di rumah mungkin tidak mencapai tahap itu. Sebab itu, apabila memasak, pastikan makanan masak sepenuhnya sehingga semua parasit musnah.

Masihkah berzat dan berkualiti?

Proses sejuk beku sahaja tidak memusnahkan nutrien yang terdapat dalam makanan. Bagi daging dan produk-produk ayam itik contohnya, perubahan dalam nilai nutrien sangat sedikit.

Tetapi makanan boleh berubah warna dan menjejaskan kualitinya. Contohnya warna daging berubah coklat kerana kurang oxygen, manakala tulang dan daging ayam menjadi lebih gelap kerana pigment daripada tulang menyerap ke tisu-tisu sekitarnya.

Sebab itu, adalah lebih baik makanan disejuk beku dengan cepat. Jika disejuk beku dengan perlahan, kristal ais yang besar akan terbentuk, dan apabila anda menyahbekukan makanan, ia akan merosakkan sel-sel dan melarutkan emulsi. Daging contohnya, akan mengeluarkan banyak air dan hilang jusnya. Emulsi seperti mayonis atau krim akan kelihatan seperti pecah minyak dan kelihatan bergentel.

Semasa menyimpan makanan dalam ruang sejuk beku, elak meletakkannya di atas satu sama lain, sebaliknya biarkan selapis atas rak-rak berbeza. Setelah makanan sudah membeku, barulah disusun berlapis.

Hot dog paling mahal di dunia

GAMBAR menunjukkan hot dog paling mahal yang dijual di stadium besbol Roxstadium Brockton, Massachusetts sejak Sabtu lalu.

BROCKTON, Amerika Syarikat - Menu terbaharu, McMullen Dog yang dijual di stadium besbol Roxstadium Brockton, Massachusetts menjadi hot dog termahal di dunia, lapor sebuah akhbar kelmarin.

Berharga AS$80 (RM235.39), hot dog tersebut yang mengandungi sosej daging lembu yang dimasak dengan minyak truffle, kaviar, serbuk cendawan dan freche krim mula dijual sejak Sabtu lalu.

Roti hot dog tersebut pula dibuat menggunakan gandum yang terbaik yang dibeli dari Cape Cod, sebuah kedai roti eksklusif bersama sos dan mustard istimewa.

Menurut pengurus makanan dan minuman stadium berkenaan, Sander Stotland, walaupun harga tiket hanya AS$15 (RM44.35) dan lebih murah dari hot dog tersebut, ia tetap mendapat sambutan hangat daripada peminat yang datang menyaksikan perlawanan besbol.

Menurutnya, nama McMullen Dog itu diberi sempena nama tukang masak terkenal Atlantic City, Ryan McMullen yang memberi idea mengenai hot dog tersebut. - Agensi.

I've got a really swor-d head

Splitting headache ... sword was embedded 5cm into Zhang Bin's skull

THIS teenager must have a splitting headache — after his skull was pierced with a sword.

The weapon's blade was embedded 5cm into Zhang Bin's forehead as he mucked about with friends at home.

The 15-year-old was rushed to a local hospital, but medics there were unable to treat him.

He then had to endure a four-hour drive to another hospital 250 miles away in Changsha, Hunan Povince, China.

Horrifying ... X-ray shows blade piercing teen's forehead

Zhang said: "Three classmates came to visit me at home and one of them brought a sword.

"He stood 3-4m away from me. I don't know how the sword flew at me and stabbed into my head.

"I felt sharp pains and a large amount of blood streamed down."

Doctors rushed Zhang into surgery and the sword was removed during a four hour op.

The chief surgeon said: "Luckily the knife didn't touch the arteries in the skull and key nerves, otherwise it would have been a different story."

Zhang is expected to make a full recovery.

Spielberg didenda RM737.47 kerana bot laju

KAPAL mewah milik Steven Spielberg yang berharga RM1.06 bilion.

---

PORTO CERVO, Sardinia - Pengarah filem terkenal, Steven Spielberg didenda 172 euro (RM737.47) oleh pihak berkuasa pengawal pantai Itali selepas bot laju miliknya berada terlalu dekat dengan pantai, lapor sebuah akhbar semalam.

Speilberg yang merupakan seorang bilionair didenda kerana dia mengganggu orang ramai yang bercuti di tepi pantai baru-baru ini.

Pengarah filem yang berusia 64 tahun itu membuat bising sehingga mengganggu ketenangan para pelancong di tepi pantai di La Maddalena.

Para pelancong yang berjemur di tepi pantai itu kemudian bertindak menghubungi polis dan pengawal pantai kerana bunyi bising dari bot laju Spielberg.

Pengarah filem itu didenda kerana bot lajunya itu melanggar peraturan maritim.

Ketika kejadian, Spielberg membawa seorang aktres, Gwyneth Paltrow bersiar-siar dengan bot lajunya.

Bot laju itu bergerak dari sebuah kapal persendirian mewah milik pengarah filem tersebut yang berharga AS$359.58 juta (RM1.06 bilion).

Spielberg yang pernah mengarahkan filem Jaws dan Saving Private Ryan dikatakan meminta maaf kepada anggota-anggota pihak berkuasa pengawal pantai.

"Saya meminta maaf. Saya Steven Spielberg. Saya tidak mengetahui peraturan," kata pengarah filem itu.

Menurut seorang anggota pengawal pantai, Vincenzo Petrella, Spielberg menawarkan untuk membayar denda itu kepadanya.

Namun, katanya, dia memberitahu pengarah filem itu bahawa wang tersebut perlu dibayar di sebuah pejabat pos.- Agensi

Boy born with 34 fingers and toes

World record ... one-year-old Akshat
Saxena was born with 34 fingers and toes

A LITTLE boy stunned medics after being born with 34 fingers and toes.

One-year-old Akshat Saxena had seven fingers on each hand and ten toes on each foot — but no thumbs.

His condition is a genetic disorder known as polydactyl.

Akshat, from Uttar Pradesh, northern India, has since had surgery to remove the excess digits.

And doctors are trying to construct thumbs from the fingers they amputated.

Mum Amrita said: "I was so happy to see my baby as it was our first child. But later, when I saw his fingers, I was shocked and surprised."

Amrita later learned that her son had broken the world record for the child with the most fingers and toes.

Shocking ... little Akshat has 20 toes

The previous record holder was a six-year-old boy in China who had 15 fingers and 16 toes.

Amrita said a friend told her that Akshat was special.

She said: "He read on the internet about the baby born in China. Then he said that my boy has broken the record of having 34 fingers.

"At first I was not convinced at all. It was hard to believe that my son has broken the record.

"But later, he along with my husband and younger sister registered the data on the internet."

Freaky monkey

‘Alien’ critter sparks panic

Shock ... locals wanted cops to arrest monkey

THIS balding, bug-eyed monkey sparked panic in a village when locals feared it was an ALIEN.

Housewife Mao Xiping raised the alarm after she found the malnourished creature stealing cucumbers from her flat.

She told cops it had "an alien face" and was unlike anything she had seen before.

They refused to believe her until she trapped it, took it to the police station in a washing basket - and demanded officers ARREST it.

Last night experts were examining the 1½ft creature to find out more about it.

The beast was so thin that its ribs could be seen through its flesh as it was inspected in Henan Province, central China.

Bizarre ... housewife told of beast's 'alien face'

Mao, of Gezhai village, said: "At first I thought it was a rabbit, then I was shocked to see it had an alien face.

"My neighbours agreed it was like nothing we'd seen before. It stopped eating cucumbers when we gave it peaches - now it won't eat anything else."

Malnourished ... now monkey adores peaches

Sandwriting

Billionaire sheikh carves his name in
desert so big it can be seen from SPACE

A big name in the desert ... Sheikh Hamad Bin Hamdan Al Nahyan's handywork

A DESERT sheikh has carved out a big name for himself — by having his moniker etched in capital letters visible from space.

View from space ... mega-rich sheikh's name

Workmen scoured "HAMAD" into the sand on the orders of Abu Dhabi's Sheikh Hamad Bin Hamdan Al Nahyan.

The name is two miles across — with letters a kilometre high. It is so huge that the "H", the first "A" and part of the "M" have been made into waterways.

The mega-rich sheikh, 63 — a member of the ruling family of Abu Dhabi — in the oil-rich United Arab Emirates — boasts a £14billion fortune that is second only to the Saudi king's.

His fleet of more than 200 cars — including seven Mercedes 500 SELs painted in different colours of the rainbow — is housed in a custom-built pyramid.

His name is etched on to an island he owns called Al Futaisi.

£3bn golden yacht is world's most expensive

Jewel of the sea ... gold-plated yacht has been sold for £3billion

THIS gold-plated superyacht is said to be the most expensive on the planet — worth a staggering £3BILLION.

The British-designed vessel is adorned with 100 tons of gold — covering more than half its surface.

The 100ft craft, which has been billed as the world's most unique yacht, has sleeping quarters covered in platinum and a statue made from the bone of a Tyrannosaurus Rex.

Luxury ... dining room with surround views

The deck, dining areas, rails and anchor were also made from precious metals including platinum.

The History Supreme — designed by Liverpool jeweller Stuart Hughes — puts even Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich's swanky yacht in the shade.

Plush ... bedroom on super yacht

The billionaire's 533ft Eclipse, which has its own missile defence system and escape submarine, is the world's biggest private yacht — but at £750million it is a snip compared to this creation.

Stuart, 40, who took three years to build the History Supreme for a Malaysian businessman, said: "It was probably the most mammoth task ever."

Precious ... stunning gold and platinum-covered deck of History Supreme

Stuart — who also made a £5million diamond-wrapped iPhone — added: "I've covered all sorts of things in gold but this has got to be my most ambitious project yet. This will never be topped.

"The businessman just approached us and asked us whether we could do it. He wanted a plane doing as well, but the thing would never take off if we did.

"So he said, 'Can you do the yacht?' and I said, 'We'll give it a crack.' Then it was pretty much a case of can you make this gold, can you make that gold?

"We just did what we were told and are delighted with the result."

The yacht was built in Italy and completed in Malaysia two weeks ago.

Kapal mewah Roman Abramovich untuk disewa

KAPAL layar Eclipse milik Roman Abramovich.

---

LONDON - Sebuah kapal mewah milik kelab bola sepak Chelsea, Roman Abramovich sepanjang 162.45 meter kini ditawarkan untuk disewa pada harga £1.25 juta (RM6 juta) seminggu, lapor sebuah akhbar semalam.

Kapal itu disewa enam bulan selepas kapal tersebut yang berharga £300 juta (RM1.45 juta) dihantar kepadanya untuk digunakan.

Abramovich yang merupakan seorang bilionair Rusia dikatakan hanya menghabiskan masa selama beberapa jam di atas kapal berkenaan.

Kapal itu yang diberi nama Eclipse mempunyai 70 kakitangan, sistem pertahanan peluru berpandu dan tingkap kalis peluru.

Jika kapal itu diceroboh, penumpang boleh melarikan diri dengan menggunakan sebuah kapal selam yang terdapat pada kapal tersebut.

Kapal selama itu mampu menyelam pada kedalaman 45.72 meter.

Isian penuh minyak kapal itu melibatkan kos £400,000 (RM1.93 juta).

Abramovich yang memiliki tiga lagi kapal layar menempah Eclipse pada 2006.

Ia belayar buat kali pertama dari dermaga Blohm Voss, Hamburg, Jerman pada Jun 2009. - Agensi