I’ve heard nasty things about nitrites with regard to long term health. I am trying to avoid hotdogs and sausages.
Are there any lunchmeats that are not preserved with nitrites?
Yes there are brands with no nitrates or nitrites. Even some large companies like Hormel (and I assume others) produce some lunch meats without them. Go to a good sized grocery store and look at labels. That’s about the only way to tell.
There are also no nitrate hotdogs including beef ones.
Trader Joe’s has quite a few nitrate/nitrite-free meats/sausages/etc.
I’ve seen them at Whole Foods, Bloom, and Publix also, for a few more options.
Really, your best bet is actually looking at labels in store, and searching for the more “organically friendly” type product brands.
You could also go with deli meats instead - they’re usually not preserved the same way, and most delis will cut you very nice “lunch-meat” style cuts at no charge.
Heck, I bought a pack of Oscar Meyer “No Nitrate” hot dogs the other day. If a mass producer like them are putting out “No Nitrate/Nitrite” meat products, finding specialty distributors (regional, kosher, etc) doing the same can’t be too hard.
Be aware that “nitrate-free” usually just means they didn’t add pure nitrate. Instead, most of 'em just add celery juice, which is naturally high in nitrates. You can read about it here.
If you really want to avoid nitrates, you pretty much need to avoid most processed meats. It’s next to impossible to make them completely nitrate-free.
Wow, I bet you opened a few eyes with that! I guess when you think about, the meat has to be preserved with something.
I guess I should check for celery juice in the ingredients.
Does anyone have any suggestions for alternatives to traditional lunch meats?
Cook and slice turkey, chicken, roast beef, pork, etc. yourself.
now’s the time to ask. aren’t nitrites used only for cured sausages like salami? i mean, are they also used in non-cured ones like bratwurst and frankfurters?
They’re not used as oftem in uncooked products, which rules out hot dogs. Nitrates break down into nitrites. Salt is a curing agent. Genoa salami is a cultured product, like prosciutto, and so may or may not contain nitrates or nitrites. Commercial ham, roast beef, turkey, etc., may or may not contain them.
Nitrates and nitrites are more often used in cured products, especially ones that are meant to be eaten raw. It’s by no means required to cure something–plenty of traditional hams are cured with nothing but salt. Nitrites kill spores that are responsible for botulism, and they also help meat retain its pink color. For example, if you buy commercial corned beef, it is almost always cured with nitrite in order to preserve that pink color. If you make it at home and don’t use nitrite, you get a grey hunk of meat (which is still good.)
I’m not really sure why it would be needed for anything that requires cooking, though, other than to preserve color. I certainly do not use nitrites in any sausages I make that require cooking, but those that require curing and hanging or cold smoking, I use a little bit of curing salts as a preservative.
Pretty sure it won’t show up - it falls under the category of “spices” or “herbs” or something. But in general, like others have said - any cooked sausage probably has some level of nitrates in it.
And don’t forget veggies. Celery, as we mentioned, has a lot of nitrates in it, as do a lot of green leafy veggies.
As far as I’m aware nitrates have not been shown to be harmful in and of themselves, it’s the nitrosamines that are formed when protein is heated at high temperatures in the presence of nitrates that’s been linked to cancer in animal studies. Vitamin C partially inhibits nitrosamine formation.
So high-nitrate vegetables are probably safe, but processed meats (even ones labeled nitrate-free) probably aren’t.