That's it. I have scoured my cupboards and pantry and have found that villainous ingredient lurking in on the labels of products I know and love! How can this be? I have always been a label reader and have been aware of the various names of MSG for some time but until I did some more thorough research I did not realize all the names by which MSG can disguise itself. All of the products shown above show some of the more obscure names but it is there non-the-less. The most common name that I missed was Natural Flavoring or just Natural Flavor(s) added. Some products still in my pantry list "spices" only and so I actually disregarded those items but truthfully I suspect them as well. As I'm making so many of our meals from scratch anyway most of these products I will not miss very much. It just takes a little planning ahead to make sure I have homemade chicken stock on hand, herb tea that is not artificially flavored, etc.A short list to watch for below, but I'm sure you could find a whole different spectrum of names as well. I just happen to have ignored the term "natural flavorings"
Celestial seasonings herbal teas (natural flavors)
Bigelow iced and some herb teas
Pacific Organic Creamy butternut Squash Soup-Tetra pack (Natural flavor)
Tazo Chai tea- tetra pack (natural flavors)
Worcestershire sauce (natural flavorings)
Carb sense pancake mix (Atkins products- had this for so long I'm glad to throw it out! (natural flavoring)
Oregon Spice Ranch Buttermilk Dressing base (yeast)
And here is the product that started my reaction that in turn started this witch hunt for MSG in the first place! Cortas Halva! (with Tahini extract!)
On the other hand, I had a great find today of a great and natural seasoning that I recommend, at of all places- Dollar Tree my neighborhood dollar store. I found a nifty salt grinder for celtic salt for $1.00! I have looked at a similar grinder on Amazon and at my favorite natural food supplier Azure Standard and they were all $14.00 plus shipping! I think I will go back and get a few more for gifts and stockings and ...hmmm what else can I do with these handy non metal refillable grinders? Maybe I'll try grinding fresh pepper corns, and fresh ground gomachio as well! Any other ideas?
