> There is a widespread belief among the public and even among chemists that plants do not contain cholesterol.
> This error is the result (in part) of the fact that plants generally contain only small quantities of cholesterol and that analytical methods for the detection of cholesterol in this range were not well developed until recently (1).
> Another reason has to do with the legalities of food labeling that allow small quantities of cholesterol in foods to be called zero (2).
> The fact is that cholesterol is widespread in the plant kingdom although other related sterols, such as β-sitosterol (henceforth referred to as sitosterol), generally occur in larger quantities.
> No current biochemistry text that we have examined provides an accurate account of cholesterol in plants.
I got downvoted above, but it isn't a joke. Vietnamese coffee beans are often roasted in butter. Robusta beans aren't as common in the US, sadly. After living in Vietnam, it is my preferred bean now. I like the extra bitterness and higher caffeine content of it.
Buy some VN coffee, the beans are often shiny from the oil.
Feel free to upvote this post now that I've shown you something new. =)
It's not a joke but completely besides the point. Most people aren't drinking butter-roasted coffee. Even if they did, the butter likely isn't adding any actual lipids to the final roast, just slightly altering the internal bean steam pressure, heat, and final water content. Any oils on the exterior would be vaporized at typical roasting temperatures. Also most heavily roasted beans will be shiny with oil within a few days of roasting, regardless of any added butter.
> Most people aren't drinking butter-roasted coffee.
I'm not sure how 'most people' is relevant to the discussion. Fact is that it is one of the largest GDP exports for Vietnam and 5th in the world [0]. Just because you don't drink it, doesn't mean millions of other people aren't drinking it.
"The main destination of Coffee exports from Vietnam are: Germany ($384M), United States ($257M), Italy ($230M), Japan ($186M), and Spain ($150M)."
If I take those beans "shiny with oil" (aka: butter), grind them up and make a cup of coffee with them (I personally go with an aeropress w/ steel mesh), then there is going to be oil (butter) in that coffee. In fact, I can see a slight oil (butter) sheen on the surface of the cup of coffee if I let it sit.
Sure, but you're making the assumption that your beans are shiny because of butter, while we know all dark-roasted beans will be similarly shiny regardless. You're not providing any clear evidence that butter-roasted beans retain any oils from butter, and frankly I'm very skeptical of that being the case. Have you ever tried heating butter to 300C in a pan? (Do not actually try this, you will start an oil fire and create lots of smoke)
Definitely not a joke. My friend from Singapore introduced me to butter-roasted beans. He enjoys western style roasts also but apparently craves a regular taste of home as well.
