RESPONSE: Comparing Apples and Oranges
As I often do on my several-mile walk to work, I took the opportunity yesterday to listen to my favorite food-oriented (and indeed, favorite) podcast, The Sporkful. The episode I enjoyed that morning pertained to apples and oranges and to a general comparison thereof (even against the strong headwinds of prevailing wisdom).
Photo: Flickr CC/limonada
Now, The Sporkful, I feel, exists in the same food-space as this blog. As Mark and Dan, the gentleman podcasters behind the show articulate, The Sporkful is "not for foodies, it's for eaters."
I feel the same way about Hungry Sam, which is why my posts range from a determination of the categorical imperatives of salad to the recipe for my vanilla chai-infused french toast. Ecclectic? Yes. Insane? Maybe. Interesting? You tell me.
Back to the point. In "Comparing Apples and Oranges" Dan and Win (guest) took the position that oranges are superior to apples for several reasons: the superfluity of apple varieties is absurd; apples' cores are an obnoxious bit of trash; and apples become bruised or blemished while oranges have a pristine wrapper in the form of the peel that keeps the fruit pure and unsullied. I'd like to respond somewhat and involve myself uninvited in this discussion, and then I want to hear what you guys think:
Dear Dan, Mark, and Win,
To begin, thank you for your bravery in addressing apples and oranges. To buck both cliche and society's collective opinion in this way reflects well on your verve and vigor in food-related considerations. The task before you was important, as we can, of course, only be eating one piece of fruit at a time. I'd like to take a moment to address the issue of the peel and add some thoughts on the topic of seeds.
The Peel: Dan and Win argued that the peel, which ostensibly preserves the perfection and integrity of the orange, is sort of the "killer app" of the orange. The apple, unprotected, may become battered or bruised without such protection (since Dan, it would seem, prefers to store his apples at the bottom of a backpack). But the peel serves another, darker purpose -- it prevents the eater from knowing what lies within. Now, I know the rind holds clues to the quality, freshness, and sweetness of the fruit, but it's still an imperfect indicator. We've all had, I know, the experience of laboriously opening an orange to find that the fruit is too dry or not ripe enough or overripe (with a sickly sweet aftertaste) or otherwise unpleasant. With an apple, a simple survey, squeeze, and sniff tells you everything you need to know about that piece of fruit you're relying on as a tasty snack.
Seeds: Here too, apples excel. I know some oranges sell themselves on their purported state of seedlessness, but with apples, you always know when and where to expect the seeds. We're not being sold some tale of perfection -- we know there will be a core filled with seeds, but we know how to avoid it. With oranges, especially the so-called seedless variety (which often aren't), there's nothing worse than popping a big, juicy segment into your mouth, chewing -- and coming across a bitter, unpleasant seed.
In these respects, choosing between apples and oranges is like finding love. Do you opt to seek for some apparently perfect mate, seemingly pristine, but with terrible, unexpected flaws? Or do you appreciate the honesty of a few outward blemishes, but paired with inner wondrousness and predictable but avoidable issues?
Thank you for your time.
Hungry Sam www.HungrySam.com
Ok, dear readers: what do you think? Am I raising valid points? Am I a crazy person for seeing a love-life metaphor, here?
The Sporkful, food thoughts, insane, rants, response
Reader Comments (5)
Valid points. I was a little thrown by the metaphor, but overall impressed. Send it!!
I think there are some serious societal implications in ones preference of apples or oranges based on the observations aforementioned. However, this comparison of one fruit being better than the other is, by today's standards, unAmerican. No longer can we accept the positions of winners and losers. Feelings, much like the delicate skin and flesh (once exposed) of an apple, get easily bruised this way. Let us instead, create a way in which both fruit can harmoniously live together in peace and equality: juice them both for all they're worth and drink up!
Laura -- thanks for the kudos!
Molz -- what if we give both fruit participation trophies? Will that satisfy the fruits' needs for self-actualization?
Sam,
Great metaphor, well thought out. I would add more to the discussion, as I feel that it has missed some important culinary points. How about overall kitchen usefulness? That impressive, usually inedible orange rind, with a sharp knife and some sugar, can become a chocolate-dipped (or not) candied treat. It can also play well with others as by adding flavor to dishes. The apple, it can be argued, mellows under pressure (& heat), but is much closer to a comfort food (apple pie) than its flashier opponent. Both perform equally well as liquids; juice is a tie, with the orange paring well with bubbly, and the apple making some tasty beer and wine.
The apple is the hardy constant to get us northerners through the winter, whereas the orange shows up for us northerners after all of our sweet summer fruits are long past as a beacon of hope and sunshine.
Has this made it any clearer? I doubt it, but maybe I have broadened the scope of this discussion.
Good eats!
Thank you for fleshing this out. Now, I agree that neither I nor the guys over at The Sporkful really dug into kitchen usefulness (unless they did so on another episode that I've yet to enjoy).
I would tend to agree that arguments might be made on either side, here. Both foods do radically different things when applied as a cooking tool/additive or when juiced, pureed, cooked, preserved, etc. I would, however, tend to think that (although useful) oranges are lesser cooking tools than other citrus, particularly lemons. And I see no need to consign apples to the oft-maligned, often unhealthy "comfort food" category. Apples or cider can enliven many an exotic dish, and oranges can glaze the homiest of country hams.
Perhaps, if we are to bring in a discussion of usage in cooking, we truly are comparing apples and oranges.
Oh snap.