It is no big secret that pazhamkanji or overnight rice gruel is an integral part of Keralites’ nostalgic memories. However, the truth is that the good old pazhamkanji isn’t as nutritious as we had believed. Besides, it may even cause many health problems like food poisoning. Moreover, many other diseases may be caused by having cold food that is prepared in unhygienic conditions at hotels. If you consume it often, here's what you should know:
Old is ‘not’ always gold
Spores of bacillus cereus bacteria are found in most varieties of rice. The toxins produced by these bacteria may cause food poisoning. There have been reports of food poisoning caused by such bacteria from food items like rice, overnight rice gruel and fried rice. This bacterium is found not just in rice but in pasta, wheat, milk, cheese and meat too. The case of a twenty-year-old man who died of bacillus cereus bacteria from pasta, in 2011 in Brussels, the capital of Belgium, has been mentioned in a related article that was published in the Journal of Clinical Microbiology.
The spores of this bacteria wouldn’t be destroyed even when the rice is boiled as it can overcome high heat. Interestingly, these spores wouldn’t affect us when we eat freshly cooked hot rice. However, when the rice or gruel gets cooled down, these spores develop into bacteria and produce toxins that could make rice poisonous. Britain’s National Health Service says that the chances of bacteria getting spread are higher when rice is kept at room temperature.
Is it ok to reheat pazhamkanji?
Even though the bacteria would be destroyed while reheating, the toxins may not be removed. That is the reason why it is said that cold rice shouldn’t be reheated. Many may wonder why the spores wouldn’t grow into bacteria in uncooked rice. As rice grains are dried, they do not contain the moisture for bacteria to grow. One might wonder why our ancestors, who had pazhamkanji regularly for years, didn't develop health problems. It is only like saying that you didn’t have any accidents despite driving without wearing a seat belt for ten years.
The National Health Systems Resource Centre has issued the following directives to keep rice safer to consume
1) It is better to consume rice or gruel as soon as they are cooked.
2) If you can’t do that, then cool it down for an hour and keep it in the fridge.
3) Refrigerated rice could be reheated and consumed within one day.
4) Do not reheat rice for more than once.
All of this doesn’t mean that the dish would cause food poisoning in everyone. Consuming overnight rice gruel that was cooked hygienically and stored properly in the fridge may not be risky.
Bacteria consume cholesterol
The millions of bacteria in the intestines could not only affect gut health and digestion but also influence the functioning of other organs in the body. Meanwhile, a few new studies show that the amount of some bacteria in the intestines may be related to heart diseases. The researchers at the Broad Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard University in the US had done DNA sampling in the stool samples of more than one thousand people.
They found out that some bacteria in the bacter variety could preserve cholesterol. The bacteria would break down cholesterol into small molecules and prevent the risk of heart disease. The findings of this study were published in ‘Cell’, a peer-reviewed scientific journal. Even though the research is in its nascent stage, it has opened up new possibilities for intensive studies in the future. Researchers hope that cholesterol-related diseases can be controlled using the good bacteria that are found in the intestines.