[digital drifter]

While working with a large financial firm in the UK, there was a poster which went

'FSA compliance need not be like this'

with a picture of a brown jar & spoon.

Upon asking office colleagues what that meant, they said it was a reference to marmite.

Upon saying that, everyone went mental, trying to sway me into believing that it was either some sort of crud or ambrosia depending on the viewpoint taken.

anyway, with respect to food, I'm chicken being a veggie(what a lousy sentence) I never tried it out.

What is it that draws strong reactions?

[Strawberry_Blonde]

FOUL FOUL FOUL AND MORE FOUL.

I really can't stand the stuff!

Basically marmite is a yeast extract so is actually vegetarian. It's a thick brown spread which is generally spread on toast, cheese on toast etc.

Occasionally if I am cooking a Spagetti Bolognaise or similar kind of meat sauce I might chuck a spoon in to give it a bit of body, but that is fine as you can't actually taste it.

Most people in the UK will either Love it or Hate It, no in between! So much so that a few years back Marmite actually used this in one of their TV advertising campaigns You either love it or you hate it!

You can buy it in India but it is a bit pricey as it is imported but it is actually made in Sri Lanka so is freely available there.

There is an Australian equivalent called Vegemite, now, if you are a marmite fan, Vegemite does not compare...however if you are a vegemite fan, marmite does not compare!

Either way, I am a HATER, can't stand the damn stuff, and there is nothing more offensive than Malc cutting my toast in half using the Knife he has just used to spread is Marmite URGHHHHHHHHHHHhh!

SB

p.s I'll take a pic of a jar later and put it in the gallery so you all know what to avoid!!

Edited by Strawberry_Blonde, 06 June 2006 - 10:08 PM.

[justmakebelieve]

Hate it Hate it Hate it.....


Horrible stuff, I've got various friends who are obsessed, and Australian relatives who love vegemite, it even smells foul....


.....and I can sympathise with using a knife which has just had marmite on it.


Its an odd thing, and something I know various expats demand visitors bring out for a taste of home.

[john.sw]

A marmite is a traditional cooking pot used in France.  The shape of the Marmite jar is similar to a marmite.

The brown stuff in the Marmite jar is a secret chemical weapon that was developed in response to the arsenals of gherkins and pickled walnuts held by other countries, and was originally intended to be used only in the event of war.

The good news is that Marmite is now available in tubes.  The formula has been changed slightly so that it is stable in the tropics.  So now it is not only the Brits who can wage war on the taste buds!

[Strawberry_Blonde]

justmakebelieve, on Jun 6 2006, 10:14 PM, said:

Its an odd thing, and something I know various expats demand visitors bring out for a taste of home.

Ok, how sad is this then.... we met a couple on another forum last year going on holiday to the same resort in the Maldives ... they asked if there was anything we wanted bringing..... Malc's request........ Two Industrial Sized jars of Marmite! So there's me getting all excited about the lovely golden sandy beaches.. and Malc getting all excited about his next Marmite Fix!!

Edited by Strawberry_Blonde, 06 June 2006 - 10:30 PM.

[StellaP]

Marmite Official Site

I'm a hater.

[cyberhippie]

Marmite/vegemite.......well emoticons fail me.

It's supposed to be full of goodness of course but like Johnsw says, surely it's not yet ready to be unleashed on an unsuspecting public!

Quote

Buying bread from a man in Brussels
He was six foot four and full of muscles
I said, "Do you speak-a my language?"
He just smiled and gave me a vegemite sandwich
And he said,

I always smile and say "no thanks"    

[john.sw]

StellaP, on Jun 6 2006, 06:03 PM, said:

Marmite Official Site

I Hate Marmite Official Site

[torryquine]

Well I LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT!  I have it on my toast every morning and don't feel like I've had a proper breakfast without it.

Yes I crave it when I'm somewhere I can't get it.  Anything pretending to be it - Vegemite/Promite/blah blah blah is just Fakemite as far as I'm concerned, not to mention absolutely foul!  (This'l get the Aussies stirred up ).

Yes it's vegetarian and one of the reasons I eat it is because it's a good source of B vitamins for us lettuce lovers.  

DD - if you're still curious to try it, I'll bring a sample to the B'lore meetup in September.  Thats if I haven't eaten it on the way of course......

[john.sw]

Would you eat Heavy Metal?

Name: cobalt
Symbol: Co
Atomic number: 27
Atomic weight: 58.933200 (9)
CAS Registry ID: 7440-48-4

Cobalt is a brittle, hard, transition metal with magnetic properties similar to those of iron. Cobalt is present in meteorites. Ore deposits are found in Zaire, Morocco and Canada. Cobalt-60 (60Co) is an artificially produced isotope used as a source of γ rays (high energy radiation).

Marmite is a source of vitamin B12, a compound containing cobalt.

http://www.webelemen...ext/Co/key.html

[malkers]

Well one thing I love about it is that most people I know don't like it so when stocks are precious like they are in India, I have more to last me!  Anyway, I've loved the stuff for years and it is the top of my list everytime I return to UK and stock up with my needs!

Anyway, a funny story.  Some of Jen's colleagues recently enquired about it and asked if we had any.  The following weekend they were off to the local jungle for a 'team building' day which I was lucky enough to be invited to.

I took along the marmite and some crackers (I don't have a portable toaster!) and at lunch time just before they had their South Indian buffet, I spread a load on the crackers and offered them around.  Some were scared to even touch it but others did.  The responses went from 'quite foul' to "Oh hell that is really f****g foul, how could you do this to me man" , some of them were close to being sick  

One response which will stay with me forever was "now what can we give to you that will give you the same reaction as punishment?", I replied simply "Just any Indian food will work fine with me"  

Anyway DD, I have plenty of the stuff here in Bangalore and don't mind how much I use as I'll be back in UK in a couple of weeks so if you want to pop down for a taste sensation that you'll remember for the rest of your life then be my guest!  Failing that, I'll just open a jar and pop it on my balcony and you can smell it wherever you are in Bangalore!  

I got paranoid earlier in the year when a flat mate developed a liking for it and hadn't bought his own rations, I'd weigh the jar before I went out  

Cheers
Malc

[kidsan]

it's great on hot chapatis!! There is also a fancy swiss version of marmite called Vitam-R which is much lower in salt, sweeter and really quite delicious. You'll probably only find it in specialist health food shops and it ain't cheap but definately worth it!!

[dani]

I absolutely love Cenovis! (another Swiss product)
But when I'm abroad, I'm quite happy with Vegemite/Marmite as a substitute.

Edited by dani, 07 June 2006 - 02:47 AM.

[StellaP]

kidsan, on Jun 6 2006, 08:59 PM, said:

it's great on hot chapatis!!

When I was a nipper our Indian neighbours used to babysit me - my favourite treat at their house was hot chapati smeared with tomato ketchup! I have to admit it's still one of my favourite comfort foods (that or basmati rice & peas, another of Mrs Singh's favourite for the poor English child that wouldn't cope with her curry!)

Edited by StellaP, 07 June 2006 - 02:58 AM.

[priya]

Will the Marmite Bashers please leave the room!!!!

I LOVE MARMITE!!!!  If it's a secret weapon, good.....you Marmite Bashers better watch out. I also enjoy Vegmite.....so all good things are in my shopping basket  

Unfortunately neither Marmite nor Vegmite are available here but one very kind ITer did send me some Marmite for which I'll be eternally grateful!  Even a teaspoon of this nectar in a cup of boiling water, makes a very tasy drink - with some hot fresh bread and lashings of butter, of course  

Thumbs up for MARMITE!!!!

[malkers]

Yeah!!! Thumbs up Priya  

[iwanttogoback]

VEGEMITE RULES - nothing beats it on hot buttered toast, or really fresh buttered white bread. I adore vegemite.

promite and marmite are mere weak imitations, just like poms are weak imitations of aussies

[malkers]

iwanttogoback, on Jun 7 2006, 09:04 AM, said:

promite and marmite are mere weak imitations, just like poms are weak imitations of aussies

Very true, us poms try to be criminals but are just not up to Oz standards  

Checkmate  

Vegemite my butt, horse muck  

Marmite is much nastier!

What the hell does all this have to do with India anyhow?    

Malc

[cyberhippie]

Ok guys cool it!!! I'm sure we all have our thoughts on the best muck to eat but breaking it down into an Aus versus Brit thing ain't going to get us anywhere is it now!!

Everyone know haggis is best on toast!     

[H.Nick]

I wouldn't be at all surprised if Marmite was actually industrial waste that someone accidentally discovered was edible --- like swarfega.

Well, OK, Swarfega isn't edible, I know that, of course; maybe it is a myth, but I was told it is a waste product of making something else, and one day someone noticed that it removed all the engrained greese (or maybe it was ingrained geese?) from their hands, and it began to sell  like hot cakes. Or toast.

So... Swarfega on toast. Actually, I prefer it on a thick slice of crusty white bread (the really unhealthy kind; it doesn't taste nearly so good on healthy wholemeal, or even granary). Oh.... I mean Marmite.

Rich in vitamins, it is probably good for you, although the amount of salt probably offsets that somewhat.  Also it lasts a long time, so the vitamin content is probably pretty low by the time the bottom of the jar is reached.

Yep. I like it . Vegemite is sickly and horrible.

I'm off now, to eat some Goose marinated in Swarfega. Or maybe I'll just stick to hot cakes.