Day 209

Kamut: I know I might be repeating myself a bit lately with my shopping location choices, but I haven't really had enough time this week to do any hardcore searching, Buford Highway or otherwise. Due to time constraints, I hit the Whole Foods on Ponce again yesterday to hopefully find some new foods quickly. As usual, I cruised the hot bar first in hopes of taking home a couple sample cups of blog-worthy eats. I'm a bit worried that I'm gonna be known soon as "sample cup guy" by the employees there, but maybe I'm overreacting.

Anyway, after a quick search of the bar, I noticed something I'd never heard of before: kamut. It looked like some sort of grain, and WF's version was advertised as a "kamut blend," mixed with kamut wheat (whatever that was), colusari red rice, and wild rice. Honestly, it didn't look that appealing - like one of those dishes that's extremely healthy but tasteless. However, I'm willing to try anything once, so I grabbed one of my sample cups and took some home.

Before heading out for a long day of musical obligations, I decided to go ahead and give it a try. It was served as a cold dish at WF, so I pulled it out of the fridge and plated it. I couldn't detect any other ingredients besides the ones listed (not even any garlic, spices or other seasonings0, so I hoped it at least tasted like something.

After taking a bite, my hopes were deflated. The overall taste reminded me of undercooked rice, or half-cooked oatmeal with no flavoring. Bleh. The chewy pieces of what I assumed to be "kamut" (the light-colored grains in the picture) had a slightly nutty flavor, kind of like wheatberries or quinoa, but not at all memorable. As for the red/wild rice, they didn't add anything special. This dish really could have used some seasoning - it tasted like bland filler, and probably gives vegetarian cuisine a bad reputation. Maybe it could be better worked into a dish and seasoned, but on its own, it was forgettable.

So, what is Kamut? According to Wikipedia, "Kamut" is actually a brand-name that refers to Khorosan wheat, which is twice as big in grain size as regular wheat. Despite having a extensive history that allegedly dates back to biblical times, I wasn't impressed.