On 8/2/13 6:58 AM, Tommy Joe wrote:
> I think science is great. But I tend to think in a more intuitive
> way. For example, I assume that any hard substance from hard beans
> to a rock will absorb some water if it sits in it long enough. I
> even assume that rice can be cooked just by soaking. I don't know
> how long it would take, but I bet it would happen. Ok, I won't bet.
> Just a gentleman's guess.

According to the web page I found about brining beans, in warm weather
they'll sprout in brine. Who would've thunk it!

I'm sure soaking would make rice chewy, but I don't think it would be
cooked. Cooking helps a human get nutrition from vegetable matter,
including starch.

The other evening I was invited to dinner. The main course was beef, on
the grill long enough to turn pinkish tan on the outside but still ice
cold and dark red inside. The cook said she hadn't intended it to be
that rare, but she knew it was safe because it had been in the freezer
two weeks.

I prefer my meat cooked for safety and sometimes chewability. However,
I believe humans can get lots of nutrition from raw meat.