this post was submitted on 03 Oct 2024
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As a lifelong American, I don't think we have 4% milk (reliably). Growing up we had Skim, 2% and Whole. Looking it up Whole is defined as 3.5%
I did look up a local store online and I was able to find it, but not universally at every store.
Whole milk also often called "Vitamin D Milk"
You got something against vitamin D, buddy??
You're right, of course - I heard the same stuff referred to as "whole milk". But the only thing you're correcting about the wider point is the appropriate adjective. Which I find very funny. π
It's interesting that you picked this one out. I thought the money one in particular was going to be a controversial take.
3,5% milk is also the standard milk here in central europe and it says so on the packaging. People call it simply "milk", but it clearly says 3,5% milk on the branding.
I just found it interesting that the thing you were looking for, most Americans wouldn't have heard of. It makes me wonder why America has at least 3 milks.
If we ignore the 3.5% v 4% distinction and assume what we call Whole Milk, you just call Milk; what do you call Skim Milk? Or 2% Milk? And if you don't have them, why do we?
As for the money question, I was curious to see if other non-Americans felt the same. I agree that there is a subset of people who believe that. That subset may be quite large, but I'm not sure how it's perceived from an outsiders perspective. If you ask me, I don't think it's common, but I imagine some loud folks may make it appear that way. But I also acknowledge I'm an American in America, so maybe I don't notice it.
There's a health food craze in the US that stemmed out of rampant body shaming. Which might be largely because of American portion sizes. And they think that nutritional fat makes you fat. It doesn't. Excessive calories make you fat. And even that has caveats, but it's the best rule of thumb.
When did we start splitting milk? I know part of it is to make cream and high fat stuff while repurposing the skimmed off grass water. ::Googles:: WWII as a means of selling the byproduct of butter. Okay. Then in the 50s physicians started calling it health food despite the fact that the fat is used in your body during the digestion of many fat soluble vitamins such as A, D, E, and K, and thus skim milk is pretty close to the opposite of health food.
And the money thing is kind of rampant. It's a big reason why things with larger price tags, like Rolex watches, are thought to more impressive by Americans than equivalent or better watches. Rolexes do have a very high quality, but then the mark up on top makes it strictly something I do not respect, and others do not share that opinion with me. Same for a lot of things.
In Australia and New Zealand: we have skim milk, and call 2% milk "Hi-Lo" - sometimes I see it branded "lite milk". Then there's regular milk. It has 4% fat, but you need to read the fine print on the side of the bottle to learn that. I've heard it called "full cream milk", but usually in a cafe setting when ordering coffee.
My brother in the USA had something called half-and-half in his fridge. I think that one was 8%? You guys would know better than I. We don't have whatever it is.
Half-and-half is supposed to be "half milk, half cream" and is used primarily in coffee instead of heavy cream.
Use it for cheese sauces as well! They come out creamy and silky.
If you want a sauce that just won't break, add a single slice of the singles cheese, or 1/8 tsp of sodium citrate if you can find it, to 8 cups of cheese sauce. It won't change the flavor or color, but will create a silky smooth sauce that doesn't break like nacho cheese sauce.
Sodium citrate is an absolute game changer for cheese sauces.
Huh, I'm Australian and have never heard of hi-lo milk.
Full cream and light are the two most popular kinds where I am.
Also, you can't have a milk discussion in Australia without mentioning extra dollop
Low/no fat milk, which is not healthier but is marketed as being so, is quintessentially American
We had 1% as well where I grew up.