Salsa? KatieC sent me some to test the Ph of various items for canning, I think I was questioning the acidity of mango for a fruit salsa, to determine whether I could make it safe for canning.

Annie

Hot water bath canning?

I don't can! Even if I had the right setup, I don't have anyplace to store the jars.

Thanks for the answer, but I know that's not it.

Hot tub????? ;)

LOL! Nope. It was a food thing.

Do you think it was from a conversation here? I was just looking, didn’t find anything. Did stumble across a thread from 2014 that kinda made me laugh. You and I were in it.

I love those old laugh threads. :) Yes, I'm sure it was sparked by a conversation here, but I'm sorry I sent you on a wild goose chase. I don't think test strips were a big part of the thread, though I'm pretty sure pH was mentioned. I saw the rainbow results and all on a related website, which might not have been linked.

Canning was a great guess, but while I read canning posts, I just plain don't, so wouldn't have bought the strips for them.

I kind of remember thinking that I'd follow up when I got the strips. They weren't expensive, but with the stay at home, they came through Amazon and I'd forgotten what they were for when they arrived. That was a couple of weeks ago and I still can't remember.

It could have been cheese, but I think I would have remembered if it were, because it would have involved buying milk, etc.

I've tried googling pH tests for cooking and baking and so far no luck. :\

At least they're small. :)

to test your drinking water?

to test rainwater to see if you can/should water your plants with it?

Nope! But thanks for the idea. It was definitely cooking/baking. I can sort of see in my mind's eye the picture on a website of a man's hands comparing the strip to the color key, but what he was making isn't in the picture!

perhaps you were going to substitute for something you didn't have on hand, and wanted to test the substitute to determine suitability ...

Hahahahahaha

Maybe this web site can help. I only test pool and spa water for acidity.

Maybe you wanted to test your sourdough starter.

Pulled noodle making? -needing lye or similar for pulled noodle and pretzels?

Bagels?

Fermenting veggies?

I did buy a book about fermenting veggies. I'm pretty sure it was recommended by Lars. I haven't opened it yet. But...could be....

Maybe bagels. I just found a Fine Cooking article that compares pretzel making to bagels.

Colleen, that's an interesting possibility. I remember the thread. I don't remember being moved to make pulled noodles, but could be...

Thanks, all! No ligthbulb yet, but I keep hoping. :D

Looked through Google images just to see if anything stuck out. I got it figured out! You are going on one of those diets where you have to check your body’s pH level 3 times a day. I’m sorry, I lost interest in the YouTube video pretty quickly and never discovered what you do after you check your own pH level. 🙄

I recall thinking I should order some pH strips after reading about sourdough starters here. I was trying to strengthen a new starter, and I think someone mentioned adding a quarter tsp of apple cider vinegar to reach the optimum pH (to help the good bacteria in the culture). There was an optimum pH mentioned, but the subsequent commentary said it wasn't necessary. Could that have been it?

LOL, Bbstx! Where are they measuring the pH? There are some weird diet theories out there that don't take into account the digestive process and the membranes which are so selective about what they let into your blood stream. Surely testing three times a day must but of some surface thing. Weird. :)

Smiling, it's a logical suggestion (though I enjoy the funny ones too). I would don’t remember reading that about the vinegar, but I could possibly have seen something about pH and flavor. I have no problem making sour. Just use a small amount of hungry starter and a long ferment. Maybe the strips were to check exactitudes? My impression was that it was for something new, but that could be false. It doesn’t sound familiar, but it’s certainly possible.

i have a generally good memory. I’d have guessed that I'd have figured it out just from the discussion, but I'm blank! Sigh....

Same thing happened to me a few months ago. Sodium citrate came in an Amazon box. No clue. Stuck it on the pantry shelf with soluble seaweed fert, ph strips, gnatrol, etc. Assumed it was for something gardening. Eventually looked it up. Way down the first google page was modernist cuisine about a melty cheese calculator. (it is an emulsifier to allow any cheese to become a melty sauce, even your favorite cheddar.)

You mentioned a fermenting book? I would guess that is it. But don't recall it mentioned here. (the ph strips). You did not open the book but may have researched enough to see ph mentioned? I used the strips years ago when starting fermenting since the whole idea can get a bit creepy at first, especially kombucha. It is second nature now just by eye and my climate/kitchen temps. If I forget to date my kimchi/kraut I could test the ph. Never have but not a bad idea if one gets lost in the back of the fridge or even better test before I fridge it. Though with airlocks and bubble activity it is pretty clear.

All I can think of is fermentation. Canning no longer has live bacteria. No need for ph that I know of. Maybe before the bath. But I don't can.

Or cheese making. We did talk about that a couple months ago. I was gearing up for lots of cheese making. Found my rennet in the freezer. Then could not get the milk I wanted except in a 5 gallon crate.

Where are they testing? Let’s just say the last time I did anything of the sort, the line turned blue.

Were you trying to get your body more akaline? I have a friend that tests her urine to be sure she is akaline balanced.

Congratulations! I know she's a joy to you. :)

That actually makes more sense. The alkalinity/acidity of excretions could tell one something. I don't know what, but it doesn't sound as loopy as what I was thinking.

No, I certainly wasn't trying that!

I'm think maybe it was baking and could have been the sourdough, or pretzels or bagels. I know there was a discussion of using baking soda instead of lye for pretzels, but I can't find where they actually did the test. I can buy fab bagels around the corner so haven't been hot on making bagels. Maybe it was pretzels. I haven't made pretzels, but it could be fun. I wonder if it was sourdough pretzels?

Just admit it JC, you got suckered into buying the strips, and then when you read the directions, some magic powder spilled onto you and you lost your memory. It was a ploy to get you to buy the new 'improved' test strips ... at a higher premium.

Oh, yeah, I like Dave's "magic powder" theory. It would explain a lot of my memory lapses, that magic powder...

Annie

Dave's magic powder theory might have merit if the strips weren't still in their box which is still in the zip bag they came in... :D

and they came from ... Colorado?

???

We have plenty of the ilk in California, but I don't indulge. Thank goodness I have no need to.

Is the 'ilk', edibles, considered a necessity in most states? Not followed that. I would think this thread would not exist because you would not care a hoot about any 'why' about ph strips. Not sure that is a good thing.

I have a handful in the freezer from the holidays. (co-workers). No intention to go there.

I stood in front of my wall oven at eye level watching some homemade burger buns under the broiler. Less than a minute later I started to walk away having no idea why I was there. (thank you Alexa)

Not willing to test an 'edible' right now. I do like that it is available for those that really need it. Pain management and appetite especially. And anxiety.

Just a guess it would increase my forgetfulness.

I seem to focus best if multi-tasking with a clean kitchen and a list every couple days. 3-4 things going on at once, prep ahead chopping, Meis En Place. Prep for a few days ahead. Less stress.

DH has been great about emptying the dishwasher and cleaning the kitchen but never turns on the hood vent for anything and cleaning the cast iron...on the stove top heat to dry and re-iol...walks away. Again, (thank you Alexa) we set her for everything now. "Alexa, cast iron, 4 minutes". 😂

I did the cast-iron on the stove top too long last year. No excuse, no edibles or drinkables involved. I just plain forgot it was there until I smelled it. Fortunately, my DSIL, is truly a dear. He took the skillet, cleaned it, and reseasoned it for me. I’m learning to use Alexa more and more for timing.

Well, I didn’t tell Alexa what the pH strips were for either! Yes, the “ilk” was lid cookies, and I haven’t been in a room with one since they were called that. I, thank goodness, have no malady that calls for them. I have never been a seeker of highs. Much admiration to Ricky for serving those who need them, and for his dedication to finding new varieties of good cookies so as to be tempting, and keep from having same ol' cookies become boring and medicinal (my interpretation, not what he's said). While Dave likes to tease, in often obscure ways, there is no there there. (obscure Alice B. Toklas vicinity reference)

This is maddening because I have a generally good memory, and none of these great suggestions have jogged it!

I only tease those whom I consider dear friends. Condolences if that includes you ...

LOL! Dave, I'm touched to be considered "dear". I really don't mind the teasing, I just don't always get the obscure. :) The "no there there" was about the Toklas, not the teasing. :)

I've been following, as I'm curious about the test strips. I got so lost when the conversion was about ilk, and cookies. I've never heard of lid cookies. I think I've got it now! Lol! Never tried edible ilks. Ha! But I have tried medicinal ilk. (sorry, the 'ilk' has me tickled), and I was unable to function, or think. I'm glad those who benefit can use it, though, and lately wish so much I could. Anyway, I can't relate edible ilk to ph strips. So I'm still confused!

Seriously, did you buy them to test lemons? I'm not familiar with this, so may not even apply/work, but it seems I might have read something some time ago, about lemon ph. I could be completely wrong.

"The cow is of the bovine ilk; one end is moo, the other milk" --Ogden Nash

Dave was teasing about my memory lapse, not the pH strips. :)

Nope. Not testing lemons. One could use them that way, but if I were to do so it would be because a certain recipe required a certain acidity, and it would be of the forgotten ilk. ;)