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Sassafras as a food additive

douglas_bd

Moving this from the recipe comments to a forum discussion to get more thoughts and opinions. Sassafras is delicious! However, when I was looking into making
root beer a couple years ago, I recall that Sassafras was not approved
by the FDA and had been removed from commercial root beers due to
concern over a possible carcinogenic compound (Sassifrol?) There didn't
seem to be much science behind it, and I know sassafras has been
consumed for hundreds of years. I went ahead and used Sassafras in my
preparation, but I use it sparingly and don't really share anything I
make with it because of these lingering concerns. I'm interested if anyone has looked into this at all and what the general consensus is from the ChefSteps and the community here.

I also had difficulty finding sassafras but finally ordered online via San Francisco Herb & Natural Food Company if anyone is looking for a source. http://www.herbspicetea.com

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Comments

Jack_Mayer_85396

Sounds like this would be a good addition to the Ingredient Wiki ...

Ryan_Jones_36451

I believe it's only appropriate to comment on potential ingredients that have been approved by the FDA. Otherwise, questions of liability arise. I think there has been science conducted on this, but I am not very knowledgable on this ingredient.

Chris_Young_80640

Sassafras may no longer have GRAS (generally recognized as safe) but it is not necessarily illegal to use it in food--it's worth reminding people that the FDA food code is Federal guidance, not Federal law. I see no problem a note about the potential concern being included in the ingredient wiki.

Manfred_18311

There is a distinction

to be made between leaves and root bark/fruit.

The fresh leaf

contain a smaller amount of essential oils (0,4% containing 48% Safrol) camphor (30%), Limes (5%) , traces of trephine derivate

(1,8-Cineol – alpha pine, Pellahandren) In dried leaf even lesser amounts of essential

oils to be found.

The root

bark and fruits contain a much higher part of essential Oils with a 80% Safrol concentration

and Pehnylpropane (Methyleugenol, 5- Methyleugenol).

Within the Europe

Union Safrol is considered to be toxic, causing liver/ kidney damage and is a

cancer suspect, Trade of Safrol or sassafras oil is stickily prohibit in the EU

due its possible use as raw material for MDMA (amphetamine) production. Even

dried Sassafra leaves are hard to come by.

Trace elements

of Safrol also to find in Nutmeg, black pepper, stern anise. Most common use of

dried Sassafran leaves is Filè-powder to found in almost every Gumbo recipe.

The distinction

between leaf and root bark should be certainly find notation in the wiki!

@Brain_Douglas,

if you can place a recipe, I would make an Wiki entry on it after new-year. Right

now I am busy packing for my trip to Marrakesh.

crimsonfancy

We commonly use sassafras in my kitchen for dark, South Louisiana style gumbo. From time to time we can see it ground by hand "to order" at various food festivals and Louisiana cultural events.

http://www.nolacuisine.com/2006/07/03/homemade-file-powder/

Nicholas_Steele_14870

Can you recommend a supplier for both sassafras and sasparilla?

Rich_McDonough_67546

It's also available on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Sassafras-Sifted-Frontier-Natural-Products/dp/B00028OI8A/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1433163307&sr=8-2&keywords=sassafras

In the reviews the crowd is split between lovers and haters. One reviewer writes this in support of it's use:

"We are not concerned about consuming small amounts of sassafras like this (ROOT BEER!). Here's a quote from the blog site, The Nourished Kitchen:

"The primary flavor found in any old-fashioned homemade root beer recipe is sassafras, a deciduous tree native to North America. The characteristic sweet flavor comes from the tree's roots, thus giving us the name root beer. Incidentally, the tree's leaves give us file powder which is the essential thickening agent in classic gumbo. Now of course, the primary flavor we associate with root beer is that of wintergreen, not of sassafras.

"Homemade Root Beer & the Safrole Controversy:

"Wintergreen leaf, though almost always an ingredient in most traditional root beer recipes, replaced sassafras as the prominent flavor in root beer during the 1960s when a study conducted on lab animals implicated safrole, a naturally occurring polyphenol, in liver cancer. Of course, the lab rats were fed massive quantities of safrole - the human equivalent of consuming about 32 twelve-ounce bottles of root beer a day. After the study was released, the FDA required commercial soft drink makers to remove sassafras from their brews. Of course, cinnamon, nutmeg and basil also contain safrole but this seemed to escape the attention of the FDA.

"Interestingly, while massive quantities of safrole caused liver cancer in lab animals, it seems that small doses may actually play a protective role for humans. Some studies indicate that safrole may actually stimulate the death of cancer cells, particularly oral cancers, though it may also do so in lung and prostrate cancers....

"As for me, it seems that everything is a medicine and everything is a poison; it's all about dosage. So when I make my root beer, I'll take my chances with a tiny amount of safrole in natural sassafras and avoid the propylene glycol in synthetic flavorings."

You can decide for yourself!"