One of the best examples is the tonka bean, a fragrant, wrinkled seed from a flowering tree in South America known for its intense and complex flavor.

However, step outside of the U.S., you will find that tonka bean continues to be used in cuisine freely, particularly in France.

So, why does FDA feel the need to treat it like some sort of terrifying and alarming substance ever discovered?

Let's find out with PAA!

Hi, I'm Chouchou Lo.

Welcome to What People Also Ask, where I answer some of the most Googled questions with Google.

Today's keyword is tonka bean, so let's start with our first question.

So, what is tonka bean?

This question can be answered by Wikipedia's deep-truth Odorata entry and another article titled Tonka Beans, a Delicious Yet Illegal Spice from South America, published by sousvi.com, which is a website for sousvi.com, a company that has developed an innovative kitchen robot appliance.

According to these sources, tonka beans are the seed of Dipteryx odorata, a species of flowering tree in the pea family Fabaceae, also known as kumaro, a kumaro, one with sea, one with cake, or Brazilian teak.

Native to North and South America, the tree produced black, wrinkled seed known as tonka bean.

These beans have a smooth brown interior and a strong sweet fragrance akin to the sweet woodruff, which is due to their high content of kumaro.

Tonka beans have been used in various industries due to their unique scent and flavor.

In the perfume industry, they are prized for their strong fragrance.

In the culinary field, they have been used to add flavor to dishes, with a taste profile that is a complex mix of vanilla, almond, cloves, cinnamon, and amaretto.

In French cuisine, they are often used in desserts and stews.

The tonka bean flavor has also been used in certain pipe tobaccos.

However, tonka beans contain coumarin, a chemical that can cause health problems such as hemorrhoids, liver damage, and heart paralysis if consumed in large amounts.

This has led to the control of tonka beans as a food additive by many governments, and in the U.S., food-content tonka beans have been considered adulterated since 1954.

Despite this, tonka beans continue to be imported by culinary enthusiasts, and there have been calls for the deregulation of their use in food.

A tonka bean tree can live over a thousand years under certain conditions, and its wood is also valuable, known as Brazilian teak.

Often used for flooring due to its natural color variation and durability.

As of now, the main producers of tonka beans are Venezuela, Nigeria, and Brazil.

So what does tonka bean taste like?

The question can be answered by an article titled What does tonka bean taste like?

Published by SambaVanilla.com, which is a company that sells vanilla rums and spice online.

And another article titled Published by Boulevard Spirit Dakota UK, which is a family-owned and operated distillery in Norwich, England.

According to these sources, tonka beans have a complex and distinctive flavor profile.

It is known for its sweet vanilla-like qualities, often described as similar to marzipan or Bettenberg cake.

When tasted, the tonka beans impart a rich, slightly nutty vanilla flavor, with hints of sweet spice adding depth and complexity.

Additionally, the tonka bean's flavor is known to contain notes of almond, cinnamon, and cloves.

The bean is quite potent, with a very intense flavor, so it should be used sparingly.

Despite its intensity, even in small doses, the tonka bean's sweet taste and aroma can significantly enhance various dishes.

It pairs particularly well with chocolate, vanilla, coconut, and fruit, making it a popular choice in both sweet and savory dishes.

Lastly, it is important to note that the tonka bean needs to be used responsibly due to its potency, because too much of it can be toxic.

In the kitchen, it's typically either infused and used in water to prepare dishes, or it's grated, much like a nutmeg.

So in summary, tonka bean's flavor can be described as a rich, sweet, and spice vanilla-like taste, with additional notes of almond, cinnamon, and cloves.

So if tonka bean illegal, why is it illegal?

The question can be answered by an article titled The Delicious Flavor with a Toxic Secret, published by BBC, and another article titled The Tonka Bean, an Ingredient So Good It Has to be Illegal, published by The Atlantic, as well as an article titled The Real Reason Tonka Beans are Illegal in the US, published by Mesh.com, which is a food-focused website that offers a wide range of content about food and drink.

According to these three articles, the tonka bean is known for its intense and complex flavor.

It has notes of vanilla, licorice, caramel, and clove, making it a cherished ingredient for dessert and other food products across the globe.

However, despite the culinary appeal, its use in food is banned in the United States, because of the high level of a chemical compound known as coumarin present in the tonka bean.

Coumarin, a naturally occurring substance, was first isolated from the tonka bean in 1820.

It has a sweet smell often associated with newly mown hay, and has been utilized in various food and non-food products.

During the 1940s, it was widely used as a synthetic additive in items such as tobacco, cosmetics, and certain foodstuffs.

However, subsequent research indicates that a high level of coumarin could potentially be toxic, particularly to the liver.

This finding, primarily based on animal study, prompted an evaluation of the compound's safety.

In 1954, the US Food and Drug Administration declared all food containing coumarin as adulterated, effectively making the sale of tonka bean for culinary use illegal within the country.

This ban was prompted by studies indicating coumarin's toxicity primarily based on its effect on the liver of animals.

While the actual safety limits for coumarin intake in humans are somewhat uncertain due to the lack of human trials, the legislation erred on the side of caution, with a wide safety margin factor in.

This law, although based on research and evidence available in the 1950s, has been a subject of controversy.

Coumarin occurs naturally not only in tonka bean, but also in other commonly consumed plants such as cinnamon, lavender, and licorice, leading to questions about the inconsistency of the regulation.

It's worth noting that the fear associated with coumarin often stems from the common misconception that it is a blood thinner.

This is not true, as the blood thinner is actually a trademark drug called coumadin, which is made by altering the chemical structure of coumarin.

Despite the ban, tonka beans have found their way into the dish served by Michelin star restaurants, and the U.S. remains the largest importer of these beans globally.

Some argue that the ban is outdated, considering the significant amount of the beans required to reach a toxic level of coumarin.

For example, it is estimated that one would need to consume around 30 whole tonka beans for a coumarin level to be dangerously high, and usually only a small fraction of tonka bean is used to flavor a dish.

Furthermore, coumarin is also found in common household items like cassia cinnamon.

The FDA has enforced this law in some degree, tracking down chefs using the tonka bean in their dishes.

One example of FDA has sporadically enforced the ban is the 2006 raid in Alina, a restaurant in Chicago, following rumors of tonka bean use.

However, enforcement has been somewhat inconsistent, with tonka beans still being available for purchase from some suppliers.

Outside of the U.S., tonka beans continue to be used in cuisine freely, particularly in France, where fever tonka, or tonka fever, has been coined to describe the popularity of this ingredient.

The ongoing culinary use of tonka beans and their unique flavor profile has led to a re-evaluation of the U.S. law and the research upon which it was based.

While the tonka bean status in the U.S. remains a subject of discussion, it exemplifies the broader public health conversation about food safety, risk, and assessment, and balancing the desire of the culinary world with the potential health implications of certain ingredients.

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