Ate some marmite!

[masraum]

I've heard about Marmite(UK) and Vegemite(Down Under) for years, and have gotten more and more curious over the years, so the other day when I was at the store and saw a small jar, I bought it on a whim. Why not, I jumped out of a perfectly good airplane. If I can skydive, then I can eat Marmite. I did a bit of research to see how to eat the stuff. On toast or on toast with cheddar seemed like a common option. There were several warnings to spread it thin so I followed the warnings.

The first glimpse when I opened the jar wasn't so bad, smooth and brown. No big deal, chocolate frosting and nutella are both smooth and brown. Then I dipped a butter knife into it and started to stir, hmmm, the top 1/8" or so was darker brown than the rest and it looked more like really old axle grease than food. I was starting to have second thoughts, but I had gotten this far and wasn't going to be disuaded. Fortunately, it didn't smell like a catfish that had been in a gym sock in a box on the beach in Louisiana in the summer, or that might have stopped me.

I made some toast with butter, spread on the marmite pretty thinly. It was hard to spread. It's really thick and very sticky, so even with toasted bread, it starts to tear the bread. You definitely don't end up with a nice even coating. I figured that was ok, it would give me some spots with less and some with more to vary the amount of flavor. I was going to put some cheese on half of the toast and have the other half plain. I went to the fridge and discover that my son had finished off the sharp cheddar and not told anyone, typical. I probably did the same thing when I was young. Well, I had some shredded 4 cheese "Mexican Blend" in the fridge. I'm sure it wasn't ideal, but it would have to do.

I finally had the toast ready and was a bit trepidatious about taking that first bite. I expected it to be like being kicked in the mouth by a skin head after he had been in the mosh pit all night.

I was shocked. It actually wasn't bad at all. It's definitely salty, very salty. About the only thing that I'm aware of besides salt that may be more salty is anchovies. Fortunately, I had spread it thin. It did have a very savory, meaty flavor. I can't describe it exactly, but I kind of liked it. I don't think I'll have any problem finishing the jar, but I probably won't be eating it every day. I bought more cheddar today, and might run down and finish my son's loaf of bread.

I'd like to hear more uses for it or how you guys eat it.

I can see it on sandwiches, maybe on a burger or something. One use that I found online is to put in on fresh raw veggies like a dip (in very small quantities).

I don't think that I even had it this thickly spread.


All in all, not bad stuff. I was pleasantly surprised.

[HardDrive]

Tastes like a broth made from rather smelly athletic socks in my book.

[Bill Douglas]

LOL.


Go on, live dangerously, try vegeimite.

[john70t]

Was it bought from a tall man in Brussels?

[Bill Douglas]

You know the guy? He was six-foot-four and full of muscles...

[Matt Smith]

You need to take a long, hard look at yourself, step up and try the Vegemite. Like Bill says.

DoubleLOL!! My kids were eating this when they were 2 year olds. You have to spread it on freshly buttered toast....REALLY THIN, like patchy over the surface of the toast. The pic above is way too thick imo.

Excellent write up. I find Vegemite to be a bit more mellow if anything. Wife is the opposite and annoyingly buys Marmite when we run out of the good stuff..

[Mothy]

Never known life without Vegemite - brought up on the stuff. As a kid, the one thing I could always eat no matter how sick I felt was vegemite on toast - not spread as thick as shown in that photo though.

Great on toast under scrambled eggs.

It's a yeast extract - so a spoonful can be mixed with warm water to make a great stock for cooking.

Also wipe it under your eyes, along your cheek bones (like the football players at night games) to ward off Drop Bears (feral Koala's) - they hate the stuff and won't attack you.

[HardDrive]

Originally Posted by Mothy

(feral Koala's) - they hate the stuff and won't attack you.

Are there domesticated Koala's?

[Mericet]

Don't forget to try Bovril as well.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by Bill Douglas

LOL.


Go on, live dangerously, try vegeimite.

Originally Posted by Matt Smith

You need to take a long, hard look at yourself, step up and try the Vegemite. Like Bill says.

Excellent write up. I find Vegemite to be a bit more mellow if anything. Wife is the opposite and annoyingly buys Marmite when we run out of the good stuff..

The thing that I read (on a Marmite site) said the same thing, that Vegemite is not a strong as Marmite.

Vegemite is an Australian product, manufactured by Kraft Foods Ltd, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, and is generally described by Marmite fans as a weaker version spread than British-produced Marmite—I can personally back this statement up. Vegemite fans have claimed that it is stronger than some non British-produced Marmite, but that doesn't say much for that "Marmite".
For years, Bovril was originally cow extract, but it was re-formulated in 2004 to allay fears of mad cow disease. This also had the advantage of making the product more politically-correct as a fully vegetarian product. Apparently, user satisfaction fell accordingly, so beef stock is once again the main ingredient. Like Marmite, Bovril is produced by Unilever Bestfoods UK. Its main use is as a flavoring for soups, and as a drink when you put a teaspoon of the stuff in a mug of boiling water. "Very warming on a cold winter night," according to the Unilever Bestfoods spokespeople.

[mikesride]

I have tried Vegemite once couldn't understand why anybody would ever venture out for a second taste!!!!! That said I love that Dutch salty licorice so I understand liking things that others can't stand!!! Enjoy fellas!!!!

[Bill Douglas]

OK, I've just done a taste test.

The vegemite is nice, very nice. The marmite... At first I thought they are the same then the taste came on and on and I thought actually this is quite yuk. Marmite is too, umm, molasses tasting. Whereas vegemite is as fresh as a mountain stream in springtime

[masraum]

I'll have to find some Vegemite.

[Bill Douglas]

Anther thing to factor in... I eat durians when I'm in the tropics so I guess that means I think any food is great.

[Nostril Cheese]

My stepmom is Aussie. We always had Vegemite in the cupboard. That stuff is rank.

Then again, she thought peanut butter and jelly sandwiches were bizarre.

[Flieger]

[cashflyer]

I read that the NZ Marmite (the Sanitarium bottle) isn't exactly the same as the UK Marmite (the first post from OP)

I just bought a jar of Vegemite over the weekend to compare against UK Marmite. My wife, who is from Ireland, had never had either - though she is familiar with Bovril.

I spread it thin on a cream cracker for her. It was as if it were made if ipecac... one bite and she was running to hurl.

Personally, I thought it was "ok".
I like Bovril, though. Nothing like a warm glass of beef tea.
Too bad there is no Bovril-like product made from bacon!

[D911SC]

Originally Posted by Bill Douglas

Anther thing to factor in... I eat durians when I'm in the tropics so I guess that means I think any food is great.

Durian stinks! I once went to an ice cream store and they were selling durian flavored ice cream - urghhhh.

I can't do Vegemite either. At the risk of sounding vulgar we nickname it V@ginamite.

One day I'll try it again. In my teens my friends knew I couldn't stand it and so on camp they rubbed the entire contents into my face when I was asleep. That didn't help!

My kids love it. Feeding my 4 year old Vegemite toast for breakfast is my least favorite 'dad' activity.

[LeRoux Strydom]

When I was a kid, we used to drink a cup of hot water with a teaspoon of Marmite dissolved in it for all sorts of maladies like a cold or an upset stomach.

I love Marmite on toast with some cheese on the top.

Bovril is not same to my taste, and I have never tried Vegemite.

[Geary]

Originally Posted by Bill Douglas

Anther thing to factor in... I eat durians when I'm in the tropics so I guess that means I think any food is great.

LOL. If you have more friends than you need, eat durian. (Banned in movie theaters all across Southeast Asia.) Tastes fine, smells terrible.

My first wife (Kiwi) loved "The Mites" .. never could develop a taste for them myself ..