Explain Marmite to me

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I don't get it.

Also explain the crisis of civilization that is Vegemite.

(filed under 'cuisine')

― geeta (geeta), Monday, 2 December 2002 11:06 (twenty-two years ago)

Its boiled up old yeast. A byproduct of the brewing industry. Very good on buttered toast, but i think bovril (beef stock) or gentleman's relish (anchovy paste) have the edge as far as salty spreads go.

― Ed (dali), Monday, 2 December 2002 11:09 (twenty-two years ago)

Ed, you're a man of exquisite opinion. Bovril will be the toast-coverer of choice long after the last cracked pot of marmite has sunk beneath the ever-burgeoning waste-dumps of humanity.

― Mark C (Mark C), Monday, 2 December 2002 11:16 (twenty-two years ago)

it's disgusting, whatever it's made of.

― Tad (llamasfur), Monday, 2 December 2002 11:28 (twenty-two years ago)

Marmite > Vegemite is taste per cubic centimetre ratio. Hence Vegemite for wimps. However Vegemite speads slightly easier, a cold pot of marmite being not too far from tarmacadam on the speadability with knife front.

Bovril and gentlemans relish whilst fine in themselves are a whole different kettle of beef and fish to the brewing by-product which is Marmite. And if you whip marmite it turns white.

― Pete (Pete), Monday, 2 December 2002 11:45 (twenty-two years ago)

marmite is good on toast, but rubbish on anything else

― gareth (gareth), Monday, 2 December 2002 11:56 (twenty-two years ago)

they are all disgusting and inedible substances, and suzy and i have just declared the house a marmite free zone.

for fucks sake, i'd rather just have beer, thank you.

― kate, Monday, 2 December 2002 12:19 (twenty-two years ago)

Mmmmm savoury spreads. I am a promiscuous foodie and like all of these, esp. No loyalty, that's me. Pete, why oh why would you want to whip Marmite? Trying to incorporate it into meringues? Yikes.

Gentlemen's Relish: they were stocking it in Safeways in their 'posh' Xmas foods section a couple of weeks ago, but now it's nowhere to be found. Aiee! Will I have to make a trip to Fortnum & Mason?

― Liz :x (Liz :x), Monday, 2 December 2002 12:25 (twenty-two years ago)

esp. what, you ask? Not telling.

― Liz :x (Liz :x), Monday, 2 December 2002 12:34 (twenty-two years ago)

all us yanks herein think this marmite/vegemite/gentleman's relish is shit. this must be the ultimate dividing line between us and them.

but what is the american marmite (the thing that we yanks love and brits think is inedibly disgusting)?

― Tad (llamasfur), Monday, 2 December 2002 12:37 (twenty-two years ago)

You are subconsciously revealing your fundamental inability to commit to a single salty snack Liz. Vairy eenteresting.

― Archel (Archel), Monday, 2 December 2002 12:38 (twenty-two years ago)

Am I the only person in the world who thinks that Vegemite (yuck) doesn't taste that much like Marmite (yum yum)?

At the moment I am using a special promotional jar of Marmite w/ Zippy from Rainbow on the front label. It's a keeper!

― Andrew L (Andrew L), Monday, 2 December 2002 12:43 (twenty-two years ago)

but what is the american marmite

beef jerky?
sweet potatoes + marshmallows?
cheez whiz?

― minna (minna), Monday, 2 December 2002 12:55 (twenty-two years ago)

BEEF JERKY!

*Madchen scurries away to the food cravings thread*

― Madchen (Madchen), Monday, 2 December 2002 13:17 (twenty-two years ago)

sweet potatoes + marshmallows?

together? that's disgusting, too. and it's news to me that this concotion is something yanks love.

― Tad (llamasfur), Monday, 2 December 2002 13:21 (twenty-two years ago)

this gentleman's relish sounds amazing!! i can't believe i've never heard of it. is it readily available (eg in supermarkets)?

― toby (tsg20), Monday, 2 December 2002 13:39 (twenty-two years ago)

oh, and marmite on toast needs no explanation. just eat it and you will understand.

― toby (tsg20), Monday, 2 December 2002 13:39 (twenty-two years ago)

can someone explain beef jerky to me, then? i've been wanting to know for many, many years. and 'turkey jerky' always makes me laugh. but what is it?

it always makes me think of eddie murphy in trading places on the train as the african student. "you want some beef jerky?"
hurhur.

― g-kit (g-kit), Monday, 2 December 2002 14:47 (twenty-two years ago)

Hershey bars are the american marmite. How anyone could call that inedible cardboard chocolate I don't know. Sweet potatoes and marshmallows sounds pretty bad though.

― Ed (dali), Monday, 2 December 2002 14:53 (twenty-two years ago)

ed, you are SO WRONG. sweet potatoes and marshmallows = FOOD OF THE GODS. only thing me and my veggie housemate could eat at her family's thanksgiving gatherings. mmm, that and the pumpkin pie. mmmmm. why don't you ever go on baking sprees that involve the making of PIE, instead of nasty xmas cakee?

(I cannot believe that ed is sitting across the living room from me and we are talking to each other on ilx. tooooo sad.)

― kate, Monday, 2 December 2002 15:08 (twenty-two years ago)

AHEM. marmite = food of the godZ. vegemite = unholy and unworthy imitator. root vegetables + marshmallows = WRONG. i have spoken.

― katie (katie), Monday, 2 December 2002 15:11 (twenty-two years ago)

I have promised you non-fruit based cakes. Almond polenta cake is coming soon and if your very lucky you'll get chocolate marscapone tart. Find me a pumpkin pie recipe and you may get lucky but I want to buy a can of that lurid key lime pie mix suzy and I found in Harvey Nichols Food Hall (mwah dahling).

― Ed (dali), Monday, 2 December 2002 15:16 (twenty-two years ago)

(all the recipes i have seen for pumpkin pie/bread feature TINNED PUMPKIN!?! i have never to my knowledge seen this in the UK! can you get it anywhere suzy and ed i am looking at YOU to supply me with the answer!)

― katie (katie), Monday, 2 December 2002 15:22 (twenty-two years ago)

come on, i've been a good boy this year, i promise. what's beef jerky?

― g-kit (g-kit), Monday, 2 December 2002 15:22 (twenty-two years ago)

YOu can get pureed pumpkin in a jar from Flaneur (Farringdon St), Villandry (Gt. Portland St), the aforementioned Harvey nichols food hall and many whole food shops (Beanies, Barber Rd, Sheffield for example)

― Ed (dali), Monday, 2 December 2002 15:25 (twenty-two years ago)

butter on toast, no icky "paste"

― ron (ron), Monday, 2 December 2002 15:27 (twenty-two years ago)

Beef jerky is like dog chews for people.

― Madchen (Madchen), Monday, 2 December 2002 15:31 (twenty-two years ago)

I just had 2 slices marmite on toast as a light lunch and it was heavenly. It's such a winter comfort food. Vegemite is horrible and whoever said it's nothing like Marmite is OTM. Bovril I know only as a drink. Bogus fish-egg caviar, taramasalata and pate are my other favourite toast coverings.

― Tom (Groke), Monday, 2 December 2002 15:34 (twenty-two years ago)

thangyou ed! i now call upon Sarah to make a Flaneur excursion for tinned pumkin, Seasoned Pioneer spice mixes and seabrooks crisps!

― katie (katie), Monday, 2 December 2002 15:41 (twenty-two years ago)

Beef jerky is like dog chews for people.

thanks! you brightened my day. i'm not even joking. i smiled and everything!

― g-kit (g-kit), Monday, 2 December 2002 15:49 (twenty-two years ago)

When I lived in Melbourne a few years ago, there was some Vegemite promotion thing going on in the city centre one day. They invited people to do a blindfolded taste test, to see if anyone could tell the difference between Marmite and Vegemite. I got them right every time - it's easy. Vegemite is okay in the absence of any other yeast-based spreads, but it simply doesn't have the 'shove-off-the-cliff' that Marmite does.

― C J (C J), Monday, 2 December 2002 15:53 (twenty-two years ago)

Oh, another enticingly salty snack is smashed black olives - sold for 75 of yr English pence for a masseev jar at the Turkish grocery shoppe just down from Tesco's on Stroud Green Road. Phwoargh. Grebt on 'rough' oatcakes.

― Liz :x (Liz :x), Monday, 2 December 2002 15:58 (twenty-two years ago)

what is the american marmite

Scrapple (except I've never met anyone of any nationality who enjoys it)

― j.lu (j.lu), Monday, 2 December 2002 16:19 (twenty-two years ago)

Scrapple (except I've never met anyone of any nationality who enjoys it)

Pennsylvanians like it!

― Tad (llamasfur), Monday, 2 December 2002 16:31 (twenty-two years ago)

that was a serious answer, btw -- unless either Jess, Maura, Rockist Scientist or g say it isn't so!

― Tad (llamasfur), Monday, 2 December 2002 16:32 (twenty-two years ago)

The Swedish marmite is Djungel Vrål liquorice. It's coated in potassium chloride - fantastic stuff.

― Madchen (Madchen), Monday, 2 December 2002 16:42 (twenty-two years ago)

I just like the idea Pennsylvania is a sovereign country.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 2 December 2002 16:42 (twenty-two years ago)

dr vick is half dutch and coming round to watch buffy on video so i shall quiz her on all the above and also the dutch marmite

― mark s (mark s), Monday, 2 December 2002 18:06 (twenty-two years ago)

ask her also about the marmite mines in Cornwall

― Tim (Tim), Monday, 2 December 2002 18:08 (twenty-two years ago)

the only times i ever saw ppl eating scrapple was when making visitors try it. i'm sure ppl enjoy it but i never met any of 'em. gawd, that stuff is horrible.

― H (Heruy), Monday, 2 December 2002 18:19 (twenty-two years ago)

Blimey you don't need to go all the way to Farringdon for tinned pumpkin! I have a tin myself which I got from Sainsburys on Victoria Street which isn't exactly huge so try yr Ilford Sains Ktee, you may be in luck!

― Sarah (starry), Monday, 2 December 2002 18:24 (twenty-two years ago)

Farringdon is only just down the road for me and going to Flaneur is always a pleasure.

― Ed (dali), Monday, 2 December 2002 18:26 (twenty-two years ago)

ps geeta perfectly well knows the best way to serve and consume marmite, so don't let her fule u

gentleman's relish is nice on ladies' fingers arf

― mark s (mark s), Monday, 2 December 2002 19:29 (twenty-two years ago)

Katie, I don't know about the seabrooks crisps. My mate and colleague dave raves about them, and a particular service station near Preston where you can get all possible flavours. I can't get wild about them, their salt and vinegar is not vinegary enough and they are reconstituted potatoes rather than cut potatoes. I'm a Jonathan Crisp's myself but there's no accounting for taste. Don't miss out on Flaneur it is a treasure trove.

― Ed (dali), Monday, 2 December 2002 19:38 (twenty-two years ago)

eek, why ruin perfectly good toast by spreading marmite on it? is there something i'm missing? i've tried marmite on toast and even when spread v. v. thin it's so horrifyingly salty i can't stand it. do you mix it with something? it's so creepy!

― geeta (geeta), Monday, 2 December 2002 19:47 (twenty-two years ago)

ps markite is pregnant again don't let him fule u

― geeta (geeta), Monday, 2 December 2002 19:49 (twenty-two years ago)

Pennsylvanians like it!

A former coworker, who was from Pennsylvania, hated scrapple. But she was a vegetarian.

― j.lu (j.lu), Monday, 2 December 2002 19:50 (twenty-two years ago)

I'm with Andrew L re Vegemite - not that similar, and a thousandth as lovely.

― Martin Skidmore (Martin Skidmore), Monday, 2 December 2002 20:28 (twenty-two years ago)

One of my college housemates liked scrapple. I'm sure you can guess what state he was from.

― rosemary (rosemary), Monday, 2 December 2002 21:07 (twenty-two years ago)

what's scrapple? i've only ever heard the word as in the song title 'Scrapple from the Apple'

― michael (michael), Monday, 2 December 2002 21:34 (twenty-two years ago)

Skipping 83 messages at this point... Click here if you want to load them all.

I prefer my marmite with fauna, to be honest. In particular, I like marmot on my marmite.

― libcrypt, Tuesday, 24 April 2007 16:30 (eighteen years ago)

Marmite on cheese on toast - yum. I should be cheap rubbery cheddar ideally.

― chap, Tuesday, 24 April 2007 16:32 (eighteen years ago)

six months pass...

WHERE DO I GET THIS

http://img412.imageshack.us/img412/3221/guinnessmarmitefe1.jpg

― roxymuzak, Monday, 29 October 2007 18:23 (seventeen years ago)

It was a limited edition for St Patrick's Day this year. As far as I know it was only made for a short time.
But I've never seen these:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/c/ce/Marmite_Sausages_label.png/180px-Marmite_Sausages_label.png

...pork sausages with Marmite!

― snoball, Monday, 29 October 2007 18:46 (seventeen years ago)

MMMMMMMM!

― roxymuzak, Monday, 29 October 2007 19:27 (seventeen years ago)

Do they sell the Cheese and Marmite panini in Starbucks outside the UK?

http://starbucks.co.uk/en-GB/_Food/Hot+Panini.htm

If you hate it, you will LOVE IT !
If you hate it, you will LOVE IT !
If you hate it, you will LOVE IT !

― caek, Monday, 29 October 2007 19:35 (seventeen years ago)

I love Marmite. Pork sausages w/ Marmite is brilliant. The only place that I see Marmite anything is in the international aisle of the grocery store next door to me, which carries little jars of Marmite. I will probably die never having eaten a pork sausage with Marmite or a Marmite and cheese panini from Starbucks.

― Jenny, Monday, 29 October 2007 19:42 (seventeen years ago)

Cheese and marmite panini = grilled cheese sandwich with some marmite and on slightly fancier bread. You can make it yourself. It is very good.

― caek, Monday, 29 October 2007 19:47 (seventeen years ago)

Can and will!

― Jenny, Monday, 29 October 2007 19:48 (seventeen years ago)

What kind of cheese do you recommend?

― Jenny, Monday, 29 October 2007 19:49 (seventeen years ago)

Strong cheddar does it for me and I think that's what they use at Starbucks, but that + Marmite is a pretty powerful sandwich. Definitely a cheddar-type cheese. American processed cheese would probably be pretty repulsive.

― caek, Monday, 29 October 2007 19:51 (seventeen years ago)

Thank you! There is abundant strong cheddar to be had at my local markets. I am so going to have this for lunch tomorrow.

― Jenny, Monday, 29 October 2007 19:54 (seventeen years ago)

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51MMH0ND6XL._SS500_.jpg

― caek, Monday, 29 October 2007 19:54 (seventeen years ago)

xpost, rad! enjoy!

― caek, Monday, 29 October 2007 19:54 (seventeen years ago)

one year passes...

― snoball, Saturday, 14 February 2009 00:25 (sixteen years ago)

spray on cheese? really?
http://www.cockeyed.com/inside/cheese/cheese.html
oh dear, as Mr. Fry might say...

― snoball, Saturday, 14 February 2009 00:27 (sixteen years ago)

three months pass...

If it's good enough for Him...

― Dante ... Bruno . Vico .. Passantino (Tom D.), Thursday, 28 May 2009 14:16 (sixteen years ago)

one year passes...

http://www.brandrepublic.com/news/1031537/Marmite-cooks-Peculiar-chocolate-bar

So, so disgusting looking.

― Matt DC, Monday, 4 October 2010 15:25 (fourteen years ago)

strange, looks like chocolate to me

i'm kind of ambivalent about marmite tbh.

― ledge, Monday, 4 October 2010 15:28 (fourteen years ago)

Does marmite/vegemite ever expire? I know there is an expiry date, but it seems like it tastes the same.

― Yerac, Monday, 4 October 2010 15:42 (fourteen years ago)

I have to get a bar of that, just as long as it's real Marmite, not that terrible stuff Sainsbury's put in their Marmite and cheese sandwiches.

― Les centimètres énigmatiques (snoball), Monday, 4 October 2010 16:23 (fourteen years ago)

one year passes...

Its umami - its garum! ots good!

― The Cheerfull Turtle (Latham Green), Tuesday, 27 March 2012 16:32 (thirteen years ago)

http://www.umamiinfo.com/2011/03/the-new-role-of-glutamate.php

― The Cheerfull Turtle (Latham Green), Tuesday, 27 March 2012 16:38 (thirteen years ago)

six months pass...

my fam loves marmite and i am no exception. i tend to like things that taste strong/bad to other people. i think im the opposite of a "super taster" - sometimes i feel like i can barely taste things unless the flavor is really ramped up. might be because i have terrible allergies?

anyway my sister created the marmite subreddit. lol

― (♥___♥) (roxymuzak), Sunday, 21 October 2012 15:44 (twelve years ago)

My mum gave me a 'cooking with marmite' cookbook years back and since then has given me tons of marmite merch (teapot, these cool pop-art style picnic plates etc). It's good but it has now REACHED THE POINT where any more would make me look like a crazy lady

― kinder, Sunday, 21 October 2012 15:53 (twelve years ago)

Bovril or GTFO.

― Chewshabadoo, Sunday, 21 October 2012 18:52 (twelve years ago)

I love marmite but only with lots of butter on toasted bread, in cooking it just seems to add too much saltiness before you reach the point of adding satisfying savouriness as you would with soy sauce or meat juices

― Vasco da Gama, Monday, 22 October 2012 00:04 (twelve years ago)

Fun fact: the Swiss have a version of Marmite, called Cenovis.

― Zelda Zonk, Monday, 22 October 2012 00:22 (twelve years ago)

http://www.spurgeon.org/%7Ephil/images/marmite.jpg

― i guess i'd just rather listen to canned heat? (ian), Monday, 22 October 2012 00:45 (twelve years ago)

Couple of months back I became strangely addicted to the stuff. Top tip: roast potatoes dipped in a little marmite - munch that sucker!

― make like a steak and beef (dog latin), Monday, 22 October 2012 07:40 (twelve years ago)

four months pass...

― Vasco da Gama, Monday, October 22, 2012 12:04 AM (4 months ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Disagree. marmite is the secret ingredient in my chili recipe.

― i guess i'd just rather listen to canned heat? (ian), Tuesday, 12 March 2013 22:34 (twelve years ago)

that sounds like a good idea

― silly word combination (Noodle Vague), Tuesday, 12 March 2013 23:00 (twelve years ago)

often use it in chili or to add a bit of tang to bolognese, works just fine

― acid in the style of tenpole tudor (NickB), Tuesday, 12 March 2013 23:03 (twelve years ago)

it good

― purp (roxymuzak), Wednesday, 13 March 2013 03:31 (twelve years ago)

Marmite is the best! But I've run out :-(

― pssstttt, Hey you (dog latin), Wednesday, 13 March 2013 11:48 (twelve years ago)

I was bought a marmite cookbook for Xmas, but all the recipes seem to be are 'make/cook something then eat it with toast and marmite'

― pssstttt, Hey you (dog latin), Wednesday, 13 March 2013 11:50 (twelve years ago)

nine months pass...

gonna have some marmite on toast brb

― ian, Tuesday, 7 January 2014 21:41 (eleven years ago)

timely - just opened the marmite chocolate from Christmas (leaving it til all the good stuff was gone, obv).
It is... not great.

― kinder, Tuesday, 7 January 2014 22:29 (eleven years ago)

When I had some I felt that the Marmite taste wasn't strong enough, and the chocolate was dark enough or high quality enough. It was like a milk chocolate Hershey's bar that someone had waved near an open jar of Marmite.

― time is a train that make the future flag post (snoball), Tuesday, 7 January 2014 22:47 (eleven years ago)

I really like Marmite, but this is too far...
http://www.innocentdrinks.co.uk/image-pool/scale/618/618/05de98c52c150619e3c479d6beb012dfb2b877d7.jpg

― time is a train that make the future flag post (snoball), Tuesday, 7 January 2014 22:48 (eleven years ago)

I meant the chocolate wasn't dark enough or high quality enough.

― time is a train that make the future flag post (snoball), Tuesday, 7 January 2014 22:50 (eleven years ago)

the only acceptable pairing of marmite and chocolate is: hot buttery marmite toast soldiers dipped in to a cup of milo.

― just1n3, Wednesday, 8 January 2014 01:59 (eleven years ago)

barf

― kinder, Wednesday, 8 January 2014 19:01 (eleven years ago)

marmite + supermarket grocery shelf

perfect pairing imo

― set the controls for the heart of the sun (VegemiteGrrl), Wednesday, 8 January 2014 19:06 (eleven years ago)

marmite + ~~supermarket grocery~~ my kitchen cupboard shelf

^^^ fixed

― time is a train that make the future flag post (snoball), Wednesday, 8 January 2014 19:08 (eleven years ago)

I eat homemade veggie soup nearly every day, and Marmite is easily the best way to pump up the umani of vegetable stock. Not much is required: 1 tbsp / 3 L will do, but I still go through a pound jar of the stuff every 6 months or so.

Vegemite works too, but requires more. Stateside, they're equally expensive at the international shop.

― Disco Ebionite (Sanpaku), Wednesday, 8 January 2014 21:36 (eleven years ago)

Cannot believe I never tried Marmite with pasta when I was a student. Ran out of pesto in the week and used it as a substitute with vegetables and cheese and it's really good.

― Ramnaresh Samhain (ShariVari), Friday, 17 January 2014 22:41 (eleven years ago)

one year passes...

Marmite, more popular than the Tories and UKIP...
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/ukip-named-uks-most-hated-brand-followed-by-the-tories-and-marmite-10049886.html

― 0xFE Shades of Grey (snoball), Tuesday, 17 February 2015 21:12 (ten years ago)

five years pass...

Marmite humous is amazing and should be tried by everyone.

― Bidh boladh a' mhairbh de 'n láimh fhalaimh (dowd), Wednesday, 26 August 2020 15:50 (four years ago)

added to my next tesco delivery. just added a generous dollop of marmite to the beef stock for a quickie pressure cooker stew.

― calzino, Wednesday, 26 August 2020 16:08 (four years ago)

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