Warm weather brings on the seasonal meat favorites that are barbecued, grilled, broiled or fried. That also means more potential exposure to carcinogenic compounds known as heterocyclic amines (HCAs). There’s a way to reduce the risk significantly by just adding some spices – rosemary extracts or Thai spices. ‘Just one of the spices would work, said J. Scott Smith, a Kansas State University food chemistry professor who researched the issue for the Food Safety Consortium. ‘Rosemary would be fine or one of the Thai spices would be fine. The numbers from Smith’s research tell the story. Some commercial rosemary extracts can inhibit the formation of HCAs in cooked beef patties by 61 to 79 percent. Thai spices can inhibit the formation by about 40 to 43 percent. The key is the level of antioxidants present in each, and Thai spices have lower levels than rosemary. A discerning consumer wondering which to use need rely only on personal taste. ‘What it boils down to in a lot of the cases is preference as far as the flavor, Smith said. ‘For example, cinnamon is also very good but some people don’t like it. Some people don’t like rosemary. […]