Condiment during cooking to add flavor or texture; barbecue sauce, compound butter, teriyaki sauce, soy sauce, and marmite and sour cream are examples. The term "condiment" comes from the Latin "condimentum", meaning "spice, seasoning, sauce" and from the Latin "condere", meaning "preserve, pickle, season". The exact definition of a condiment varies. Some definitions encompass spices and herbs, including salt pepper, using the term interchangeably with "seasoning". Others restrict the definition to include only "prepared food compound[s], containing one or more spices", which are added to food after the cooking process, such as mustard, ketchup or mint sauce. Cheese is also considered
Cooking or eating meat raw may be the only ways to avoid HCAs in meat fully, the National Cancer Institute states that cooking meat below creates "negligible amounts" of HCAs. Also, microwaving meat before cooking may reduce HCAs by 90% by reducing the time needed for the meat to be cooked at high heat. Nitrosamines are found in some food, and may be produced by some cooking processes from proteins or from nitrites used as food preservatives; cured meat such as bacon has been found to be carcinogenic, with links to colon cancer. Ascorbate, which is added to cured meat, however,