“If you’re going to get antsy about such things, you might as well worry about, well, chicken soup! That’s right. My chicken soup is loaded with carcinogens. Not man-made additives, but naturally occurring compounds. Furocoumarins like 8-methoxypsoralen are present in parsnips and celery. Not only are they potential carcinogens, they can cause nasty skin reactions. Carrots contain caffeic acid, another carcinogen. I commonly add basil, which contains estragole, a known rodent carcinogen. The same can be said for alpha-methylpyrroline in black pepper. I’m sure an analysis of my cooked chicken would reveal some heterocyclic aromatic amines, nasty carcinogens. And then there is the formaldehyde. It occurs naturally in the onions and shiitake mushrooms I use to flavour the soup.”

So Sarah B is correct – at least this time!