Let's talk about that.

♪(intro music)♪

- Good mythical morning. - I'm seeing gluten-free

- options pop up more and more... - Popping everywhere.

...on the menus that I frequent. In the restaurants that I frequent.

- And it's got to me thinking (laughs). - It's got to you thinking?

- It's got to me. - (shouting) It's got to me!

- It's got to me -- - And now I'm thinking about it.

It's got to me thinking -- exactly.

Maybe I should -- maybe I should go gluten-free.

I don't much about it, but it's probably a good thing, right?

- Well... - But how does it impact my experience?

It's very difficult to do. There are people who have

a gluten sensitivity, and they can be affected by it, and they try to avoid it.

Then there are people who have celiac disease, which is a major problem.

If they get gluten in their system, they can have a gastrointestinal nightmare--

- Eww. ...that you don't want to be around for.

So for those people, especially, and we're discovering more about that.

- Not me, like I've been studying it. - We, the scientists.

Me and all the other scientists are discovering more about it every day.

But because people who know about this kind of thing have been discovering

more about it, there are these options. And the options are getting

better and better, and they're getting closer and closer

to the things that they're trying to imitate that do have gluten in them.

Right, but how close are they getting? Today we ask that question

as we analyze the facts in the foods in our mouths.

It's time for, "We be disputin' which of these foods has gluten."

Okay, we're gonna be presented with two different items,

and we're gonna taste both of them, and then we're gonna plant

our gluten-free flag in the one that we think is gluten-free.

- Yes, we are. - And the loser --

- there actually is no winner in this game, Link. - Oh.

There's just a loser. The loser is going to have to listen

to our gluten-free crew members talk about their gluten-free diets.

- Oh my goodness. - On Good Mythical More.

- (crew laughing) - It's gonna be great.

Let's get to it.

Here we have two mac and cheese bowls. Both Annie's brand.

One is gluten; one is gluten-free. It's our job to figure out which.

- Both very delicious looking. - Now, just a little backround here,

- gluten is the glue that holds food together. - Gluten.

Yeah, that's how I remember it. Glue, with an E.

You take the E off, and you put a T in, that's gluten.

- Right? - It's the proteins from wheat --

- (stammering) Rye - Wheat, why?

- (crew laughing) - ...rye and barley.

- Why does it have to be this way? - So, one of the ways that we're gonna

be able to figure out where to put our flags

is how -- did we taste glue? How well does it stick together?

Well-- but the idea is that they replace it. With this they've replaced it with rice

- to hold it together, so, I dunno, how -- - One of these is rice pasta

- and the other is wheat pasta. - How good of a job did they do?

Let's eat out of the same one, so we can have a shared experience here.

(Rhett) I got a lot, cause I like it.

It tastes as expected; two day old mac and cheese.

- It tastes good though. - I gotta have a point of comparison

- before I can really pick apart. - Not this does look different.

The noodles are bigger. Hmm, that gives me an idea.

- (Link) The noodles are bigger? - (Rhett) The noodles are bigger.

I just got a clue.

The only thing that tastes different to me is this doesn't taste as cheesy,

but that's not the variable we're analyzing.

Wow! This tastes like it comes from a different planet.

Cause they grow mac and cheese, right? It's from a --

- Yeah. - It's from a plant.

- (Link) I would say-- - This is like one that adapted

- and evolved on another planet. - Well I'm just saying, I think

this tastes better. I think it may be more cheesy.

I don't know why it would be more cheesy, but I -- so, by that reason only

I'm gonna guess that this is gluten-free.

I'm also gonna guess that this is gluten-free, but I'm using

a different logic, and I'm going with the size of the noodles.

They had to make the noodles bigger, because rice glue doesn't work as good

- as gluten glue. - Gotta make a bigger noodle?

Yeah. Gotta make a bigger noodle. We're gonna need a bigger noodle.

- That's what they said in the factory. - Were we right or wrong?

- (Drew) You guys were both right. - Yeah!

- Both right? - (Drew) Both right.

It didn't taste bad, it just didn't taste --

Good.

Apparently soy sauce has gluten in it. And apparently gluten-free soy sauce

Doesn't have gluten in it. I didn't know that.

So we're got some Kikkoman low sodium with gluten, but then we got some

- Tamari brand that's gluten free. - So, another way at this,

is how familiar are you with you soy sauce brands?

- Maybe let's go over here first? - Maybe we should.

I don't get in the habit of just drinking soy sauce.

I wouldn't -- don't take it like a shot. I'd just do a sip-- sippity sip.

- Just a little sippy sip sip. - (Rhett) A sippity sip, yeah.

(Link) Why you need glue to hold a liquid together?

Exactly. Sometimes you just think they must just be adding it

just cause they want to. The gluten lobby.

You know, the gluten lobby has gotten to the soy sauce people.

You soy sauce people are too susceptible to being influenced by the gluten lobby.

Woah!

You need somebody to stand up for you. I'll be your representative.

I am gonna be a politician after 60. I haven't told you this.

- I'll drive the bus. - (laughs)

That was nasty, but I think soy sauce alone, is just--

is an ill-fated adventure.

- Sweeter. Instantly sweeter. - Is it instantly sweeter?

(Rhett) Instantly sweeter.

I hate both of these. I mean-- you're drinking a second sip?

- Eugh! - Bam! Just like that.

- (Link) I'm just gonna mix it up a little bit and --

- I'm building my cred right now, so when I go out and campaign,

they'll be like, "That man knows his soy." That's why I'm right.

- (Drew) Alright, Rhett, you are incorrect. - (laughs)

- Vote for me, after I turn sixty. - Alright.

- I'm just announcing my candidacy... - I'll be the driver.

...for -- for whatever he was gonna run for. I'm in.

Alright, now we got some chocolate chip cookies, y'all.

Gluten-free and non gluten-free, of course. both made by Tate's.

- Good old Tate, who we went -- - Tate!

- We went to grade school with Tate. - (Rhett) Tate was one of the first guys...

- (Link) I thought he was a doctor now. - ...I invited myself over to spend

- the night with him, when I was a child. - Had columns in front of his house.

- He was rich, man. - Oh man. When you got two white columns

in front of your house, you know you're rolling in dough.

-His momma had a big refrigerator. - Big refrigerator.

He had all kinds of stuff in it.

His brother told us about stuff he shouldn't have been talking about.

- Tell them. - Just nocturnal things.

- (laughs) - Hey! I'm just saying.

Alright, so that's a crunchy cookie. I don't --

- I don't approve of those in general. - (Rhett) Really?

This one looks sadder.

I would have thought that one of them was more gluey, but they're both just crispy.

But, I'm immediately going with gluten-free over here, I'm gonna (inaudible) --

- This one doesn't taste as good. - So you're just assuming, like I am,

that if it doesn't taste as good, it's gluten-free.

Right, when something's taken out, that you gotta pay more for...

- Yeah. - It's gotta taste -- what?

You're losing something, buddy roll.

You don't get what you're paying for.

- (Drew) Alright, you guys were both wrong. - Oh no! What? Really? I could of...

- You're kidding us. - ...I could of tied it up.

This is gluten-free?

- Okay, we're both big fans of waffles. - Uh huh.

These are both from Trader Joes. One of them's gluten-free,

one of them's not. Now, the one that is gluten-free

has a bunch of ingredients to make up for the gluten.

It's got potato starch, corn starch, brown rice, flower, and potato flower.

So one of them should taste like it's got four different things in it.

- I'm making my cut for both of them. - Now, I'm not doing syrup on my waffles,

because as we discovered during the Dirty 30 game,

- I'm apparently deathly allergic to it. - (laughs)

- On the outside of your body. - (Rhett) It causes the outside

of my body to break out, so I'm not putting it

on the inside of my body, just out of principle.

- You taste glue? - I don't taste glue.

I mean, again, I really have to compare the two.

That is the general idea, Link.

- Boy. Boy. - This is tough. I can't tell--

- (Link) So you're adamant. - Yeah.

(Link) I can't tell the difference. Maybe I'm...

Hey! Don't sniff my flag, man.

I cannot tell at all, I'm just blindly guessing,

and, when in doubt, guess what Rhett didn't. So...

- (Link) Can you tell the difference? - Yeah, of course, this one was a little burnt,

- maybe that was what I was tasting. - (Drew) Rhett, you are incorrect.

- Ahh! - (laughs)

Okay, so, I mean, you did tell a difference.

(Rhett) Well, if you look closely, you can see that these ones

were completely burnt. This one tasted a lot better, I think,

because it was cooked. It wasn't burnt.

- Yeah. - And I just immediately was like,

- "I'm going with the taste instinct." - I don't like a burnt waffle.

Now we got some meatballs, with marinara,

of course there's bread inside of a meatball, that's what they use for glue.

(Rhett) Right. I love a good meatball, man. Man, I don't get enough meatballs.

- Something happened with me and meatballs. - Rhett needs more meatballs.

I had like-- just, like a breakup with meatballs,

and we never talked about it. We just drifted apart.

- How did that happen? - Well my mom brings them into my life

every Christmas.

The gluten-free option, which I don't know which one it is, of course,

has textured soy protein, and soy protein concentrate.

- So, be tasting for that, Rhett. - (Rhett) Concentrate on that concentrate.

Man, I miss you, meatballs. I miss you so much. What happened?

- That meatball's not held together very well. - You know, it was slippery.

It's falling apart. It's turning into meatloaf.

I made that note myself. Oh, this one. This one's got--

- This one's firm. - Oh, glue. It's all glued up.

- This one is doused in... - (Rhett) Oh my goodness.

It's got a pop to it. If I started a relationship with this meatball,

- I would break up with it for this meatball. - Really, cause I was saying,

I don't like the sponginess. I like the more meaty--

- Well, I like it too. I'll eat another one. - Fall apart-ness of that one.

So here-- I'm doing something different this time, guys. I'm mixing it up,

cause I have gained so much confidence by being right, in spite of myself,

- I think this is the better tasting meatball. - Okay.

The better quality meatball, and it doesn't have gluten, so I'm going...

It does taste better, I will say that but this one's so gluey. Glued up.

Then you should be voting for that one.

- Oh! - Too late.

I think this one has gluten, but, you know what?

I can only win by being different that you, so I'll stay there.

- Who's right? - (Drew) Rhett, you're right.

- (both laughing) - Yes I am, meatballs.

That's gluten-free?

- (Drew) Sure is. - They must put real glue in there then.

Okay, Link, we've got some matzo ball soup, which...

- I love, but I've never had. - (Rhett) We've never had.

- I've seen it on the shelves. - (Link) I love--

- In the grocery store. - I love the idea of it.

I like ball-formed meat-- not meat. I like ball-formed foods,

- (Rhett) as we have established. - (Link) Cause there's no meat

in the matzo ball, it's like unleavened bread.

- Made into a meatball. Now one of those-- - Without meat.

See, you keep call-- wanna call-- you want this to be a meatball so bad...

This is like when you break up with a girl, and you keep calling the new girl her name.

That's what's happening to me. I'm calling the next item meatballs.