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What's more interesting to me is why previous generation of people were content with cooking food that just isn't tasty. Seriously, why?

fractallyte 10y ago
The tastiness is in the preparation. Boiling all the nutrients and flavor out of a vegetable, and then discarding the cooking liquid, is the height of stupidity. In this case, steam carrots. (Apologies for not adding anything to the actual discussion!)
- jere 10y ago
  Yes! I hate most boiled vegetables. Makes potatoes seem slimy and flavorless. Funny thing is I actually love eating carrots raw. They have a lot of flavor uncooked. (might as well keep the off topic in the same thread)
  - mungoman2 10y ago
    Please try undercooked carrots. Just a bit soft but still with a spine. Super delicious!
    - knodi123 10y ago
      what's wrong with you people? brushing them with olive oil and sprinkling dill on them, and then roasting in the oven is the only way to go!
wheaties 10y ago
That's not fair. Most of what we eat today is not very tasty. Most large scale farming has chosen to overweight the genetic qualities of larger yields and hardier structures that are more suitable to shipping. In the past, regional dishes were a result of not just culture but the taste of foods grown locally. Things following "old" recipes with today's food will never capture the flavor. The foods are just that different.
- guard-of-terra 10y ago
  Raw foods are not very tasty today (take tomatos for example), but the end product (say, pasta) is pretty much okay. I woulder why people were content with foods that are not tasty for prolonged period of time.
  - willismichael 10y ago
    That all depends on where you get the raw foods. Ripe tomatoes just picked from the vine are an entirely different experience than ones that are picked hard and green, shipped hundreds of miles, and then allowed to turn red before they are stocked on the grocery store shelf. Add to that the fact that grocery stores generally only stock varieties of produce that ship well and look nice, rather than ones that are grown specifically for flavor. The same applies to virtually all produce, in my experience. Disclosure: I have a back yard garden and fruit trees.
sambeau 10y ago
My guesses: 1) People had terrible teeth 2) Cooking devices were unreliable 3) Houses were cold so it was difficult to keep things warm without them continuing to cook & soften 4) People were accustomed to institutionalised cooking (boarding school, army, servants) 5) Bad practice was passed on through "Cultural acquisition"

fractallyte 10y ago

The tastiness is in the preparation. Boiling all the nutrients and flavor out of a vegetable, and then discarding the cooking liquid, is the height of stupidity. In this case, steam carrots. (Apologies for not adding anything to the actual discussion!)

jere 10y ago
Yes! I hate most boiled vegetables. Makes potatoes seem slimy and flavorless. Funny thing is I actually love eating carrots raw. They have a lot of flavor uncooked. (might as well keep the off topic in the same thread)
- mungoman2 10y ago
  Please try undercooked carrots. Just a bit soft but still with a spine. Super delicious!
  - knodi123 10y ago
    what's wrong with you people? brushing them with olive oil and sprinkling dill on them, and then roasting in the oven is the only way to go!

wheaties 10y ago

That's not fair. Most of what we eat today is not very tasty. Most large scale farming has chosen to overweight the genetic qualities of larger yields and hardier structures that are more suitable to shipping. In the past, regional dishes were a result of not just culture but the taste of foods grown locally. Things following "old" recipes with today's food will never capture the flavor. The foods are just that different.

guard-of-terra 10y ago
Raw foods are not very tasty today (take tomatos for example), but the end product (say, pasta) is pretty much okay. I woulder why people were content with foods that are not tasty for prolonged period of time.
- willismichael 10y ago
  That all depends on where you get the raw foods. Ripe tomatoes just picked from the vine are an entirely different experience than ones that are picked hard and green, shipped hundreds of miles, and then allowed to turn red before they are stocked on the grocery store shelf. Add to that the fact that grocery stores generally only stock varieties of produce that ship well and look nice, rather than ones that are grown specifically for flavor. The same applies to virtually all produce, in my experience. Disclosure: I have a back yard garden and fruit trees.

sambeau 10y ago

My guesses: 1) People had terrible teeth 2) Cooking devices were unreliable 3) Houses were cold so it was difficult to keep things warm without them continuing to cook & soften 4) People were accustomed to institutionalised cooking (boarding school, army, servants) 5) Bad practice was passed on through "Cultural acquisition"