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Brussels sprouts are amazing in stir fries. Cut them in half and plant them face down in the pan. I was seriously misled as a child by all the kid's books that

Brussels sprouts are amazing in stir fries. Cut them in half and plant them face down in the pan. I was seriously misled as a child by all the kid's books that portrayed Brussels sprouts as disgusting vegetables.

tonyedgecombe 8y ago
Brussels sprouts have changed over the last 30 years, they are much less bitter than they used to be.
- musha68k 8y ago
  I always wonder if these kinds of changes in taste - especially bitter can at least in some instances be tied to soil depletion and the corresponding nutritional decline of crops. I hope it's "just" breeding that took most of the bitterness out of brussels sprouts, grapefruit and the likes (I personally also do enjoy a stronger bitter taste now and then). https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/soil-depletion-and-nutrition-loss/ https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/soil-depletion-an...
- ofrzeta 8y ago
  There's also a difference in the perception of "bitter", supposedly due to some genes: https://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/basics/ptc/ https://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/basics/ptc/
- jpatokal 8y ago
  Your palate has also changed: kids are generally much more sensitive to bitterness than adults.
  - Broken_Hippo 8y ago
    This - very much this. IT is really, really common for adults to like foods they disliked as children. This is in part because of the changing palate (and in part due to social pressure).
  - tonyedgecombe 8y ago
    Well, I wasn't a kid thirty years ago and I didn't like them much then :) "Over the last twenty years, farmers have mellowed the "unpleasant" flavor of Brussels sprouts by breeding a vegetable that contains fewer bitter compounds or glucosinolates. So, Brussels sprouts just taste better than they used to when we were kids." From: https://www.chiceats.com/recipe/vegetarian-side/how-buy-cook-and-reduce-bitterness-brussels-sprouts https://www.chiceats.com/recipe/vegetarian-side/how-buy-cook...

tonyedgecombe 8y ago

Brussels sprouts have changed over the last 30 years, they are much less bitter than they used to be.

musha68k 8y ago
I always wonder if these kinds of changes in taste - especially bitter can at least in some instances be tied to soil depletion and the corresponding nutritional decline of crops. I hope it's "just" breeding that took most of the bitterness out of brussels sprouts, grapefruit and the likes (I personally also do enjoy a stronger bitter taste now and then). https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/soil-depletion-and-nutrition-loss/ https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/soil-depletion-an...
ofrzeta 8y ago
There's also a difference in the perception of "bitter", supposedly due to some genes: https://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/basics/ptc/ https://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/basics/ptc/
jpatokal 8y ago
Your palate has also changed: kids are generally much more sensitive to bitterness than adults.
- Broken_Hippo 8y ago
  This - very much this. IT is really, really common for adults to like foods they disliked as children. This is in part because of the changing palate (and in part due to social pressure).
- tonyedgecombe 8y ago
  Well, I wasn't a kid thirty years ago and I didn't like them much then :) "Over the last twenty years, farmers have mellowed the "unpleasant" flavor of Brussels sprouts by breeding a vegetable that contains fewer bitter compounds or glucosinolates. So, Brussels sprouts just taste better than they used to when we were kids." From: https://www.chiceats.com/recipe/vegetarian-side/how-buy-cook-and-reduce-bitterness-brussels-sprouts https://www.chiceats.com/recipe/vegetarian-side/how-buy-cook...