7 ms·
> Have you noticed that you're way more into brussels sprouts now than you were when you were a kid? If you're a GenX-er or a Millenial, that's because today's
by yashap 3y ago
> Have you noticed that you're way more into brussels sprouts now than you were when you were a kid? If you're a GenX-er or a Millenial, that's because today's (delicious) sprouts aren't the same plant as the (gross) sprouts of yore.
This is an oft-quoted fact, and it’s true that modern brussels sprouts are less bitter, but that’s far from the whole story. The popular preparation used to be boiling or steaming, and many people still find that gross with modern varieties. But over the past 15-20 years, frying or roasting them, and topping it off with things like bacon, parm, balsamic reduction, etc. became the standard preparation, and this is just a way more delicious way to cook them (for most ppl). I’d assume this makes a massively bigger difference than a reduction in bitterness.
- bastawhiz 3y agoI don't mind steamed sprouts today, but I remember how utterly repulsed I was by them as a kid. The preparation doesn't make a ton of difference, in my opinion.
- pazimzadeh 3y agotastes can change too
- delgaudm 3y agoAlso possible: your taste preferences changed over time. I know mine have.
- mathattack 3y agoYes - mushrooms and olives on pizza used to be a crime against humanity. I don’t think Papa John’s invested in higher quality toppings.
- kube-system 3y agoI'm not so sure. I feel like the quality of fast food ingredients has gone up since the 90s. I have a couple of theories: I think consumer preferences have pushed in that direction (e.g. I remember McDonalds chicken nuggets used to have chewy gristle in them), and JIT inventories mean that ingredients can be fresher, and food science (e.g. additives and preservatives) has improved, and improved flavor along with it, and there are also new preparation methods which improve quality of the final product.
- coryrc 3y ago> used to have chewy gristle in them Chickens have gained significant breast mass in the last few decades (so much so it causes "woody breast") and, with increased supply, the price of breast meat (less gristle) has come down proportionally. Like the McRib, economics drives McDonald's decisions.
- JohnFen 3y ago> I feel like the quality of fast food ingredients has gone up since the 90s. Interesting. My impression has been the exact opposite of that. Ingredients seem more uniform, true, but they also are much less flavorful and seem to be higher in salt than ever.
- Auracle 3y agoMy wife and I got some brussels sprouts recently that tasted exactly how I remember them as a kid. We both noticed it immediately and my daughter refused to eat them (when she normally loves them). So while that may be true, it’s absolutely true that they’ve changed.
- carlosjobim 3y ago[flagged]
- two_handfuls 3y agoSome people also cook because it’s cheaper, or healthier.
- carlosjobim 3y agoYeah, but these people usually don't hate cooking. While if you had to cook because you were a woman, quite a few probably hated it and thus never improved.
- anthk 3y agoNot the case in Europe at all. Any $RANDOM woman here over 40/50 cooks far better than any one in the US. My mother has a huge amount of recipes inside her head. Also, homemade food in Europe (especially the Southern) has a much better quality than any industry-processed food.
- carlosjobim 3y agoI don't know how your statement disagrees with mine? You are basically agreeing with me. A "random woman" in Europe who cooks well is not random at all, because we live in different times and people cook because they like it or are good at it. There are very few people who are bad cooks anymore, because those who are bad at cooking simply do not cook at all, especially not for other people. In the past you'd have a lot of bad cooks, because most women had to cook, wether they were good at it or liked it or not. I'm prepared to believe that in Southern Europe, family cooking traditions have been kept alive and healthy, resulting in high quality cooking. In Northern Europe and the US I don't know what the hell was going on in the 20th century.
- Broken_Hippo 3y agoI cook because going to a restaurant is prohibitively expensive to do every day. Raw ingredients in Norway are already expensive. Most folks cook because they have few decent choices and like the past, they take shortcuts when they can. At one time, yes, women did most cooking, to a point and dependent on where one lived. Kitchens were dangerous for not only you, but your neighbor too - if you lived in a city. Which meant that if you lived in a city, you bought bread because you were very unlikely to have a place to bake it. You might not have a kitchen at all - most folks living in Roman cities just didn't and purchased food elsewhere. You might not even know how to make bread, being a woman in the past. Professional cooks and bakers were often men.
- treme 3y agocut them in quarters, sprinkle dash of salt, stir fried 'til brown over medium-high heat with olive oil, and sprinkle few drops of fish sauce (or oyster sauce depending on pref). prep it makes a huge difference and it's one of best tasting/healthy vegetable imo.
- maxerickson 3y agoOvercooking will increase the bitterness, the preparation makes a ton of difference. I don't really recall how my mom might have cooked broccoli and such, but I certainly identified things she did cooking that were not ideal as far as outcomes (and I would say she was a reasonably good cook).
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- anotheruser13 3y agoMy mom bought Green Giant broccoli and cauliflower in a gluey pseudo-cheese sauce. It was as disgusting as it sounds. I didn't like broccoli and cauliflower until I had them raw. Of course, YMMV :)
- tptacek 3y agoCauliflower is probably the most versatile vegetable there is. Apart from boiling, there's no bad way to treat it. Even boiling works in soup!
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- lukas099 3y agoOther than slow cooking, unless you want to smell sulphur farts for six hours.
- BenjiWiebe 3y agoAnd I even like it boiled and then stirred with butter, salt, and pepper. But nothing beats eating it roasted...
- sublinear 3y agoCompletely agree about the prep. It's not a modern phenomenon either. Even 1960s mainstream influencers like Julia Child were showing people how to peel and incise the stems, pan fry with butter, salt and olive oil oven roast, serve with various sauces, etc. What changed is the marketing around home cooking. Now everyone aspires to be their own private chef. It's understandable for people living in the mid-20th century western world to see all this as a bit pretentious. The goal back then was just to get a decent healthy meal on the table. Any flourishes such as adding bacon, duck fat, or whatever else were likely seen as unhealthy, inaccessible, or just plain weird.
- supportengineer 3y agoWhen I was a kid, brussels sprouts were prepared by boiling them in water for an hour, and serve with absolutely no seasonings. I can go down the street to a restaurant called Left Bank and they have the most amazing brussels sprouts. I think they cook them in bacon grease. The outside is crispy and it has something like caramelized sugar on it. They are absolutely freaking delicious.
- magicalhippo 3y ago> The popular preparation used to be boiling or steaming, and many people still find that gross with modern varieties. What is wrong with people? They're delicious, and an absolute must along side a reindeer roast with a creamed mushroom sauce, or similar. Steamed of course. Though I did learn the hard way as a kid that they can be rather harsh on the stomach when raw...
- bobthepanda 3y agowith those methods, if you overcook it is pretty much game over. roasting tends to be more forgiving
- tomcam 3y agoI can agree with the first part. Here in Seattle, commonly known as South Alaska, I always order the McReindeer burger at McDonald’s when it’s in season (they alternate with the NcRib).
- tomcam 3y agoThis might have been marginally funny if I spelled McRib properly
- gweinberg 3y agoWhat's "wrong with people" is they don't like eating poison. You can train yourself to like anything, but the bitter alkaloids that give brussel sprouts and such their nasty bitter taste are indeed a toxin. There isn't enough to be dangerous in modern varieties, but there was in their wild ancestors.
- luckman212 3y agoThere's a saying, The bitter the better Many bitter foods are highly nutritious. https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/bitter-foods https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/bitter-foods
- 3y ago
- tptacek 3y agoI don't know that I buy this; I eat sprouts raw (slivered with a food processor) about as often as I roast them. They're noticeably sweet as a salad base.
- SamBam 3y agoIt's actually the over-cooking them, specifically over-boiling them, that makes the more bitter. I think very few people would find them bitter raw, even self-professed sprout haters.
- tptacek 3y agoI'm prepared to believe you! But I roast the bejeezus out of them when I cook them, and they're great.
- dylan604 3y agoThe preparation concept is huge. Growing up way back in the day, industrial canned spinach was absolutely disgusting and pushed on all forms of school cafeterias. They even tried to influence its liking with a cartoon character. Many many years later, fresh spinach was made available and I find it delicious. How anyone thought that mushy slop from a can was ever considered edible is beyond me.
- sitzkrieg 3y agowell... us food education is certainly not rooted in facts :-( the food pyramid days align mentally when i had similar experience with spinach
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- fuzztester 3y ago>They even tried to influence its liking with a cartoon character. Popeye? https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Popeye https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Popeye
- tyingq 3y agoIt's still a brand carried in many US stores too. https://www.popeyespinach.com/about-us https://www.popeyespinach.com/about-us
- fuzztester 3y agoSpinach tastes great when made right.
- bagels 3y agoEven frozen spinach is extremely unpalatable. Fresh spinach is great, saute of fresh spinach is also great.
- nightshift1 3y agoNot everyone tastes them the same. There is a gene that makes you taste more or less the bitterness of PTC (phenylthiocarbamide) https://www.centreofthecell.org/blog/science-questions/why-do-some-people-hate-brussels-sprouts/ https://www.centreofthecell.org/blog/science-questions/why-d...
- SamBam 3y agoSure, but the percentage of people with that gene hasn't changed, yet it is an oft-cited anecdote (I don't know if there's data) that more people like them now than they did forty years ago. This is often said to be because of the new breed that is less better, but I also agree with GP that better cooking methods have something to do with it. I love brussels sprouts, but my stomach flips at the thought of boiled sprouts.
- aksss 3y agoPeople’s taste also change (sometimes dramatically) as they age, aside from any differences in farming or prep, though I don’t doubt what you’re saying.
- tiberious726 3y agoThat's how they always prepared them down south. I promise the old ones were disgusting even blackened and dripping with bacon grease