You probably already know how important it is to add at least five servings of healthy vegetables to your diet each day. But for some people, this can be difficult. Why? Because they hate the taste of almost all vegetables. This distaste for vegetables is not as uncommon as you might think and there may actually be a genetic basis for it. It seems that certain people have an unusual sensitivity to a chemical called PTC (phenylthiocarbanicle) found in vegetables. People who are genetically sensitive to this chemical describe vegetables as bitter in taste. Interestingly enough, people who claim to enjoy eating fresh vegetables don't report tasting a bitter taste when they eat them. If you happen to be a person sensitive to the PTC in vegetables, how can you reduce the bitter taste you experience? Here are some suggestions:
Hide the flavor or vegetables by adding them to other foods.
If you can't tolerate the taste of fresh vegetables, try adding them to a food you do enjoy such as a freshly made omelet. The overall flavor of the omelet should mask any bitterness you experience when eating fresh vegetables. Try filling your omelet with spinach, fresh broccoli, red peppers, and mushrooms to turn an ordinary egg dish into a nutritional powerhouse.
Cook your vegetables well.
The act of heating or steaming fresh vegetables often reduces their bitterness. Don't cook them so long that you eliminate all of the healthy phytochemicals but just enough to eliminate any bitter flavor you may perceive. One effective preparation technique that can make vegetables more pleasing to your taste is stir frying them. Add a bit of soy sauce and light oil to the wok and you have a healthy vegetable dish that even a vegetable hater can enjoy.
Add sauce to your vegetables.
Adding a delicious sauce to your fresh vegetables after steaming them should mask any perceived bitterness. To find interesting sauce recipes, do a Google search and you should come up with a variety of easy to prepare choices. You can even add a small amount of tasty salad dressing to your steamed vegetables to give them a more appetizing flavor. Another good vegetable topping is a small amount of whipped butter or heart healthy margarine. Be sure not to go overboard with the sauces since some sauces are high in fat and will offset some of the health benefits you're trying to achieve.
Add your vegetables to a soup or smoothie.
If you have a blender, you can puree fresh vegetables to use in healthy soups or smoothies. When you add fruit to your smoothie, you mask the vegetable flavor so you'll end up with a tasty drink that's full of healthy phytochemicals. Many people who can't tolerate the taste of vegetables are able to enjoy them when added to a smoothie.
Soak your vegetables in salt water.
Soaking your fresh vegetables in salt water overnight can help to reduce some of their bitterness. Adding a small amount of salt after vegetables are cooked also helps to make them more enjoyable.
As you can see even a veggie hater can benefit from the powerful nutritional benefits of adding fresh vegetables to their diet. It all lies in how you prepare them.
