No wonder why most Americans don't eat fruit & veggies (GMO food, health)

[Mightyqueen801]

Originally Posted by creepy

Also culturally many folks never learned what good food tastes like to begin with. Many times poor people palates have been trained from a young age to like over salted or over sweet foods. You give them something good and they can hardly recognize it.

We had one of my son's friends over and he had been raised on microwave popcorn. I eat that too at times but I prefer the real stuff, organic popped in a pan with oil and real butter and salt on it. Not too much-just a good amount. This kid tried one bite and did not eat anymore. Said it tasted weird and he was not used to that taste. He was obese too so that is saying something.

Yes, like the kids who prefer Kraft Mac n Cheese over homemade. My friend was so insulted when she made her mother's traditional macaroni and cheese and brought it to an extended family picnic. None of the kids liked it because they were used to the boxed stuff.

It's not just the kids. I had a friend when we were in our thirties who invited me over for dinner when our husbands were at a game. She looked at me conspiratorially and said, "And I will make instant potatoes--you know, the kind your mother made when you were a kid. My husband only eats mashed potatoes made with real potatoes."

I told her I had never in my life had instant mashed potatoes. I refrained from any remarks about her mother, lol. I figured that since she was cooking and was so excited about this, I would certainly eat them.

Not good.

[Mikala43]

Yep, my husband's youngest hated coming to our house to eat because it was all home made (I am a decent cook by all accounts). One of the first times, he asked why there was grass in his food?!! It was herbs.

Now our joke is I torture him with healthy food, but over the years he grown to like it more.

[Mightyqueen801]

Originally Posted by saibot

My, I never knew that so many people found "vegetable" so difficult to pronounce.

I certainly agree that frozen vegetables (and some canned ones, such as canned tomatoes) are far preferable in taste and probably nutrition to whatever you can find in the grocery store shipped in from Chile out of season.

The big mystery to me is why anyone ever buys stone fruits like peaches in the winter. I assume they're being used for some purpose other than eating, since they're inedible, but what could that be?

Throw to a dog? Winter baseball practice?

[Masamune]

I have four grocery stores within a 10-minute drive, and the quality of the produce varies a lot. The closest store's produce is horrendous. Their apples are flavorless (I can barely taste the difference between varieties), and they turn brown within a couple of minutes of being bitten into. The other stores' apples are okay, but don't hold a candle to the apples grown at the two nearby orchards. I go to those orchards several times during apple season as the varieties ripen. Those apples are such a boost to a brown-bag lunch.

I'm considering joining a CSA.

[GeoffD]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

Monsanto? Are we singing the praises of Monsanto, now?

I'd rather not eat Round Up and pesticides but when you're at the end of the supply line, engineered crops have dramatically improved the taste of fresh produce over the last 50 years. I hope some people have the sophistication to distinguish between organic and GMO. Humans have been selective breeding better crops for many centuries. I view that as a good thing.

[Threestep2]

Originally Posted by Mikala43

On my last gardening kick I bought all heirloom seeds because of the higher nutritional value, but they caught every disease, bug, mold etc that is here.

That is part of the game. Find a local source for seeds - Master Gardeners, county extension office, agricultural dept. of local universities.

[Back to NE]

Originally Posted by Mightyqueen801

It's far better to buy frozen vegetables when they're not in season. They are usually picked and frozen locally the same day, and they are going to taste better and be more nutritious than something picked three weeks ago and shipped here from Chile just so somebody can wave it around and say it's "fresh". (Maybe that's why you see those stupid quotes around "fresh" in markets sometimes. They might be telling the truth instead of just misusing punctuation.)

It's true that frozen vegetables are a fine option, they are flash-frozen nowadays and lose very little nutritional value. But it's hard for me to say frozen veggies taste as good as fresh, to me they don't.

But the overriding message to impressionable eaters should still be: eat as much fruit and veg as you can, it's all pretty healthy and holding out for ideal taste is a poor excuse for not eating it.

[rmm0484]

Originally Posted by creepy

Also culturally many folks never learned what good food tastes like to begin with. Many times poor people palates have been trained from a young age to like over salted or over sweet foods. You give them something good and they can hardly recognize it.

We had one of my son's friends over and he had been raised on microwave popcorn. I eat that too at times but I prefer the real stuff, organic popped in a pan with oil and real butter and salt on it. Not too much-just a good amount. This kid tried one bite and did not eat anymore. Said it tasted weird and he was not used to that taste. He was obese too so that is saying something.

I was poor, before fast food was popular. My mother was a good cook of basic things like roast chicken, roast beef, and her own version of Chili (on mashed potatoes). We never had any really good vegetables, just some bland salads with pale, horrible tomatoes, and maybe some spinach and broccoli that was OK. I did not know that tomatoes and other vegetables could be so good until I got married, and my husband, a Dane, taught me about great tasting fruits and vegetables (not that they have very many of these in Denmark). Now to me, there is nothing finer that a slice of good sourdough bread with a few slices of a great big beefsteak tomato (in season), a dab of olive oil, italian seasoning, topped with Provolone or cheddar cheese and broiled in a toaster oven.

[Tallysmom]

Originally Posted by GolfingCat

Nutrition is more important than taste.

I think you are right technically. However, we are geared toward food as enjoyment. That’s why it’s so difficult to stay on a “diet”. The food on diets can be abysmal, and seen as a punishment.

I’ve watched that TLC 600 pound show, and if I had to live on boneless skinless chicken breast with no flavor or seasoning, I’d be like kill me now. And you can do plenty of things to that chicken breast to give it flavor and make it look good, but you never see that on the show. It always looks like punishment food.

So taste yes, and nutrition. The two go hand in hand.

[Mikala43]

Originally Posted by Tallysmom

I think you are right technically. However, we are geared toward food as enjoyment. That’s why it’s so difficult to stay on a “diet”. The food on diets can be abysmal, and seen as a punishment.

I’ve watched that TLC 600 pound show, and if I had to live on boneless skinless chicken breast with no flavor or seasoning, I’d be like kill me now. And you can do plenty of things to that chicken breast to give it flavor and make it look good, but you never see that on the show. It always looks like punishment food.

So taste yes, and nutrition. The two go hand in hand.

The food on diets doesn't have to be abysmal. Why in the world would you eat a chicken breast with no seasoning. Seasoning adds no calories, makes it pleasant, and has health benefits.

I LIKE healthy food, I like veggies, fruit is okay, love a variety of complex grains, herbs, spices..... I get sick eating too much sugar, fast food/chain restaurant food.