Only big size, no taste

Like you we find that the big, beautiful, picture perfect fruits and vegetables often have less taste than smaller, humbler foods. I think it is because, in our case, the large farms that are businesses choose hybrids that hold up well to storage and to transportation, not to flavor. Foods are grown on soils that have been improved by the addition of chemicals, not natural additives and enhancements like compost. I try to grow some of my own food, because the flavor is so much better and in the warm seasons I go to farmers' markets where people have grown their small plots of fruit and vegetables. I love berries that are so sweet that they need no sugar. It is a shame that we are not putting back into the soil what we take out.

Yes you are so right. I think we trade technology and quantity for quality and taste. I live in the big city and much of the vegetables available do indeed seem so big but with little taste. Lately, there is a Farmer's market that has been coming to the community and getting permit to close one street on Tuesdays and small farmers rent stalls within this market and sell their crops directly to consumers instead of first to big companies. One can immediately taste the difference especially in the green, leafy vegetables. The fruits also seem to be sweeter and better tasting.

Try a farmers' market, if your area has one. I agree the hybrid stuff has a serious lack of flavor. I can't abide them--especially tomatoes! I lived on a farm as a child, so I remember what home-grown ones are supposed to taste like--super-flavorful! I used to eat them right out of the garden, & there is nothing in vegetables I like better! Save yourself; look for real farmers & buy straight from them, whenever possible! Your taste buds will thank you! Maggiepie “During times of deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.” ~ George Orwell ’1984'

Yesterday my husband had brought a big cauliflower from the market. We are not very fond of the vegetable but as it is winter i thought we could make some cauliflower potato curry for chapattis. You will not believe the curry was carried over for two days in spite of the spices and flavors added. The cauliflower was totally bland and it looked as if it has not been cooked properly thus making the dish lousy. I was thinking of this topic when you raised the discussion of the tasteless vegetables. Like you have mentioned earlier with very less spices the vegetables cooked used to taste so good. Gone are those days, neither are the vegetables available at a reasonable price nor are they tasty. We pay a high price for these tasteless vegetables. We are at loss both ways. Happy mylotting.

I think that the reason that fresh produce doesn't have the same kind of flavor that it used to have is because of the fact that they are more genetically altered to have a larger yield as opposed to the way that things used to be. I prefer to buy things from local farmers that are "Kentucky Proud" because these things might not be certified organic, but they are organic in the way that the farmer treat their crops.

I guess it all comes down to using more flavor enhancers nowadays, like monosodium glutamat (MSG) :D Well, I've also heard a lot about this issue. I could imagine that the bigger the fruits/ vegetables the more water they contain. And the more water the less tasty. Plants are made to grow faster and bigger at the expense of nutritional value and taste imo. We don't immediately realize the lack of nutritional value, so we can easily be deceived here. As for the taste adding some flavor enhancers ''solves'' the problem. There's nothing like growing your own food in the garden I suppose :-) Speaking of which ... that's exactly what I'm planning to do next spring!

I don't notice it most of the time, but when I went to Jamaica I noticed a big difference in the fullness of the flavors of fruits I regularly eat. I also know when I grow my own (especially tomatoes) they taste so much better than the ones bought at the store. You can also get them from local farmers who don't use all that stuff and they are better.

Hi Kalyni, Yes these days they are hardly cultivating with organic practices and farmers are just trying to give the best in size and color which is eye catchy. This situation raised because of vegetables being imported are big in size with hybrid seeds almost nutrient less. To win the competition they are into it. As you rightly said I still remember the small and round brinjals in my childhood which my mother used to cook by slicing them and stuffing spicy masala powder in it which used to be so tasty. Today we are really missing that taste. You will be surprised to know these days apples are polished with wax for better shining. To stay healthy organic veges are always better. Happy Living Calpro

We don't have much of these problem in my area, since all the greens are harvested locally from known farmers. They did a good job in not getting our vegetables and fruits mutated. Try stick to the seller that sell good vegetables and fruits if you keep getting the one that you mentioned. Never get greedy on cheap and big things when it comes to food! Good luck and happy mylotting

We encounter the same as you.The hot pepper,eggplant and so forth,are big in size and rich in color pleasing to the eye,but lose their original flavor.Besides you have said hybrid seeds,pesticides,I think the reason why they are so is that the vegetable growers have made use of the transgenic technology.

hi kalyani! I too love the taste of veges! here in my place, we still produced healthy veges hence we even grow commom veges in our own backyard because my family usually dont trust to buy veges in the market. And i guess in your case better use just enough oil and enough spice to let the original taste of your veges be apparent. and I think too much use of oil could add up bad cholesterol to your your body and less likely your food would'nt be healthy anymore.