Organic: the way food used to (and ought to) taste, or a waste of money?
By angelicEmu
@angelicEmu (1311)
March 4, 2007 2:59pm CST
Until recently I hadn't tried organic mushrooms, but as they were on special offer a few weeks ago, I bought a pack and WOW! I'd forgotten that mushrooms were supposed to stay firm and juicy after cooking, as the standard non-organic mushies I usually bought would shrivel up, turn dark grey and go all slimey. But these ones kept their texture and flavour, and tasted, looked and had the texture I remember mushrooms having "when I were a girl". Has anyone else been converted to organic mushrooms? I'm pretty much a convert to any organic food nowadays, having noticed how awful the quality of the standard ranges of food have become. It was potatoes which did it for me at first - they would fall to bits or be cooked on the inside but with crunchy uncooked bits on the inside, no matter how I'd cook them. But trying organic spuds made me remember what potatoes really taste like. I couldn't go back to ordinary ones now - they just don't taste right! I think there's been an erosion of the quality of food we buy, and it's got to the stage where you really CAN taste and see the difference if you try the organic equivalent. What do you all think?
3 people like this
5 responses
@Adrenochrome (1653)
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5 Mar 07
My great aunt used to own a greegrocers, and when I was young used to give me a bag of seasonal sruit as a treat, and instead of sweets. I loved it, and they tasted wonderful. Nowadays, a lot of the fruit and vegetables seem to have very little flavour and often look identical, rather than natural. I, for one, would always choose the organic option, and preferably from a grocer, not the supermarket.
2 people like this
@angelicEmu (1311)
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8 Mar 07
Lucky you! I remember my gran taking me to the old-fashioned greengrocers' when I was a child, and they were magic! All the produce looked and smelled wonderful, and I always wanted to try them all. It's a shame there aren't many of those shops left in today's world of Supermarkets and mass production, which is why, I think, the general quality of produce has gone down so much, and doesn't even look real anymore -as you say they all look identical, rather like wax fruit & veggies. Thanks for your response, and for sharing your memories with us :-)
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@angelicEmu (1311)
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16 Mar 07
Yes - I know what you mean about non-organic foods not keeping as well - before I switched to organic potatoes I used to find that the some of the potatoes I bought were sometimes already rotting by the time I got them home, which was pretty disgusting, and a waste of money. Mind you, I'm not saying that if they found a way of stopping foods going "off" with their nasty GM stuff that I'd start buying them - a natural decaying process is fine by me.
@nancyrowina (3850)
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29 May 07
I haven't bought organic mushrooms but will definitely try them now just to experience them after reading this. I buy the cheapest mushrooms available and have never had any complaints but they do shrink and go slimy as you described.
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@angelicEmu (1311)
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29 May 07
I'm sure you'll notice the difference when you do try them! I think that we've all become used to non-organic foods, so when we do try that organic product which is on special offer (the way I got into organic foods!), it's like a re-awakening for our tastebuds, and we remember what that foodstuff is supposed to taste/feel like in our mouths! All the best nancy, and happy eating! May I recommend that you fry them in a little butter, and stir in a teaspoonful of mustard too - it really gives it a little kick, and turns into a gorgeous mustard-ey sauce with the mushroom juices and butter! They go brilliantly with hot butterey toast, and a little can of Heinz Barbecue Beans (the original type with kidney beans and bits of pepper, not the new recipe!). Mmmmmm - my mouth's watering now :-)
@prestocaro (1251)
• United States
16 Mar 07
I try to buy organic when I can, but it's so expensive! I absolutely love organic fruits, though. I, too had forgotten how some foods taste. Strawberries, for instance: I used to buy the plastic bin of driscoll's because the berries always looked so pretty and big, but they almost always tasted watery. Then I tried some organic strawberrys, which were not nearly as big and uniform in color, but the taste blew me away! After that, I was totally hooked. I also love organic eggs. Cooked over easy, they really do taste much better than the hormone-laden kind.
1 person likes this
@angelicEmu (1311)
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16 Mar 07
Excellent points there prestocaro. When will supermarkets learn that pretty and uniform food isn't necessarily what the customer wants. I'd personally rather eat lumpier, differently sized and shaped foods which are natural, fresh and taste good, than foods which look like they've been airbrushed and waxed to within an inch of their lives. Nature is so much better than humans' meddlings, and long live organic!
