121
votes
Accepted
Are carrots dyed orange?
Probably not.
Carrots naturally (or due to selective breeding) come in an extremely wide variety of colors from white to yellow to orange to red/pink to purple. It's likely that you were simply ...
- 16.5k
81
votes
Accepted
Why do Brussels sprouts only taste good when cut?
I think you're on to something with regards to cut pieces cooking more evenly than whole sprouts. But I also think you might be seeing causation where you should just be seeing correlation.
The "...
- 26.9k
57
votes
Why do Chinese grocers advise cutting and discarding flowers in Chinese vegetables?
When a plant arrives in the kitchen, the ecological perspective doesn't matter any more. Any insect present on a plant destined for human consumption is considered a pest by the consuming humans and ...
- 136k
54
votes
Accepted
What is this green, bulbous, leafy vegetable?
As was mentioned, this is a kohlrabi. I felt more explanation should be given based on the fascinating nature of this plant.
Kohlrabi is one of the handful of cultivars of brassica oleracea. Others ...
- 1,047
49
votes
Grilling veggies & meat on same surface for vegetarian guests
My response to this kind of question is always just ask, and if you absolutely can't, err on the side of caution.
I'm assuming here that you're talking about a pretty thorough heating and brushing. ...
- 58.2k
44
votes
What's (really) the difference between fruit and vegetables?
There is no real black and white definition of that difference, because where the line is drawn varies from crowd to crowd.
Botanically speaking, a fruit is a seed-bearing structure that develops ...
- 2,407
43
votes
Accepted
Why are certain fruit & veg bought in UK supermarkets tasteless?
Non-native and out of season fruits and vegetables that are available in northern countries (e.g. UK, Canada) need to be shipped from far away and will be picked before they are naturally ripe (under ...
- 20.5k
42
votes
Accepted
How should I keep the vegetables from flying off the board when I cut them?
Use a sharp knife, dull knives don't slice, they split the same way an axe splits logs and that will generate that sideways force that throws carrot bits.
Also learn to practice your slicing and ...
- 6,334
42
votes
How do I avoid carrot slices rolling away?
One option is to cut the carrots slightly diagonally instead of perfectly square. The resulting pieces are not perfectly cylindrical, but they tend to tipping instead of rolling all over the cutting ...
- 1,415
41
votes
Accepted
Why is my vegetable stock bitter, but the chicken stock not?
I notice that your recipe doesn't include any salt. That's important, because salt decreases the sensation of bitterness. Chicken contains a certain amount of salt, and I suspect that's making the ...
- 26.9k
41
votes
How do I make my blended soup a more appealing colour?
Of course “appealing” is quite opinion-based, so let’s look at the problem in a slightly more neutral “how can I avoid the colors mixing when I blend the soup”.
In short, you can’t.
If you have a ...
- 58.5k
40
votes
What is this waxed root vegetable?
It looks like it could be yuca/cassava, based on the appearance alone. (Note: this is not the same as or related to yucca.) The picture on Wikipedia even shows a waxed version.
https://en.wikipedia....
- 539
38
votes
Accepted
What are some good ways to treat frozen vegetables such that they behave like fresh vegetables when stir frying them?
The first thing is to do is thaw them properly before you cook them, half frozen vegetables will cool your pan too much. I often thaw frozen vegetables by soaking them in hot tap water, this is pretty ...
- 75.4k
37
votes
Why are certain fruit & veg bought in UK supermarkets tasteless?
In addition to Max's answer, much UK supermarket fruits and vegetables are from varieties grown to have tough skins (so they don't damage in transit), have a long shelf life (so they can be ...
- 1,025
37
votes
Accepted
What kind of vegetable has pink and white concentric rings?
That is a chioggia beet, I believe, but watermelon radish is also colored similarly.
- 73.8k
31
votes
Accepted
What was this pickled vegetable which I was served at a middle eastern restaurant?
I suspect that these will be pickled almonds. Almonds are a favorite ingredient in many middle-Eastern dishes. The green color and fuzz give it away, most other fruits like apricots and plums lack ...
- 13.8k
30
votes
Grilling veggies & meat on same surface for vegetarian guests
Depends on the person but typically... no.
I'm not sure how bad cross contamination is in terms of food safety, but grills are high heat, though you might not always heat the food through.
Many ...
- 2,307
28
votes
How do I make my blended soup a more appealing colour?
The Turquoise Room (at the La Posada Hotel in Winslow, Arizona) has a "signature soup", which is actually two soups ladled into a single bowl: a bright yellow corn soup, and a darker brown ...
- 1,718
25
votes
Are carrots dyed orange?
It's probably not anything so sinister. Even typical orange carrots do vary somewhat in hue. And as with many other vegetables, "heirloom" varieties of carrot have started to make a bit of a comeback ...
- 14.9k
25
votes
Should I remove the inner parts of marrow vegetables?
No. The only cooking preparation where the seedy core of summer squash is removed is for stuffing them. Otherwise, that's part of what you eat. The seeds are soft and pretty much the same texture ...
- 61.2k
24
votes
What is this veggie sold as "leek sprout" in an Asian market?
Yellow Chinese chives. These are the same as Chinese garlic chives, but they've been "bleached" by covering them; this results in a milder, sweeter flavor.
They're generally minced and put ...
- 61.2k
23
votes
Why does my cauliflower puree taste mustardy after two days?
The flavor / odor notes you're experiencing are probably sulfuric compounds. Cruciferous vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower contain sulfiric compounds that are released on cooking. That's why ...
23
votes
Do you need to rinse vegetables that can be peeled?
While I don't always practice what I preach, in the interest of food safety, I would recommend rinsing any vegetable or fruits before peeling.
The reason for this is that when you cut into an ...
- 18.3k
23
votes
Which utensil or device can be used to make spirals or conveyor screws with vegetables?
My favorite tool is a spiral cutter sold for apples or potatoes, here’s an example.
(Source)
A tiny screw-plus-rotating-knife gadget is often used for Bavarian radish spirals, e.g.:
(Source)
Note ...
- 58.5k
23
votes
Accepted
Why cut on the bias?
By cutting on the bias a little more surface area is exposed, and the interactions we are interested in for flavour (between food and tongue, and between ingredients within the dish) are all about ...
- 11.9k
23
votes
Accepted
Are there tables of wastage rates for different fruit and veg?
The USDA has a handbook of yield ratios for various raw ingredients. Note that some goods have a high variance in yield, from the foods themselves as well as how you prepare them; your own kitchen ...
- 26.9k
22
votes
Accepted
How much of the clove should I use when using big garlic heads?
I think that might be elephant garlic, which isn't really garlic at all. It's in the same family, but is actually a kind of leek so it has a flavor that's a cross between garlic and onion, but milder ...
- 75.4k
21
votes
What can I do with vegetable water?
Make bread with it (let it cool enough that you don't kill the yeast,
first.)
Make soup with it.
- 15.7k
20
votes
What can I do with vegetable water?
I've read that if you can't or don't use it for your own consumption, that houseplants really love it (after it's cooled, of course).
- 5,962
20
votes
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible