For the love of Produce...
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SafariGalNYC wrote: »Calling all pumpkin lovers
So I went overboard with gourds this season. - I have a little decor on my patio of fresh pumpkins, mini gourds.. you name it. Each year the squirrels in my neck of the woods end up feasting on them.. my lil thanksgiving for them if you will..
But this year, they are obviously dining at someone else’s place.
So.. rather than waste the pumpkins .. I thought about making all sorts of dishes.
How long do you keep your pumpkins?
I read online 1 month if indoors. 2-3 months if outdoors. Does that seem like an epic amount of time?
They are still firm… so .. maybe?
(Snip pretty pumpkins image for reply length)
AFAIK, pumpkins should be like any other squash: As long as they don't have mushy spots, or get dried out and woody-ish inside, they should be fine to eat. (They will weigh noticeably less if drying out inside, and there'd probably be signs on the outside, too.)
Different squashes last shorter or longer times, and become less useable in possibly different ways (like the mushy vs. dry thing). I'm not sure what mini-pumpkins do, and I think there are multiple varieties even within those. It's always an option to trim, cook & freeze, if they're getting toward iffy.
I didn't eat it at the end - not the point - but when I was in college I'd bring a full-sized pumpkin from my dad's garden back to my dorm and keep it (whole, not carved) until it spoiled. They varied some; but most lasted from September/October arrival until at least Christmas, and I think the longest was until around Easter. That was in a normal warm-ish, lighted room. If you keep them somewhere cool and dry, out of direct light, they'll tend to keep better.
My dad would store the garden's Butternut squash (which are good keepers) in our well pit (kind of root-cellar-like). He would pick them, wipe any dirt or debris off, let them sit out in a warmer area with air separation to cure a bit, then dip them briefly in a dilute bleach solution to sanitize, and let them dry separately before storing. Then he just put them in a crate in the well pit - well, the ones without dings or blemishes, which will spoil faster. They'd keep for most of the Winter, but Butternut are good keepers. Wherever you store them, look them over periodically and isolate from the others any that are getting brown spots or other degradation signs.3 -
I made a very simple dinner tonight, after having a busy day. Huge mixed-greens salad with cherry tomatoes, English cucumber, thin-sliced sweet onion, topped with long-aged balsamic vinegar and a sprinkling of roasted, salted no-hull pumpkin seeds; red lentil spaghetti with a very garlic-y tomato-based pasta sauce, roasted broccoli (around a pound of it, before roasting), and some farmstead goat feta. Not remotely fancy - maybe some people would consider it boring or unpleasant, I dunno . . . . but it was very palatable to me, and that's the only person whose tastes I generally need to attend to.
And I made a somewhat simple and maybe boring dinner tonight after a not at all busy day
It was similar to last night, but also quite different.- French green lentils instead of red lentils. Plants, but probably not considered produce since they're dried legumes not fresh vegetables.
- Cooked together with the rice instead of separate so I have less to wash when I do dishes probably tomorrow morning.
- I added some fresh ginger.
- I didn't forget the mushrooms!
- Still had onion, carrot, celery, random chilies, and garlic.
- Added a couple of the very last tomatoes from my garden that I really should eat even though they also are a reminder of the vegetable garden that won't wake up for many months to come.
- I probably won't be able to eat it all, but when I logged it, it all would fit into my calorie allowance for the day. For sure I won't be hungry until after lunch tomorrow.
So I didn't use the fennel. I didn't use the beets. No potatoes. No cabbage. But... mmmmm. Neat experiment, and it was fun to cook.
Funny because I was talking on the phone to family yesterday and was saying how I really just didn't want to cook. I found it odd because I usually love to. Once I started, I had fun. Same today, although I never felt like I didn't want to today.
What will tomorrow bring? Stay tuned to find out!
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SafariGalNYC wrote: »Calling all pumpkin lovers
So I went overboard with gourds this season. - I have a little decor on my patio of fresh pumpkins, mini gourds.. you name it. Each year the squirrels in my neck of the woods end up feasting on them.. my lil thanksgiving for them if you will..
But this year, they are obviously dining at someone else’s place.
So.. rather than waste the pumpkins .. I thought about making all sorts of dishes.
How long do you keep your pumpkins?
I read online 1 month if indoors. 2-3 months if outdoors. Does that seem like an epic amount of time?
They are still firm… so .. maybe?
Are those "eating" pumpkins or decorative pumpkins?
I haven't had the best luck trying to cook pumpkins that are bred for carving or for decoration. Like most winter squash, pumpkins can last a while in a cool, dark place.
Every year right after (or before) Halloween, I get an e-mail from Audubon about repurposing pumpkins, especially those little ones. They suggest making a bird feeder from them. You still get joy, and so do your feathered friends. They have a video with instructions if you think you can't just figure it out on your own.
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You will get no counterargument from me. I love vegetables as well. Except for sardines, they are my only source of food.Yet here we are on a thread that celebrates produce, including vegetables. Without doing a formal statistical analysis of posts, I feel like it's mostly been about vegetables. It's definitely been mostly about produce's deliciousness, because, well, that would be on topic to the thread, wouldn't it? 😋
That is actually something that fascinates me. What is it about vegetables that make them unloved by society? Since most people are said to undereat them, there must be something that holds them back. While finding the answer to that question, may not make the issue go away, it is not unreasonable to think it might point in a useful direction.Passive voice is interesting: It allows us to ignore the question of who considers vegetables not hyperpalatable. Pretty sure it's not the people who've generally been participating in this thread, who seem to like vegetables very much. I don't know who it is, and don't really care. I love vegetables, at least most of 'em.
Sounds delicious to me, except for one thing. To me, balasamic is a mixture of two evils: vinegar is the one substance that genuinely manages to keep me away from food (and then only up to a point, I have been known to empty a jar of mustard when I am too hungry and have nothing else left). Sugar does too, but not to the same degree. I (used to love Liège waffles, for example, and chocolate mousse and zabaglione and Bavarois... and yes, I most probably still do!). I am not sure these should be called "vegetables", but in my defense: they surely contain plants, including the sugar ^_^I made a very simple dinner tonight, after having a busy day. Huge mixed-greens salad with cherry tomatoes, English cucumber, thin-sliced sweet onion, topped with long-aged balsamic vinegar and a sprinkling of roasted, salted no-hull pumpkin seeds; red lentil spaghetti with a very garlic-y tomato-based pasta sauce, roasted broccoli (around a pound of it, before roasting), and some farmstead goat feta. Not remotely fancy - maybe some people would consider it boring or unpleasant, I dunno . . . . but it was very palatable to me, and that's the only person whose tastes I generally need to attend to.
That is a valid argument to be had, but I was imagining you putting the miso on top (I used to use it as a spread on bread before I stopped using it.Does mixing it constitute using it as a condiment? Usually I think of a condiment as something foods are dipped in, topped lightly with (spread on or whatever), or maybe eaten in tiny forkfuls alongside some larger dish (like some relishes are used). I'd think of the mixed-in miso more as a flavoring ingredient, with the happy plus of some probiotics. (I don't cook it with the squash, I mix it in at the end right before eating. Maybe the bugs still live.)
Would it though? Does not love for something include finding out why other people don't share that love? They may have genuine objectively verifiable reasons for that dislike. Would it not be great to find out what they are?P.S. IMU, people in general on average eat too few vegetables (and fruits) for best odds of overall good health. There are many reasons for that, IMO, some of which have zero to do with palatability/taste preference . . . but going into detail about that, too, would be off topic to this thread.BartBVanBockstaele wrote: »Have you tried natto? I love it because of the strong taste, and also because it contains no extra salt and is therefore perfectly compatible with my diet.
It is a trigger food for me. The fact that it is usally frozen when I buy it, protects me bit from overeating on it, but not by much. I like it very much mixed with egg white, katsuobushi and green onions on top of short-grain white rice. I also used to put in broth-based vegetable soup together with slices of lamb.I've only tried natto once: It's not a thing often seen here. I haven't even seen it in our Asian markets, though it's probably there somewhere and I just missed it in the overall overwhelmed-ness of figuring out Asian-language labels with tiny English sticker-label add-ons. I did like it when I tried it, but it was only a small central bit in vegetarian sushi maki. (The waitress told me I didn't want to order that, but I ordered it anyway. 🤣) I'd eat natto again, and would like to try it in a setting where the flavor was a bit more forward.
Well then, let's add kimchi as well. I revile sauerkraut because most all of it money can buy in Toronto, is essentially vinegared cabbage, but the kimchi is genuinely fermented and a trigger food: a portion is as large as the container it comes in ^_^. One of my favourite restaurant foods was kimchi fried rice. Just thinking of it makes me hungry.Fermented produce is still produce, so totally on topic.
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The first time I tried to order natto at a Japanese restaurant the waitress managed to talk me out of it. She said "If you didn't grow up eating it, you won't like it." Some time afterwards, I bought a container in an asian grocers and after trying it, had to agree with the waitresses. It was the texture I found really off putting.1
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You are not alone. From what I know, even half of the Japanese population hates natto. They often describe it as "spoiled beans". It is often eaten mixed with whole eggs on top of rice for breakfast, but I prefer it with egg whites. It makes for a fluffier, foamier mixture. And, unfortunately, I had to let go of the rice.The first time I tried to order natto at a Japanese restaurant the waitress managed to talk me out of it. She said "If you didn't grow up eating it, you won't like it." Some time afterwards, I bought a container in an asian grocers and after trying it, had to agree with the waitresses. It was the texture I found really off putting.
People often tell me they dislike okra for the same reason. But I am just finishing off a portion of okra mixed with spices, lemon juice and lupini flakes. I love it. I do prefer the sliced ones to the whole ones, but I'll certainly settle for the whole ones when I cannot find the sliced ones. Since winter is upon us, that'll be quite likely for the next several months.1 -
I hate the slimey texture of boiled okra but quite like it roasted. I roast in the air fryer like courgette slices, shaking with some olive oil in a recycled plastic bag and seasoning beforehand.3
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It seems that many people hate it. In the past, I wasn't even aware of the perceived slimyness of okra because I used it in soup. Only after becoming more lazy and eating it microwaved, did I really start to see why it was called "slimy". I never had any problems with it. Possibly because I used to be a lover of oysters?I hate the slimey texture of boiled okra but quite like it roasted. I roast in the air fryer like courgette slices, shaking with some olive oil in a recycled plastic bag and seasoning beforehand.
Just about everything that is roasted tastes great, so I an guessing roast okra tastes great too. I used to have an Actifry years and years ago, but I dumped it because it took too much space and I was no longer using it as much. I do remember being very fond of the green lentils I roasted in it though.
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@BartBVanBockstaele
If you like okra, and if you like vinegar, look for pickled okra. It can be divine. Of course it's a MUST if you have a Bloody Mary, but it's also just a tasty treat.
We don't see fresh okra here so often. Our growing season isn't long enough, so when we do see it, it has been shipped from a LONG way away.0 -
I've been eating the pineapple neighbor Bob gave me. I've cut it in slices, leaving in the center core. (Am I the only one that really enjoys the slightly more fibrous center core?)
Does anyone have interesting uses for fresh pineapple that are more in a non-dessert kind of direction? I've thought about frying or broiling. But if anyone has ideas, bring 'em on.
Digressing from there:BartBVanBockstaele wrote: »
You will get no counterargument from me. I love vegetables as well. Except for sardines, they are my only source of food.Yet here we are on a thread that celebrates produce, including vegetables. Without doing a formal statistical analysis of posts, I feel like it's mostly been about vegetables. It's definitely been mostly about produce's deliciousness, because, well, that would be on topic to the thread, wouldn't it? 😋
That is actually something that fascinates me. What is it about vegetables that make them unloved by society? Since most people are said to undereat them, there must be something that holds them back. While finding the answer to that question, may not make the issue go away, it is not unreasonable to think it might point in a useful direction.Passive voice is interesting: It allows us to ignore the question of who considers vegetables not hyperpalatable. Pretty sure it's not the people who've generally been participating in this thread, who seem to like vegetables very much. I don't know who it is, and don't really care. I love vegetables, at least most of 'em.
(snip by reply-er to omit things that mostly seem waaaaay off topic for this thread)
Would it though? Does not love for something include finding out why other people don't share that love? They may have genuine objectively verifiable reasons for that dislike. Would it not be great to find out what they are?P.S. IMU, people in general on average eat too few vegetables (and fruits) for best odds of overall good health. There are many reasons for that, IMO, some of which have zero to do with palatability/taste preference . . . but going into detail about that, too, would be off topic to this thread.
(Snip)
I generally don't care much what other people think, especially not when it comes to taste-preference kinds of things, unless I need to or want to accommodate them in some way, such as when entertaining people in my home, or taking food to a potluck event, or something like that. Otherwise, people having different tastes is part of what makes life interesting, and I'm disinclined to cross-examine them.
Whether most people dislike veggies, and why many people eat too few of them for best health, would be a relevant topic to post in the Debate Club area. While it's a question about veggies, I still think it's a tangent to the point of this thread, i.e., takes it off topic . . . and taking threads off topic is against the MFP Community Guidelines.
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@mtaratoot
I love okra and I revile vinegar. I think Windex tastes better and that is not normally considered a food or even a food-like substance. Vinegar is possibly the only edible substance I positively revile ^_^. That is inconvenient because vinegar is so popular, as is pickled stuff. On the other hand, since most pickled stuff contains sugar, a substance I do like but only in desserts, my dislike for vinegar steers me clear of much added sugar as well, and that is not usually considered a Bad Thing.
We can find "fresh" okra here, but it costs more than twice as much as the frozen stuff and it is a bit inconvenient. That said, I would never buy it anyway. It makes no sense to me. I learned very early on, about 50 years ago to the day, that the freshest vegetables money can buy in a store is the frozen stuff and that is not even taking into account the impracticalities of bachelor life. It is just too bad that not all vegetables can be bought frozen.
This is the okra I prefer:
Unfortunately for me, it is relatively hard to get in my neck of the woods. The only store where I have been able to find it is a little over 2 km from where I live and they don't always have it. It is one of the reasons I am contemplating buying an extra freezer, as soon as I am able to figure out where to put it.
This one is easier to get, but I don't like it as much because it doesn't have much taste, possibly because it is baby okra:
I also like freeze-dried okra as a snack. It is heavenly, to me anyway. Too bad I have never been able to find it in Toronto.
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@BartBVanBockstaele
If you like okra, and if you like vinegar, look for pickled okra. It can be divine. Of course it's a MUST if you have a Bloody Mary, but it's also just a tasty treat.
We don't see fresh okra here so often. Our growing season isn't long enough, so when we do see it, it has been shipped from a LONG way away.
How short is your growing season? I've grown okra from seed here in Michigan, i.e., direct seeding outdoors. I think it was the Jambalaya variety from Johnny's Selected Seeds, which they list as 50 days to maturity - much shorter than most Winter squash, among other longer things it seems like you've mentioned growing in your area. (Delicatas, even Johnny's varieties - selected for the North - run 95-100 days to maturity.)
Okra is such a pretty plant, too - beautiful big flowers that look a bit like Hibiscus (which is a semi-near relative).3 -
I have always eaten the core when I had fresh pineapple. It makes no sense to me to not eat it. That said, since I almost never buy it I don't often eat it either.I've been eating the pineapple neighbor Bob gave me. I've cut it in slices, leaving in the center core. (Am I the only one that really enjoys the slightly more fibrous center core?)
I would just put it in soup or mix it with other vegetables when cooking it, but only if it is not very ripe. The only way I have found so far that I really dislike is on pizza.Does anyone have interesting uses for fresh pineapple that are more in a non-dessert kind of direction? I've thought about frying or broiling. But if anyone has ideas, bring 'em on.
I am the opposite. I don't really care what people like or dislike. What really interests me is their explanation because that is what may teach me something I do not know or have never considered.Otherwise, people having different tastes is part of what makes life interesting, and I'm disinclined to cross-examine them.
I have to disagree here as well. Talking about love for something, includes talking about hate for something and everything in between those two extremes. After all, hate and love are just two markers on the same measuring scale. Take one of them away and the scale becomes meaningless.Whether most people dislike veggies, and why many people eat too few of them for best health, would be a relevant topic to post in the Debate Club area. While it's a question about veggies, I still think it's a tangent to the point of this thread, i.e., takes it off topic . . . and taking threads off topic is against the MFP Community Guidelines.
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I've been eating the pineapple neighbor Bob gave me. I've cut it in slices, leaving in the center core. (Am I the only one that really enjoys the slightly more fibrous center core?)
Does anyone have interesting uses for fresh pineapple that are more in a non-dessert kind of direction? I've thought about frying or broiling. But if anyone has ideas, bring 'em on.
Tepache!
Using the center core is fine, although using the whole thing is also pretty good. It is mildly fermented, so if people are avoiding alcohol, it's not the best idea. But it can be pretty tasty. I know the fibrous core also is tasty to just chew on; I don't like to actually eat it. But to "let it rot" into tepache can be a fun thing to do.How short is your growing season? I've grown okra from seed here in Michigan, i.e., direct seeding outdoors. I think it was the Jambalaya variety from Johnny's Selected Seeds, which they list as 50 days to maturity - much shorter than most Winter squash, among other longer things it seems like you've mentioned growing in your area. (Delicatas, even Johnny's varieties - selected for the North - run 95-100 days to maturity.)
Okra is such a pretty plant, too - beautiful big flowers that look a bit like Hibiscus (which is a semi-near relative).
Maybe not so much a short season per se, but growing degree days. We have a long season. With a greenhouse, we can harvest lettuce year round. There's a hydroponic farm nearby where you can go take one leaf of each variety and make a salad for a small army. We can grow winter beets. We just don't seem to have the HEAT that okra likes. There may be newer varieties that do better, and I have started seeing it in the market more often in the last few summers. We've also never had good local peaches, but there's now some varieties that do OK.
Years ago a friend suggested piling soil into a stack of tractor tires to grow okra. The black rubber could heat the soil and grow the crop, but.... No thank you.
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@AnnPT77
This is my favourite thing to do with pineapple. Goes well with both Mexican and SE Asian, and I typically add coriander to take it in either direction.
https://chefmichaelsmith.com/recipe/grilled-pineapple-red-onion-salad/1 -
If you have an Indian/Bangla/Pakistani supermarket, that is where I see fresh okra (year round, I think) near me in London UK. At some times during the year it is bloody expensive so must be imported from far away.0
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From the OP, the part that's pretty much the 'charter' for the thread:purplefizzy wrote: »My question:
Got a love affair of your own with the veggie realm?
What is the vegetable you love introducing to nonveggie-loving friends?
What new-to-you veggie are you surprised that you like?
How do you boost nutrition in meals/recipes with innovative veggie additions?
Are you doing cool stuff with jackfruit? Spiralizing celerac?
Wat preparation method changed your mind about a particular vegetable/fruit?
Inspire me with your produce bounty!!@AnnPT77
This is my favourite thing to do with pineapple. Goes well with both Mexican and SE Asian, and I typically add coriander to take it in either direction.
https://chefmichaelsmith.com/recipe/grilled-pineapple-red-onion-salad/
Oooo, @acpgee - that sounds really delicious! (The challenge will be finding good fresh basil or coriander here when it's already Winter.) Yum!1 -
I mourn that older varieties of apples are less available. Most of the modern ones are too sweet, too simple tasting, and I don't love the texture. Granny Smith taste fine, but I'd prefer something of firmness intermediate between that and the average run of apples. I'd like some more tartness, some wine-y-ness than most of the sweety-sweet moderns. Rave apples were better than average, though not ideal, but I don't often see them. My old school favorites are Winesaps, but I almost never see them anymore.
I've tried too many of the newer varieties to list. Does anyone have any to suggest that I might look out for?
Thanks!0 -
@AnnPT77
I forgot to mention I grill the pineapple and red onion on a cast iron griddle pan. I also skewer the thick red onion slices using bamboo satay prickers, so that the slices stay intact on the grill, making them easier to flip. After peeling, prick through the onion in the latitudinal direction every 3/4 inch or so, then slice into disks between the satay sticks.
With respect to modern apple varieties, do you find Pink Lady too sweet? I like their crispness.0 -
@AnnPT77
I guess I'm very fortunate to live in a place where we have several "specialty" fruit orchards and can get a wide variety of apples. I will probably always love Honeycrisp. I seem to remember Kingston Black is fairly crisp and for sure has some bitterness to balance the sweetness. The Arkansas Black is a little sweeter and VERY crisp. I imagine you should be able to find Winesap apples too.1
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