hate vegetables -- how can I learn to eat them?

Fitorbust73

Hello,

I have what some would call food phobia--- I have really strong aversions to food that are crunchy or bitter. How do I train myself to eat these things... I have gotten better over the last few years (when I was a kid I would only eat peanut butter sandwiches, spaghetti no sauce and boiled chicken). I really am looking for help with this problem....

monicalosesweight

http://www.amateurgourmet.com/2008/11/the_best_brocco.html

Try this one!

chubby_checkers

Cook your vegetables until they're no longer crunchy. Most of them aren't really that bitter. Use spices/seasonings to help add flavor. Find ways to sneak vegetables into your other food (cauliflower in mashed potatoes, onions or peppers in meatloaf, etc).

Gapwedge01

Buy a Vitamix whole food blender and add veggies to fruit. Some veggies when mixed do not have any taste. I use mine every day. Google it and read the reviews. Best investment in my health I've ever made.

chezileigh

I don't hate vegetables but I get fed up of preparing salad every day, so I recently started making big pots of soup full of them. It's an excellent way to get loads of veggies in without the boring chopping, and in your case, crunching. It does mean eating the same thing for lunch several days out of the week, unless you made several big pots of soup and maybe freeze it in individual portions so you can mix and match.

I'm making another one tomorrow, it's just a mixed veggie one which I'm planning to make quiet chunky. Last week I made some leek soup with a celery base, which is ace because celery is so high in potassium and has practically no calories, and I hate eating it, but in the soup it's fine. Love it!

Ready2Rock206

Steam them, roast them, put them in soup - tada no longer crunchy!

ashley101009

I'm right there with you! Veggies aren't the best but I have been trying new things and instead of canned veggies which arent the best for you, I am shopping in the fresh produce section! I pan fry my broccolini, asparagus and green beans with garlic and I have noticed that I enjoy veggies better then as if they were plain or with butter. I eat spaghetti squash with chicken sausage and pasta sauce and that's veggies. I make mashed cauliflower with milk butter and galic like mashed potatoes and love carrot sticks! Hope this helps!

tourettte

vegetable soups made in pressure cooker.

RTricia

Amazing Grass Green Superfood: http://www.amazon.com/Amazing-Grass-Chocolate-Superfood-Container/dp/B001J9LX48/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1346796024&sr=8-3&keywords=amazing+grass+green+superfood

RoseRoiz

You can alway steam them or roast them, or put them in salad with cranberries, raisin, nuts etc, etc.

bethfartman

My boyfriend is the same way. Have you ever looked into the 'super taster' condition? It's probably what you have, google it. Anyways, I'm a pretty decent cook and have been able to introduce more veg into my boyfriend's diet through a variety of ways. I blend tons of veggies into sauces- I'll make tomato sauce from canned tomatoes, lightly sauté up stuff like zucchini, onions, spinach, and carrots, throw them in the pot with the sauce and blend it up with a hand blender, heat up a bit more and serve or freeze. I didn’t tell him I was doing that for a while and after a few meals with the veggies disguised in the sauce (and him saying how good it was) I told him what was in it and he was shocked (albeit a little annoyed I was treating him like a child, but he got over it.) I also shred veggies like squash and carrots and mix them into things like meatloaf or even batter breads like banana bread. I will mash cauliflower in with mashed potatoes and I do a mix of sweet potatoes w/ regular potatoes when I make oven fries (sweet potatoes are better for you than regular.) Broccoli with cheese is always a hit in my house- you can experiment with low-cal cheeses like the laughing cow brand and see what works for you. Carrots with some dill is a good combo too, but it doesn’t disguise the taste of the carrot much. Roasted butternut squash or beets are pretty good too and not too bitter. Most people I’ve encountered that don't like vegetables simply say staunchly they don’t like them and never really try to gain a liking for them- keep in mind too, if you didn’t like something as a child you may like it now (or be able to tolerate it), your taste buds change when you get older. Good luck and good for you for wanting to try to eat more veggies!

MegdKel

Roast them or Grill them with your favorite seasonings! Veggies are *so* much yummier when they are roasted or grilled (IMHO!) There is a rosemary and garlic seasoning I found at Sam's that we have loved on every veggie we've tried it on, especially roasted carrots and roasted potatoes!

minuet42

I'd start out by just mixing them into whatever it is you're already eating - example, anything green mixes into pasta! (Or anything at all...) Otherwise, Cook them to pieces, roast them, dip them in stuff. It's more important (in my view) to learn to like new, good for you things, than to worry with the calorie count at this point, so cream, butter, bacon drippings and sugar!

heatherloveslifting

Well, for my little kids I "hide" shredded zucchini and mushrooms in lasagna.

wftiger

I mix them in stuff. Broccoli and spinach in eggbake, riced cauliflower in meatloaf or meatballs, grated or cubed zucchini in spaghetti sauce or onions and peppers in scrambled eggs. I don't really eat many "plain" but if they are in sauce or with meat I eat them. Most of the stuff is usually cooked until it is soft so then it doesn't crunch.

Maddalen101

Try the sweet ones and the ones with lovely texture.
Carrots steam up nicely and are sweet.
Avocados, properly ripe, taste quite luscious - they can be diced with a nice ripe tomato for a yummy snack, or mixed with some spices for a quick guacamole.
Salad dressings can also help - the commercially available raspberry vinaigrettes, or vidalia onion or thousand island dressings are sweet, and can make salads more palatable. (Just be careful - some of those dressings can really pack a calorie/fat punch! a WW tip someone once gave me is to dip the fork in the dressing, and then in the salad, you get the taste with far less glop.
Sliced peppers can taste very refreshing - you can dip those in a nice dressing, and they're lovely and crunchy.
If you like Asian food, one thing I sometimes like to do is steam kale and serve it with soy sauce. It feels like you're eating Asian food, without all the fat.
Stir-fries are also a delicious way to have veggies - get one of those stir-fry mixes from Whole Foods, and saute with a simmer sauce - I like the Indian ones (also available at Whole Foods).
Hope this all helps!

SuperSteph81

found this funny article for ya
http://www.crankyfitness.com/2010/01/vegetables-painless-ways-to-eat-more-of.html

I have a boss that is the same exact way. Try substituting them for something that you wouldn't think to do. Using zuchinni for spagetti noodles, avocados in cookie/muffin recipes (sounds weird, but google that and you'll find some surprising recipes), suppluments that give you the same nutrients, smoothies would be a great way, steamed veggies bring down the 'crunchiness'.

BrazenHarpy

Try them while drunk?

To be quite honest, up until a few years ago I had a major aversion to vegetables. However, I started to man up by doing a lot of the things that people have already listed on here. And on a couple of occasions, I've really drunk and ended up eating something that I normally wouldn't eat - and decided it wasn't bad after all! This how I finally started incorporating carrots and celery in my diet :P.

vikkijaye

My boyfriend and I hate mushrooms so his mum grated them and put them into bolognaise, we didn't even taste them!

wahmx3

Add them to things.... spaghetti, any pasta really, casseroles, make a sauce to put over steamed vegies, add cauliflower to scallop potatoes, add to muffins/cookies/cakes (if you make any of these). Cook them to your liking and experiment with what you might like. I love brushing peppers and mushrooms with olive oil and grilling them.

Lightbulb1088

I do green beans with onion, red peppers and a tablespoon of bacon bits.
Corn with lemon pepper, onion, Garlic, bacon bits, black pepper, sometimes I add red pepper.
Also grill pinapple and red pepper it is awesome together.
Good luck!