Stevia bitter?

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LAMypie
LAMypie Posts: 127 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Okay, so I was making a desert for Thanksgiving. I melted some chocolate to drizzle over the cake, but it was bitter. Thinking I had grabbed the wrong stuff, I added some stevia, and it did not help at all. This example may have been burned chocolate. But then the other day I wanted brownies. I wanted to make them healthier, so I substituted the sugar for stevia. Took a tiny taste before baking and it was very bitter. I thought maybe this was one of those times that it'd taste better after baking. Baked, tasted even worse! Has anyone else ever had this problem? I used cocoa powder, so no chocolate was burned this time. Any suggestions?

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  • Ge0rgiana
    Ge0rgiana Posts: 1,649 Member
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    Stevia's never tasted bitter to me. That's odd. You may want to try Ideal.
  • xiofett
    xiofett Posts: 138 Member
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    It isn't that uncommon for people to notice a bitter aftertaste from sweeteners made from sugar alcohols. I had a biochemist friend explain it to me once, but most of it went over my head. I know I can't stand any of the sugar substitutes, horrible aftertaste even with the so-called "natural" sweeteners like stevia or monk fruit.
  • castlerobber
    castlerobber Posts: 528 Member
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    Okay, so I was making a desert for Thanksgiving. I melted some chocolate to drizzle over the cake, but it was bitter. Thinking I had grabbed the wrong stuff, I added some stevia, and it did not help at all. This example may have been burned chocolate. But then the other day I wanted brownies. I wanted to make them healthier, so I substituted the sugar for stevia. Took a tiny taste before baking and it was very bitter. I thought maybe this was one of those times that it'd taste better after baking. Baked, tasted even worse! Has anyone else ever had this problem? I used cocoa powder, so no chocolate was burned this time. Any suggestions?

    It has something to do with the complexity of the flavor of chocolate/cocoa--I don't remember what exactly. Stevia sweetens one part of the taste but not the other; artificial sweeteners such as Splenda sweeten the other part. You could try combining the two if you use artificial sweeteners, or use one of the stevia blends. Sugar, of course, sweetens both parts.

    Stevia by itself works in many foods, if all you need is a sweetener. But in baking cookies, brownies or cakes, sugar does more than just sweeten; it provides bulk, and helps with browning, among other things. I usually combine stevia with a sugar alcohol, or granular Splenda, or even a little bit of sugar depending on what I'm making.
  • fernandesg
    fernandesg Posts: 54 Member
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    There are bitter taste receptors on the tongue, and they are determined by your genetics. Some people find brocolli tastes "like sewage" (I've been told - I personally love it). I remember in my university biology class we did a taste test for sodium benzoate (most commonly used in pop and certain canned foods like jam as a preservative). The test was to lick a strip of paper coated in it to see if we were genetically inclined to taste the bitter taste of the benzoate, or (like me) tasted nothing at all.

    I did a quick google search, and it looks like Stevia has been found to trigger those bitter receptors in some people. It's also 200x sweeter than sugar, so you need to use only drops of the liquid stuff. Too much and it changes taste, I would guess because it is overloading the ability of your tongue to taste it :explode: One site I read said it doesn't work as is as a replacement in baking because the tiny amount you need to give a sweet taste cannot provide the bulking or browning that sugar does. Try using one of the sweeteners that say "measures cup-for-cup like sugar" or something similar. Here in Canada we have Equal; not sure what it is in the US. This has a sugar alcohol added as a bulking agent to make it act more like sugar. I have used it in many baked dishes and it has worked well, but I usually only replace half the sugar so it's not so obvious :wink:
  • castlerobber
    castlerobber Posts: 528 Member
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    I remember in my university biology class we did a taste test for sodium benzoate (most commonly used in pop and certain canned foods like jam as a preservative). The test was to lick a strip of paper coated in it to see if we were genetically inclined to taste the bitter taste of the benzoate, or (like me) tasted nothing at all.

    Off-topic--but thank you for mentioning this! We did a similar test in high-school biology class, but I never knew what the name of the chemical was. The ability to taste it was linked with the ability to roll one's tongue lengthwise; if you can't taste it, you can't roll your tongue (recessive gene). I was a non-taster.
  • LAMypie
    LAMypie Posts: 127 Member
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    I can roll my tongue, so does that mean I taste more bitter? I did use the "measures cup for cup" stuff. That's what's throwing me off. I may do some half sugar half stevia mini batches to see if it'll work, but for the time being, I'll stick with sugar. I've never liked any non-sugar sweeteners. They all taste funny to me. Thanks for the input!!
  • dlg1467
    dlg1467 Posts: 68 Member
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    I find that Stevia tastes absolutely dreadful! I can't eat it at all. the nastiest stuff ever made.
    I use Xyltol for Sweetener and it has very little taste to it other than just "sweet".
    and yes, I can roll my tongue.....weird.
  • maidnstone
    maidnstone Posts: 1 Member
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    Try the NuNaturals alcohol free liquid stevia. It's wonderful!
  • GCLyds
    GCLyds Posts: 206 Member
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    I find stevia really bitter. I even bought a now foods brand where the reviews claimed no bitter aftertaste. I think some people are "super tasters" and can taste more than other people. Stevia is terrible. I wont use sucralose or aspartame, so I dont use no cal sweeteners.

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