by Daniela Bertollo
Did you know that the bitter taste some foods leave in your mouth is actually making you healthier?
Bitter foods have been shown to aid digestion, help nutrientabsorption, stimulate immune function and even help keep sugar cravings at bay. Sweetbenefits indeed!
Whenever you experience a bitter taste, like grapefruit,brussels sprouts, wild rocket or even a cup of strong coffee, there’s a reaction happening in your mouth between the chemical compounds in the food and your tastebuds. This is what creates that bitter taste sensation.
Sensing bitterness is a primal way for our bodies to detect potential poisons, but thanks to scientific research we now know it isn’t as simple as bitter equals bad.
Taste Health Council member, Associate Professor of Nutrition Sciences and dietitian Tim Crowe, explains there’s a real upside to this protective mechanism. “Bitter foods can stimulate the body’s defence system,” says Tim. “This enhances our antioxidant system to protect against disease.”
Bitter foods help get our digestive system going so that we can maximise nutrient absorption. Taste.com.au’s nutrition editor Chrissy Freer points out that bitter foods can also assist in controlling your appetite and help to reduce cravings – especially sugar cravings – so they can assist in weight control. As a bonus, bitter green vegies are packed with nutrients such as vitamins A and C, folate, fibre, potassium and calcium.
What bitter foods should we be eating?
According to Chrissy, bitter greens, such as rocket, kale, watercress, dandelion, spinach and silverbeet, should be at the top of your list. And don’t forget to add cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli, buk choy, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, radish, swede and turnip, which are particularly high in a class of bitter-tasting chemical compounds known as glucosinolates.
You may be happy to hear that coffee and dark chocolate are also classified as bitter foods, but these more ‘processed’ foods should be eaten less frequently.
Is bitterness the same for everyone?
Not at all – some people enjoy the flavour of bitterfoods, while others find them hard to swallow, so tospeak. This is because some of us have more tastebudsthan others, and the more you have, the more sensitive tobitter foods you’ll be. What’s more, tastebuds tend to losetheir sensitivity as we age, which explains why childrenusually spit out bitter foods at first – they’re too strong for them.
According to Professor of Nutrition and Dietetics, Clare Collins, about 20 per cent of the population are ‘super tasters’ – people who have more tastebuds on their tongue and are super sensitive to the bitter compounds found in some food and drinks.
“The bitter taste is due to mustard oils that are produced from a naturally occurring chemical called glucosinolate. Super-tasters find vegetables high in this up to 60 per cent more bitter than non-tasters,” says Clare.
How can I make bitter foods taste less bitter?
Clare suggests using condiments to neutralise the bitterness in your food. Black pepper contains piperine, a pungent substance that acts as a decoy to bitter taste by stimulating the perception of heat in your mouth. You can get the same effect with chilli or other ‘hot’ spices. All herbs, spices and flavours from basil, coriander, garlic, ginger or lemon juice will help override bitter tastebud receptors by stimulating other taste receptors such as savoury, salty or sour.
Adding a little sweetness will, of course, make bitter foods more palatable, so try adding a teaspoon of honey or brown sugar to a salad dressing. Also, adding a little olive oil and lemon juice to bitter greens, such as kale, helps to reduce bitterness.
Tryour top bitter food picks:
- broccoli
- brussels sprouts
- cabbage
- cauliflower
- coriander
- dandelion tea
- dark chocolate
- kale
- rocket
- sesame seeds
- silverbeet
- spinach
- tahini
- watercress
- Author: Daniela Bertollo
- Image credit: Jeremy Simons
- Publication: Taste Magazine
