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Explain to me: what is the point of Rhubarb?

Jamshyd

Jamshyd

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Why do people eat this?

Rhubarb07.JPG


I find it tastes absolutely horrendous, and to add insult to injury, the same compounds respnsible for its disgusting taste are also responsible for its laxative effect, which in turn are also nephrotoxic (oxalic acid & co.).

What is the point? I don't get it.
 
My grandmother has been growing it in her backyard for years. I like it alone, and used to enjoy it dipped in sugar when I was young and cared less about proper nutrition. She also makes a mean pie with it.
 
A little bit stewed with apple is nice. It adds a certain tart-ness and cool colour :) I'm still not the biggest fan either though...
 
Hell yeah to the dipping it in straight sugar as a kid! But that should clue you in right there, that it needs to be dipped in sugar to be enjoyable.

My mom used to make a rhubarb cake - which I seem to recall one of the ingredients being a packet of Kool-Aid???

I can dig rhubarb - it's fucking celery that I don't understand why people eat, or put in anything.
 
Well, one theory is that is could be a famine food that went into the mainstream or domesticated. There are many examples of disgusting food that are made palatable by boiling and sweetening. It may have been useful to cultures as it is a perennial, if I remember correctly.

That being said, oxalic acid in food can be cooked away, as discovered by many cultures. Taro roots and leaves have high levels as well-- but taste good.
 
It tastes very good!

Well I enjoy it at least when it's cooked and strained mixed with some sugar, or when it's baked in pie with strawberries.

I've never eaten it raw like you'd eat celery raw.
 
At first I thought this was a dumb question, but then I really started thinking about it.

Why.. Why does anyone eat anything? Why does matter want to animate and walk around? Doesn't life seem a curious eddy in the flow of entropy?

And In that eddy, there are people like the OP, presumably an adult of average intelligence, who has not yet grasped the concept of personal preferences... weird world indeed.
 
I have no idea 'why'.

I do know that I enjoy rhubarb crisp, that my parents grew it when I was little (along with lots of other things) and that it reminds me of the house I grew up in, and flashes me back to my childhood - or just being very young. *I would never, however, go BUY it.
 
An Iz said:
At first I thought this was a dumb question, but then I really started thinking about it.

Why.. Why does anyone eat anything? Why does matter want to animate and walk around? Doesn't life seem a curious eddy in the flow of entropy?

And In that eddy, there are people like the OP, presumably an adult of average intelligence, who has not yet grasped the concept of personal preferences... weird world indeed.
Click to expand...

Kindly, keep your condescending remarks to yourself if you have nothing constructive to add.

Personal preference is a given. But this stuff is actually toxic if not prepared properly, and many people agree with me that it actually tastes bad.

---

Everyone else: thank you for your responses.

I think Dtergent is particularly insightful. I recently discovered that there was a "Rhubarb Road" (like the Silk Road or Spice Road), which was a trade-route that flowed north from Central Asia and up the volga river, all the way to Scandinavia and, eventually, Greenland. It is this cultural significance that got me asking the question in the first place.
 
I'd love to know how you have had it prepared in the past Jamshyd? You remove the leaves that contain the poisonous oxalic acid but after that it is good to go. Stewed rhubarb is the basis for all rhubarb dishes I know (1/4 cup of sugar and 1/4 cup water) and is a staple dish for dessert around here with custard or cream. You can also use this sweetened "fruit" in cakes and tarts. (I know it's not a fruit but tomatoes aren't exactly vegetables are they?).

I never heard of people eating it raw or roasted but the world is a strange place.
 
I've always thought it was popular because it's a (sort of) fruity-tasting vegetable that can be harvested early in the spring (as opposed to other fruits which happen later on in the season).
 
Jamshyd said:
Why do people eat this?

Rhubarb07.JPG


I find it tastes absolutely horrendous, and to add insult to injury, the same compounds respnsible for its disgusting taste are also responsible for its laxative effect, which in turn are also nephrotoxic (oxalic acid & co.).

What is the point? I don't get it.
Click to expand...

wow, it sure does look pretty tho, eh Alex?? %)
 
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