Behind the taste

The bitter taste

Bitter foods are a very mixed group, as bitter substances can be found in vegetables, chocolate, coffee and beer. Walnuts also belong to the group of bitter flavours, as do some herbs.

Bitter gives edge to the taste of food, balancing both sweet and salty but also the fat in fatty dishes. Often an overlooked flavour, bitterness is excluded because it may not be that appealing on its own. However, as part of an overall flavour experience, bitter flavours have a lot to contribute because they provide a more complex taste and a more exciting dish. It is therefore an exciting path to take when you start to think about bitter flavours in your cooking and use them as a natural part of the other basic flavours.

However, too many bitters together can give too strong and overpowering a taste. Therefore, it is good to be careful with the composition of the bitter flavours and add a little at a time.

It is believed that humans have a natural scepticism about bitter tastes, which stems from the fact that bitter substances can be toxic. Therefore, we humans have a built-in "no thank you" reflex when it comes to bitter taste. In balanced form, however, it is certainly worth exploring - and as with the other tastes: a little at a time.

PUT TOGETHER THE RIGHT FLAVOUR

The bitter taste can be a bit tricky to dose, so try a little at a time when adding bitter. These ingredients can help add bitterness.

Grapefruit Grapefruit hits both the sour and the bitter flavors, where grapefruit just differs from eg lemon because of the bitter taste. Many people confuse the bitter taste with the sour taste. It is the climate that determines how sour and bitter a grape is, and in addition there are a multitude of varieties that have different degrees of sweetness. Grapefruit can play an important role in balancing the flavours of, for example, a dressing, marinade or vinaigrette, adding both sourness and bitterness at the same time. The grapefruit can be sliced and fried cut-side down before squeezing - this caramelises the sweetness of the grapefruit and adds complexity to the flavour.
Broccoli and arugula Broccoli and rocket are two of the most bitter vegetables along with the other types of cabbage. Over time, cabbage cultivation has softened the bitter taste, as consumers do not want such bitter food, and farmers have therefore refined their produce to be less bitter. However, the bitterness is still present in cabbage - and in broccoli in particular. There are also salads that are bitter. As mentioned, this is true of rocket, but Christmas lettuce and radicchio also add bitterness to your dish.
Coffee beans Coffee beans are inherently bitter, and the roasting process determines how bitter the coffee ends up being. The darker a coffee is roasted, the more stable the flavour. This means that coffee beans, which unlike specially roasted or freshly roasted coffee need to keep for a long time, also have a more bitter taste. It is precisely because of this bitter taste that many people prefer to drink their coffee with milk and/or sugar. Coffee can be flavoured in food dishes, and is mostly used in sweet cuisine - for example in cakes and desserts. However, ready-brewed coffee can also be used as a condiment in, for example, chilli con carne with cocoa/chocolate, and in BBQ sauces or marinades coffee can also add an extra dimension to the flavour.
Beer Beer can add bitterness to food, while also contributing a little sweetness. This adds a different complexity of flavour to food than wine, for example. Bitterness from beer disappears with long-term cooking, so if a dish simmers for more than 1 ½ hours, the bitterness from the hops is removed. So to add a little bitterness to a dish using beer, the beer should only be added towards the end of cooking. Beer in bread or rye bread, for example, adds a little bitterness, and the type of beer has an impact on the flavour. A light beer adds little bitterness compared to a dark beer, which also adds some sweetness.
Dark chocolate and cocoa Dark chocolate and cocoa are among the bitter foods. The higher the cocoa content in chocolate, the more bitter the taste, as the sugar content, which balances the bitter taste, is lower the higher the cocoa percentage. The bitter taste of cocoa and chocolate is ideal in sweet, fatty desserts or cakes, for example. For example, the Italian dessert Tiramisu is sprinkled with cocoa on the surface and the bitterness from this counteracts the sweet, rich, creamy dessert. In this way, the bitterness of the cocoa enhances the overall taste and eating experience.
Corsica Carrot is best known as the tiny plant that can be grown on a windowsill and sprinkled over an egg dish. It has a slightly bitter and pungent taste, reminiscent of mustard and horseradish. With its intense flavour, it can add a lot of edge to dressings, fish and salads, for example. Traditionally, cress has also been the "green sprinkle" on much sandwich bread, and it also goes well in sandwiches with egg salad or avocado and prawns, for example. Cress works best on cold dishes, as it loses its flavour when heated.

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Discover the different flavours
Turn the wheel and get inspired by which ingredients can contribute exactly the flavour you think your dish is missing.

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Umami
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5 basic flavours - and one extra!

The basic flavours are the foundation of the tasting, and in addition to the 5 basic flavours you can also work with the flavour "strong", which can help to enhance the other flavours if dosed correctly.

Turn the wheel and get inspired to work with the basic flavours and complete the taste experience of your food!

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