In Praise of Bitter

(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #1

I went down a bit of a rabbit hole today (22 Apr, 2020) trying to find out how/whether quinine can accumulate sufficiently to cause any problems when consuming it in the small amounts present in tonic soda. Not likely. In the course of that I ran across repeated scientific papers talking about bitter - the flavour - having a positive effect on fat metabolism: that is, consuming bitter foods leads to fat loss overall. That, I thought is an interesting proposition.

My first witness for the pro argument:

Google “bitter flavour effects on fat metabolism” for more.

I might have found the answer to sweet cravings
Bitters from Cinchona Succirubra Milled Powder
(Gregory - You can teach an old dog new tricks.) #2

Just what I need; another excuse to drink beer ( IPA, actually…:grin:

#3

Oh. I so stopped drinking beer since I first went keto that I totally forgot about that… Too bad I can’t stand bitter so I drink not really bitter beer (100ml a few times a year so it’s not significant anyway), my zillion coffees aren’t very bitter either (but maybe that counts…) and I like cocoa but I try to eat less of it now…
I am pretty sure all these items would hurt my fat-loss, usually, it’s not a given but when I consume them, that usually change things the worse…

And it’s always about the calories for me, tricks never seem to work. And I truly dislike bitter but my tastebuds changed. I surely still hate tonic soda (didn’t try in the last decade) but that has sugar or sweeteners anyway so it’s obviously horrible for me.

I like the bitter grapefruit but that’s sugar again and a rare occasion even out of keto.

What about epsom salt (I never tried it but consider buying some)? I have very limited bitter options on my default, almost carnivore diet. Unless I burn something but I ate enough charcoal in my younger years and I want to be nicer to my body now :smiley:

(Doug) #4

Yes… :relaxed: The taste and ‘structure’ can be such a sublime thing.

#5

The principles about the 5-7 tastes, including Bitter, go back thousands of years in eastern medicine (Chinese and Ayurveda) in written texts, and much longer than that within the oral tradition of pre-history. Also, in european traditional medicine, herbal “bitters” go back to the 13th-14th century (Hildegard von Bingen and others) using a mix of roots such as Dandelion, Chicory, Burdock as well as herbal leaf blends like Dandelion greens, Parsley (used at Passover Seders to symbolize the bitterness of past enslavement - sometimes green onion tops or potato peels are used as well), Thyme, Oregano, Rosemary, Motherwort, and Sage. :herb:

Bitter is wonderful for liver health and detox. Being that specific tastes on the palate have immediate neurological responses, bitter taste for nausea and general malaise has an immediate benefit followed by further biochemical/digestive aspects.

Bitter is esp good for the elderly palate which has some changes that come with age - and Indian elders swear by their love of weekly Bitter Gourd for digestive health and happiness. It’s an acquired taste, the first time I had it when I was in my 30s I almost keeled over - it’s much stronger tasting than Dandelion leaves and root.

From the eastern science perspective, Bitter boosts digestive fire which in turn boosts immunity, assimilation, etc.

This is my current favorite Bitter fix for evening enjoyment, it energizes without caffeine and tastes very coffee-like when made strong. Because of the powers of Bitter, for people who need to stop coffee for whatever reason, they can switch to such root powder drinks without any of the awful caffeine withdrawal symptoms - I expect because of the liver support. Only 1g carb per cuppa.

Feel better with Bitter!

#6

I use bitters as spice in soups and stews. Just the bitters sold for alcoholic drinks. I grew up with the use of such bitters. They don’t really make soup or stews taste bitter, they just add “body” to it.

(Dirty Lazy Keto'er, Sucralose freak ;)) #7

I dunno… I think I have some sort of genetic thing that makes me hyper sensitive to bitterness.
For instance, every kind of tea I’ve ever tried, is bitter to me, while others tell me it’s not… Or, just put a little sugar with it. Ha ! No thanks.

If something tastes even slightly bitter to me, it’s not happening ! I absolutely despise anything bitter.

#8

My facebook newsfeed just had an add about bitter drops - which are supposed to suppress hunger for sweets. Has anybody tried this?

#9

I absolutely LOVE drinking tonic water. I’ve enjoyed it ever since I was a kid. But, I also liked Squirt- which is somewhat bitter as well. Thinking back, I must have been an oddball kid. Loved eating graperuit, cranberries, parsley, black coffee- started drinking that when I was 6, dark chocolate, etc.
Never knew what quinine was until recently, just knew that it made my tastebuds happy. Learn something new every day!

#10

This.

Bitter means nothing to me other than don’t eat or drink it LOL

(Dirty Lazy Keto'er, Sucralose freak ;)) #11

:grinning: lol Right ?

To me it would be like picking up a carton of milk that has gone bad, smelling it, and being like, “Oh, rotten ! Mmmm… Gulp, gulp, gulp” :grinning:

It’s like, Wait ! God made that bitter, so you would know not to put it in your mouth :wink: lol

(Doug) #12

There is a basis for this - bitter taste often means alkaloids are present, and a good many of them are toxic to humans. There’s a huge range of course - people have used some of them medicinally or to get high for millenia, but then some of them are used on the tips of poison arrows too…

(Bob M) #13

That’s an interesting idea. Is this similar to “umami”, such as what is added using anchovies, soy sauce (no wheat, naturally fermented, of course :wink:) or the like? I often add these (or fish sauce, which is basically anchovies) to anything where I want more flavor.

#14

I forgot it before but there are special cases when I kind of crave bitter. Not too bitter, just black coffee, way stronger than usual (my usual is very weak).
I always try it for headache too (coffee helped a few times in my past and I always try coffee in this situation despite it usually doesn’t help… but every excuse to drink coffee is good in my books :stuck_out_tongue: not like I need any… and I am an optimist) but when I actually crave it and it really helps… That case is more than slight carb poisoning. If it’s serious enough, I only desire a sea of black coffee, not even food. It feels extremely good. Bitter coffee, fasting and going into ketosis… I don’t remember when it happened last time but I had my too wild and experimenting times for sure.

(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #15

This is an easy intro to bitters. A glass of tonic soda and enough Angostura Bitters to make it a pale copper colour. As you grow accustomed to the flavour, gradually increase the Angostura. You could do the same with plain soda if you want to avoid the sugar/aspartame of tonic soda.

#16

Yes, it adds umami, or body as I call it. I don’t use a lot, a little goes a long way. It’s my secret ingredient :slight_smile:

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #17

Bitterness and umami are different tastes. Umami is a rich, meaty flavour that enhances the other flavours of foods, whereas bitter is harsh on the tongue.

Just a note, because people have mentioned them in earlier posts: tonic/quinine water generally contains sugar, unless it is a diet version, in which case the sweetener is probably aspartame. (Unsweetened chinchona bark is exceedingly bitter.)

Also, for those who need to avoid alcohol, Angostura Bitters is an alcoholic drink, not just a flavouring used to enhance the taste of cocktails.

I have fallen afoul of both these facts in the past, so a word to the wise . . . :grin:

(Bob M) #18

Although if you use it to cook, all the alcohol should evaporate. We have Maria Emmerich’s cookbooks, and she is so anti-alcohol that she won’t use any for cooking. So, when I make her (outstanding) chicken cacciatore, I add some red wine. Not only do you cook this a while to thicken it, but you add so little wine (1/2 cup, at most 1 cup), it’s immaterial.

Also, if you’re concerned about having left over wine, I’ve been buying small “boxed” wines. Then I freeze whatever I don’t use, in containers with labels of amount on them.

(Michael - When reality fails to meet expectations, the problem is not reality.) #19

What seems to have gotten lost in this discussion so far is the primary reason I posted it:

Abstract

Objectives

Extracts of the hops plant have been shown to reduce weight and insulin resistance in rodents and humans, but elucidation of the mechanisms responsible for these benefits has been hindered by the use of heterogeneous hops-derived mixtures. Because hop extracts are used as flavoring agents for their bitter properties, we hypothesized that bitter taste receptors (Tas2rs) could be mediating their beneficial effects in metabolic disease. Studies have shown that exposure of cultured enteroendocrine cells to bitter tastants can stimulate release of hormones, including glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1). These findings have led to the suggestion that activation of Tas2rs may be of benefit in diabetes, but this tenet has not been tested. Here, we have assessed the ability of a pure derivative of a hops isohumulone with anti-diabetic properties, KDT501, to signal through Tas2rs. We have further used this compound as a tool to systematically assess the impact of bitter taste receptor activation in obesity-diabetes.

If I side-tracked the discussion by mentioning tonic soda and Angostura Bitters as an intro to bitters, I’d like to get back on the mainline again.

Results

We show that KDT501 signals through Tas2r108, one of 35 mouse Tas2rs. In DIO mice, acute treatment stimulated GLP-1 secretion and enhanced glucose tolerance. Chronic treatment caused weight and fat mass loss, increased energy expenditure, enhanced glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity, normalized plasma lipids, and induced broad suppression of inflammatory markers. Chronic KDT501 treatment altered enteroendocrine hormone levels and bile acid homeostasis and stimulated sustained GLP-1 release. Combined treatment with a dipeptidyl peptidase IV inhibitor amplified the incretin-based benefits of this pure isohumulone.

Conclusions

Activation of Tas2r108 in the gut results in a remodeling of enteroendocrine hormone release and bile acid metabolism that ameliorates multiple features of metabolic syndrome. Targeting extraoral bitter taste receptors may be useful in metabolic disease.

#20

You cannot taste Bitters in soups per se. There is zero bitter taste. It just elevates the meaty, tangy flavor aspects. Of course if you pour a whole bottle in there, you will have issues with flavor, you don’t pour a jar of cayenne pepper in there either.

As Bob said, alcohol evaporates during cooking.