Brussels sprouts apology

[Odsox]

Over here we are having a supermarket war on fresh vegetables, with Lidl winning so far with sprouts at 10c per kilo. At that price we had to buy some, even though I have loads of them in the garden, and I have to say they were a major disappointment.
They were distinctly bitter and I can't fathom why that would be. I grow the most popular (and presumably commercial) F1 variety and always have done, and my sprouts are always sweet and never bitter.
In the past I may have made some rather disparaging remarks aimed at those that mentioned that they hate sprouts because they are disgustingly bitter, so to those members I must apologise, even including that young lady who lives at the top end of Scotland

Mind you, if you grew your own ........

[tosca]

I am going to be growing my own next year now we have settled in. This year we will have to have frozen as our Lidl doesn't stock fresh. They are one of my favourite veg.

[diggernotdreamer]

I have never experienced bitter sprouts, only been growing my own since we moved to Ireland as I didn't have garden space for long term things like that before. I always bought mine from the organic farm shop or Waitrose and they were very nice. I just googled bitter sprouts and read that a response to stress by sprouts ie not enough water or cool weather could make them bitter, or being stored badly causing them to lose moisture could be a factor.

I really like Rubine, the red ones and have grown half tall as I thought they would stand up better to the atlantic gusts we get here and they have been really nice and tender especially when halved, cooked in butter with bacon and a grating of nutmeg. I hope to get better at growing them, any recommendations for other good varieties to grow

[niknik]

I have always found sprouts to be bitter, whether frozen, fresh, organic or whatever, and avoided eating them as much as possible, until someone said to put a teaspoon of sugar in , when cooking them. now I love them, maybe I´ll try growing some and see if can get them to be non-bitter. I thought that was just the way they came!

[Green Aura]

Apology accepted.

[doofaloofa]

I am bitter because i can't grow decent sprouts

[Millymollymandy]

Glad you got to experience what revolting bitter sprouts are really like!

[Odsox]

Glad you got to experience what revolting bitter sprouts are really like!

I'm glad I only bought a kilo, and I can say with hand on heart that those sprouts will be the last I buy.
I do pity people who have no idea what a home grown, freshly picked sprout tastes like.

[Millymollymandy]

You will have to send us one each, at least to Maggie and me. :-)
I do believe you, you know!

Not that I can grow them here as I guess you have to start earlyish in the year and I don't sow my brassicas (kale and PSB) until July to be planted out mid August after the worst of the flea beetles have gone. I can then enjoy some rocket and radishes too.