Bitter taste in soup - how to remove

Merrill is a co-founder of Food52.

added 8 months ago

Not sure about actually leaching out the bitterness, but wonder if adding some lemon juice might help to offset it.

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I add a teaspoon of sugar to offset bitterness
And then some extra salt to offset the
Sweetness of the sugar. It's a couple of steps but works perfect every time.

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Monita is a recipe tester for Food52.

added 8 months ago

Adjusting the seasoning could help too

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FrozenFoodie added 8 months ago

Thanks, everyone. Letting it sit overnight to see what happens.

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pierino is a trusted source on General Cooking and Tough Love.

added 8 months ago

It's hard to answer without knowing the other components of the soup. But just a note, in Italy "bitter" is actually a desirable taste. Bitter greens in particular.

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If I've overseasoned a soup, I sometimes add a potato or two, diced small, and cook soup some more til potato is soft. That works for absorbing some of the extra seasoning - maybe it works for bitterness, too.

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If I've overseasoned a soup, I sometimes add a potato or two, diced small, and cook soup some more til potato is soft. That works for absorbing some of the extra seasoning - maybe it works for bitterness, too.

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ChefOno added 8 months ago

Unfortunately, it's a culinary myth that a potato will absorb excess salt -- or capsaicin -- or anything else you've added too much of. Robert Wolke, professor emeritus of chemistry at the University of Pittsburgh, author of What Einstein Told His Cook, explains (edited for clarity):

Potatoes will soak up salty water but they don't selectively extract salt out of the water. Would you be surprised if a sponge placed in salt water came out tasting salty? Of course not. The concentration of salt in the water -- the amount of salt per quart -- is not affected.

http://www.washingtonpost...

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FrozenFoodie added 8 months ago

Thanks for all the suggestions. Merrill's lemon recommendation seems to have done the trick. We added the lemon, let it sit overnight and sieved it today. That took care of the bitter taste. Thanks so much for all your help!

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