North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["Stephen Sadler" <Docshiva@Docshiva.org>]

Could you sense sweet, sour, salty, bitter, or did you lose complex flavor?
Could the rhubarb have been sprayed?  The oxalic acid could theoretically
have bound to enough zinc to have reduced your sense of taste - but I can't
find any reference to that actually having happened.  If you had that much
oxalic acid, I would think you would have had other symptoms - burning in
the mouth, for instance, or vomiting. This is the sort of symptom I would
take to a doctor.

~ Stephen

-----Original Message-----
From: nafex-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org
[mailto:nafex-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Jay Cutts
Sent: Friday, December 11, 2009 9:20 AM
To: North American Fruit Explorers
Subject: Re: [NAFEX] Are all rhubarbs the same?

Rhubarb question:  I had a strange experience with rhubarb not too long 
ago and wonder if anyone has heard of this.  After munching on some raw 
rhubarb stalks on a hot summer day (which I remember doing as a kid), I 
basically lost my sense of taste for a week.  It was a horrifying 
experience, especially since I didn't know if the loss would be 
permanent.  It's hard to describe how devastating it is not to be able 
to taste anything.

I know that rhubarb contains oxalic acid, which is a tiny crystal that 
can physically damage tissues.  I know that the leaves of rhubarb are 
not supposed to be eaten for this reason.  I wouldn't want anyone to go 
through the taste loss that I experienced, especially if it ends up 
being long lasting.   Has anyone heard of this phenomenon?  I believe 
that oxalic acid is broken down by cooking.

Jay Cutts
> I had two rhubard plants side by side in a rhubarb-unfriendly climate and
I'm surprised how different they were.  One was a lot more red and tastier
but did not thrive; the other did somewhat better, tended to bolt, and
wasn't as good (I simmered with sugar for tasting).  I don't recall now what
the flavor difference was, I'd have thought rhubard is mostly just tart.  
>
> Lisa (previously in hot dry sunny Southern Oregon)
>
>   
>> thinking of planting out a big patch of rhubarb.  I'm
>> curious if there
>> is really much difference between rhubarbs, especially as
>>     
>
>
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