# Are there any foods that are good to eat raw but are worse after cooking? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** food-cooking\ **Created:** [September 2, 2023, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531 "2023-09-02T21:59:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 9:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531/21 "2023-09-03T09:42:24Z")
And east is east and west is west and if you take cranberries and stew them like applesauce they taste much more like prunes than rhubarb does. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 9:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531/22 "2023-09-03T09:50:11Z")
Cucumbers. I think cucumbers will dissociate into cucumber atoms if you cook them. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531/23 "2023-09-03T11:41:33Z")
> [@Cervaise](#): > > Asparagus is one where it needs to be cooked a bit. Raw asparagus is strongly vegetal, like grass. A touch of heat knocks that down. Ah, that’s one of the very few vegetables I don’t like (cooked or raw), so I can’t speak to that. > [@california\_jobcase](#): > > Celery doesn’t really taste worse to me when cooked, but it does seem to take on a stronger flavor after cooking. Celery is a weird case. Raw celery has lots of texture, but almost no flavor. Cooked celery has lots of flavor, but almost no texture. Both are indispensable, but in completely different applications (can you imagine chicken soup without celery?). They’re best treated as two different foodstuffs. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 11:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531/24 "2023-09-03T11:51:20Z")
> [@Cervaise](#): > > > [@Chronos](#): > > > > Most vegetables, to my taste, are best either raw or only very slightly cooked. > > Asparagus is one where it needs to be cooked a bit. Raw asparagus is strongly vegetal, like grass. A touch of heat knocks that down. Really fresh asparagus, like, cut it and immediately convey it to your mouth, is very nice raw, imho. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531/25 "2023-09-03T12:21:41Z")
And just how long have you been waiting to use that, huh? (Well played) ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531/26 "2023-09-03T12:52:35Z")
I’ll nominate strawberries. While they are just fine as jam, they don’t seem to do well cooked otherwise, like on a fruit tart. A good batch of strawberries is best eaten raw. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531/27 "2023-09-03T13:05:25Z")
Fresh strawberries are surprisingly effective in savory applications, like a spinach salad with thin sliced beef and bleu cheese and a balsamic vinaigrette. Plus walnuts for texture. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531/28 "2023-09-03T15:29:07Z")
I guess that’s funny. ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531/29 "2023-09-03T15:34:04Z")
> [@Tamerlane](#): > > Nothing with dragon fruit ends well. It’s like [Yum Kaax](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yum_Kaax) looked down upon the nascent spirit of the dragon fruit at the dawn of creation and decreed it would be the most amazing-looking of all fruits, but to balance it out it would be drained of all discernible flavor. You are right 98% of the time. Believe it or not, I’ve had flavorful dragonfruit, on exceeding rare occasion. (It helps to live in tropical places where you can always get it, so I’ve had it more than most people.) One of life’s memorably disappointing moments is tasting dragonfruit for the first time. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531/30 "2023-09-03T16:14:19Z")
> [@Roderick\_Femm](#): > > Most fruit is better fresh than cooked. I love grilled peaches as a dessert. I buy very unripe peaches intentionally because I can grill the heck out of them and they become intensely sweet. I also like baked apples. We have apple bakers; just core the apple and stuff it with peanut butter/brown sugar/raisins/honey/pecans/whatever. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531/31 "2023-09-03T16:51:37Z")
Starfruit is similarly disappointing. It has some flavor, but about as much as the least-flavorful apple you’ve ever eaten. And an “apple baker” is just a piece of aluminum foil and a campfire. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531/32 "2023-09-03T17:27:14Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I love grilled peaches as a dessert. Peaches are great no matter what you do to them. Maybe apricots, too, but I haven’t had apricot pie, yet. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531/33 "2023-09-03T18:34:56Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Starfruit is similarly disappointing. It has some flavor, but about as much as the least-flavorful apple you’ve ever eaten. Their only point in existing is to look good in slices on long drinks. But don’t eat the slice, the drink is better. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531/34 "2023-09-03T19:05:43Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > And an “apple baker” is just a piece of aluminum foil and a campfire. Heh, ours are beautiful ceramic(?) pieces made by an artisan with a pottery shop in Smicksburg, PA (a largely Amish community). ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531/35 "2023-09-03T19:11:28Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Starfruit is similarly disappointing. Our friend Richard and his wife Lourdes run a restaurant called Gutside near Friar’s Bay in St Martin. Every meal comes with a slice of starfruit as a garnish. It is delicious when picked perfectly ripe. Richard has several trees on his land and is extremely careful to pick only the ripe fruit. He believes starfruit has medicinal properties. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531/36 "2023-09-03T20:19:31Z")
> [@Jeff\_Lichtman](#): > > Avocados are pretty much ruined by cooking. I don’t know of any recipes or classic dishes that call for cooking them. This the first thing I thought of when I saw the thread. > [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > Apples. I’ll eat apple pie, but the texture is never pleasing to me; plus, you gotta load up on the cinnamon and sugar. Applesauce is lame, taste-wise. Baked apples don’t cut it. It’s almost like apples weren’t meant to be anything but raw. I’m the opposite. Raw apples upset my stomach. I only like cooked apples, and I like them quite a bit. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531/37 "2023-09-03T20:23:41Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Most vegetables, to my taste, are best either raw or only very slightly cooked. Certainly, any vegetable is ruined by overcooking. Green beans do well with a long stew. Like I like them cooked for an hour plus in a tomato sauce. (Or in a slow cooker for like 4-6 hours.) I’m not a big fan of green beans raw nor lightly cooked, but stewed into sweet softness they are absolutely delectable. [Here’s a similar recipe to what I use](https://www.fromachefskitchen.com/mediterranean-braised-green-beans-tomatoes/), though this one is only for 45 minutes. I tend to go 1-1.5 hrs. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531/38 "2023-09-03T21:06:03Z")
Lima beans never want to come out of the pot - the longer they stew (hopefully, with a big chunk of ham thrown in there), the better they got. \<— truly pathetic rhyme. ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531/39 "2023-09-03T21:13:18Z")
In my opinion, the common white mushroom _Agaricus bisporus_, the crimini/cremini/baby bella mushroom (same species but brown because of exposure to light) and the portobello/portobella mushroom (same species but allowed to grow larger) all have better flavor and texture raw than cooked. I’ll still eat them if they’re lightly cooked but it’s very easy to overcook and ruin them. There are several other mushroom species are better cooked than raw. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2023, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531/40 "2023-09-03T21:35:00Z")
Cabbage. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-foods-that-are-good-to-eat-raw-but-are-worse-after-cooking/989531.md?page=3)