poppopt
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Posts: 89
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Post by poppopt on May 27, 2017 15:22:42 GMT -5
Speaking of odd tastes in tomatoes, I thought I'd run this one past the group. (I saw the earlier post about "smokey" tasting tomatoes but didn't want to hijack that thread.) I had an interesting experience about 3 years ago. I went to a new farmers market that I'd never been to before. There was a person there selling lots and lots of tomatoes, and quite a few varieties. My mouth watered when I saw what looked to be some very beautiful looking Pink Brandywind tomatoes, real big ones, the kind that only take one slice to fill out a good sized sandwich. Had to have some! Bought about 4 of them, and as you can imagine, they weren't cheap. You can imagine my excitement as I slathered up those two pieces of bread with a healthy (well, maybe not healthy, but shall we say "generous") amount of mayo, laid down some high quality cheddar cheese and was about to get busy. And then came the bite. It sometimes takes a little bit for the flavors to sink in. Hmmm. Wasn't as good as I expected. Another bite. Something seems a bit off, what is it? Another bite? Dang, these tomatoes taste like they've been soaking in chlorine. I had hoped that it was only that one tomato but alas, my outlook turned out to be overly optimistic. All four were, at least to some extent, infected with that taste (smell? it's hard to say for sure which, or if it could have been both?). I contacted the grower by email and told them of my experience. I was nice about it. I received a reply that basically said that I knew nothing about what a good tomato was supposed to taste like and that their tomatoes were just fine. To be sure, I DO know what a good tomato tastes like. In fact, I have grown Pink Brandywine tomatoes in the past, along with numerous other varieties, that have had tastes that were out of this world delicious. But to this day, I have never again tasted a tomato that had a chlorine taste and it's never really been explained how such a thing could happen. Has anyone else ever tasted something they'd characterize as a chlorine taste? Could it have been the water used to irrigate the tomatoes? Could it have been the water or additives to that water used to wash (soak??) the tomatoes before bringing them to market? Could it have just been the tomato actually starting to spoil? Or might there be another explanation? It's a mystery I've never solved. But was curious to see if any of you might have tasted it before.
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Post by september on May 27, 2017 16:53:17 GMT -5
I've never experienced a chlorine taste in a tomato. It sounds like something to do with soaking in some kind of cleaning wash before market. Although, if it was a big tomato, you wouldn't expect the taste to get that far down into the flesh. Or could they have been transported or stored in some kind of closed box with chemical smell residue, not necessarily chlorine, but something that would mimic it. Very odd.
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Post by meandtk on May 27, 2017 19:36:13 GMT -5
poppopt I don't know about the taste, but the seller's customer service skills stink.
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Post by paulf on May 27, 2017 20:22:49 GMT -5
I agree that it may have been some kind of chemical residue used to clean or disinfect skins of the tomatoes. Chlorine in the water supply, even if over used, dissipates pretty quickly and smells worse than it actually is and will not leave a residue. Perhaps they had bleached the water for some reason. Not a good way to get repeat sales.
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poppopt
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Posts: 89
Joined: May 2017
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Post by poppopt on May 27, 2017 21:55:54 GMT -5
Thanks for the thoughts! Perhaps there was some kind of a wash used that affected the taste. It was certainly odd. Definitely not the best of customer service. Have never been back to that particular farmers market, actually. Not likely to, either... except maybe if something works out that I may end up being their competition. Not there yet but would entertain the idea if we ever get our market garden going.
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Post by Laura_in_FL on May 28, 2017 12:21:17 GMT -5
I agree that it may have been some kind of chemical residue used to clean or disinfect skins of the tomatoes. Chlorine in the water supply, even if over used, dissipates pretty quickly and smells worse than it actually is and will not leave a residue. Perhaps they had bleached the water for some reason. Not a good way to get repeat sales. ^ This. I have city water and don't get chlorine taste in my tomatoes. And no, it's not just that I'm used the to the chlorine, since I share tomatoes with family who have well water and none have ever detected any off flavors like you described. They just want to know when I will have more tomatoes to spare. What a disappointing experience, though!
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poppopt
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Post by poppopt on May 28, 2017 13:09:21 GMT -5
Thanks, Laura!
I guess the main reason I wanted to figure it out is because I don't want to do that to anyone else not realizing what I'm doing. If it is some kind of wash, that would make sense. I've never been in a place where I had to water with city water but most of the places around here, even rural places, are on city water. While I filter water that I drink, I might have a hard time keeping up with demand for a decent sized garden.
Thanks for your post!
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pcchip
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Post by pcchip on Jun 18, 2023 15:46:44 GMT -5
I just got two different kinds of tomatoes from the grocery store - dark colored mini, and very large ones advertised as "vine ripened" After biting into both of them, they both taste like chlorine! It's not some kind of rinse/wash, as when licking the surface I don't taste it - only when actually chewing the tomato The smell is mostly on the exhale, and it's distinctly chlorine I'm actually growing some tomatoes for the first time, I'm looking forward to trying home-grown and see if I get that same taste Very curious what is making them taste like this!
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Post by pepperhead212 on Jun 18, 2023 16:15:20 GMT -5
Welcome to the forum!
Sorry to hear about your problem, but, as you can see, you aren't the only one it's happened to. Been a long time since I've seen it mentioned again, however. Usually (though I never use this method, it is sometimes done commercially) the chlorine bleach is diluted considerably, to clean some things (I remember it being used on cantaloupe, during a listeria outbreak), and maybe someone forgot to dilute it!
Maybe if there's a farmer's market around, look for tomatoes there - they'd be less likely to have used something like that.
I've never had a bad "spitter" tomato with chlorine taste in it, but there have been some other bad flavors!
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Post by brownrexx on Jun 19, 2023 9:05:28 GMT -5
pcchip, I have never had this experience but I would guess that someone washed the tomatoes with a bleach solution and it penetrated the skins. Not a pleasant thought.
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Post by paulf on Jun 19, 2023 10:46:59 GMT -5
The residual taste/smell of chlorine on surfaces comes from the sodium hypochlorite of what is commonly called "bleach". Chlorine used in the water supply is a different cat alltogether. Brownie is absolutely correct in stating that the bleach solution, either full strength or diluted, used on the tomatoes was most likely still there or soaked in. If someone just washed the fruits with drinking water and left that much of a residual they would most likely burn hands and mouths trying to wash or drink the water. The smell alone would chase off any user.
Whoever washed their tomatoes with a bleach solution is not all that smart to begin with, IMHO. Now tell me the seller isn't touting their produce as "organic". While the water supply with chlorine added to the system uses an organic element, household bleach is anything but an organic compound.
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pcchip
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Post by pcchip on Jun 19, 2023 19:27:25 GMT -5
I really don't think it was from someone washing it with a chlorine solution - this smell was deep inside of the flesh (the very middle) and the juices I mostly just posted this here to: 1- tell the OP that he's not crazy 2- leave my story for someone in the future to realize that they're not crazy 3- hopefully create a landing page for someone in the future to come back and say "I figured out what makes them smell like chlorine!"
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Post by september on Jun 19, 2023 22:46:08 GMT -5
Just a thought, did you have a friend or family member take a taste to verify the chlorine taste?
Sometimes after a virus from a cold or covid people can temporarily lose or have changes in their sense of smell and taste when the nerves controlling them are affected. This happened to me about 3 years ago, and I didn't even realize it until I discovered I could no longer smell cat poo when changing the litter. Then I noticed other smells were missing as well, and when they finally started to come back, my sweat smelled like lemons to me! My sense of taste was very limited too. For a few months, all food seemed to taste like chalk, then slowly changed so everything smelled and tasted like hamburger cooked up with onions. It took almost two years for my taste and smell to get back to normal. So a possibility that someone's smell/taste perception could be skewed.
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Zebi
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Post by Zebi on Apr 19, 2024 19:21:11 GMT -5
Yes. Tomatoes that taste like chlorine are normal in my garden (they don't always happen, but they do happen). I'm not sure that everyone perceives it as a chlorine taste (but I do).
Usually, it's the overripe ones (most often overripe salad tomatoes) that taste like this. These taste a lot better if you don't let them ripen until they're dark red and soft. The longer they ripen, the more like chlorine they taste. However, it's not altogether unpleasant, and you can learn to like it, once you get past the initial shock. Chlorine is actually a nutrient that plants use (even if it's not commonly talked about). Also, if you cook them, they won't taste like chlorine anymore.
We have chlorinated city water. I'm pretty sure it's responsible. However, it's possible that the person you bought the tomatoes from used chloride minerals to fertilize (e.g. potassium chloride).
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