Growing foods you've never eaten

This year I am growing a couple of crops I have never eaten, but when described to me sounded good. These include: Ground Cherries, Kohlrabi, Kale, trombocino squash, blue banana squash, beets (but I forget where I planted them), arugula, butternut squash, delicata squash, acorn squash, a few other squashes, japanese cucumbers, and about 20 varieties of heirloom tomatoes (and I have never had an heirloom tomato). If I get really adventurous, I may plant a few parsnips or turnips.

I'm really excited to try new things this year. I would love to hear stories about new things you have tried thanks to gardening, or your experiences with some of the plants I am trying.

I am trying kohlrabi for the first time too, turnips also but I have had them before because my father in law grows them, he puts them in vegetable beef stew and you can barely tell the difference between them and potatoes, they remind me of a little bit bitter potato and are very similar in texture too. I am also doing horseradish and spaghetti squash! That's it for my newbies! Good luck with yours!

foods we havent tasted yet and are growing for the first time .....

kohlrabi, rainbow swiss chard, kale and fava beans.....

( i just bought some kale and swiss chard but havent cooked with it yet its all washed and ready to go )

things that we are growing for the first time is....

brossel sprouts, green cabage, a few differnt heirloom tomatoes and asparagus

hugs

rose

I've eaten everything we're planting (I LOVE veggies), although we're growing several things I've never grown before, like kale, beets parsnips and sugar snap peas.
We DO have a number of new varieties we're trying this year. Peruvian Purple potatoes, Red Celery, Red Romaine, and Red Brussels Sprouts (see a trend here).
I'm also trying Basil again, this time in the greenhouse... Lemon, Lime and "regular". Also trying carrots again, since this is the first year with the MM.
Each year, we try at least one new variety of tomato along with the one or two from the previous year that we liked the most. This year, the newbies are Sub-Arctic Prime, Siberia, Legend and La Roma (hoping these do ok, as the harvest season is a bit later than we'd like). I found one at Territorial Seed that I will try next year that is much shorter season if these don't fare well.

I'd never eaten Swiss Chard when I first started growing it and it took me a while to be brave enough to try it. Now I can't wait for it to recover from the hailstorm so I can start putting those free healthy greens in to my almost daily veggie saute again! I've grown several types of peppers that I'd never tried before, as well as squash. The stores around here never have more than 3 types of summer squash and 2 types of winter squash. I did a square of turnips over the winter, but didn't get much out of them. Wasn't impressed, but will try again next winter.

Of course I've tried tons of new-to-me tomato varieties, mostly heirlooms. Starting to lean back toward just going for the hardiest, most disease resistant ones, however, due to our local conditions.

Bought a kale seed packet the other day, but I think I have to wait until fall to plant that. Oh, and I got a couple of Golden Midget watermelons last year, which I'd never tried before. I've planted other melons, but these are the only ones I've gotten fruit from. Also several varieties of cucumber.

Some new things I am trying (and can't wait to get to):

Kakai Pumpkins (seeds are hull-less), Rattlesnake Pole Beans, Cascadia Snap Peas

I've been a 'meat and potatoes' person all my life along with my late husband. Living with my son and his family now (I have my own in-law apt which I love), I have been introduced to new foods and acquiring a taste for others, like cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, and more lately asparagus, parsnips, and Swiss chard among them. As you can see, I didn't eat many green veggies.

We just had the over-wintered parsnips for supper last nite roasted with taters and carrots. Mmmmm, good, the flavor is like a sweet carrot. I have all these in my garden for this year and looking forward to their fresh flavor.

Things we've never eaten before: I sowed seeds for a square of Pak Choi and Radicchio and have a couple of Pak Choi started seedlings under the lights.

We all tried kale and Brussels sprouts for the first time from the market last month and enjoyed them so they are in my garden plan. I've got 3 Brussels already transplanted for this year. We're ALL eating a little healthier than before.

Hooray for you QB! I love me some BS and kale. I would like to trygrowing okra this year, but the seeds just are taking forever (over two weeks now) to germinate.

Beets for me.

Elliephant - make kale chips using swiss chard leaves. Amazing snack and season 'em with garlic powder and steak seasoning.

Well there's not much at this point that I haven't tried, but as a matter of fact I am planting something this year that I haven't tasted! I'm planting some Asian radishes, one daikon which are long and skinny and look like parsnips, and one called watermelon radish which is round and white on the outside but bright pink on the inside. They're both supposed to be sweeter and milder than western radishes, so Im very excited to try them.

I never ate sugar snap peas before planting them in my garden last year. Theyre so good! That's one thing that gardening has taught me to love.

I'm growing 2 tomatillo plants that are covered in tomatillos. I've never had them as far as I know...but there are restaurants in south texas that probably have them in their hot sauce, and lord knows I've had a lot of that!

I wish I were growing arugula this year. It just sounds so good. I will grow it next year for sure.

Hmm, I've not tried walking onions or artichokes yet. I tried growing the onions last year but didn't catch a crop as I was too busy and grew red curly kale last year but couldn't find it to pick any! Will try again but under butterfly-proof covers. Ditto the purple cauliflowers which I think got swamped out by the parsnips before any butterfly got to them.

I grew quite a few things I hadn't grown before though. The sugar snap peas took their time to produce pods but once they got going they went on and on.

Isn't it wonderful how adventurous we get when we can grow our own.

I forgot that I sowed Collard seeds this week and have never tried them, either.

@jkahn.....I'm going to have to try steak seasoning on my kale chips. Never considered it before.

quiltbea wrote:Isn't it wonderful how adventurous we get when we can grow our own.

I forgot that I sowed Collard seeds this week and have never tried them, either.

@jkahn.....I'm going to have to try steak seasoning on my kale chips. Never considered it before.

I might try the collards too, I think I bought some seed... i have too many seeds... need more garden

camprn wrote: ....snip..... I think I bought some seed... i have too many seeds... need more garden

A happy +1 (I ain't go-en to rehab, ah-no-no)

We are growing pole beans this year, which I've never eaten. They are climbing up the trellis nicely! Not sure when to pick the beans, though. We went to a plant sale at the university last weekend and my husband snuck in three okra plants (I don't care for okra unless it's fried, and even then......) I'm also growing some heirloom tomatoes that I've not tried before and if they produce I still won't know what they are because I forgot to label the containers when I potted them up!

this forum is so fun and inspiring.....



hugs

rose.....when planting a square of something new to try...... hubby will ask....is this a tasting square? LOL

I've only got 12 squares at this stage so not much room to be adventurous but I have grown microgreens which includes kale, tatsoi, beetroot and endive.

I've also planted purple dragon carrots, romanesco broccoli which is lime green and a purple cauliflower. All veggies that we've eaten before but not in those colours!

I'm trying Vine Peach Cantaloupe. It's supposed to be the size and color of a peach but have texture and taste of a mango... YUM!

I have some purple mustard and dinasaur kale growing. Also a white wonder cuke.

Kay

I think I have only had eggplant once or twice, but this year I have four plants (if they all make it), and I'm excited to try new recipes with it.

Oh, yes, I've not tried eggplant and I tried growing it last year but didn't get anything before we moved. This year I picked up 4 starts (2 white, 2 purple) after our hailstorm and they are doing fantastic. Already lots of fruit setting on the purple ones, and whites are flowering.

ksbmom wrote:We are growing pole beans this year, which I've never eaten. They are climbing up the trellis nicely! Not sure when to pick the beans, though.

Just don't let them grow woody and stringy. Part of the beauty of growing our own is that we can harvest our stuff at their peak of freshness and flavour and only as much as we need right then.

I bought some aragular at the garden centre this weekend, THEN I looked them up to see what they were.

Last year I grew Swiss chard and kale for the first time; six transplants of each but they gave enough for me to keep eating nearly every day, plus heaps to give to a friend who had not tasted really fresh vegetables since her childhood. It was such a joy to share with someone who appreciated my offerings, that I am doing the same again this year.

We tend to plant things we have tried and liked. Because if we like it from the grocery store or farmer's market, then it's going to taste much better homegrown.

I am contemplating lemon cucumbers. Saw the seeds at the store and looked them up online. They look pretty neat, and I have to plan out the summer garden to see if those will fit into the plans.