Oriental Mixed Veggies

Does anyone know what they put into Oriental Mixed Vegetables to make them Oriental? Broccoli, peas... those are good Western vegetables, or global ones at most. I would guess that the flavor is not due to the distinctly Eastern water chestnuts because they have no flavor - just disgusting texture. Yes, water chestnuts are clearly not American as I only know of one person in all of Christendom who would purposely eat them, and that is my grandmother. That is her only fault, and I've known people with worse ones believe it or not. So water chestnuts are Oriental, but do not make OMV's taste different than normal MV's. Some may beg to differ that water chestnuts are the whole problem: taste and texture; I am willing to expand their blame as far as bad taste, gross texture, and preventing grandma from being a saint. Before I settle on water chestnuts as the flavor culprit, I would like to be sure that there is nothing that actually has taste that makes Oriental Mixed Vegetables taste like they do. Even if my suspicions are confirmed and I find out that water chestnuts are not responsible for the flavor of OMV, I still hold it against my grandma for liking those uncivilized things. Whatever it is that causes the flavor, could someone please tell me so that I can pick it out. I am really not a fan.