The other day (i.e. right now), I was procrastinating and I took this Buzzfeed quiz (as you do when you're hard core procrastinating) about how much of a picky eater you are. It wasn't a huge surprise, but I'm not a very picky eater (I don't eat Marmite, blue cheese, kidneys or liver, if you're interested), but I know quite a lot of people who are.
Since I eat pretty much anything that's placed in front of me (except for Marmite, blue cheese, kidneys, liver and probably things like brain, etc.) it's hard for me to understand why so many people don't eat things like ... tomatoes, for example. Or eggs.
I once had a friend who could eat eggs, but couldn't bear to break them open or cook with them. I had another friend who could eat tomatoes cooked, but not raw, and only if it had been pulverized into a mushy consistency or a sauce.
John doesn't eat cheese (legend has it that he once fainted during a school field trip to a cheese factory - he was five) or foods with a lot of cream or dairy. But that's mostly because he's lactose intolerant (and a bit of a baby, if you ask me).
As a child, my parents tried to make me eat pork liver (which is popular in Chinese cuisine) and I hated it. So much so that I'd gag or retch at the table, but my mom kept insisting, "You don't know if you like it if you don't try it!" Which is probably true for the first time you try any new food, but the fact of the matter was that I "tried" pork liver about 25 times and still hated it.
I've tried explaining that, while I'll eat almost anything, it doesn't mean I'll necessarily enjoy it. For example, I don't love cooked bell peppers. But I wouldn't pick them out or refuse to eat something if bell peppers featured in the recipe. And, I don't love having seeds or nuts in my salads or food in general (except for cake, of course - cake is always an exception!). But I wouldn't go out of my way to avoid a toasted pumpkin-seed and fennel salad, for example, or refuse to eat something that had chopped hazelnuts sprinkled on top.
So: are you a picky eater? I'd love to know! I've been asking a few people recently and have been fascinated by their answers. What wouldn't you eat if it was placed in front of you?
I love food and I always *think* that I'd eat most things but I didn't fancy deep fried frog and things liked that on the menu in Singapore!
ReplyDeleteLots of love,
Angie
SilverSpoon London
Haha, I don't I'd try that either, Angie! :) xx
DeleteI'm a bit like you, there's things I don't love but I'll probably still eat. I like basically anything with exception of snails.... I tried snails a few months ago and really didn't like them so can't say I'll be ordering them any time soon!
ReplyDeleteYeah ... I'm like you, Hannah! I'm a little funny with snails too ... sometimes I really enjoy them, and other times ... I don't.
DeleteThat quiz told me I wasn't a picky eater but I think that I am. I've gotten much less fussy in my advanced years but I still have trouble finding stuff to eat at a lot of places. I don't eat fish, or anything with corriander (yuck, soap) and that cuts out a lot of dishes!
ReplyDeleteI've heard that people are born with a gene that makes them either love/hate coriander. To me, it tastes wonderfully fragrant and not like soap at all, but I know a lot of other people who think it tastes like soap! I couldn't live without coriander in my banh mis and phos ... :)
DeleteHaha, I fall into the category of non-egg eaters... but only when I actually see them (and yes, I sometimes pick the scrambled bits in noodles/fried rice). I have a weird reaction when I taste runny yolks and I hate the smell of hard boiled eggs. EEEEK! Brunch/brekky dates are often difficult but with the amount of new good places in London that serve more than just eggs on their menu, it's all been good =)
ReplyDeleteHoney x The Girl Next Shore
I'll keep that in mind if we ever go out for brunch, Honey - which ... WE SHOULD! xx
DeleteYes please! And don't worry about ordering egg, I'm all for the #yolkporn =)
Delete*Note to self: don't put seeds in Jaime's dinner* Ha.
ReplyDeleteI get the impression that a lot of people consider vegans to be picky eaters, but that's absolutely not the case for me - following a whole-food vegan diet has definitely made my choices (and own cooking) far more adventurous and varied.
However, I have realised that the more I develop my own recipes and cooking skills, the more 'opinionated' I am about restaurant food... but I think this is probably a result of my love for strong flavour, which is sadly lacking in a lot of food. Does that make me picky? Perhaps. But I just can't stand bland food!
Ha! I definitely wouldn't call that "picky", Laura - I'd call it "discerning" :) :) Also: good taste. Buds. Taste buds.
DeleteI am clearly a picky eater. I wouldn't eat mushrooms (hate the taste and the consistency), goat cheese, rucola, okra and definitely not marmite! :) I am a vegetarian now, otherwise I'll have a long list of meat and organs that I would never touch :P
ReplyDeleteI used to hate mushrooms too, when I was a child, and then I suddenly snapped out of it as an adult - I don't know how it happened! I also dislike goat's cheese, but I'll still eat it. OMG, i used to HATE arugula/rocket ... so bitter and weird! Again, I still don't love it, but I'll eat it now! Okra is also a funny one. I don't think those are too unusual to avoid though, as they are all quite strong flavours :)
DeleteI think I have a problem the opposite way, in that there wasn't ANYTHING on that list I don't like! It's taken me a long time (28 years!!) to get into eating raw tomatoes, but I'm getting there. I don't know how I would handle something totally crazy, but I'd probably give it a try :) xx
ReplyDeleteHaha! Glad to hear it, Megan. OH NO, you're one of THOSE raw tomato people! At least you've come around though ... ;) xx
DeleteI did the quiz and came out as definitely not a fussy eater! There's very little I won't eat - weirdly, one of them is Summer Pudding. For some reason, even the sight of it can make me feel queasy. I think it's the soggy bread! Bleugh!
ReplyDeletePolly xx | Follow Your Sunshine
Good to know, Polly :) Otherwise, we couldn't be friends. ;) I don't even know what Summer Pudding is! Have to look it up. I'm not a fan of fruit cake ... :( Bleurgh! xx
DeleteBahaha this post made me giggle!! I must admit that I'm a bit of a picky eater - I don't eat red meat (although I can be persuaded by bacon), I love the taste of mushrooms but hate the rubbery texture so can only eat them if they're chopped up really tiny and cooked. I'm also allergic to nuts so I often have trouble when travelling. Mr Ayla is the absolute worst though. He won't touch a single vegetable and won't even try it once no matter how much I nag him! I think men are just big babies in general!
ReplyDeleteNut allergies are the worst! I can't imagine; you must have to be super careful all the time.
DeleteHaha, I can't believe Mr Ayla doesn't eat vegetables!! Not even one kind?! Although, it's not too much of an unusual dislike ... I know a lot of people who don't like specific vegetables, for example :)
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ReplyDeleteWhen I interviewed for my job, they took me out to dinner at the end of the day, to a lovely Persian place nearby. Our director, who hates bell peppers, actually got up and took her meal back to the kitchen because it had bell peppers in it. Awkward!!
ReplyDeleteHAHAHA ... SO awkward. Have you seen that video of the woman in the US who yelled at staff in a takeout restaurant (in a really racist and awful way, actually) because they put green bell peppers instead of red bell peppers in her food? It was cah-razy!!
DeleteI'd like to say I'm a fairly adventurous eater, but the truth is I always eat the same things - truffles, poached eggs, cheese, steak tartare (ALL THE STEAK TARTARE), and creamy pasta (carbonara. Give me carbonara). That said, I WILL venture out of my comfort zone if a dish is photogenic enough, because blogging. x
ReplyDeleteJasiminne | Posh, Broke, & Bored
HAHAHA - that just made me fall off my chair laughing. I think 50% of the things I do lately is "because blogging". :D :D x
DeleteAfter travelling on a budget in South East Asia I can say I can eat almost anything when Im hungry. But when there is a choice I'm turning into very picky person :)
ReplyDeleteKatya
Ok, But First Coffee
That must have been a challenge, Katya! I remember travelling in Vietnam and closing my eyes while I waited for my pho on the side of the street because I just didn't want to even *think* about the sanitary conditions of the kitchenware ... but thankfully, I didn't get sick (except while I was traveling on an overnight train)! Thanks for stopping by to share!
DeleteI used to be really picky as a kid. I didn't eat spaghetti b/c my parents made their sauces really sweet, and I was of the opinion back then that sugar had no place in a pasta dish. I also hated spinach. These are both foods I love now. I'm glad you mentioned food ambivalence, b/c I experience that more than outright hatred or disgust.
ReplyDeleteYou know, I was the same way about zucchini and mushrooms ... but really, I just didn't like the way my parents cooked it! Which they still cook the same way!!! And "food ambivalence" is definitely a term that I need to incorporate into my life.
DeleteI used to be the pickiest eater ever (literally used to throw anything green under my sister's chair to avoid eating it...) but now I'll pretty much eat anything! That said, I'm not a huge fan of olives - I'd rather eat them as olive oil, paste or chopped up very small. I find the texture weirdly meat-like...?! *hangs head in shame* xx
ReplyDeleteTamsin / A Certain Adventure
Haha, that's so funny, Tamsin! Olives are tricky ... I don't think I really loved them until I moved over here! The texture can be meaty, you're right! xxx
DeleteI've never been a picky eater as I was always tuaght to eat everything that was in front of me otherwise I'd go to bed without supper (the joys of coming from Yorkshire!) but I was so surprised when I first moved out 9 years ago, how many people are fussy with their foods! It really boggles me when people won't even try something just because of how it looks, smells or even it's texture!
ReplyDeleteI'm definitely a foodie at heart :)
Tahira | http://ramblingsofafoodaddict.com/