Mushrooms: I have tried and tried to eat them, and failed so many times. I think its time I stopped trying.

Also: egg salad. yeeccch.

And Miracle Whip is an abomination against G_d and all that is good and holy.

Another vote for bologna:pink, spongy, creepy, you don'-know-what-it-is undertaste.
Marshmallows: white sponge that turns to slick-goo in the pie hole.
Chocolate covered cherries: teeth-rottingly, infinitely sweet, cheap-tasting goop.

I have experienced this, but in my case, it was under a set of very specific circumstances. It comes from my experience of strange pregnancy aversions. Ham, yes. Polish sausage, definitely. Anything cured or smoked. Garlic, even on someone else, made me retch. And seafood of any kind was out of the question. Could it be a response mediated by hormone levels? I wound up thinking that the kosher rules made a lot of sense from a taste perspective. But the whole thing made me miserable, as food-centric as I normally am.

In a non-pregnant state: Oysters--I'm all over them, raw or cooked. Miracle Whip, though . . . I hate to even think about its sickly sweetness. It is just the most disgusting thing ever invented. Objectively.

gleam wrote:Same here, ek (on the soapy taste issue). I can tolerate a very, very small amount of it.

Oh, one last one, for reals: raw onion.

Oh, how I feel for you! A las asadas or la pasadita taco with no cilantro or onion?
Can you enjoy blender salsas with onion/cilantro?

seebee wrote:

gleam wrote:Same here, ek (on the soapy taste issue). I can tolerate a very, very small amount of it.

Oh, one last one, for reals: raw onion.

Oh, how I feel for you! A las asadas or la pasadita taco with no cilantro or onion?
Can you enjoy blender salsas with onion/cilantro?

It depends on the amount of cilantro. Believe me when I say it tastes awful, and ruins everything around it.

I can generally pick it out, though.

I've learned to order tacos sin nada.

stewed coot wrote:Seebee,
If you're talking about fast-food/hot dog stand Polish, that's one thing-But what about the stuff from the Polish delis on Milwaukee ave.-either fresh or the many varieties of smoked, nestled in with some kraut & boiled
potatoes, rye bread, sweet butter, and a bypass for dessert?

stewed coot -
Tell me a deli where to get this on Milwaukee avenue, and I'll go give it a try. I WANT to like it. And, yes, my experiences ARE with the "fast-food/hot dog stand" variety as you've suggested.


And, lol gleam -
I order them con NADA MAS QUE cilantro y ceboya

Cathy2 wrote:I don't like:
Lemon bars or lemon meringue pie, though I like lemons and lemonade.

Very interesting post. I agree wholeheartedly. I think my aversion to those items is the lemon flavoring. Hate it. Also, I can't stand almond flavoring, but I LOVE almonds. BTW, I might be missing it, but almond flavoring tastes absolutely NOTHING like almonds to me.

seebee wrote:

Cathy2 wrote:I don't like:
Lemon bars or lemon meringue pie, though I like lemons and lemonade.

Very interesting post. I agree wholeheartedly. I think my aversion to those items is the lemon flavoring. Hate it.

Normally, lemon bars are made with lemon juice and lemon zest (at least good ones are). Are you saying that you have an aversion to that or are you talking about artificial flavoring?

Cookie's perfect lemon bars:



Best,
Michael

Everyone who has bologna issues needs to go try Paulina Market bologna. It's the platonic ideal of bologna; I'm not saying you won't still find it gross, but at least you'll know you exhausted the possibilities.

I also think cilantro tastes like soap, but I can tolerate it a bit now, but I don't order tacos with cilantro and onions.
I also have a recent aversion to taragon. If there is even a hint of it in something, that's all I can taste.
Abhor Miracle Whip.
I make lamb dishes for my husband all the time, but I just can't stomach it for some reason. I really want to like it, I try a piece every now and then, but I think mom ruined it for me when she made a leg of lamb, that was more like mutton, and now I can't get past it.
I also more than anything want to like blue cheese. Why do I love feta, but hate blue? I do not hate it as much when it is heated, will even have it on steak.
Like sausage, but if it's italian and it has fennel seeds in it forget it. I'm doing better with the fennel being ground up.
Do not like organ meats of any kind. Poisons go through the liver, why would anyone eat it?
Also, salmon. I can pretty much eat any other fish or crustacean.
Might as well hit the veggies while I'm at it- brussel sprouts, beets and lima beans.

nicinchic wrote:Do not like organ meats of any kind. Poisons go through the liver, why would anyone eat it?

Because it's delicious!

nicinchic wrote:Might as well hit the veggies while I'm at it- brussel sprouts, beets and lima beans.

I don't understand aversion to beets or Brussels sprouts. These things must be long-held childhood aversions to most people. Roasted beets are sweet and soft and not at all offensive in any way. Brussels sprouts are basically mini-cabbage, and when roasted properly have a nutty, slightly bitter flavor that's quite pleasant. When people tell me that they hate these things, I'm convinced that they haven't tried them since they were eight-years-old.

Beets- taste and smell like the earth. dirt. Can't do them. Even tried them recently at Scylla.
Brussel sprouts, too strong, but you're right, I do like cabbage..

eatchicago wrote:I don't understand aversion to beets or Brussels sprouts. These things must be long-held childhood aversions to most people. Roasted beets are sweet and soft and not at all offensive in any way. Brussels sprouts are basically mini-cabbage, and when roasted properly have a nutty, slightly bitter flavor that's quite pleasant. When people tell me that they hate these things, I'm convinced that they haven't tried them since they were eight-years-old.

The only food I've ever disliked was Brussel sprouts. We had it once as a kid, and it tasted like bitter, sweaty socks. Now, mind you, I was a good Polish kid, eating all my beets, cabbage, blood sausage, liver, etc., but one taste of Brussel sprouts, yuck. I would have tried them again, but dad never bothered making them again, since nobody in the family seemed to like our experiment with Brussel sprouts.

Only a few years ago did I get the chance to try them again. They were perfectly fine. So I'm back to not really hating anything, except for that Swedish fermented fish concoction known as surströmming, which has no danger of ever becoming mainstream, and which I'd try again, anyways.

Beets don't taste like dirt when they've been pickled.

Brussel sprouts are easy to make too strong, brown 'em too hard and they're bitter (some of us like that, but I understand not liking it). But look at the dish I made at Thanksgiving, you roast them about 45 minutes till they turn nutty and sweet, toss 'em with parmesan-- nothing too strong about that.

I got completely distracted by the jalapeno sausage stuffed wrapped in bacon, perfect bite size, morsels. God those look fantastic.

Mike G wrote:Brussel sprouts are easy to make too strong, brown 'em too hard and they're bitter (some of us like that, but I understand not liking it). But look at the dish I made at Thanksgiving, you roast them about 45 minutes till they turn nutty and sweet, toss 'em with parmesan-- nothing too strong about that.

When they're at their peak season, I make similarly roasted Brussels sprouts quite often for weeknight dinners.

Growing up, my mother made them a lot. She shredded them in a food processor and pan-fried with butter and onions like Brussel sprout hash browns. I loved them and I never understood all the jokes about kids hating Brussels sprouts.

Best,
Michael

eatchicago wrote:Normally, lemon bars are made with lemon juice and lemon zest (at least good ones are). Are you saying that you have an aversion to that or are you talking about artificial flavoring?

Best,
Michael

Very good catch. I WAS referring to the artificial stuff. WORLDS of difference, and I do happen to like the lemon bars made with fresh real lemon juice which are rare to find, but I must say, QUITE delicious when you do find them. Don't think I've ever come across a lemon meringue pie made solely with fresh lemon juice.

nicinchic wrote: Do not like organ meats of any kind. Poisons go through the liver, why would anyone eat it?

My father--who had a degree in Veterinary Science (D.V.M.), a degree in Medical Science (M.D.), and spent the majority of his career in practice as a board-certified Gastroenterologist--strictly forbid the preparation/consumption of organ meats in our home.

Did I mention that he was a very smart man?



E.M.

Olives. Here is one food that is completely inedible in its raw or cooked form unless it has been cured for several months. What other food that you know that has such a dubious distinction? I wonder who was the first person to try soaking them in water multiple times over several months before saying "hey, now I can eat these things!"

Seebee,

I'm blanking on names, but if you go anywhere 2 blocks north or south of Belmont on Milwaukee and walk into any food store you will find the stuff.
Also Rich's on Harlem & Lawrence, Norridge deli on Montrose east of Harlem, there are more & more as time goes on. The fresh variety will reek of garlic-so don't bother if you can't deal with that, and don't store any fresh bakes goods in the same 'fridge.(The most difficult part can be figuring out what the hell the true difference is among the countless smoked varieties, and sometimes the clerks can't help: "This has lots of garlic, this has more garlic...")

For me it's bananas. The smell, the texture, the taste... Can't do it. Part of it does come directly from a bad experience in high school that involved a completely decimated banana in the car I had to drive 45 minutes on the Ryan in rush hour, but mostly it's the taste and the texture.

I also agree with those who dislike beets. I've had them at home, I've had them at Chez Panisse, French Laundry, Lula Cafe, Green Zebra... If I wanted to eat dirt I'd go out into my backyard down a handful toddler-style.

Used to be averse to cilantro, but I've become more tolerant as I've gotten older.

Olives are one. I try and I try, and I just can't develop a taste for them, any of them. Green, black, pitted, unpitted, kalamata, stuffed with pimento or blue cheese or anything. Just can't make myself like them.

I'll also avoid anything with water chestnut in it. Just can't take the texture.

On a more fluid front, about twice a year I'll try an IPA or some other similarly hyper-hopped beers, in the hopes that I'll understand the appeal. I usually regret it and someone ends up with 2/3rds of a beer, on me. It always just ends up tasting like soap. Uck.

Tomatoes. Cannot eat anything that has touched a raw tomato. Please do not ask me if I like pizza or ketchup, you and I both know they don't taste remotely similar. My father grows the most beautiful, blood-red tomatoes in his garden every summer. People come from all over the neighborhood, asking for tomatoes. I have tried and tried to like them, and they still taste like moldy pumpkins to me.

Bananas. I have never been able to stand bananas or banana flavoring.

And I'm with you, whiskeybent. I love beer, and I want to like hoppy beer, but it tastes like perfume to me.

Binko wrote:The only food I've ever disliked was Brussel sprouts. We had it once as a kid, and it tasted like bitter, sweaty socks. Now, mind you, I was a good Polish kid, eating all my beets, cabbage, blood sausage, liver, etc., but one taste of Brussel sprouts, yuck. I would have tried them again, but dad never bothered making them again, since nobody in the family seemed to like our experiment with Brussel sprouts.

One way around the brussels sprouts aversion is to parboil them and then roast them with generous amounts of bacon or pancetta sprinkled (or, if you're like me, wrapped around the halves) generously over.

Of course, I'd probably eat a turd sandwich if it was wrapped in cured pig meat.

It's a few things for me.
Mayo- as has already been mentioned. The thought of it in the jar or especially squeeze container makes me shudder. I may have a mayo-phobia and avoid that aisle at the grocery store. If you chased me with a jar, I would probably set a world record for speed and then collapse of a heart attack.
Taro root, mashed- I'm fine with powdered taro in bubble tea, but I can't handle the dense texture.
Canned Tuna/salmon- I guess I don't understand why anyone would want to eat canned meats of any sort.
Blue cheese- I can do mild blue cheese with crackers, fruit, but wouldn't want it to be the focus flavour of my meal, especially when melted.

ParkerS wrote:

Binko wrote:The only food I've ever disliked was Brussel sprouts. We had it once as a kid, and it tasted like bitter, sweaty socks. Now, mind you, I was a good Polish kid, eating all my beets, cabbage, blood sausage, liver, etc., but one taste of Brussel sprouts, yuck. I would have tried them again, but dad never bothered making them again, since nobody in the family seemed to like our experiment with Brussel sprouts.

One way around the brussels sprouts aversion is to parboil them and then roast them with generous amounts of bacon or pancetta sprinkled (or, if you're like me, wrapped around the halves) generously over.

Of course, I'd probably eat a turd sandwich if it was wrapped in cured pig meat.

The problem is when my dad originally made the sprouts, they were prepared in the boil-until-absolutely-dead-and-then-some school of cooking. I could completely understand generations of school kids hating sprouts if they were subject to this preparation.

Now, roasted, grilled, fried, etc...perfectly yummy.

Can't get enough of lots of things mentioned, especially cilantro, lamb, beets, brussel sprouts.

But hard as I try (and I try over and over) and I cannot stomach lobster, crab, shrimp, herring, mussels, scallops, etc.. Makes me really sad as these ingredients always seemed to prepared in amazing and delicious looking ways.....

; (

seebee wrote:Also, I can't stand almond flavoring, but I LOVE almonds. BTW, I might be missing it, but almond flavoring tastes absolutely NOTHING like almonds to me.

I can't say I love almonds, but I do like them and I can't stand anything with almond extract in it. All those cookies and cranberry muffins wrecked!

Oh, and coffee. I love the smell of it, but even a hint of the flavor in anything makes it inedible.

I'll second the Miracle Whip and raise you sweet potatoes and yams.

Baked, candied, sauced, marshmallow dotted (marshmallows, another item to add to the mainstream dislikes list in and of themselves), mashed, fried, buttered, brown sugared or plain.

I've tried yams/sweet potatoes prepared in just about every way imaginable, by some very talented cooks/chefs, and just can't warm up to them.

Chocolate.

I don't hate it, but it doesn't "do" anything for me. Give me spices, vanilla, floral, fruit, caramel, and custards anyday over shokolade.

And, yes...I've had chocolate in virtually every form popularly available from lowbrow to high.

every so often I'll happen upon a prep that's truly delightful; a great moist brownie, homemade chocolate pudding, Vosges's red fire bar or naga truffle

and I vaccillate from one extreme to another...do I "prefer" milk chocolate or a hyper-bitter boutique bar from some mutant-run farm on Pitcairn Island?

actually, just give me white "chocolate"