Rejuvenated

Agree that it is intolerable for many people. But for someone like me, I can tolerate the odor, and the taste is absolutely heaven for me.

BamaVol

Anything with brains in it.

3timesalady

Wow, this post could go on for awhile...

I think anything with meat in it is nasty, but going purely on looks...

- Borscht
- Camembert
- Brie (but slightly less nasty than Camembert)
- Flan
- Balut (not that I've ever seen it, but I imagine that it looks gross)
- Mayonnaise
- Feta cheese

I feel like there must be dozens more, but these are the ones that come to mind at the moment. I'll come back when I think of some more.

3timesalady

omg, I googled it, EW!

Rejuvenated

So would it be the same reaction for you if it were intestines?

bobob

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned haggis.

3timesalady

Haggis.

UCBeau

i like haggis

Fornebufox

Wow, can't say that any of the above, other than balut, look particularly nasty--maybe because I like everything on the list (except balut, which will remain unexplored territory for now ;-). I guess this thread is populated by both omnivorous daredevils and more picky eaters. This may add some perspective.

stut

Haggis is lovely - don't get the offal fear!

Mayonnaise is definitely the epitome of wrongness as far as I'm concerned. Take a nice sandwich, fresh ingredients, lovely flavours, and smother it in something that simultaneously manages to overpower the flavour, ruin the texture, and render the sandwich less healthy.

Then, repeat for 99% of the sandwiches out there.

Why? Why?

3timesalady

Okay, FWIW, my pickiness rivals that of any 3 year old. I was scared to try a chocolate chip cookie that was chocolate dough with white chocolate chips a year ago.

I don't eat anything that looks oozy, smells funny, or is a surprising color. My exception is Indian food. I eat any Indian (vegetable) curry without a fuss. My parents forced us to eat anything that my mother cooked in the house (all Indian), but were more than happy to entertain our pickiness for anything else (I think they were unadventurous eaters themselves).

My big victories in food bravery over the past 5 years or so were this backwards chocolate chip cookie, guacamole (which I still think looks gross), and raspberries. Laugh all you want, but I still feel like I was really brave!!!

jessica_alba

I quite like Haggis too, don't knock it

Fornebufox

Hey, 3TAL, I marvel that a) you maintained such a limited diet for so many years and b) you have expanded your palate as an adult. Your do seem to be a picky eater but I once knew someone who wouldn't eat BREAD (rolls were ok). Research has shown that being a picky or adventurous eater is at least partly genetically determined. I've always been pretty adventurous--but as a result I'll never again be a size 4 (sigh).

But why is any plate of food considered appealing to look at, apart from its deliciousness? What is intrinsically beautiful about a shiny dark brown tablet (chocolate bar), a small shiny heart-shaped red globule studded with little brown bits (wild strawberry), thick, viscous brown ooze (apple butter, marmite, chocolate pudding)? And that's just sweet stuff. I could go on...

I think we're programmed to avoid certain food characteristics, like anything blue or extremely bitter (both can indicate toxicity), but otherwise it's more what you get used to growing up. Though you wouldn't have been aware of food safety as a child, if you grew up in a hot climate there's a survival logic to avoiding oozy, smelly stuff which might be spoiled--unless it's highly seasoned with spices and/or chilis, which have preservative properties. Like your mother's cooking. Apparently you weren't one of those kids who would put anything and everything in your mouth--which your mother probably appreciated.

But so much of it is cultural, isn't it? The scarcity and hence the expense of an item enhances its desirability: lobster was considered trash food when it was abundant, but now they're an expensive luxury (talk about an ugly item that belies its deliciousness). I personally turn green at the thought of snacking on nice crunchy roasted grasshoppers, but insects are a nutritious and relished food staple all over the world. And I do have a problem with food that moves on its own, but apparently that's not a universal aversion, either.

Guacamole looks a lot more appetizing in a dimly-lit bar with a margarita next to it. Context is everything!

Fornebufox

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Fornebufox

Duplicate post