Hey Everyone,
Just a note on the title -- I was trying to do a parody of "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them," but alas.
Anyway... All the talk about meatloaf in Mingle #5 got me thinking about how much foods differ among cultures, and how we react to unfamiliar foods. As pointed out in the last thread, wrinkling up our noses at someone else's food is considered unbearably rude, so I was wondering what others have done in this situation. I also realize that what's "exotic" to one person it simply Mama's Home Cooking to another, but that's another reason why this is so interesting.
Although I am Asian, I was adopted by white parents in the middle of Nowheresville USA. My Mom is very health-conscious but doesn't like to cook, so we grew up around very plain, repetitive foods with nothing fried and limited sugar. Some people tease me for my very evident lack of culinary experiences or sophistication, but I credit my Mom for teaching us the basic tools of healthier living.
Perhaps due to my overly simplified palette, one of my prayers as I grew older was to meet and befriend people from all over the world, because I wanted to be around different people and yes, learn about their foods. However, as we all know, sometimes our prayers come back in ways we aren't exactly prepared for!
Some of the foods my friends and family enjoy have included:
* Snails
* Octopus (not only fried, but also the kind where, in Asian markets, they cut off a living piece for you to eat and, according to my friend, "You can actually feel it crawling down the back of your throat.")
* Caviar
* Chicken gizzards (my black friends laughed at me when I said I felt like I was trying to eat a rubber band!)
* Dog (I knew someone who grew up in another country where dog is considered a delicacy, so yes, he would come home to his mother cooking a dog for their evening meal.) I have never tried dog and could not because of my individual social conditioning that dogs (cats, and rabbits) are pets, not food. But I know respect that it's unique to different people and different cultures.
And, last but not least, a friend of mine insisted last year that I try a Mexican soup made with tripe -- the lining of a cow, pig, or sheep's stomach.
To be completely honest, I couldn't even get past the smell. The most I could do was take the tiniest bit of broth on a spoon and that was all I could manage (there was no way I was going to be able to eat any of the "meat.") With this earnest but most minimal try, I begged my friend, "Please, don't make me eat anymore. It tastes exactly the way it smells to me, and it smells/tastes like I would imagine how it would be if I licked the bottom of a stall in a public restroom -- that had never been cleaned."
Fortunately, my friend was satisfied with me just trying to make an attempt and understood that I might literally get physically sick if I tried anymore. But it's a meal he loves and has regularly because he grew up with it, and he wanted to try to share it with me. And thank goodness he wasn't upset that I promptly chose to get something else.
I've been very blessed in that most of my "exotic food adventures" have been at restaurants so the people around me weren't offended because they hadn't made the food.
If I find myself in a situation where something was homemade, I will usually try to explain my lack of participation with an allergy or that certain things, or too much of some things will make me sick (which isn't a lie, because some things actually would send me to the bathroom.) I will also try to take a small amount of most everything (yes, I would take a tiny taste of meatloaf if it was offered, just to be polite,) and then load up on things I know I'll like better, if available, and dish out a robust round of compliments along the way.
So far, praise God, people have been understanding.
But I was wondering about all of you and what your experiences have been...
* What are the most "exotic-to-you" foods that you've tried? What did you think of them?
* Have you ever had to pretend to like a food you didn't like at all in order to not offend someone? How did it go?
* Has someone ever been upset that you didn't like a certain food? How did you handle the situation?
* Have your experiences made you want to try other foods you find unique? Why or why not?
Looking forward to hearing about the food adventures of fellow posters!
Just a note on the title -- I was trying to do a parody of "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them," but alas.
Anyway... All the talk about meatloaf in Mingle #5 got me thinking about how much foods differ among cultures, and how we react to unfamiliar foods. As pointed out in the last thread, wrinkling up our noses at someone else's food is considered unbearably rude, so I was wondering what others have done in this situation. I also realize that what's "exotic" to one person it simply Mama's Home Cooking to another, but that's another reason why this is so interesting.
Although I am Asian, I was adopted by white parents in the middle of Nowheresville USA. My Mom is very health-conscious but doesn't like to cook, so we grew up around very plain, repetitive foods with nothing fried and limited sugar. Some people tease me for my very evident lack of culinary experiences or sophistication
, but I credit my Mom for teaching us the basic tools of healthier living.Perhaps due to my overly simplified palette, one of my prayers as I grew older was to meet and befriend people from all over the world, because I wanted to be around different people and yes, learn about their foods. However, as we all know, sometimes our prayers come back in ways we aren't exactly prepared for!
Some of the foods my friends and family enjoy have included:
* Snails
* Octopus (not only fried, but also the kind where, in Asian markets, they cut off a living piece for you to eat and, according to my friend, "You can actually feel it crawling down the back of your throat.")
* Caviar
* Chicken gizzards (my black friends laughed at me when I said I felt like I was trying to eat a rubber band!)
* Dog (I knew someone who grew up in another country where dog is considered a delicacy, so yes, he would come home to his mother cooking a dog for their evening meal.) I have never tried dog and could not because of my individual social conditioning that dogs (cats, and rabbits) are pets, not food. But I know respect that it's unique to different people and different cultures.
And, last but not least, a friend of mine insisted last year that I try a Mexican soup made with tripe -- the lining of a cow, pig, or sheep's stomach.
To be completely honest, I couldn't even get past the smell. The most I could do was take the tiniest bit of broth on a spoon and that was all I could manage (there was no way I was going to be able to eat any of the "meat.") With this earnest but most minimal try, I begged my friend, "Please, don't make me eat anymore. It tastes exactly the way it smells to me, and it smells/tastes like I would imagine how it would be if I licked the bottom of a stall in a public restroom -- that had never been cleaned."
Fortunately, my friend was satisfied with me just trying to make an attempt and understood that I might literally get physically sick if I tried anymore. But it's a meal he loves and has regularly because he grew up with it, and he wanted to try to share it with me. And thank goodness he wasn't upset that I promptly chose to get something else.
I've been very blessed in that most of my "exotic food adventures" have been at restaurants so the people around me weren't offended because they hadn't made the food.
If I find myself in a situation where something was homemade, I will usually try to explain my lack of participation with an allergy or that certain things, or too much of some things will make me sick (which isn't a lie, because some things actually would send me to the bathroom.) I will also try to take a small amount of most everything (yes, I would take a tiny taste of meatloaf if it was offered, just to be polite,) and then load up on things I know I'll like better, if available, and dish out a robust round of compliments along the way.
So far, praise God, people have been understanding.
But I was wondering about all of you and what your experiences have been...
* What are the most "exotic-to-you" foods that you've tried? What did you think of them?
* Have you ever had to pretend to like a food you didn't like at all in order to not offend someone? How did it go?
* Has someone ever been upset that you didn't like a certain food? How did you handle the situation?
* Have your experiences made you want to try other foods you find unique? Why or why not?
Looking forward to hearing about the food adventures of fellow posters!
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