Friday, July 20, 2007

de gustibus

I hate ketchup and mustard. Actually, I don't think the word "hate" is nearly strong enough to encompass my fear and loathing. Ketchup.* Mustard. Even the words themselves repulse me. Seeing or saying those distasteful clusters of consonants makes me feel slightly sick. Having a container of ketchup or mustard on the table is enough to spoil my appetite. Touching the glass of a ketchup bottle or mustard jar is much like I what I imagine touching a snake must be for some people.

Yes, I know that this is a bizarre and entirely irrational phobia. Yes, I've had it for as long as I can remember. Yes, you can go ahead and laugh at me now. I'm used to it.

So, what food do you absolutely detest?




*On the other hand, for some reason, the alternate spelling "catsup" doesn't bother me quite as much. Go figure.

38 comments:

The Oneliner (Christina) said...

hmmm, i dislike some foods...like brussels sprouts...but nothing to that extreme.
if were talking furniture, i'd say recliners. i hate them. the way they sound, look, feel. they're awful! seriously, were i ever in power (which is also, conversely, an indication of why i would never be) i would ban them from the country.
ewww.

S said...

anchovies.

Mrs. Collins said...

I can't eat a tomato without..well, ewww. I don't like all the juice and the seeds that sometimes come out of them. It's all too unpredictable. A firm tomato makes little juice or seeds but a ripe one makes a lot and I need to know before I eat it. I guess it's really a control issue. Isn't everything? But I love "catsup".

Sara said...

Ham. Uncreative I know. But I cannot think of another food as unfit for consumption. Even spare ribs, which I think are also pig, don't seem as incomprehensible as a slab of pink ham. Blech.

Still Born said...

CILANTRO.

thirtysomething said...

Sprouts. Ick.

MB said...

Clams. The thought of their chew-y-ness and the occasional grain of sand makes me want to hurl at the mere thought. And because the universe if so cruel, my daughter LOVES them. Anything clams. Blech.

DD said...

Chicken in it's "natural" state (with skin, tendons, bone, etc.).

Lobster and crab legs. To watch people tear into the dead bodies by breaking the shell and then digging out the meat is just revolting.

Magpie said...

Mayonnaise out of a jar. Oddly, though, I rather like it homemade.

And butternut squash.

S. said...

Frozen green peas. Completely different from fresh.

Katie said...

Completely with you on the mustard, just doesn't work for me. I also hate the use of cinnamon so I can taste it, I don't mind as a blend of other spices, but it's just a way to spoil desert for me.

Unknown said...

Brussell sprouts - their color upon cooking (a sickly yellowish green, almost like the color of pus), their smell during said cooking (pungent and sharp and wholly offensive to the senses) and their taste after said cooking (bitter, bitter, bitter). I hate this vegetable.

tipsymarie said...

Hmmm, mine changes. Sometimes, broccoli makes me gag, other times, I crave it. I don't know if there is anything I absolutely hate all the time. I've never had brussels sprouts, but I don't think I will anytime soon either.

Kathy McC said...

Okra. Blech!!! It looks and feels like there's snot inside. Disgusting.

Dr. Grumbles said...

radishes and beets, even though I love their colors

Anonymous said...

cilantro, like still born. It just makes me sick, and it comes hidden in otherwise delicious things like guacamole. Brussel sprouts are not to my taste, either, but at least I can spot them in time.

LawMommy said...

Do you hate the really nice mustard, too? Like, a really nice Dijon French mustard? Is it just the bright yellow in the plastic jar that you hate, or, all mustard? Just curious. It's an odd phobia, I'll admit.

I absolutely HATE and DETEST raw tomatoes. Hate them. Hate the way they smell, look, taste, everything. Cooked tomatoes are fine, but, the raw ones, ugh. I feel the same way about beets, any kind - cooked, pickled, whathaveyou. They taste like dirt.

I'm shocked at the hatred of cilantro - which I love everything about...

Gretchen

jo(e) said...

Clams. Ugh.

niobe said...

lawmommy: really nice mustard = oxymoron. All m-m-mustard of whatever color horrifies me beyond measure. I don't even like rooms that are painted with mustard-color paint.

Furrow said...

I dislike olives, and you won't catch me eating wasabe, but I can't say that I have any food reactions that compare to what you and several other commenters have. I love, love, love the m and k words.

By the way, the speed at which you receive comments blows me away. Despite all of the (admittedly) unlucky things that happen to you, you must realize that you're popular, right? I wouldn't have the first clue how to cultivate (not saying you cultivate it) such popularity.

Christine said...

cilantro, definitely cilantro.

Julia said...

The smell of seafood. OMG. No, please, no. The site of it is not pleasant, but the smell! The smell is pure torture.
So now you know what it would take for me to give up state secrets. Not that I know any. Of any state. There.

h2o girl said...

Broccoli. Cannot stand it, cannot stand the smell of it cooking, cannot stand any part of it.

susan said...

cilantro, and melon of all sorts.

BasilBean said...

While the mere sight/presence of these foods do not detest me, their taste does and I cannot eat anything tht has been near/touched them:
beets
goat cheese
horseradish
wasabi

I like the questions you ask. I enjoy reading what you have to share as well as all of the people who comment.

BasilBean said...

Oh, and I forgot to mention, the word "catsup" annoys the hell out of me.

Angel Mom said...

Salami. I shudder at the sight of it. My husband is forbidden to even say the word around me. Ick!

Antropóloga said...

Well, you already know my strong feelings about ketchup (we're just going to have to agree to disagree about that) but what I think is absolutely inedible is mayonnaise. I won't eat anything with it.

Ruby said...

Sauerkraut!

painted maypole said...

canned peas. tomatos. olives.

(people seemed to like this topic! look at all your commenters! wowzers! ask people what they hate and they line up to tell you!)

Doughnut said...

licorice, especially anis (the stuff looks like tar). I know many people love it but licorice can sit on the kitchen counter for eternity and I won't touch it. I don't even think it has a shelf life. Not even bugs would eat it!

Anonymous said...

Mayonnaise. All types. Can't look at it. Can't touch the jar or packet. God forbid someone tries to eat it in my presence. It makes me ill. Don't even like the word. I've been this way my whole life.

Rosepetal said...

I'm with Kathy McC - I hate okra. Bleeeuch.

Yankee T said...

asparagus. The taste, the smell, the texture. Makes me gag thinking about it.

E. Phantzi said...

"Hawaiian" pizza - or pretty much any marriage of meat with fruit - and raw raisins. Cooked (in sweet bread or cookies) is fine, but raw makes me gag.

Nicole said...

Eggplant.

meg said...

I hate the fat that comes on meat (like a marbled steak). I cut it all off and avoid fatty cuts of meat. It disgusts me to see people gobbling down the fatty parts, like it's some kind of treat. I guess it's not an actual food that I dislike, just a certain part of it.

Anonymous said...

It alsways makes me feel better to fina a fellow ketchup hater. Hate isn't a strong enough word. It is the most vile substance on earth. I am ok with mustard, just not ketchup.