POLL RESULTS

Hey! I'll eat almost anything once- how about you? I do have my limits, however- I'll eat most everything from every food group- I'm not what one would call a "picky eater". I got to thinking about food dislikes and wondered if I was in a class by myself or if others shared my "distastes". So the poll was designed. I asked as many folks as I could find to answer the following:
1. Name at least 3 foods you dislike or won't eat.
2.Explain why these foods are distasteful to you or why you won't eat them.



The results were interesting- reasoning was sometimes a tad 'unreasonable' as in "I just don't like it and I won't try it". As my own children grew up, we tried about anything and everything different we could. The requirement was one taste and if they didn't like it, they didn't have to eat it, but at least they tried. Of course, nothing exotic, just your regular supermarket fare.






I think our food likes/dislikes come from the way we were raised- if your parents ate it, chances are you did too and likely enjoyed it. I found that if you change the names a bit, sometimes the children would eat something and love it- as in Broccoli..they wouldn't touch it unless I referred to it as 'little green trees'.





And liver became 'liversteak' which they would eat without fail. There are numerous reasons why we don't eat certain things.. I remember a time when we raised our own beef and then had the cow butchered for meat in our freezer. Wonderful plan, but for one oversight- the children had made a pet of her, and every time I served beef, they would ask "Is this Lucy?" and the tears would flow down the cheeks of 4 children and the meat left on the plate.



Not a matter of not liking beef, but you just don't eat your pets no matter what. I should have known- my dad did the same thing with a baby turkey we raised all summer and into the fall .. to be our Thanksgiving dinner.. but no one wanted to eat the turkey that year.

So......... on to the Poll.........


Not surprising, absolutely no one had a dislike of bread or any form of bread. However, there was a vote against grits- with the note that if anyone tried to put some on Bob's plate in a diner, he would not be paying the bill. He's adamant about this and suggests that the tasteless excuse for a food should be more appreciated by swine. There were 2 more grains mentioned, and those were Oatmeal and Cream of Wheat which, if Jill had to consume, she'd be sure to puke not so much by taste, but the texture.


The worst offending food over all was actually seafood in general with 24 votes against it. I loved Doretha's comment regarding Escargot and Caviar- "It looks like guts- why would you want to eat it?"






Denise thinks Salmon smells too fishy, while Michele's comment on Eel and Squid was that they look so disgusting alive, she can't imagine that either could taste good. Carol has her own thoughts on Calamari (squid).. "like eating a rubber hose".. her vote is NO WAY.




Wendell and Andrew both mentioned Sushi. Wendy told me she likes it, but I'm too concerned about disease with uncooked seafood.
Tina's comment on Crablegs.. she doesn't like them because of the cracking sound when they are opened.



Kelly says Sardines are gross, while Bill thinks they taste like dead fish. Betsy had the best reply with "I can't stand to look at something in a can with the head still attached"... I have to agree.





According to Rhonda, Anchovies look disgusting and Stacey says they just smell bad. I'm in agreement there too.. I always remember to tell the Pizza guy..'hey! No Anchovies!!
Some interesting comments on Oysters- Stacey thinks the consistency is not quite right, and actually they look like a ball of mucus.. Colorful, eh? Now, Nancy has her own theory here. She says Oysters eat ocean sewage and that's why she will never be caught with Oyster stew for lunch. Nancy, do you have any idea what Chickens eat???? I will vote NAY on oysters too.. too fishy tasting and slimy as all get out.
Nancy also thinks that Lobster is too sweet. Tuna picked up a couple votes..Kelly just had too much as a child, where Cory says "it just tastes bad and smells like me".. I hadn't noticed, but then, on a hot day coaching baseball and then going to the lake to fish... well, Cor, you could be right. We'll have to ask Wendy- or better yet, Isaac!
There were 3 votes for ALL seafoods, and these 3 folks were about as adamant as Bob with his grits.
Sandi's reply was pretty strong- "Can't abide it-won't eat it!!"
"Can't get past the horrid odor, then the texture is horrid, and really, there isn't that much taste- so with horrible smell and texture, why bother torturing myself?"
JJ and Mandy both had the same reply "You shouldn't eat anything that stinks or smells bad!" These girls are obsessed with their dislike of seafoods.. to the point where Mandy has been terribly upset at Long John Silver's because they put the take out fish and chicken boxes in the same bag!!! ARGH!!!

The next highest category of foods people disliked was Meats.. though Veggies scored more hits, the meats seemed to zero in on a few that a lot of people wouldn't eat if you paid them.I might have guessed that Liver would score 12 points. I'm not fond of it myself. I grew up eating it without thinking about what it was, but when I went into nursing, I changed my mind. I ate a bit of it for a while as the children were growing up, but haven't had it in years..and plan to continue for the Guiness World record for the longest time someone has gone without eating liver.. so don't go trying to serve ME liver.. I haven't got enough time to start over. (aside... I wonder if I convinced anyone?)
On with the other comments...Wendy says she doesn't eat organ meats in general..so that includes liver. Jeremy is turned off by the taste, as is Doretha and she adds that it's slimy too. Denise says "it just tastes bad" too, but Chassidy says "it just sounds gross".. Perhaps if she'd try 'liversteak'?
Jen feels the association with what it is makes her dislike liver, and Anita and Stacey agree on the consistency- "sorta tastes like clay". Julie, Fred , and Kelly say "it tastes bad"- "kinda gritty".
Betsy says "it tastes worse than it smells", and Vince thinks it tastes pretty bad, but he does like Liverwurst.


There were 2 of us who wouldn't eat Rabbit.. Bob finds it very disturbing and I have an unfounded fear of Tularemia, and of course, the Peter Cottontail Syndrome... Who could eat that cute little bunny?





There is another problem known as 'the Bambi Syndrome'.. which prevents Tina, Julie, and Mary Ellen from eating Venison (deer meat). Personally, I am not fond of it, but will eat it if it's served.Fred said he felt the same about Veal- baby calf, and won't touch it. Dave and Betsy said they won't eat lamb for the same reason.



Pickled Pigs feet gathered a couple votes. Fred thinks they just taste bad. Kristin has the right idea I think.."who wants to eat something that walks around all day in it's own excrement?"
Though my mother thought they were a delicacy and relished every bite, I could just puke at the thought.
Another meat that makes me want to choke is Cow Tongue.. just the appearance .. yechhhh! I found that Stacey agrees with me.You won't find it in my lunch bag..no sir!
Kristin says Rocky Mountain Oyster (buffalo testicles) are strictly off her list of faves. I think I could scratch them off mine too!


Though I'm not sure that Michele has ever tasted Rattlesnake, she has X'd it off her menu for life.. "it looks bad in real life- it can't taste good".






I picked squirrel as one I wouldn't eat- it's like eating a rat!Well, JJ had something to say about that too.. she has given up Chinese foods.. "Have you ever been to China Town? When I was in San Francisco we traveled through there a couple times each day. There were rats/mice hanging in rows on hangers in the windows of the apartments like they were drying them. There was one Chinese store that had a window with some questionable looking carcasses on a skewer..- it did NOT look like chicken!"
Bob says he dislikes pork and chicken, though he will eat bacon and ham. It was his job as a teen to prepare the chickens for Sunday dinner every Saturday.. It's a pretty disgusting job and the smell makes me nauseous as it did for him. The clincher was the chicken feed.. worms, bugs and other disgusting stuff.
Now, as long as I've known Wendell, he has not been able to eat egg whites (cooked, of course). They make him gag. Elsie told me that she didn't like Eggs pickled in beet juice.. but perhaps because of the beets, not the eggs. Sandi doesn't do eggs either.."the smell and the texture are more than one body ought to have to tolerate"..
Now, Mandy took a totally different view.."I don't want to eat anything that drops out of a chicken's butt!" Well, okay then.
One more oddity.. Andrew mentioned Kagogi and wouldn't describe what it was..so I looked it up... Maybe I don't want to mention it either, but suffice it to say.. you don't want to eat your pets!!


3rd place goes to Vegetables.. many many many!!!
Brussels Sprouts are tied at the top of the list with Asparagus with 4 votes each. Taste and smell seem to be the problem here.I hope those who voted against Asparagus meant the frozen or canned type, as I grow my own and it's a totally different flavor all together.. but then , you are entitled to your opinion.
John said he couldn't eat anything with brine- (vinegar)..pickles, olives, etc.. oh, boy, that leaves more for me!!!All of the other veggies were named for texture , smell, and just general dislike.. Green peas, acorn squash, pickled artichokes (bitter), and Dave named the ever popular 'plastic anemic tomatoes' you can buy in the grocery or get on a salad in the winter.. tasteless!Grapeleaves, onions, peppers, beets, lima beans, carrots, turnips, radishes, mushrooms, spinach, and baked beans all get dishonorable mention. Lou Ann relates that okra that is batter dipped and fried is not bad, but boiled with tomatoes and onions makes a slimy mess that would go down easily, but would make her gag. I'm with you, Lou Ann.

Fruits.... Though JJ and Mandy think bananas stink, they apply their rule to this food.. if it smells bad, you shouldn't be eating it..I disagree and love bananas and don't notice any bad odor. To each his own....
Bill has a colorful description of his dislike of cantaloupe- "Mlaaaaah!" Jeremy says the consistency and taste are what he doesn't like about coconut. I like coconut, but could say the same thing about pears.
There are a few things that just couldn't be catagorized, but some folks still don't eat them. Mike doesn't like creamy things and Mayo and Ranch dressing are at the top of his list. He thinks he ate so much cheese as a child that he won't eat it any more. Mary Ellen said gravy is too fatty and has no appeal for her. She also included dark chocolate because of the lack of sweetness.
Amanda dislikes eggrolls- they just don't appeal. Jen mentioned black licorice as a non-favorite. Robb informed me that bleu cheese was moldy spoiled cheese and not meant for human consumption.
Nancy doesn't like 1% milk, mentioning it as pig feed and that if used on cereal, it was utterly tasteless!
Diet coke is on her NAY list too because of the aftertaste. Vince chose sloppy Joes as one of his least favorite foods. He says the word 'sloppy' is key here. Nancy said peanut butter stuck to her upper plate and pulled it loose, so it is not a favorite for her.
Well, there is one more disgusting item on the menu.. er .. poll.. and that's grubs. Now, Kelly, I have this feeling you've never tasted them. . but I will agree, they look disgusting- I don't even like to kill the little beasts in the yard!!

Okay.. poll is over.. I thank you all for participating. There are no prizes here,but we all agree on quite a few items. Maybe I'm more picky than I originally thought, but I am also set in my ways and probably won't change any time soon..