Acquiring acquired tastes
June 17, 2011 10:18 AM Subscribe
How do I best acquire acquired tastes?
There are some foods I want to start eating on a regular basis because they are healthy and economical. What are some strategies and helpful tips for learning to love new foods?
Specifically, seaweed snax and tinned sardines packed in olive oil. I just had my first bite of the seaweed snax and wasn't really that fond of them. (I haven't tried the tins of sardines I bought yet).
I'm on a strict paleo diet so adding anything that's not "paleo" is out of the question.
Anyway, please share your tips, tricks, and strategies for coaxing yourself to love new foods you don't fall in love with at first bite. Thanks!
Specifically, seaweed snax and tinned sardines packed in olive oil. I just had my first bite of the seaweed snax and wasn't really that fond of them. (I haven't tried the tins of sardines I bought yet).
I'm on a strict paleo diet so adding anything that's not "paleo" is out of the question.
Anyway, please share your tips, tricks, and strategies for coaxing yourself to love new foods you don't fall in love with at first bite. Thanks!
Find someone who looooves this food, and eat it with them. A friend's enthusiasm can really sell me on a new food, as well as the specific hints like "oh, she's only putting a small piece on each cracker! I get it! No wonder I thought it was too strong!"
posted by aimedwander at 10:25 AM on June 17, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by aimedwander at 10:25 AM on June 17, 2011 [2 favorites]
Response by poster: Grouse, is this a good brand of sardines? That is the brand I purchased.
Also, I don't really like other tinned fish (Never tried anchovies, hated tuna as a kid due to the smell). However, I really like eating other seafood (salmon, orange roughy when I was a kid, shrimp, scallops, different kinds of raw sushi).
posted by skjønn at 10:29 AM on June 17, 2011
Also, I don't really like other tinned fish (Never tried anchovies, hated tuna as a kid due to the smell). However, I really like eating other seafood (salmon, orange roughy when I was a kid, shrimp, scallops, different kinds of raw sushi).
posted by skjønn at 10:29 AM on June 17, 2011
Sardines in olive oil are a pretty advanced first try. Can you eat the ones in tomato sauce or hot sauce? Sardine is a pretty strongly flavored fish, though absolutely delicious.
posted by Gilbert at 10:31 AM on June 17, 2011 [3 favorites]
posted by Gilbert at 10:31 AM on June 17, 2011 [3 favorites]
Some sardines have tails and bones, that are sometimes softened by enzymes. I'd start with the kind that have been de-boned, skinned and cleaned. I used to snack on those along with green seedless grapes, because the sardines can be dry, and the sweet grapes add to the salty taste.
posted by StickyCarpet at 10:39 AM on June 17, 2011
posted by StickyCarpet at 10:39 AM on June 17, 2011
I love sardines on toast, but I prefer to use the ones packed in water, as they tend to have less of an aftertaste (at least to me). I toast some bread, open a tin and spread them on, then broil for a few minutes to warm. Yum!
If you're looking for something a little different, here are 2 interesting recipes for sardines on toast that use additional ingredients. I haven't tried them yet, because I'm happy with my simple 2-ingredient version:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/sherried-sardine-toast-recipe/index.html
http://hecooksshecooks.net/2009/06/james-beard-on-food/
posted by LaurenIpsum at 10:41 AM on June 17, 2011 [1 favorite]
If you're looking for something a little different, here are 2 interesting recipes for sardines on toast that use additional ingredients. I haven't tried them yet, because I'm happy with my simple 2-ingredient version:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/sherried-sardine-toast-recipe/index.html
http://hecooksshecooks.net/2009/06/james-beard-on-food/
posted by LaurenIpsum at 10:41 AM on June 17, 2011 [1 favorite]
This will probably sound goofy, but watching a cooking show on TV while I eat has always made whatever I was dining on taste that much better to me. And that's how I learned to like certain things that never appealed to me before; for example, not long ago I tried a variation of a nicoise salad (anchovies, tuna, hard-boiled egg, celery and a bit of mayo) for the first time while watching some chef on the Food Network make a salad. The close-ups of the ingredients and hearing her describe in detail the flavor of things like kale and discussing the aromas and tastes different seasonings and spices made my fishy salad (which I would've never considered eating, but my doctor says I need more fish oil in my diet) absolutely delectable.
posted by Oriole Adams at 10:44 AM on June 17, 2011
posted by Oriole Adams at 10:44 AM on June 17, 2011
I used to be a really picky eater which is extremely inconvenient. The way I found to get around this was when I was trying something I was dubious about or that I really hadn't liked in the past, I would get the best quality version of whatever that thing was. It sounds weird, but once I know how something is ideally supposed to taste, it is easier for me to eat a cheaper or more convenient version.
The other trick is to realize that you first eat with your eyes. If what you're about to eat looks beautiful, your brain starts to tell you how much you're going to enjoy eating it. So put some time into preparing the types of food you want to develop a taste for. Use green herbs and different colors and textures. It really does help!
posted by Kimberly at 10:47 AM on June 17, 2011 [4 favorites]
The other trick is to realize that you first eat with your eyes. If what you're about to eat looks beautiful, your brain starts to tell you how much you're going to enjoy eating it. So put some time into preparing the types of food you want to develop a taste for. Use green herbs and different colors and textures. It really does help!
posted by Kimberly at 10:47 AM on June 17, 2011 [4 favorites]
Drain the olive oil off the sardines, then mash them all up well and mix in lots of lemon juice. Spread on some toast, put some slices of tomato on top, add salt and pepper and a little drizzle of fresh olive oil and warm under the grill. Delicious.
posted by hazyjane at 10:55 AM on June 17, 2011 [2 favorites]
posted by hazyjane at 10:55 AM on June 17, 2011 [2 favorites]
You'd probably like smoked kipper fillets better (I buy the John West brand). They taste a lot like smoked salmon and they don't have loads of scudgy shit and tiny bones in them, or it's easy to lift it out. Heat them up a bit and they go nice with scrambled eggs and toast.
Nthing the idea of trying the best quality you can afford of things. I never though I like anchovies until I bought some nice ones at an Italian-neighbourhood grocery store. They're fab in a tomato sauce with capers, white wine and parsley.
posted by bonobothegreat at 10:59 AM on June 17, 2011
Nthing the idea of trying the best quality you can afford of things. I never though I like anchovies until I bought some nice ones at an Italian-neighbourhood grocery store. They're fab in a tomato sauce with capers, white wine and parsley.
posted by bonobothegreat at 10:59 AM on June 17, 2011
Could it be you didn't like tinned tuna as a kid because you tried the one in water? Tuna in olive oil is absolutely yummy, and Tonno Genova is wonderful, affordable, and available at most supermarkets.
posted by Dragonness at 11:21 AM on June 17, 2011
posted by Dragonness at 11:21 AM on June 17, 2011
those seaweed snax things are simply nori touched with a bit of sesame oil and salt. if you really want to give it another go, buy a whole stack cheap, toast a few sheets on a low gas flame (just draw the sheet back and forth quickly), smudge with (your paleo approved) oil and sprinkle with salt. cut into strips. i've always had this growing up wrapped around a bit of rice and kimchi, and this does need a bland/mild tasting toothsome flavor-buffer like rice, which i see is not part of paleo.
you can experiment with different kinds of seaweeds and different preparations to see which you like best, since the snax version is really just as nutritious and texturally interesting as a kale chip-- if you go to a large korean/japanese grocery store, there'll usually be a few seaweed dishes in the 'deli' section available for you to try in little takeout containers they make fresh every day. you can measure out as little or as much as you want to try, and if you like something, you can prepare it yourself. one large package of dried seaweed will last you a good long time, as only a small bit will expand once hydrated for a lot of portions.
look out for wakame seaweed salad or arame seaweed salad, which have a nice crisp but yielding/soft texture, with a tart/savory dressing (rice wine vinegar+soy/fish sauce, exclude the dab of sugar if you make it) usually mixed in with some thinly sliced cucumber or carrot. or try wakame seaweed soup (korean), which has a smoother slippery texture. load it up with mussels or thinly sliced brisket/sirloin.
posted by ilk at 11:22 AM on June 17, 2011
you can experiment with different kinds of seaweeds and different preparations to see which you like best, since the snax version is really just as nutritious and texturally interesting as a kale chip-- if you go to a large korean/japanese grocery store, there'll usually be a few seaweed dishes in the 'deli' section available for you to try in little takeout containers they make fresh every day. you can measure out as little or as much as you want to try, and if you like something, you can prepare it yourself. one large package of dried seaweed will last you a good long time, as only a small bit will expand once hydrated for a lot of portions.
look out for wakame seaweed salad or arame seaweed salad, which have a nice crisp but yielding/soft texture, with a tart/savory dressing (rice wine vinegar+soy/fish sauce, exclude the dab of sugar if you make it) usually mixed in with some thinly sliced cucumber or carrot. or try wakame seaweed soup (korean), which has a smoother slippery texture. load it up with mussels or thinly sliced brisket/sirloin.
posted by ilk at 11:22 AM on June 17, 2011
Those sardines are pretty tuna-like in flavor. King Oscar brand generally has softer sardines with a different flavor. Experiment, because there is a lot of cross-brand variance. I agree with those suggesting trying other canned seafood like herring, mackerel, and oysters.
I generally add that you don't want the ones packed in soybean/seed oil because the omega-6 fats undo all the benefits of the omega-3s from the fish, but you're already with me on that one!
posted by Earl the Polliwog at 11:25 AM on June 17, 2011
I generally add that you don't want the ones packed in soybean/seed oil because the omega-6 fats undo all the benefits of the omega-3s from the fish, but you're already with me on that one!
posted by Earl the Polliwog at 11:25 AM on June 17, 2011
We traditionally ate sardines at my house of origin by pouring off the oil and just pouring on a bit of vinegar, accompanied by saltines. Not a bad way to have them, in my view.
posted by St. Alia of the Bunnies at 11:25 AM on June 17, 2011
posted by St. Alia of the Bunnies at 11:25 AM on June 17, 2011
I've been altering my diet this past year. Here are a few general tips that helped me learn to like food that I previously refused to eat....
1. Make a deal with your stomach - "okay, we're gonna eat something that we don't wanna eat, but if we do then we get to eat something really delicious afterward!" So eat a very small portion of the "gross" food, and if you manage to eat a few bites of it reward yourself after with a food you really love. It's the basic little kid "eat your vegetables and you get dessert" principle - although your reward food doesn't have to be dessert or even something unhealthy. Just something special you don't eat very often. I was trying to learn to like a new vegetable and I'd always pair it with a really nice filet of my favorite fish. After doing this multiple times, I gradually got used to the taste of the vegetable and now I don't need to pair it with a favorite food anymore.
Also, usually what would happen to me, is after the first time doing this my stomach would be "OH GOD NO" about eating the gross food again for a couple days after, so I never forced myself to do it on consecutive days if I wasn't feeling up to it. But after a few days passed I found I could try it again, and just gradually got used to it. I still don't love or desire the vegetable (zucchini, I'm looking at you...) but I can eat it now without feeling nauseous about it.
2. If it's something like a grain, mix a small bit of the "gross" grain with a grain you enjoy. I read about this somewhere years ago and always wanted to try it, but never found the need. The example was switching from eating white rice to eating brown rice. If you're going to eat a cup of rice, make 3/4s of it white rice and 1/4 of it brown rice. Get used to eating it that way for a while, then make it 1/2 cup white with 1/2 cup brown after a couple weeks, then 1/4 white rice and 3/4 brown rice, until eventually you're fine eating just brown rice.
I was planning on doing this with Quinoa, mixing it with brown rice for a while, but found I liked quinoa just fine alone from the beginning.
3. Chop it up into really small pieces and put it in something like a sauce or a soup or a salad. I did this with raw broccoli. I was always really reluctant to eat raw broccoli, and knew that it wasn't the taste that bothered me so much. I eventually figured out I didn't like the feel of biting into a big chunk of broccoli then chewing it forever and ever and eventually gulping it down. Basically, the texture was what I didn't like. Now I use a food processor to chop it up into really fine pieces, and I add that to soups that I make or sometimes dips/pestos/bean spreads/etc or top salads with it. I still get the taste without the texture I don't like.
Maybe with your sardines, try making some kind of spread out of them? Chop them up in a food processor with some white beans, mustard, onions maybe....and spread it on a piece of bread or a big vegetable like a grilled portabello mushroom top.
4. Spices and Herbs! These have been a godsend to get me to eat more vegetables I don't like. I can't believe how simply drizzling some olive oil and a single spice like chipotle powder or smoked spanish paprika or cumin on a vegetable and roasting it can transform the vegetable from "ewww" to "mmmm!"
Anyway, good luck! In general it just takes time for your stomach to get used to the food. I've heard somewhere that you need to eat a food 15 times before you start to like it. I'm not sure if that's true, but it's worth considering.
posted by Squee at 11:28 AM on June 17, 2011 [3 favorites]
1. Make a deal with your stomach - "okay, we're gonna eat something that we don't wanna eat, but if we do then we get to eat something really delicious afterward!" So eat a very small portion of the "gross" food, and if you manage to eat a few bites of it reward yourself after with a food you really love. It's the basic little kid "eat your vegetables and you get dessert" principle - although your reward food doesn't have to be dessert or even something unhealthy. Just something special you don't eat very often. I was trying to learn to like a new vegetable and I'd always pair it with a really nice filet of my favorite fish. After doing this multiple times, I gradually got used to the taste of the vegetable and now I don't need to pair it with a favorite food anymore.
Also, usually what would happen to me, is after the first time doing this my stomach would be "OH GOD NO" about eating the gross food again for a couple days after, so I never forced myself to do it on consecutive days if I wasn't feeling up to it. But after a few days passed I found I could try it again, and just gradually got used to it. I still don't love or desire the vegetable (zucchini, I'm looking at you...) but I can eat it now without feeling nauseous about it.
2. If it's something like a grain, mix a small bit of the "gross" grain with a grain you enjoy. I read about this somewhere years ago and always wanted to try it, but never found the need. The example was switching from eating white rice to eating brown rice. If you're going to eat a cup of rice, make 3/4s of it white rice and 1/4 of it brown rice. Get used to eating it that way for a while, then make it 1/2 cup white with 1/2 cup brown after a couple weeks, then 1/4 white rice and 3/4 brown rice, until eventually you're fine eating just brown rice.
I was planning on doing this with Quinoa, mixing it with brown rice for a while, but found I liked quinoa just fine alone from the beginning.
3. Chop it up into really small pieces and put it in something like a sauce or a soup or a salad. I did this with raw broccoli. I was always really reluctant to eat raw broccoli, and knew that it wasn't the taste that bothered me so much. I eventually figured out I didn't like the feel of biting into a big chunk of broccoli then chewing it forever and ever and eventually gulping it down. Basically, the texture was what I didn't like. Now I use a food processor to chop it up into really fine pieces, and I add that to soups that I make or sometimes dips/pestos/bean spreads/etc or top salads with it. I still get the taste without the texture I don't like.
Maybe with your sardines, try making some kind of spread out of them? Chop them up in a food processor with some white beans, mustard, onions maybe....and spread it on a piece of bread or a big vegetable like a grilled portabello mushroom top.
4. Spices and Herbs! These have been a godsend to get me to eat more vegetables I don't like. I can't believe how simply drizzling some olive oil and a single spice like chipotle powder or smoked spanish paprika or cumin on a vegetable and roasting it can transform the vegetable from "ewww" to "mmmm!"
Anyway, good luck! In general it just takes time for your stomach to get used to the food. I've heard somewhere that you need to eat a food 15 times before you start to like it. I'm not sure if that's true, but it's worth considering.
posted by Squee at 11:28 AM on June 17, 2011 [3 favorites]
Saltines aren't paleo - wheat's bad stuff - but maybe something similar made with potatoes or even gluten-free crackers could work depending on how paleo-flexible the asker is.
posted by Earl the Polliwog at 11:28 AM on June 17, 2011
posted by Earl the Polliwog at 11:28 AM on June 17, 2011
I have acquired several tastes by first having their Ridiculously Tasty (non-paleo) cousin first. For example, I now love grapefruit thanks to, of all things, grapefruit jellybellies, and wouldn't eat the jellybellies because they're empty calories.
I'm NOT recommending nori jellybellies, but I am saying that if you're willing to add some salt, sugar, oil, or whatever else makes things tasty to you for the first few tries, you may well come to like the plain version. Having first had nori on sushi with rice and avocado and all the good stuff first, I happily eat nori plain now.
posted by ldthomps at 11:34 AM on June 17, 2011 [2 favorites]
I'm NOT recommending nori jellybellies, but I am saying that if you're willing to add some salt, sugar, oil, or whatever else makes things tasty to you for the first few tries, you may well come to like the plain version. Having first had nori on sushi with rice and avocado and all the good stuff first, I happily eat nori plain now.
posted by ldthomps at 11:34 AM on June 17, 2011 [2 favorites]
I taught myself to eat sardines last year using Alton Brown's sardine and avocado on toast recipe, except without the toast and after the first try, without the sherry. This was fine for entry-level sardine-eating, though I have tweaked the lemon juice and salt levels to make up for the punch of the sherry. He has been very adamant that Brisling fish is the healthiest, most sustainable, and most palatable sardine.
The bonus of this method is that the fish is unrecognizable when you're finished preparing it.
posted by Lyn Never at 11:34 AM on June 17, 2011 [2 favorites]
The bonus of this method is that the fish is unrecognizable when you're finished preparing it.
posted by Lyn Never at 11:34 AM on June 17, 2011 [2 favorites]
Here is what I do for a good paleo sardine snack (and is basically just the Alton Brown think Lyn Never mentioned without bread).
First, drain the can in the sink as much as possible, and then fork the sardines out into a bowl. Season them with a bit of pepper, some lemon, dill, etc (whatever you like). Then mash them all up with the seasoning. You will break up the recognizable bits, and it will just look like tuna. Then drizzle on or mix in some dijon mustard. Then, dice up a really good avocado, and add a bit of salt, then that in there.
Now, you've got protein, fat, flavor -- and it is super fast and cheap. I love it on toast (and I am convinced Grok the caveman would too), but it is nearly as delicious in the form of a little mound o' paleo goodness -- you could plop that onto a pile of spinach or arugula or whatnot. It may take you a few tries to find a sardine brand that you like -- I got a ton of cans at Costco here, so it's nice to have that ready to go. Also, if you are just starting paleo -- maybe try it on toast first (a halved toasted Portuguese roll if you can find it), and then transition to the no toast version?
posted by This_Will_Be_Good at 1:08 PM on June 17, 2011 [2 favorites]
First, drain the can in the sink as much as possible, and then fork the sardines out into a bowl. Season them with a bit of pepper, some lemon, dill, etc (whatever you like). Then mash them all up with the seasoning. You will break up the recognizable bits, and it will just look like tuna. Then drizzle on or mix in some dijon mustard. Then, dice up a really good avocado, and add a bit of salt, then that in there.
Now, you've got protein, fat, flavor -- and it is super fast and cheap. I love it on toast (and I am convinced Grok the caveman would too), but it is nearly as delicious in the form of a little mound o' paleo goodness -- you could plop that onto a pile of spinach or arugula or whatnot. It may take you a few tries to find a sardine brand that you like -- I got a ton of cans at Costco here, so it's nice to have that ready to go. Also, if you are just starting paleo -- maybe try it on toast first (a halved toasted Portuguese roll if you can find it), and then transition to the no toast version?
posted by This_Will_Be_Good at 1:08 PM on June 17, 2011 [2 favorites]
Oh, and I mean a pretty good (near) paleo crab cake from canned crab as well. I was surprised at how well it turned out. I haven't experimented with nut flours as a binder, but that is another good backup paleo food to have in the cupboard.
posted by This_Will_Be_Good at 1:10 PM on June 17, 2011
posted by This_Will_Be_Good at 1:10 PM on June 17, 2011
Can you identify what you disliked most and try changing that? If it was the texture, try mashing the sardines up (Mmm mashed with vinegar on toast for non-paleos out there); if it was the taste, add some flavouring. If it was too bland, buy some fresh sardines and grill them.
On preview: This_Will_Be_Good, that's the most eponysterical food comment ever. That sounds amazing...
posted by penguin pie at 1:13 PM on June 17, 2011 [1 favorite]
On preview: This_Will_Be_Good, that's the most eponysterical food comment ever. That sounds amazing...
posted by penguin pie at 1:13 PM on June 17, 2011 [1 favorite]
The only thing I would add to all this is to try your best to ensure that whatever you're trying is a top-quality example of the thing. The first time I ever tried uni (sea urchin), I almost vomited -- it was horrible (Jeffrey Steingarten accurately describes bad uni as "iodine sherbet").
Years later, after hearing all these rapturous odes to uni from foodies, I got up the courage to try it again, this time from a really good sushi chef...and it was divine! I'm now hooked on the stuff, but very cautious about where I get it.
posted by Pants McCracky at 2:03 PM on June 17, 2011
Years later, after hearing all these rapturous odes to uni from foodies, I got up the courage to try it again, this time from a really good sushi chef...and it was divine! I'm now hooked on the stuff, but very cautious about where I get it.
posted by Pants McCracky at 2:03 PM on June 17, 2011
Keep trying the things you want to learn to love... and then try them again. Eat sardines and nori lots of different ways and you'll find your favorites! My husband was super picky but I always said, "I know you don't love _____, but you haven't had this one, you never know!" After some badgering from me about how delicious "scary" foods can be, I think he actually just decided one day to not be mentally so picky anymore. He still had to get used to some flavors but his good attitude and desire to be adventurous totally changed his tastes. It is ok, in the end, to just not love some foods. Just make sure you give them a real chance, and then another chance!!
posted by Swisstine at 2:09 PM on June 17, 2011
posted by Swisstine at 2:09 PM on June 17, 2011
For what it's worth, here's what I do to get over several of my food hang ups. Try not to laugh, but it's really heaps of fun!
I've never been a particularly picky eater, but there were things that I hated, like bitter gourd, goji berries, Vegemite, liquorice and cilantro. I got over my dislike of those foods because people I admired, as well as literary/tv/cartoon characters, absolutely loved them. So I persisted in eating those foods in small quantities over and over again in an attempt to understand why they found them palatable, and eventually, I came to enjoy what I used to dislike. Who got me to eat spinach at a young age? Popeye.
On a paleo diet? Why not imagine yourself as a caveman/woman? I know I pretended to be a turtle when I ate green beans as a child after reading about it in a book. I still do it twenty plus years later.
posted by peripathetic at 2:13 PM on June 17, 2011 [2 favorites]
I've never been a particularly picky eater, but there were things that I hated, like bitter gourd, goji berries, Vegemite, liquorice and cilantro. I got over my dislike of those foods because people I admired, as well as literary/tv/cartoon characters, absolutely loved them. So I persisted in eating those foods in small quantities over and over again in an attempt to understand why they found them palatable, and eventually, I came to enjoy what I used to dislike. Who got me to eat spinach at a young age? Popeye.
On a paleo diet? Why not imagine yourself as a caveman/woman? I know I pretended to be a turtle when I ate green beans as a child after reading about it in a book. I still do it twenty plus years later.
posted by peripathetic at 2:13 PM on June 17, 2011 [2 favorites]
In my twenties, I made a goal of eating things that I thought I couldn't stand. If I was in a situation that allowed me pick and choose small quantities and try things in ways that I hadn't encountered before, I would do it. Just being regular about it has conquered my distaste for broccoli, cauliflower, black olives, and a lot of other vegetables. Some things didn't make it - Brussels spouts? Horrible. I know some people love them, but to me they tasted so foul and the accompanying transformation of my lower intestine into a gaseous anomaly was enough to say "thanks, but no thanks". Coffee still hasn't won. I try it annually. I even challenge barristas to give it their best. I don't worry too much about the things that don't work out. Just try them and if they're 'meh' try them again in a year in a different context. No hurry.
posted by plinth at 5:58 PM on June 17, 2011
posted by plinth at 5:58 PM on June 17, 2011
For paleo/primal/ancestral eating questions, I also recommend PaleoHacks. They have a thread very much like this one going on right now.
posted by Earl the Polliwog at 1:46 AM on June 19, 2011
posted by Earl the Polliwog at 1:46 AM on June 19, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
In my experience, the quality of tinned sardines varies a lot. If you are in the U.S., I'd start with Crown Prince sardines. Avoid Beach Cliff sardines. Do you like other tinned fish (tuna, anchovies)?
posted by grouse at 10:22 AM on June 17, 2011 [1 favorite]