Redditor Simple_Anywhere_8337 wanted to discuss recipe items that may not be the most popular, so they asked:
"What's an ingredient you hate but most people like?"
There are so many unnecessary ingredients.
I don't know where to start, but Reddit sure did.
It's Crap
Stevia Sweetner GIF by SPLENDAGiphy"I hate when people add stevia to desserts."
gotrekfelix
"For me, Stevia gives a weird mint-like crappy flavor to things. Other people look at me like I’m crazy when I try to explain it, so it might just be me."
WonderfulEmergency77
Maybe Merlot?
"Artificial rose flavor."
MickeyPineapple
"I LOVE rose flavor. I don't know anyone else that does though lol."
YourDBDGF
"Soap, it tastes like soap."
jmims98
Feels Weird
"Fennel seeds. It's the one food aversion i haven't been able to conquer."
Flying_sky_bear
"I love fennel but I hate tasting the seeds in in meat."
LadyofTheGreyPath
"My wife and I recently discovered meatballs as a topping for pizza that is a perfect replacement for Italian sausage. No fennel, all the good fatty meaty goodness."
muadib1158
I'll Pass
"I’m gonna hit you with a real one. I don’t like Macarons. Their taste and texture is super underwhelming compared to how they look. Visually they look amazing, but I take one bite and just wish I made brownies."
CaptainChats
"They’re just… disappointing. They look so unique and delicate."
"And you hear all the time about how difficult they are to make. And they’re so expensive because of that. And then you finally taste one and it’s just a decent cookie. Nutty and sweet. Light and crispy outside. Chewy inside. What really changes the flavor is whatever cream or jam you put inside."
RogueTwoNineSeven
My Stomach
popeye the sailor man GIFGiphy"Canned spinach shouldn't exist. Good fresh, however."
SmartyRiddlebop
"It could be worse. I'm guessing you've never seen the canned cheeseburger they have in Germany."
DocBullseye
Yeah. Popeye was crazy. Fresh spinach only.
Flaked Out
kids children GIF by PlayKidsGiphy"Coconut flakes. they make me cringe, it’s a texture thing. My dad always got german cake for his birthday’s and every year I would try it and I just… shivers can’t do it."
Affectionate_Case732
Puke
"Papaya."
asgphotography
"Smells and tastes like feet to me and I don't understand why. I'm even born and live in a region of the world where these things are grown. Love the Thai papaya salads though."
DatAdra
"Tastes like puke to me. Gag."
pointychallenge
Never Again
"Walnuts."
Shocked_and_Outraged
"Funny story..."
"When I was little I hated brownies because there was always walnuts in them. I would try to eat around the walnuts and just get the good chocolatey bits. I wished there was a brownie without nuts. It blew my mind when I learned that brownies without walnuts were the standard. I never let my mom bake brownies with walnuts again, and when I make them I never put walnuts in."
pink_wraith
Full Hate
"Truffle oil."
Suspicious_Lake_7732
"I feel like I can taste it with my whole skull and I hate it."
biblosaurus
"Most truffle oil is artificial and is actually a petroleum byproduct."
"The truffle industry is a big scam. Not just truffle oil, everything"
EternalNY1
Ruins
eat season 2 GIF by PortlandiaGiphy"Celery."
No_Ad3588
"It's like someone took some dish water, turned it into a solid green stick, and added hair to it. Easily ruins every meal it's in."
slicedbread1991
"Thank you!! Everybody looks at me like I have three heads when I tell them I don't like celery."
skeetpea
Now see... I like celery.
To each their own.
Which items do you never put on your grocery list that we should add to this one? Let us know in the comments.
Even closely following a recipe can be frustrating when the finished product just doesn't capture that burst of flavor found in the foods we eat at restaurants.
Why is that? What are these online recipes cruelly leaving out? Are we doing something wrong?
Usually, an excess of butter or salt should do the trick, but even those quick fixes don't always apply.
Fortunately, chefs online were generous to share some of their secrets from the kitchen when Redditor liberta0407 asked:
"Chefs of Reddit, what's is your single favourite ingredient and why?"
Maybe Not In Your Pantry
Think outside the box and your palate will be awakened.
"Sweet Sticky Heaven"
"BLACK GARLIC!!!!. MAKES EVERYTHING 100x better. Most of what I see here is staple pantry items. IF YOU DONT HAVE BLACK GARLIC, GET IT. Crush it into a paste and make a compound butter or anything. B L A C K G A R L I C. SWEET STICKY HEAVEN"
"Garam Masala! I find it to be sooo good in many savory dishes. I replace cumin with it whenever it's called for. It's INCREDIBLE in chili or any Asian-influenced dishes!"
– ABeld96
People Share The 'Dirty Secrets' That Their Bosses Don't Want Customers To Know
Reddish-Purple Powder
"Sumac. Seriously, get yourself a huge bag for like $15 bucks and thank me later. It's lemony and salty, sweet and smoky and earthy and beautifully red. Sprinkle it on toast, curry, chicken, steak, tacos, devilled eggs, ice cream... Just about everything."
"You can also brew it like tea and it has an intense wild-berry flavor."
Not All Households Have It
"My mom is half Iranian, so we grew up eating sumac with our rice all the time. My parents thought it was hilarious when little me asked for some while at a friend's house, and of course they had never heard of it."
Savory Dried Herbs
"zaatar is amazing. you can have it with olive oil; dip a small piece of pita bread in olive oil then dip that same piece in a separate bowl with zaatar (obv another bowl from the storage container) for breakfast and thank me later."
For Pasta Sauce
"Bay leaves. Like salt you don't want them to be the dominant flavor in anything, but they make a night and day difference in stews, pasta sauce, you name it."
For Baking
"Not a chef, but a baker. Cardamom. It's still not super common in American baked goods, and while I love cinnamon, that flavor isn't special to my palette anymore. Cardamom gives such a warm, floral scent/flavor to whatever you make, and can be paired with so many things. Treat yourself: add some cardamom and orange zest to your next batch of banana bread."
Flavor-Deepener
"Cardamom is incredibly inviting. The fragrance and the flavor add dimension...I really don't know how to put it into words. It's so easy to recognize even though it doesn't overpower. It's wonderful and as you said goes ups the flavor of a wide spectrum of foods. Whatever cardamom is added to,it deepens the flavor experience."
It's About...
"Thyme"
"Thyme pairs well with meat, tomatoes, and beans."
"It is the main ingredient in the classic French herb combinations Bouquet Garni and Herbes de Provence. These herb blends are frequently used to flavor meat, stews, and soups."
"Can't imagine not having thyme on my side when cooking a wide variety of dishes."
Taking Stock
"Best life hack I ever learned was adding chicken stock cubes to cut potato's boiling in water. Seriously will up your potato game in ways you can't imagine. I've also done it with rice as well where the rice was going into something else."
Nice Pour
A touch of the following can add so much flavor. Just careful with portions.
Queen Of Oilseeds
"roasted sesame seed oil, it adds a light nuttiness and saltiness to a dish."
Use with care though. It's amazing, but it can overtake a dish fast if you use too much."
"Nice Umami"
"Chef of 25 years. Personal favorite is worcestershire sauce."
"Use it more at home than in restaurants I've worked. Such a nice umami though."
The Missing Ingredient
"Vinegar. It is often the thing that is missing when people go for more salt and spices in their cooking wondering why it doesn't taste quite as good as in a restaurant."
Just A Squeeze
"Chef here"
"Lemon juice, enhances flavour in almost anything. Vinegar is too dominant for me."
– mons388
One amateur chef who appeared to be overwhelmed by many of the options contributed something else to consider.
This person suggested, "beer," but not as a secret ingredient for use in food.
"I drink 4 or 5 before cooking and my food tastes 10 times better!" they joked.
Not my personal method, but beer is most definitely a wonderful addition to your recipes if you want to bring out the flavor of meats and vegetables. Just substitute it with water as a simmering liquid.
I'm no chef either, but beer is also an excellent baking agent that adds lightness to your favorite baked goods like banana bread, muffins, or pancakes.
Now go out and get your culinary imaginations brewing.
But one Twitter user recently stumbled upon some classic "salad" recipes in an old southern cookbook that really push the boundaries of what a salad can be.
Lizzie O'Leary, a contributing editor for The Atlantic, shared her discovery in a Twitter thread for the ages.
First off, Coca-Cola salad, which sounds simple enough.
I have found an old southern cookbook with some truly fantastic “salad” recipes. https://t.co/H9elAGMaAb— Lizzie O'Leary (@Lizzie O'Leary) 1561218501.0
The fact that the salad naturally separates into three layers is a bit unsettling, but it actually sounds palatable.
Next up is Florida salad, and it's fittingly all over the place.
For #floridaman https://t.co/TmL1XvX4De— Lizzie O'Leary (@Lizzie O'Leary) 1561218603.0
Avocado and jello sounds like a strange combo, but millennials love their avocados, right? Plus, you get them both mashed and sliced.
And this one at least slightly attempts to be a salad by suggesting it be served on "crisp greens." Delicious.
The next salad is the white salad, and oh dear.
Sure https://t.co/DPpMyOIsTU— Lizzie O'Leary (@Lizzie O'Leary) 1561218704.0
First of all...
Also, what is "plain" gelatine? (Also, since when did we add an "e" to gelatin?) Does it have no discernible flavor of its own? Sounds fitting enough.
This salad is all over the board, especially since it requires both "cold" and "scalded" milk. And don't forget to serve it on a bed of delicious endive.
This next one takes the cake for most unappetizing salad name right off the bat.
Lost me at congealed https://t.co/L2BnMxdMKT— Lizzie O'Leary (@Lizzie O'Leary) 1561219141.0
If you were looking for some nice variety of vegetables, this is clearly the salad for you.
Maybe just don't tell all your friends the name of the recipe.
The cookbook did its best to make up for that last one, with this "delicious" salad.
Delicious https://t.co/vUaWkHxG2T— Lizzie O'Leary (@Lizzie O'Leary) 1561219314.0
Delicious or disgusting? You be the judge.
O'Leary added in a note about another riveting section of the cookbook...
To be clear: the pickles and jellies section of this book is wonderful.— Lizzie O'Leary (@Lizzie O'Leary) 1561219420.0
...before finally finishing off with everyone's favorite, the olive wreath mold salad.
Shoot me into the sun https://t.co/NIRrozc9qh— Lizzie O'Leary (@Lizzie O'Leary) 1561219526.0
There's some of that delicious pineapple again.
This salad has something for everyone, with almost every food group represented. All it's missing is the kitchen sink.
~ fin ~— Lizzie O'Leary (@Lizzie O'Leary) 1561219628.0
People who came across the thread were clearly both disturbed and thoroughly entertained.
@lizzieohreally If this thread doesn’t make people see the need for immigration, I don’t know what else to tell you. https://t.co/d2YlFvGUFa— Sanho Tree (@Sanho Tree) 1561221009.0
@lizzieohreally Murder recipes! Priceless. Anything that separates into three layers all by itself wins the Internet.— Julie (@Julie) 1561280846.0
@lizzieohreally https://t.co/fPf7hSljQl— Not Today A-hole 🍩👩🏽💅🏽 (@Not Today A-hole 🍩👩🏽💅🏽) 1561301856.0
@burnschade @lizzieohreally Jello Nuts Despair— Mrs. BACCV (@Mrs. BACCV) 1561219435.0
@lizzieohreally @vanetti Those recipes don’t scare me, I lived through the era of these WW monstrosities! 😬🤢🤮 https://t.co/QovocmOuSA— Lyn Adams 🌈🕵🏻♀️🔍📚🌈 (@Lyn Adams 🌈🕵🏻♀️🔍📚🌈) 1561220652.0
@lizzieohreally "dust jello into cream cheese" is a more elegant sentence than i expected out of this— Jaya Saxena (@Jaya Saxena) 1561224785.0
To those brave enough to attempt any one of these recipes, we salute you.
Just don't expect anyone to eat more than a single bite.
@lizzieohreally https://t.co/0SueiCaDHT— Phoenix🇺🇸 (@Phoenix🇺🇸) 1561266993.0
If you'd like to try some nostalgic lost recipes that are guaranteed to get a better reception, a home cooking iconic brand created Betty Crocker Lost Recipes: Beloved Vintage Recipes for Today's Kitchen, available here.
"Betty Crocker Lost Recipes is the ultimate treasure for the most devoted Betty Crocker fans, as well as cooks who are interested in recipes with a retro/nostalgic twist."
"Eighty percent of the book includes tried-and-true recipes that simply aren't in today's cooking repertoire—mainly from-scratch recipes that are hard to find. Twenty percent is a fun look back at some of the cooking customs of the past that may not be worth repeating, but are worth remembering."
The Onion, well known satirical "news" site, tapped into that frustration with a recent article about an area man whose newsworthy story involved his child needing to bring treats to class and make a costume for some school event.
This was funny enough on its own, but then, Adam Liaw, an Australian chef, decided to weigh in.
No kidding, but my son has been as school for exactly ONE TERM and this has already happened about 9 times. https://t.co/WJVQo443bl— Adam Liaw (@Adam Liaw) 1553120178.0
But Liaw didn't stop there. The chef decided to finally end one of these menaces once and for all.
I am going to write a recipe for something that you can make 25 portions of in 5 minutes that can keep unrefrigerat… https://t.co/B7RmEfxdsv— Adam Liaw (@Adam Liaw) 1553120367.0
Sounds epic. And no challenge is complete without rules.
It will also fit in a standard Tupperware, cost less than $10 in ingredients, weigh less than 1 kg for transport, a… https://t.co/4ivJ7HM12Z— Adam Liaw (@Adam Liaw) 1553120561.0
Liaw took a day and came back with his creation: Fat Pocky.
OK, this is what I came up with this afternoon - Fat Pocky. https://t.co/7l9goboohr— Adam Liaw (@Adam Liaw) 1553145914.0
Remember the original Pocky sticks? These are better (and will impress both the kids and the judgy parents at their school).
Ingredients are simple and cheap. Breadsticks, chocolate and sprinkles. Sure, there's no danger of these being considered "healthy," but that's not what you're going for. These are for when you need a treat for your kid's class by morning!
And the directions couldn't be simpler.
Just microwave the chocolate for 1 minute, then blasts of 30 seconds until it's melted. Probably 3-4 minutes all up.— Adam Liaw (@Adam Liaw) 1553146139.0
Shake off as much chocolate as you can. You'll need to top up the glass with a teaspoon or so of chocolate every 2-… https://t.co/96cZFlxbhq— Adam Liaw (@Adam Liaw) 1553146347.0
This is where you end up after about 10 minutes of dunking and sprinkling. Of course, if you get the kids to do the… https://t.co/lUvzaHZVkm— Adam Liaw (@Adam Liaw) 1553146644.0
They're simple, cute, and those sprinkles hide how unbelievably simple they are.
Of course, those sprinkles are easily switched out if you need to change things up.
Here are some that look like people. They sell these in the baking aisle of a regular supermarket like it's no big… https://t.co/htbfcoxvXy— Adam Liaw (@Adam Liaw) 1553146764.0
Here are some covered with dried mango that you can put on Instagram so that people don't judge you. The white choc… https://t.co/FeBaIFI9W6— Adam Liaw (@Adam Liaw) 1553146864.0
These treats are a good amount of sugar and carbs, but they're quick, look great, and you don't have to worry about the chocolate chip cookie grandma stealing your idea.
Throw them in some Tupperware and send your spawn to get an education.
And here's the whole gang in a Tupperware that your kid will somehow lose even though they spend the entire day in… https://t.co/hNGxHkfZo7— Adam Liaw (@Adam Liaw) 1553147035.0
Oh, I forgot. You end up with a full glass of melted chocolate. Just pour that onto a sheet of baking paper and spr… https://t.co/dOcxoYu2VW— Adam Liaw (@Adam Liaw) 1553147884.0
All bow to Adam Liaw, savior of classroom parents everywhere.
@adamliaw I didn’t think it was possible, but you actually bloody did it. I’ll never doubt you again ever— Your Good Friend Chris (@Your Good Friend Chris) 1553147240.0
@adamliaw You are full of wisdom and greatness. And I guess chocolate, now.— jhube (@jhube) 1553146166.0
@adamliaw You are a magical unicorn and I am forever indebted to you.— shez lee (@shez lee) 1553159815.0
Although I have to ask, is there a possibility of changing the name?
@adamliaw Fat Pocky is absolutely my burlesque name— mat whitehead (@mat whitehead) 1553145974.0
@adamliaw I found this thread wildly interesting and I don't even have kids— Safia van der Zwan (@Safia van der Zwan) 1553147673.0
@adamliaw You had me at "full glass of chocolate" 😋— Kimici (@Kimici) 1553158108.0
While an ongoing joke is how accurate The Onion articles can be in reflecting real life, it's rather surprising to see it influence and create a treat that is sure to be a hit at your child's next class party.
Just don't everyone make them at the same time.
