# What ingredients don't you like as a chef?



## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

As a food lover, cook, chef, caterer, there are very few items I will not try. In cooking school I was taught you have to at least try everything once...or twice before making your decree about them. So in the spirit of being a "professional" I never turn my nose up at anything that is put in front of me to try, in fact, I enjoy the challenge, and look forward to discovering new foods. However, there are certain ingredients I just can't get past the palate.

Parsley (I gag if I detect the slightest taste of this herb in my mouth)

Mayo (can only eat (in moderation) if it's heavily disguised with other flavors)

Yolks (holy crap, kill me)

Frog (have never tried it, but I have a deathly fear of frogs, Can't even see them in print, and the thought of eating it would be like a Fear Factor challenge)

but I will happily and eagerly try and eat anything and everything else under the sun. Put it in front of me and I'll dig in!


----------



## rbrad (Apr 29, 2011)

truffle oil


----------



## kingofkings (May 1, 2012)

Pollopicu said:


> Parsley


 +1


----------



## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

Oh I forgot to add liverwurst...Holy mother of God. I haven't written it off yet because I only scraped off my tongue once.





  








liverwurst-cat-kids-liverwurst-demotivational-post




__
pollopicu


__
Feb 5, 2013


----------



## meezenplaz (Jan 31, 2012)

What people don't realize is that as Americans we eat a small fraction of what's

consumed as food the world over. Well off hand I would personally rule out

anything that crawled along the ground. And of course anything still moving.

Its all releative to the way you were brought up I suppose. There are those who

find it appalling to eat something that emerged from a chicken's fanny, for example.

Or....say, beef's okay, or even liver, but brains tongue tripe etc is all "gross".

To each their own...upbringing.


----------



## squirrelrj (Feb 18, 2011)

Beets

Truffle Oil


----------



## foodpump (Oct 10, 2005)

I've been exposed to a lot, but there's one thing, and one thing only I won't eat.

Rhubarb

Now the Swiss have a very rude albeit exact expression about something being  "so sour it will pull your foreskin right through and out your rectum".

Sums up rhubarb pretty well.

Liverwurst? bring it on, red, white, and green mold cheeses? bring it on.  Tripe with caraway seeds? bring it on. Stinky tofu? bring it on.  Durian? bring it on, just anyone else around me has to eat it too.

Rhubarb, no way.


----------



## chefbuba (Feb 17, 2010)

Kryptonite.... I mean green peas. Snow peas, ok, split peas, ok, green peas, not allowed through the door, goes in nothing I serve.


----------



## michaelga (Jan 30, 2012)

Uni - I love all other types of sashimi and seafood even oysters all offal, weird fuzzy things and slithery reptiles stinky cheese and even a few insects etc et al.

But Uni... I have tried it 3 times and gagged pretty bad twice... no idea why just doesn't work and won't go down, even brings up what already has!


----------



## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

MichaelGA said:


> Uni - I love all other types of sashimi and seafood even oysters all offal, weird fuzzy things and slithery reptiles stinky cheese and even a few insects etc et al.
> 
> But Uni... I have tried it 3 times and gagged pretty bad twice... no idea why just doesn't work and won't go down, even brings up what already has!


It's thought to be an aphrodisiac too. I love how everything super gross or slimy is labeled as an aphrodisiac. I think it's the industries way of getting rid of it.


----------



## shichangchu (Dec 4, 2010)

Unfortunately for me, I dislike most all fish except for some sushi (tuna, hamachi, etc). Funny part is I'm half Chinese and my Chinese side of the family loves fish. The two above all others though are salmon and catfish. I usually try them once a year to see if my taste buds have altered at all but so far nothing. Whenever I try catfish, all I taste is mud.


----------



## arugula (Sep 13, 2012)

Mine has to be boiled ham. Just the thought of it makes me gag. Give me bambo slugs, pickled squid, balut, I don't care. Just please no boiled ham.


----------



## michaelga (Jan 30, 2012)

> balut


That is one I haven't tried... just haven't had the occasion to try it yet. I will try it when the time comes but i'm thinking it might make the number 2 on the list.


----------



## wpgcook (Dec 26, 2012)

Octopus.  I'm glad it's not on our menu. I hated cleaning those things.  I love squid but I just can't stomach octopus.


----------



## nick alexander (Feb 26, 2012)

I always get crap for this .....

mushrooms

I hate them


----------



## meezenplaz (Jan 31, 2012)

You don't like to EAT mushrooms or don't like to Cook with them?
I love em , but if I really thought about what mushrooms are, 
I'd probably lose my taste for them eventually.
Not really an ingredient, and I'm sure I'm a minority in this,
but I hate cornbread. I know...its anti American.
As to working with ingredients, squid cleanings a hassle, 
and as said above, octopus, which I would sign a petition to outlaw 
in commercial kitchens. Lol


----------



## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

nooo! I enjoy grilled baby octopus. My husband does too. Plus I also make a rice with octopus ink that is delish!


----------



## twyst (Jan 22, 2012)

SquirrelRJ said:


> Beets
> 
> Truffle Oil


This pretty much sums up my most hated list as well.

My other big food dislike is olives. I even hate the way they smell, but am somehow indifferent to olive oil.


----------



## bughut (Aug 18, 2007)

Steamboat in Singapore...The sea slug went down but came back up twice as fast

Tripe is the food of very weird people

Anything in aspic...You take something gorgeous and f*@k it up!!

Most things that include sticking it in a jar, burying it in the ground and eating the stinking remnants weeks and months later. I say most, 'cos I love Kimchi. Korean Cabbagy stuff thats fermented with chillies and spices and tastes amazing IMHO


----------



## arugula (Sep 13, 2012)

Meez I hate corn bread too.


----------



## orex (Jan 27, 2013)

i despise cloves.


----------



## shootoo (Jul 15, 2012)

Coconut
Green bell peppers

Coconut is a no, never again, every time. I refuse

Green bell pepper's smell is too strong and I don't find I appealing at all, but I'll eat them if they're finely diced and harder to identify



Other than that I will eat/try anything


----------



## ed buchanan (May 29, 2006)

Red radishes, blue potatoes, anchovies are high on my list


----------



## kuan (Jun 11, 2001)

Shootoo said:


> Coconut is a no, never again, every time. I refuse
> 
> Green bell pepper's smell is too strong and I don't find I appealing at all, but I'll eat them if they're finely diced and harder to identify


You're missing out on all of cajun food and a huge chunk of Asian food.


----------



## adrianarriaga (Feb 12, 2013)

Lemon Pepper Chicken Breast. I dont know what it is about it, but i find it very hard to put down. but I love lemons.


----------



## foodnfoto (Jan 1, 2001)

Foie gras-disgusting-to me it's like eating eating straight butter, that tastes like liver, only slightly gritty.

I'm not fond of fresh, raw sage, though cooked it's ok. Raw, it's got a strange odor, like cat pee.


----------



## steve tphc (Sep 18, 2012)

Truffle oil is to the flavor of truffle as possum road kill is to Kobe beef! Putting this on anything makes it worse if not inedible. I adore truffles, but this is a bad idea cooked up by a chemist not a chef.


----------



## chefross (May 5, 2010)

ShiChangChu said:


> Unfortunately for me, I dislike most all fish except for some sushi (tuna, hamachi, etc). Funny part is I'm half Chinese and my Chinese side of the family loves fish. The two above all others though are salmon and catfish. I usually try them once a year to see if my taste buds have altered at all but so far nothing. Whenever I try catfish, all I taste is mud.


Sorry......it's the "Food Nazi" in me but when we refer to Sushi that has fish with it, we are talking about Nigiri.

No fish on rice is still Sushi.

Sushi is the vinegared rice.


----------



## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

Chefross said:


> Sorry......it's the "Food Nazi" in me but when we refer to Sushi that has fish with it, we are talking about Nigiri.
> 
> No fish on rice is still Sushi.
> 
> Sushi is the vinegared rice.


I agree, however, if one were to refer to "sushi" by it's proper name outside of the culinary field, (Nigiri), one would come off as pretentious, possibly obnoxious, because the term would almost always illicit the question, accompanied by a side look "what is Nigiri?" then one would have no choice but to pendantically describe the difference, thus making one look like one's got a stick up ones arse.


----------



## nibbles (Feb 12, 2013)

as a chef I HATE that there's anything I dont "like".  I don't want to be a "picky eater".

However.....I absolutely can't stand....gag if I see or smell or God forbid actually touch...yellow mustard. Good with dijon and whole grain..but yellow??  blech

not big on sour kraut

buffalo wings


----------



## poli (Jan 31, 2013)

There isn't much that I've tried and didn't like. Such as, uni, offal, blood pudding, tongue, tripe, escargot, wild game and many more. If someone asks me to try something i eat it. But there are exceptions. I've tried preserved black walnuts twice and that's enough for me. I have no desire to eat any animal's eyes.


----------



## tspapa (Jan 19, 2013)

Vegemite ! Hate that stuff.My Mom would force feed us with it. Also hate brains,my grandfather in Australia would fix brains with eggs for breky./img/vbsmilies/smilies/eek.gif


----------



## pollopicu (Jan 24, 2013)

I've heard of vegemite, but I've never tasted it. I'm intrigued by it.


----------



## bokononist37 (Feb 23, 2013)

Have you guys had the experience of trying something multiple times, and finding that it eventually becomes palatable despite you having previously hated it? I've found that most people (particularly myself), find that trying an excellent preparation/example of a dish or ingredient can easily reverse a previous aversion to it. I've known people who don't like coffee simply because they've never had a good cup. A few of you mentioned beets, for example. I really, really hate overcooked beets - but if they're done right, I love them. Just a thought.

That being said, I've been working with and cooking a lot of beef tongue, and it really isn't my thing...


----------



## kuan (Jun 11, 2001)

You know what I don't like?  Miniature grunt work.  Boning quail and frenching rabbit racks.


----------



## trissynashville (Jan 10, 2013)

Beets, any mushroom, not really a fan of salmon or catfish.

Anything else, sweetbreads, stinky molded cheeses, foie gras, virtually any fish, etc, it's all good. 

I, too, get hate for my dislike of mushrooms. Most chefs are incredibly proud of their ability to put them into half their dishes. Tastes like dirt to me, consistency isn't desireable, either. Tried them many times, prepared and paired in many different ways, just not a fan. 

Also get grief for my dislike of salmon. I don't HATE it, I just find it fishy and little else, I just keep thinking "this really tastes like the river it swam up." I find that their are dozens of better options of fish, especially at that pricepoint.


----------



## kuan (Jun 11, 2001)

Vietnamese fermented fish.


----------



## junglist (Jul 13, 2010)

Dough. The taste is fine, just working with it is too much like baking for me...


----------



## seabeecook (Aug 23, 2008)

Celery ... I gage on the stuff and detest it in just about everything. About the only way I'll eat it is if I grind the mire poix very fine in a food processor for split pea soup. While I leave it out when cooking for my family, I do use celery at work. The only time I use it in at home is to make stock. I don't dislike the flavor - just the texture of the stuff.

When one cooks for recovering addicts as I do, you run into all sorts of food phobias. Occasionally the cards line up just right and each client has some excuse as to why she cannot eat some part of the meal. Phobias seem to be wide spread among some recovering addicts. Everything from peas to mushrooms to onions to celery shows up.

Phobias come and go as clients enter and leave the program. The one constant is any hint that a piece of meat has not been destroyed by heat. For about 20 percent, one molecule of visible red juice or blood will send them into a tizzy. Typically, she over reacts by not eating and dumping her plate in the garbage.

It pains me to have to cook tri-tip beyond medium. And pork with a bit of color? Someclients would rather tar and feather the cook than to even think that "raw" meat is being served to their sisters. "Raw" in the case means any meat that has not been thoroughly destroyed by heat. I am constantly working to educate the women on how good food is prepared.


----------



## minas6907 (Aug 14, 2012)

Something I really dont like is your typical marinara sauce. I love a pasta with a red sauce that has some heavy cream with it...but just plain red sauce I cant do. Never understood it as a dipping sauce either. I think I'm like this after a childhood of eating at the local 'Italian' place, everything comes with the red sauce....everything.


----------



## pirate-chef (Jan 25, 2012)

hard cooked eggs

raw onions

raw bell peppers 

weird cured fish. 

star anis or most anis flavors.


----------



## rupertronco (Oct 21, 2011)

The first set of posters re-iterating the truffle and beet hate shocked me! Two of my absolute favorite flavours. Scientific explanation: a small percentage of the population responds differently to the chemicals responsible for their (shared) earthy, musky aromas. To some people it tastes akin to arm pit.

As for me, all cheap olives, and caper berries. Caper berries are just the most vile thing I've ever encountered.


----------



## mikeenplace (Feb 27, 2013)

Pine nuts, pine nuts, and pine nuts. Those evil little bits of evil.


----------



## rbrad (Apr 29, 2011)

RupertRonco..........nobody in this tread said they didn't like truffles but several,including me said that they couldn't stand using,smelling,or tasting truffle oil.


----------



## rbrad (Apr 29, 2011)

nobody in this thread i mean.


----------



## soubise (Feb 12, 2013)

Don't like Celery.

Fresh sage it stinks.

Fresh Tomatoes if I ate one i'd puke.


----------



## leeniek (Aug 21, 2009)

foodpump said:


> I've been exposed to a lot, but there's one thing, and one thing only I won't eat.
> 
> Rhubarb
> 
> ...


I laughed out loud at that one! When I was a kid my parents had rhubarb plants in the backyard. My mom loved rhubarb pie and made it one time and well it a a one time wonder because my dad and I both hated it, and years later I found out why... She forgot to put the sugar in the pie! So I'm with you on the rhubarb and I've tasted it in it's true form... bleh


----------



## leeniek (Aug 21, 2009)

I'd have to go with hard boiled eggs, and I think cooked eggs in general. I'm allergic to them and the smell of them cooking makes me want to throw up... Funny thing is I worked in a breakfast place and was the egg cook and the only time I had to leave the line was when the KS was peeking hard boiled eggs right behind my station. I spent the rest of my shift trying to keep my cookies down and well the dry storage got a good cleaning!


----------



## thetincook (Jun 14, 2002)

leeniek said:


> I'd have to go with hard boiled eggs, and I think cooked eggs in general. I'm allergic to them and the smell of them cooking makes me want to throw up... Funny thing is I worked in a breakfast place and was the egg cook and the only time I had to leave the line was when the KS was peeking hard boiled eggs right behind my station. I spent the rest of my shift trying to keep my cookies down and well the dry storage got a good cleaning!


I'll go with hard boiled eggs. Can't stand the smell, they're a pain in the ass to peel, and nobody ever cooks them right.


----------



## thetincook (Jun 14, 2002)

RupertRonco said:


> The first set of posters re-iterating the truffle and beet hate shocked me! Two of my absolute favorite flavours. Scientific explanation: a small percentage of the population responds differently to the chemicals responsible for their (shared) earthy, musky aromas. To some people it tastes akin to arm pit.
> 
> As for me, all cheap olives, and caper berries. Caper berries are just the most vile thing I've ever encountered.


I can understand the beet hate. The chemical that gives beets their earthy taste is the same chemical that makes dirt taste like dirt. In dirt, it's produced by microbes.

I take a pass on truffles, because they smell like pig sex (which is why/how pigs hunt for them).


----------



## squirrelrj (Feb 18, 2011)

thetincook said:


> I can understand the beet hate. The chemical that gives beets their earthy taste is the same chemical that makes dirt taste like dirt. In dirt, it's produced by microbes.
> 
> I take a pass on truffles, because they smell like pig sex (which is why/how pigs hunt for them).


That's why they let Truffle Hounds hunt them now, that, and the pigs eat them.

Truffles are fine, it's that garbage truffle oil I think most people take issues with.


----------



## saltandfat (Dec 20, 2012)

Canned roasted red peppers

Goat cheese

I don't know why, but both will ruin a dish for me if I order something and am not expecting it. The only way I've found goat cheese palatable for myself is to fold in a ton on fresh grated horseradish and black pepper.


----------



## lagom (Sep 5, 2012)

thetincook said:


> I'll go with hard boiled eggs. Can't stand the smell, they're a pain in the ass to peel, and nobody ever cooks them right.


I'll never understand how anyone that can tell time can screw up a hard boiled egg, but it happens all the time. Truely sad aint it?


----------



## dpr8ter (Mar 2, 2013)

Any meat cooked well-done (except the obvious).  It pains me to have to cook it and serve it.  A restaurant I used to work at we had Wagyu beef as a special and a guy ordered his well done.  I wanted to die.


----------



## planethoff (Apr 25, 2011)

There are a lot of things I'm not particularly fond of, but will eat if served  to not offend the chef (or cook).  However, Canned tuna (especially packed in oil) and lutefisk I have trouble even being in the same room with and will never eat.


----------



## kuan (Jun 11, 2001)

dpr8ter said:


> Any meat cooked well-done (except the obvious). It pains me to have to cook it and serve it. A restaurant I used to work at we had Wagyu beef as a special and a guy ordered his well done. I wanted to die.


Are you Gordon Ramsay?


----------



## chef jfraser (Mar 5, 2013)

White pepper


----------



## solsen1985 (Feb 27, 2013)

Servers.


----------



## oldschool1982 (Jun 27, 2006)

As single ingredient foods Offal bits and everything about Caviar.

Even after watching Anthony Bourdain highlight them in his last season or two, exclaim their lost place in his heart and sit down to a plate full, I never, in my 50 plus years, been able to stomach them. However, I have enjoyed many foods made with them as an ingredient. For me personally......foods like Andoullie sausage (don't ask the sausage maker if.......), giblet gravy at Thanksgiving, braunschweiger, foie gras in my beef wellington, dirty rice, etc, etc........they do have a place in the mix but not alone on the plate.

As far as Caviar is concerned, it's overly stinky, overly salty and over fishy no matter what you put on it or it on......period. First and last ever experience was my first year of school and serving it with bulgar wheat crepes and creme fraiche for a dinner. Never again!


----------



## solsen1985 (Feb 27, 2013)

OKay I thought of one that I can't stand: Nicoise Olives. Terrible.


----------



## miash (Mar 9, 2013)

Truffle oil. It smells like hot farts.


----------



## mpowling (Feb 27, 2013)

Every time I see truffle oil now, all I can think of is 'hot farts' and I start laughing. People think I'm loony.


----------

