I suppose popularity varies by region and culinary experience, but here are some root vegetables that most people (of my generation at least) don't like and rarely eat (if ever):
1. Turnips -- they have a wonderfully delicate flavor if they are fresh, not woody, and if they aren't boiled too death.
2. Parsnips -- boiled, sliced and fired in butter this cousin to the carrot also has a nice delicate flavor. Very good as long as it isn't too fibrous.
3. Jerusalem artichokes -- my grandfather used to grow these. I've seen recipes for cooking them, but we liked to eat them raw (peeled and washed first, of course). They have a nice crunch (texture is kind of like jicama) and a nutty, earth taste.
4. Beets -- They get a bad rap because too many of us were served canned beats which tasted horrible or if not-canned, boiled to death and mushy. I think the key to good beets is to roast them (although I liked them boiled as well)
Also: I have never had celeriac -- I see it in the stores, but was never served it and haven't taken the time to cook it myself. Anybody out there in to celeriac?
I'll be back with other unpopular/unknown food items, but feel free to add your own.
Posted by screechowl (Member # 2651) on :
I know about parsnips and turnips very well. You are right. If cooked properly they can be very good. Turnips, as I recall, can taste pretty good raw and sliced thin. I have not had them for years.
I grew up with scrapple for breakfast. Pretty good as I recall. Probably not considered dietically correct today. Posted by Annie (Member # 295) on :
I have to admit to eating, and very much enjoying, brains, back when I was a kid. They were very tasty.
I'd be afraid to eat them now though. Posted by Mr.Funny (Member # 4467) on :
Spam! It actually tastes quite good if prepared well. (Like Spam musubi.)
Posted by DanielW2 (Member # 5861) on :
Black Pudding !
Posted by Sachiko (Member # 6139) on :
Salmon testicles. They're really good pan-fried.
Posted by imogen (Member # 5485) on :
Fennel is lovely if cooked right - it's just important not to use old fennel, because then the flavour will dominate everything.
My favourite is baby fennel roasted with prosciutto - yum.
Liver can also be yummy - though I only came to this realisation recently. Calf liver for preference, sliced very very thinly and served with bacon. Or rare pidgeon breast, if you're being fancy.
Posted by Ela (Member # 1365) on :
And, Zal, I love turnips and parsnips.
Also rutabagas. Posted by Sugar+Spice (Member # 5874) on :
Haggis. But only on Burns night.
Posted by ReikoDemosthenes (Member # 6218) on :
chicken feet is something I've been offered but declined
I don't know how usual or not it is but pickled herring is quite good,and so are droppees (sp?) which is salted black licorice
Posted by Ela (Member # 1365) on :
Sorry, but I can't stand salted black licorice. I had it once and thought it was perfectly awful.
I do love real (unsalted ) black licorice, though. Posted by UofUlawguy (Member # 5492) on :
Brussels sprouts are my vote. I get them exactly once a year, but only if I go to my mother-in-law's for Thanksgiving. Yum.
Posted by screechowl (Member # 2651) on :
Oh, I love Brussel sprouts. I have them all the time. I am partially green from eating so many.
Posted by Ela (Member # 1365) on :
Mmmmm...brussel sprouts...
Posted by Zalmoxis (Member # 2327) on :
Thanks everybody. I love this kind of stuff.
On fennel: I've only had it in sausage (which I love). I should try it like that.
On rutabagas: Have had them once or twice -- roasted with other winter veggies. Not bad. I think I'd have to try them by themselves to know for sure. How would you desribe their taste, Ela?
On brains: I once ate brain pounded, breaded and fried at a KFC-like fast food place in Bucharest. It was... spongy. And kind of tasteless.
On brussel sprouts: don't know if I like them because I've never had them prepared properly. How do you cook them screechowl?
On liver: Not a big fan, but then again, I never had it like imogen describes. I'd probably like that. Yet another one of those damn "when I was in Romania" stories -- I once was served (and ate) a calf liver the size of my fist. It was soooo dry. Man it was nasty.
---- Which reminds me: I had beef tongue sliced thinly and marinated in something delicious (olive oil, garlic and some herbs -- not sure all what was in there) at a Basque restaurant. Very good.
Posted by Sachiko (Member # 6139) on :
*shudder*
Tongue is the one thing I can't eat. Whenever I imagine it I can almost feel myself crunching down on my own tongue.
Posted by Ryuko (Member # 5125) on :
I really like kohl rabi, but it's been years since I've had it...
Posted by Yozhik (Member # 89) on :
Fried eggplant with walnut sauce. I first had it in a Georgian restaurant in Moscow. Very yummy.
Posted by Ela (Member # 1365) on :
This thread is making me hungry.
That tongue dish sounds delicious.
I love tongue.
(Let's face it, I love food. )
Posted by jexx (Member # 3450) on :
I had roasted radishes once (I was experimenting). Really good. Starchy and a little sweet.
I LOVE brussels sprouts. No one else in my house will eat them, so I buy the frozen kind. I steam them in the microwave, nothing special. A little salt, maybe butter if I'm in the mood for that. Mmmmmmm...
Posted by mackillian (Member # 586) on :
Gross.
Gross gross gross.
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
Mmm, tongue. Pickled (or plain) is nice cold, but my favorite way of making it is sliced, hot, cooked (the second time, after boiling and peeling) with a sweet-and-sour sauce (brown sugar, lemon juice or cider vinegar, water, cornstarch, maybe some spices) and almonds and raisins. *drools*
Haven't had them in ages, but sweetbreads are yummy too. Posted by fiazko (Member # 5812) on :
I'm with mack.
Posted by Azile (Member # 2312) on :
...is undeniably the best fruit in the whole freggin' universe!
Heh. It's an acquired taste. You either hate it, or you love it. Many people are rather deterred by the pungent odor of this delectable piece of exotic fruit, but once you can actually overlook it's overpowering yet oddly fragrant odor, it'll become the most mouthwatering, rapture-inducing, !ambrosia-of-the-gods-like thing that you have ever tasted.
Mind you, it's pretty pricey though.
Posted by ludosti (Member # 1772) on :
My brother loves Durian. He's determined to go buy one at the local Asian market so I can try some.
Posted by ak (Member # 90) on :
Eggplant is wonderful! Aubergines is so much more yummy sounding a word for them, though. I think it's the name that puts people off. It's the most wonderful thing, particularly sauteed in olive oil and then sprinkled with garlic and parmesan cheese and then baked.
I also love the french dish ratatoullie, which has eggplant, zuchinni, tomatoes, onions, and green peppers with lots of spices and cooked in olive oil. I love Julia Child's recipe but I modify it to make it a lot easier to make.
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
mmmmmmm!
Posted by CalvinMaker (Member # 2032) on :
So far, the only thing in this thread I'd be willing to try is durian.
Everything else :-X
Fried Matzah/Matzah Brai with maple syrup is delicious!
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
Matzah brei! mmmm -- with maple syrup, eh; with jam (preferably strawberry) YUM!
Posted by knightswhosayni! (Member # 4096) on :
My favorite way to have spinach or brussel sprouts is steamed, then with a little butter, and the most vinegar you can stand without burning your tongue. Lots of salt, too.
I also eat lemon wedges with salt.
maybe i have a thing for strong flavors...
Ni!
Posted by jexx (Member # 3450) on :
Ooh, kwsni, if you like salted lemon, have you ever tried 'saladitos'? (I think I spelled that right) They are dried salted plums, and where I grew up (SoCal), they were all the rage. You cut a lemon in half, and stuck the saladito (now that I read that, I think it should be 'saldito') right in the middle. Like a cherry in a grapefruit (but much, much better). Then you just suck on it. The plums are dried with the pit still in the middle, so don't eat that part, just the flesh of it.
Very, very strong flavor. Posted by Anna (Member # 2582) on :
Maroilles (it's a French cheese) tart. MMMMM.
Posted by screechowl (Member # 2651) on :
Zalmoxis- "On brussel sprouts: don't know if I like them because I've never had them prepared properly. How do you cook them screechowl?"
I micro everything, so put a serving in a bowl w/ a little water (if fresh make sure you have enough water) and give it the needed time. I find about 4 to 4 and 1/2 min. will cook a serving of the smaller sprouts.
You have to decide how firm you like them.
You doctor them up with cheese and I suppose other things. I just eat them plain with dinner.
People on here can probably come up with recipes for them.
Posted by KarlEd (Member # 571) on :
Brussel sprouts are delicious steamed, with basamic vinegar sprinkled on.
I like spinach best in salad. (Or creamed, with a nice piece of cornbread.
Passion fruit juice - not the "mostly-white-grape juice-with-a-passion-fruit-waved-over-it-for-effect" stuff you mostly find in the grocery stores. You haven't lived until you've had it prepared fresh, just the fruit pulp, water, and a little sugar whipped up in a blender and then strained to get the seeds out. MMMMmmmmmmm. Lovely lovely stuff.
I also like cashew-apple (or caju in portuguese) juice, but it's really hard to find in the states. It's an acquired taste for many, though.
I like broccolini, but it's not easy to find either. It's like long skinny broccoli. Very pretty on the plate, too, if lightly steamed.
Posted by beatnix19 (Member # 5836) on :
Oxtail (which is actually just a cows tail) - mmm... this makes the best soup. But buying it always freaks me out, excpecially from a butcher that brings the whole freaking tail out before cutting it up.
Posted by Robespierre (Member # 5779) on :
The best soda I have ever had was a russian soda that was $1.25 per 12 oz bottle. Tarragon flavored soda.
Posted by Jaiden (Member # 2099) on :
Sweet Breads, mmm-mmmm. (Thymus gland from a baby cow)
I love spinich in any shape or form. I think cooked is my favourite, however.
Parsnips, turnips, rutabagas, etc. I love pretty much all foods.
I love smoked oysters and mussels.
Clamato juice. A lot of people won't drink it once they find out there is clam "waste" in it *grins*
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
Durian is definitely an interesting fruit. The whole "garlic-almond" element to its flavor is a bit offputting at first, as is its scent, but it's one of those things where I ate a bite, thought "eew", and then found myself reaching for another bite. Good stuff.
Langsaart are good too. Anybody ever had those?
Posted by Mrs.M (Member # 2943) on :
Fried dill pickles. Mmmmmmmm.
Pomegranate sauce - I had it with broiled salmon at the Russian restaurant near us and it was amazing.
Capers. I use them in my pasta primavera sauce (without cream) and in chicken piccata. I've never had the chicken piccata, but Andrew loves it.
BTW, matzo brei should only be eaten with salt, like grits. Coincidentally, these are the only things that my mother cooks well.
Posted by Narnia (Member # 1071) on :
Karl, have you lived in Brazil?!
I adore maracuja!! It was my favorite thing when I was there. I however do NOT like suco de caju (as it was too thick and chalky for my taste.)
Your food choices sounded oddly south american!
Speaking of Brazil, I adore fresh spinach on rice and black beans cooked just right. Balsamic vinegar also makes any vegetable just better. (Cucumber with bv...yum!)
Posted by KarlEd (Member # 571) on :
Nobody makes black beans and rice as tasty as Brazilians do. (Right now I could really go for a nice big bowl of feijoada.)
Yes, in a former life I was a Mormon missionary in Brazil (1986-88).
Have you ever had Jaboticaba? I have never met anyone who hasn't lived in Brazil who's ever even heard of this strange fruit.
Posted by UofUlawguy (Member # 5492) on :
My brothers-in-law who were missionaries in Brazil can't believe that I hate maracuya. I had it in Honduras, and it was one of the worst things I ever ate/drank in a country full of nasty things to eat/drink.
I also hated maranon (which is the fruit portion of a cashew) and tamarind, which to my horror you can actually buy in supermarket around here now.
But back to the topic of weird things that are good, I sure wish I had had the chance to try iguana while I was in Honduras. Sadly, they were a little bit hard to come by in the more urban areas.
[ February 20, 2004, 11:45 AM: Message edited by: UofUlawguy ]
Posted by UofUlawguy (Member # 5492) on :
Not all the fruit in Honduras was bad. There was a fruit called a mamey (not sure how it's spelled, but it's pronounced Mah-May) that was about the size of a shelled coconut and about the same color, but the flesh was like a firm peach or apricot, though much more reddish, and it had a large, irregular pit. It was very tasty, indeed. My companion became addicted and started dreaming of ways to import mamey trees to the U.S. and grow them in huge greenhouses or something. However, they didn't seem to be very common, even in the areas where they grew.
Posted by Sopwith (Member # 4640) on :
Roasted turnips: Great!
Steamed Radishes: possibly the most horrid taste in the world. Had to try a second one to be sure it was as bad as I thought. Yegads, where's the tongue scraper??!!!???
Shallots: beats the heck out of onions in many dishes.
Posted by NicoleValentine (Member # 6206) on :
Being a college student, most people think the food I eat are weird when I eat raw sliced zucchini or sliced tomatoes with a dash or salt. As for actual weird foods though, I'm not really sure that I have much experience...
Posted by Coccinelle (Member # 5832) on :
It's interesting ...the fruit is about the size of a large watermelon with a prickly exterior. The interior reminds me of rubber bands (but can be cooked like spaghetti squash) and the fruits are these banana/pineapple flavored yellow things surrounding the seeds.
Seriously strange. But very delicious and expensive. My sister who lived in Brazil coerced me into spending about $60 for one. The experience was worth it.
Posted by Jenny Gardener (Member # 903) on :
Bass Cheeks - catch a big enough bass, and you can eat the cheek meat. Very tender and sweeter than the fillets!
Crawdads - we ate these out of the local creek one year!
Weeds - there are lots and lots of edible weeds that you can put in your salads in the spring!
Clover - suck the nectar out of the flowers.
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
Holy crap, you spent $60 on a jackfruit? I've only had them in Thailand, so I can imagine that their import price might be high, but my god!
One of my favorite things about travelling to other countries is getting to sample fruits I've never heard of that are indigenous to the region. I'm going to have to take a trip to Brazil to try all of the various fruits you guys are talking about.
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
Matzah brei with salt instead of sugar is a vile perversion of a delicious food. Ok, I'll occasionally eat it that way if someone else cooks it. Posted by Annie (Member # 295) on :
I don't really eat brain sandwiches, just for the record.
I am strangely attatched to Mexican imports. I don't drink much along the lines of sugared beverages, but I really enjoy a brand of Mexican kool-aid I've found that sells it in Jamaica, Horchata, and Tamarindo flavors. I've also had a tamarindo soda that I really like. My roommates refuse to eat it, saying it tastes "like grass" (shrug).
Tamarindo candy is fabulous. I also like squinkles - chewy candy tubes that have flavors like chamoy and mango sprinkled with hot chili.
In fact, it was in Oaxaca, home of mole, that I discovered the true beauty of chiles. On my birthday my friends took me out for helado, and I had "chocolate con agua" ice cream with chili & limón sprinkled on top. It was beautiful.
And don't get me started on chapulínes...
[ February 20, 2004, 01:31 PM: Message edited by: Annie ]
Posted by Jenny Gardener (Member # 903) on :
Has anybody ever sucked the marrow out of bones? It's incredibly animalistic and delicious.
*I was born to be a carnivore*
RRRRRRR!
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
Jenny, I adore marrow -- I buy marrow bones for Shabbos soup (most weeks).
Posted by Jenny Gardener (Member # 903) on :
Oh, and probably the most intense thing I ever ate was seaweed!
I saw a lady on the beach in Hawaii, picking up seaweed. Now, I learned from The Black Stallion that certain types of seaweed are edible. So I asked the lady what she was collecting. She showed me, and told me how to prepare it. Unfortunately, she was Japanese and had heavily accented English. I caught maybe one word in 5.
So I collected seaweed of my own. I took it back to the condo and rinsed it many times. I tossed it with vinegar and some greens. It was salty and wonderful! Most of my family did not eat it, but I loooooove salt and brine. It was one of the most erotic eating experiences I've ever had.
The other erotic eating experiences were Oysters Rockefeller and tender scallops.
Posted by Jenny Gardener (Member # 903) on :
Oh yes, and what has come to be known as Chicken Ambrosia. What I ate at the first Wenchcon.
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
Seaweed is good in things -- sushi, Japanese rice crackers -- but I don't much care for it alone.
Posted by Yozhik (Member # 89) on :
I chewed the wood from a tree where a deer had been rubbing its antlers. It was really soggy wood. It tasted midly euphoric.
Posted by Jenny Gardener (Member # 903) on :
Did I mention that I like to drink dill pickle juice?
Posted by Teshi (Member # 5024) on :
Lichees (the white, juicy fruit that is faded-red on the outside). I love them. I also love the little brown seed inside (to look at, not to eat!) because it's so smooth. Yum.
My father calls brussel sprouts "bottled sunshine" (he's from the north of England- it's what he grew up on) and when he cooks them, he cooks them so much you don't need teeth to eat them. Not a good sensation, so I'm a little biased against brussel sprouts.
Posted by TheTick (Member # 2883) on :
I don't know if it's good or bad that I've never eaten anything on this thread, nor do I have anything not on the list that would fit in. /me would not do well on Fear Factor.
Posted by Jenny Gardener (Member # 903) on :
Anyone else here eaten Bass Cheeks?
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
Leechees are NUMMY! And in the past few years, the price for fresh ones (at least certain times of year) has become almost reasonable.
Posted by Zalmoxis (Member # 2327) on :
Jenny: Nope, but I have had the cheeks of other fish -- salmon, and, some large, white-fleshed fish that I had in a Chinese restaurant (cooked whole, lightly breaded and drenched in a wonderful sauce). I think it was cod, but I can't remember.
Anyway, fish cheeks are tasty -- very delicate.
And to be *indelicate*, I hear calf's cheeks are quite good.
Oh yeah, and fish-related: anybody like eating very small fried fish whole? Mmmmmm. Crunchy. But they have to be small. I once tried to eat one that was 4-5 inches long and the backbone was just too big.
Posted by esl (Member # 3143) on :
Yes! Lychee and fish cheeks are nummy! During a Chinese food day my high school teacher completely horrified me when she said 'leechy'. absolutely terrible.
Unagi/Eel is really good, but I don't know how unpopular or unknown that is. It's my dinner tonight.
O, ox tongue is not bad actually. When I tried it, I thought it was regular beef meat. I didn't take anymore after I was informed, but it was good nonetheless.
Unknown: Chinese New Year cake. It's not like most cakes. I think it's made of sugar, flour, and lots of water; then it's steamed into a sort of gel and that's the finished product. My family slices them and dips them into raw egg before pan frying. Sooo good.
Has anyone tried Rocky Mountain Oysters?
Posted by Zalmoxis (Member # 2327) on :
Unagi is one of my favorite sushi items.
Posted by Coccinelle (Member # 5832) on :
quote:Holy crap, you spent $60 on a jackfruit? I've only had them in Thailand, so I can imagine that their import price might be high, but my god!
In my defense.... it was HUGE...about twenty pounds and it was for my sweet sister who never splurges for anything and was unemployed at the time. It was the first time I'd seen her excited about something in months and it meant so much to her that she could share something from her brazilian experience with her family that it was totally worth every penny. However, I'll never spend that much money on one again. Posted by Coccinelle (Member # 5832) on :
I've had fried rocky mountain oysters. Chewy little things. Like gizzards. They were really tasty till I found out that they we're actually oysters.
[ February 21, 2004, 08:33 AM: Message edited by: Coccinelle ]
Posted by Ela (Member # 1365) on :
Fried dill pickles, Mrs. M? I am trying to picture exactly how one would fry a dill pickle.
I once had dill pickle flavored potato chips, and I loved them. But they must have been a test product, cause I never saw them again.
Posted by Coccinelle (Member # 5832) on :
Fried dill pickles....mmmm...there is a restaurant across the street from my house that serves them. They use nice crisp pickles (Claussen, I believe) and then bread them up real nice. They're quartered as to make them easier to chew. Then you dip them in ranch and crunch away..mmmm... Them's tasty fella's.
Posted by Annie (Member # 295) on :
Rocky mountain oysters taste just fine... it's the texture that gets you. Reeeeely chewy - like biting into rubber foam.
Posted by solo (Member # 3148) on :
Dill Pickle potato chips are readily available in Canada (At least in Western Canada). All the major and store brands have them here.
I once had Ostrich Pepperoni that was really good. A little bit of Haggis on Robbie Burns day never hurt either.
Posted by Sachiko (Member # 6139) on :
My brothers and I love seaweed and dried squid. And kimchee.
Although those really aren't weird foods.
Posted by Fitz (Member # 4803) on :
quote: Durians
...is undeniably the best fruit in the whole freggin' universe!
Really? I used to work in the produce section of a grocery store. We sold durian. They smell, literally, like crap.
Posted by Azile (Member # 2312) on :
Heh. They do smell rather strong. To me and to many people who are use to it, Durians, surprisingly enough, actually smell good. However, to the other 80% of the world population, they do smell- as you so eloquently put it, like "crap".
Give it a try though! You just might like it. Posted by imogen (Member # 5485) on :
mm lychees. They're really cheap here at the moment, so my little sister and I are on a lychee gorge.
Zalmoxis - I also like fried whole little fish - such as whitebait or little sardines. Tony can't stand them: he hates the idea of eating 'fish brains'...
And marrow! YUM! Lamb marrow is my favourite - when I was little I always had to get my lamb chops based on the amount of marrow in them. And then suck the marrow from everyone else's bones. (The chop bones, not their actual bones..)
What else? Sashimi, but that's not really unusual.
Also veal tartare (preferably the french way: cut paper thin, served sprinkled with excellent olive oil and capers) and beef tartare (I like Japanese tataki beef: seared on the outside, but the middle still raw, cut thin and served with an intense garlicky sauce for dipping). I had tataki beef for dinner last night.
And Biltong (beef jerky) - the hard stuff, and for preference with chilli / peri peri marinade. I first tasted it in South Africa, and I've been addicted ever since.
Posted by ReikoDemosthenes (Member # 6218) on :
quote:I also like cashew-apple (or caju in portuguese) juice, but it's really hard to find in the states. It's an acquired taste for many, though.
I'd forgotten about this juice, I LOVE it...my aunt and uncle bring it sometimes when they come back from Brazil *savours the memory of it*
Posted by Jenny Gardener (Member # 903) on :
Oh, I almost forgot! I have eaten stir-fried mealworms! A coworker took his class to Purdue to visit their entomology department and brought some back for me. They were cruncy, kinda nutty, and very good! I'd gladly eat them again.
Hobbes and Celia, this is one reason you MUST invite me over for Purdue's Entomology Festival.
Posted by Megan (Member # 5290) on :
Eel...though I don't know exactly how strange it is. I was in Chile on a cello choir tour, one in which meals were all covered (so we didn't pick what we ate...both wonderful and dreadful by turns). At one restaurant, they served us plates of what appeared to be portions of fried fish. I ate it, and it was DELICIOUS. I asked my Chilean friend what it was, and she said eel. Well, yum. Posted by Narnia (Member # 1071) on :
Karl!! I really really like Jaboticaba! It's the strangest fruit, isn't it? It also looks pretty disgusting, but I love the way they grow and how you can just pick them off of tree bark as you walk down the street.
On my mission we lived in a house that had a lime tree, two goiaba trees (one red, one white), a banana tree, a mango (the little yellow ones) tree, an acerola tree and peaches hanging over our wall from the neighbors. We drank a lot of juice at that point.
I think that suco de acerola was my very favorite drink and mousse de maracuja was the dessert of champions!!
Fejoada is scary!! I had it once and the pig ears startled me. (Where were you in Brazil? I was in Campinas, about 2 hours north of Sao Paulo.)
Posted by Ela (Member # 1365) on :
quote:I don't really eat brain sandwiches, just for the record.
I didn't think you did, Annie. I assumed you posted that link as a joke. Posted by Zalmoxis (Member # 2327) on :
So some of you people like pretty freaky stuff. Excellent.
Who here likes okra (aside from tolerating it in gumbo)? I don't eat it often, but I do like it fried -- it's a lot like fried eggplant, imo, cripsy on the outside, gelatinous in the middle. Not a favorite, but not bad if done right. Of course, okra may only be a semi-exotic, undervalued vegetable out here in the west. Do southerners eat it quite often or is that a stereotype?
Posted by Mrs.M (Member # 2943) on :
quote:Fried dill pickles, Mrs. M? I am trying to picture exactly how one would fry a dill pickle.
They're rolled in flour, then batter, then deep-fried. We only dip them in honey mustard (not honey dijon) in GA, but I guess you could dip them in ranch. Most Yankees recoil when they're served, but...
quote:Do southerners eat it quite often or is that a stereotype?
I don't know about the entire South, but I grew up eating okra all the time in Georgia - at least once a week. Mostly fried, but also in stews and gumbo.
Posted by Annie (Member # 295) on :
Personal Pet Peeve of the day....
Everyone in my neck of the woods refers to "ranch" as an entity by itself. It's no longer "ranch dressing," it's just "ranch." Why does this bother me? No one knows.
The other thing that bothers me is when you're at a buffet or potluck or some other group gathering and the only salad dressing available is "ranch." Because no one would conceivably eat anything else....
Posted by Mrs.M (Member # 2943) on :
I'm with you, Annie! It's the same out here. I loathe ranch dressing.
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
It's one of my favorites, but I still think there ought to be choices! Minimum two, three would be better.
Posted by ludosti (Member # 1772) on :
quote:Who here likes okra (aside from tolerating it in gumbo)? I don't eat it often, but I do like it fried -- it's a lot like fried eggplant, imo, cripsy on the outside, gelatinous in the middle. Not a favorite, but not bad if done right. Of course, okra may only be a semi-exotic, undervalued vegetable out here in the west. Do southerners eat it quite often or is that a stereotype?
Well, when I lived in Texas (as a small child) we grew okra in our garden. It grew really well and so we ate it often. And I quite like it. Posted by imogen (Member # 5485) on :
I don't even know what ranch dressing is
My favourite dressing is just olive oil + good balsamic vinegar. Or chilli oil.
Posted by Ela (Member # 1365) on :
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
![[Eek!]](eek.gif)
![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
![[Wink]](wink.gif)
) black licorice, though. ![[ROFL]](graemlins/rofl.gif)
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