Have you ever been really excited to eat a meal and finally bite into it just to taste something that completely throws you off? Yeah, same (I'm lookin' at you, whole cilantro leaf). So when redditor u/jeron_gwendolen asked the r/Cooking community to share what instantly ruins a dish for them, people sure didn't hold back. Here are some things that they can't stand in their food.
1. "A large tomato in a burger that can't be bitten into and slides out of the whole burger. Just thinking about it makes me mad."
2. "Undercooked eggplant or potato."
"Ugh, I really think more people would like eggplant if they had it cooked properly. Undercooked, underseasoned, and people don't use enough fat and make it dry."
3. "When the mostly irrelevant embellishments overpower and destroy the dish, like a nice, simple cheesecake that's attacked by three gallons of melted chocolate Pollocked all over, a whole jar of (barely) pistachio creme, and a whole Snickers bar protruding out of the top. Thanks, Instagram."
4. "An unexpected inedible garnish."
5. "Overcooked dry meat."
6. "When a whole spice, like elaichi, clove, or tamarind, gets between your teeth while eating. I also don't like raisins in dishes, I would rather eat them dried."
"When you hit the Szechuan pepper, it feels like your mouth is about to have a root canal."
7. "Too much fennel; it's so overpowering."
8. "Under seasoning. I'll catch some flak from the anti-salters, but it makes such a huge difference in the way food tastes to me. Everything is enhanced. Salt and pepper (and spices, depending on the dish) are essential for me."
9. "Soggy chicken skin, its slimy texture makes me wanna puke. This is why I always remove the skin from thighs or drumsticks when I braise or otherwise wet cook them."
10. "Biting into cartilage — it's the one texture by which I cannot abide."
"Ugh, same. In my family's culture, it's like a sin not to clean everything off the bones. They love it and think it's the best part. I can't; it's crunchy and chewy at the same time, and my brain just hates it."
11. "Unrendered animal fat — it makes me gag on contact."
12. "Too much cumin."
"IMO, cumin needs to know its place. It's necessary in certain dishes, but it's a supporting character always trying to break into the lead role."
13. "Sweet pickles."
14. "Undressed salad, veggies, or any side. FFS, put at least half the effort into them that you put into your meat. Undressed sides fill me with rage — a little salt, pepper, oil, vinegar, and butter can take a meh dish to OMG levels."
15. "Soggy instead of crispy. Think pizza in a home oven that didn't crisp on the bottom. It's disgusting."
16. "Truffle oil. Better put some motor oil: it's cheaper, smells, and tastes less strong."
17. "Raw onion. I live in Australia, and every goddamn salad has raw red onion in it."
18. "Liquid smoke on barbecue. Shitty barbecue places use liquid smoke to get a 'smoke flavor' instead of properly smoking their meat. Shit's nasty."
19. "Licorice or ingredients with a licorice-like profile, such as star anise. I especially wish I could like the latter as it adds so much complexity to several Southeast Asian-inspired dishes I like to make."
20. "Cilantro (I've got the 'soap' gene)."
"The dried and powdered coriander seeds are fine with me. The leaves, blech!"
21. "Teetering hipster brioche burgers you have to eat with a knife and fork. It's meant to be a sandwich, not Jenga."
22. "I'm prepared for the downvotes here, but bacon. Adding bacon to freaking EVERYTHING. I'm not against bacon. I love a good, crispy piece of bacon. But adding it inside of something makes it a soggy ass mess with meaty chunks in it, and I just don't like it."
What do you believe instantly ruins a dish? Let us know in the comments, or fill out this anonymous form!
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