What's the worst thing you have eaten out of politeness?

[debm55]

Edited to add-Mine is at my girlfriends house. She made pork chops with Campbell's Cream of Mushroom soup on top and mashed potatoes with the same soup. Yuk

[True Dough]

1. My words?

Gotta keep that ego in check!

[debm55]

31. /hahaha

[Luciferous]

52. 😄

[thatcrowwoman]

76. True dat, True Dough. I resemble that remark.😅

Grandma Shorty said Make your words tender and sweet because someday you may have to eat them.
Mine get spicy sometimes, and sour, too. I draw my line at bitter though, and I’m pretty sure Grandma would be okay with that.
🕊thatcrowwoman

[Diamond_Dog]

2. When my hubby took me over to his family's house for dinner for the very first time

They served pickled beets,which I LOATHE. But I choked them down to be nice.

How about you, deb?

[debm55]

10. Pork chops and mashed potatoes with Campbells cream of mushroom soup on top as a gravy. Terrible.

[Diamond_Dog]

14. Ugh.

My aunt once told me her M-I-L served spaghetti with a can of Hunts tomato sauce poured over the top. That was what she considered spaghetti sauce. Aunt S. said she choked that down too.

[debm55]

33. Yuk--even worse were the sliced hot dogs in spagaetti

[Laffy Kat]

24. Mine was similar.

It was a Russian dinner that my then-husband "won" at an auction. I had to choke down borsht. I do not care for beets in anyway, anyhow, anytime. I think I had enough iced vodka at that point that it wasn't that bad. The couple who prepared the meal did a great job.

[debm55]

34. Agree-hate borsht

[Diamond_Dog]

65. My Polish grandma made borscht once in a great while.

Agree with you about anything that contains beets.

[Laffy Kat]

88. A hat tip to anyone who makes it.

It's a laborious process, has to cook all day. I wish I liked it.

[electric_blue68]

87. I learned to like beets in my late 20's at a seventh day Adventist vegan restaurant...

I was a very picky eater ad a kid. Mid teens i really started to change. They shredded them so finely that I ate a little at a time.

[Laffy Kat]

89. I'm sure it's an acquired taste.

My mom never made it, so I never ate it as a kid.

[Jrose]

3. Horseradish on matzoh, a spoonful of which is traditionally eaten...

when I went to my uncle's Passover Seder many years ago.
Had to wash it down with lots of wine!

[debm55]

35. Horseradish is traditional but I don't like it either, Like how you solved the problem.

[Polly Hennessey]

39. Love horseradish.

[LastDemocratInSC]

4. Turnips. Yuck.

[debm55]

36. Same here

[Polly Hennessey]

43. Love turnips, rutabagas, and kohlrabi.

Confession: love beets, too.

Are you sensing a pattern here. I am hard pressed to say what I don’t like. I like 99.9 percent of food. My husband told me I was a cheap date. Take me to a hot dog stand or a 5-star Michelin restaurant and I am 😋😊🥰

[BlackSkimmer]

69. I'm the same!

Funny, as a child, mom could barely make me choke down a green bean.

I'll eat any vegetable now. Wasn't a fan of meat as a kid, and that hasn't changed.

[debm55]

70. I like the kohlrabi. We used to grow in our garden.

[Raven]

5. Snails...when I was 3 months' pregnant with morning sickness. n/t

[Sanity Claws]

13. Sorry for the ordeal but I laughed

at the description.

[debm55]

37. /i don't think I could do. Did you get sick?

[Raven]

40. Yes, quietly in the bathroom. Nobody noticed.

[snowybirdie]

6. Rice, after

seeing a worm crawl out of it on my plate at private home in Mexico.

[debm55]

44. I had that happen at a restaurant. Pushed the slug away from the salad and hoped I wouldn't find

another.

[Attilatheblond]

7. Anything cooked by my sister-in-law

When daughter was 4, she was not so polite: "There are BEANS in my spaghetti!"

[debm55]

45. How about the hot dogs in the spaghetti? YUK

[hunter]

82. My mom sometimes did that whenever ground beef was too expensive...

... and there wasn't any other sort of meat in the freezer.

I don't want to think about what was in the cheaper grades of hot dogs then.

My grandmothers were huge fans of modern convenience foods. They'd grown up in a world where women spent most of the day in the kitchen preparing meals and they didn't want to be those sorts of women.

They'd grown up in a world where if you wanted chicken for dinner you'd have to start by killing the chicken yourself.

As a little kid I was morbidly fascinated by my great grandmothers' cooking. They were highly skilled with knives and could cut up an animal I'd seen alive faster than my eyes could follow their hands.

I also remember my dad arguing with my mom's grandmother about something in the kitchen. My great grandmother was pretty much convinced all men were fools and the conversation was getting a little heated when she held up her knife inches from my dad's face and suddenly the room was silent.

That was her signal that the argument was over and she went back to her chopping, securely the matriarch in our matriarchal family traditions.

The food I ate politely was rabbit. This same great grandmother had decided to cook a rabbit for Easter, probably in passive aggressive protest of the holiday itself. That's what I remember whenever I think about the Easter Bunny.

[Attilatheblond]

98. Former Mother in law used ketchup for sauce

I do pity the way the ol ex was raised.

[debm55]

102. That is really gross. She didn't make it for you did she?

[Attilatheblond]

136. LOL No but one Thanksgiving dinner at her place had me sick for days

I think she was one of those 'buy the biggest, toughest turkey you can find then cook it for 14 hours at 200 degrees' cooks.

My ex was extreme in avoiding vegetables when we were first married. Took some time for him to try veggies not cooked to oblivion. Thinking he grew up on canned stuff and overcooked everything.

Also, we had been married for over 3 years before he risked taking me to visit/meet his mom. LOL

[debm55]

137. My mom did that too. Veggies washed in hot water. Meat burnt to a crisp. People picking up sliced

meat with their dirty hands and placing back on plate. We seldom ate there.

[magicarpet]

8. Cow tongue in a soup,...

... a Jewish meal at a Rabbi's home. A big chunk that was not chopped up,.. so you could tell exactly what it was.

[debm55]

46. I don't know if I could do it.

[electric_blue68]

86. Oh, I feel for you...Now I never had to eat it but...

when we'd go to a then Greek Deli 1960's my parents would (also) get tongue slice off a....

a big honkin' tongue!

[LeftInTX]

94. I've had tongue, but it was in a sandwich. Tender and good.

It's popular with Mexicans

[Silent Type]

9. Mayonaise. That stuff makes me gag, but it's on everything.

[debm55]

47. And in everthing.

[ShepKat]

11. I'm not that polite.

nobody gonna make me eat gaggy things. Ma forced liver down my throat at the dinner table and I promptly threw up, much to the dismay of my siblings. Never. Again.

[debm55]

48. Don't even get me started on liver. Only place I had it was at home. YUK

[MorbidButterflyTat]

84. I love

liver and onions!

[claudette]

12. Mine was

A hamburger since the hostess did not know I was a vegetarian at the time. Didn’t want to insult her or make a scene. It was HORRIBLE but fortunately it was small

[Diamond_Dog]

15. Once at home when I was a child

My mom served hamburgers (my dad cooked on grill) and mine had something hard in it that I bit down on. I remember my mom said, oh it’s probably a just piece of bone that got mixed in with the meat. That put me off hamburgers forever.

[debm55]

18. Same thing happened to me but with a cheap brand of hot dogs my mother bought. I spit it out,

Last edited Thu Jul 20, 2023, 11:08 AM - Edit history (1)

wrapped the rest in a napkin and threw it away. I took the baby up there for Labor day and the buns had mold on them. I didn't eat. Did not care about politeness. Felt sick, so we left.

[claudette]

27. I can see why!!

[Hela]

16. Tomato aspic.

[debm55]

49. Did you eat some? When there is stuff I don't like like. I take a tiny portion.

[electric_blue68]

130. So I had to look up a aspic - i know the word, seen it but not what it is, exactly.

"Sure, we all have our own dishes and ingredients we don't like, but some dishes get an unfair amount of hate.* One of those dishes? Aspic. If you've never heard of it before, you're not alone. But if you have heard it before, you might have an undesirable opinion on it already. That's fair — it's a polarizing food. But a lot of people out there (especially those of us who live in the U.S. and are under 60 years old) have never even tried aspic.".

Read More: https://www.tastingtable.com/969999/everything-you-need-to-know-about-aspic/

😄 😄

*my bold


Once one of my aunts brought a veggie aspic to our extended family get together. I "eyed it" suspiciously. 😄 i think took a little bit. Oh, this was in the late'60's.

[debm55]

133. Sorry, but yuk

[electric_blue68]

135. Nothing to be sorry about. I just had to laugh at how they described it being controversial!

I don't think I'd try it again.

[bucolic_frolic]

17. crow

[debm55]

50. HAHAHAHA

[Effete Snob]

19. I don't think I'm allowed to talk about it on DU

https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=termsofservice

No graphic content
Do not post content that is Not Safe For Work (NSFW),

[Freddie]

20. Fish tacos

I know most people think this is delicious but I really hate fish. My daughter-in-law went to a lot of trouble to make her fish tacos (which everyone else loves) and I choked one down. I love her too much to be a bother.

[debm55]

51. They seem to be popular now. I can't see eating fish in a taco. Maybe it's good, I have never eaten

one, and never will.

[Walleye]

21. Sea urchin roe

[debm55]

53. Is it like caviar? I tasted caviar once--it was so salty.

[Walleye]

62. No it was in a sushi bar and the best description I got is liquid sweatsox.It's an acquired taste

[3catwoman3]

104. Oh, gawd - that stuff absolutely vile.

Ordered it once out of ignorance. Never again.

I’m told it needs to be really, really fresh. Perhaps mine was not.

[zanana1]

22. As a transfer student in England...

Steak and kidney pie. Horrible, but I ate it.

[debm55]

54. I would like the steak pie. Do not like organ meats.

[Rustynaerduwell]

23. Balut.

Two week old fertilized duck egg. Steamed and eaten from the shell.

She said it was an aphrodisiac, so I don't know how much politeness was involved.

[Laffy Kat]

26. Um, did it work?

[Rustynaerduwell]

29. She said it was an aphrodisiac...

It was forty years ago and I vividly remember her eyes, her hair...and her smile.

It was at that moment, before it had even passed my gullet, that the Balut became an aphrodisiac.

[debm55]

55. I have seen those on cooking shows. I wouldn't eat. Was it an aphrodisiac?

[grumpyduck]

25. We went to a dim sum restaurant with friends

years ago. I did fine with a lot of it, but some of the... ah... whole critters kinda did me in.

[debm55]

56. I would agree with you.

[GPV]

28. Jello mold

[debm55]

57. Especially with the fruit cocktail in it.

[The Unmitigated Gall]

30. Sea Urchin sushi.

Texture thing.

[debm55]

58. Did you eat all of it?

[The Unmitigated Gall]

74. Well...yeah.

Was a good friend and colleague who has since passed away. A real sushi connoisseur. When we'd meet up (both our wives did not like sushi) he would defer to the chef's choice of what to serve. And he would eat ANYTHING there. I on the other hand really like the fish but don't do as well with invertebrates for the most part. But the chef would finish off with a sea urchin flourish and I would politely choke it down...did this a few times then put my foot down!

[Walleye]

63. That was mine! Liquid sweatsox

[The Unmitigated Gall]

75. Just terrible stuff!

[debm55]

100. Did you eat it all or just a small bit. I don't think I could get past the taste or smell.

[The Unmitigated Gall]

114. I did. Barely kept it down. Drained the saki.

[nevergiveup]

32. Chocolate covered ants

when I was a kid although it might have been more "peer pressure" than "politeness" or maybe a little of both.

[debm55]

59. I have seen those at stores, they had grasshoppers too.

[EYESORE 9001]

38. Rocky Mountain oysters

It wasn’t so much politeness as machismo. A coworker raised a few cattle and castrated the young bullocks one fine spring day. He fried them at work and took a plate around to entice passersby with this delicacy.

He and his entourage rolled up on me, then I was offered a bite of bull balls. My slice was about 3” in diameter and pale as veal. As I cut into it with the side of my fork, juice was squeezed from individual tiny pores in the surrounding tissue. Some was clear, some was tinted pink.

Having gone that far, I had to complete the task. I took a bite and discovered why they were called ‘oysters’. There was a strong taste of the primordial sea from which all life arose. I had to focus on keeping it down, not wanting to lose my lunch in front of all those observers.

After I got over my revulsion and the danger of tossing-up had passed, I told them it was great but I’m not hungry now so GTFO.

[debm55]

60. I can't even think of eating one.

[Chainfire]

42. When I was a kid, a missionary, just returned from some remote Asian nation was speaking about

his experiences. He was scheduled to eat dinner with what passed for the "royalty" of the region that he was in and told that it was very impolite to not share "all" of the meal with his hosts. He said that everything was actually very good and he enjoyed the meal. After eating, he was bragging to his host about the little meaty treats that he had really enjoyed. The host was very happy that he liked them and told the missionary, "Ah, yes, our specialty; unborn mice." He described his subsequent smile as rather forced.

I am not overly squeamish or picky, but I have never been so polite as to eat anything that I don't find palatable or within my notion of what I consider appropriate food. My father liked brains and eggs, and I ate them when I was little, but wouldn't today.

[debm55]

61. I agree with you.

[Kaleva]

64. Ass

Has the taste one would expect it to have

[debm55]

67. I have read some cultures eat the water buffalo ass. Is that what you had?

[rownesheck]

66. Hominy.

So gross. That was about 35 years ago, and I have never had them since.

[debm55]

68. Never had it. Did you not like the taste or texture?

[rownesheck]

73. Taste.

I don't even know what to compare it to. Just very odd taste.

[LeftInTX]

101. Hominy is dried corn treated with lye...It is used to make corn tortillas and grits

The lye softens the corn, so it can be made into a flour.

Hominy can be served whole. Basically, it's like soft corn nuts. It has a "gamey" corn taste. You can taste the gaminess in corn tortillas.

I don't particularly like it myself, but it is quite prevalent.

[debm55]

107. Thanks. I thought it was grits,

[AllyCat]

71. Lime jello with shredded carrots

[debm55]

72. yuk

[thatcrowwoman]

77. I can think of 3 things that I will no longer even take a courtesy bite of. I've made a good faith

effort to like them, but I’m done.
1. Lima beans. Texture and taste.
2. Asparagus. Odor and taste. Can’t get it past my nose. Don’t even want to.
3. Sweet potatoes, not even the fries. They are just way too sweet. Texture is iffy.

I’m not as much of a picky eater as I used to be, though. For what it’s worth.
🕊thatcrowwoman

[debm55]

78. Crowwoman-I agree with the first two. I like baked sweet potatoes.

[Ptah]

79. Venison.

[debm55]

80. Know that is something I did eat when I was younger. It had a gamey taste to it. Loved the steaks,

but did not like the ground vension. Had rabbit also but the pellets in the meat should have been cleaned out. My aunt made it, she should have been more careful with cleaning the rabbit. The butcher should have been more aware of the bone fragments in the ground vension.
Also ate bison in ND. It wasn't cracked up to be what I thought it would taste like. Had a very small sample. Ordered a BLT later.

[Aristus]

81. Cold, nearly raw salmon.

At the home of a family friend we joined for dinner one night. She cooked it movie-style, just laying the fish down in the pan, scales, eyes, and all. And I had to eat at least a little of my portion in order to be polite. It was one of the worst things I've ever had to eat. I don't like salmon when it's cooked! So, nearly raw?

[debm55]

83. I don't think I could eat it that way either. I have to have it filet. At times like that just

eating a very small portion of it. Add the fact that is was nearly raw would have done it for me.

[MorbidButterflyTat]

85. The worst

for me was under cooked "meatloaf" that was still bloody.

I ate real slow and took fake bites and moved it around the plate to hide it under other stuff and make it look smaller. She was a dear friend and I would never hurt her, but I ain't eating anything bloody!

[debm55]

91. I agree.

yuk

[electric_blue68]

90. Organ meats...

One of my favorite older cousins in her relatively new apt had us is over for Greek Easter Lunch.

Everything was tasty except for the Greek Easter soup - Magristsa . The broth and veggie bits part were fine.
It was was the little hearts, and kidneys. whimper. Blargh! Yes, I managed to get them down. 😄
Never again!

[debm55]

92. How did you do it without gagging?

[electric_blue68]

93. Well, they may not have been the worse thing I'd tasted up to that point, though the kidneys were

weird. Both definitely unpleasant!

Also the fact that you could see what they were, too.

[debm55]

95. I don't think I could eat it--maybe the broth, but that's about it.

[electric_blue68]

96. I would politely decline future offerings.

[debm55]

97. Me too, my grandparents would eat pig's feet. When they offered me some, I just said no thanks.

as I was in the kitchen with them, thinking I was going to barf.

[electric_blue68]

99. Ohhh, dear! I saw them packaged in a former neighborhood supermarket. Not for me!

[LeftInTX]

103. Canned peas at a neighbor's house. I was around 2 years old

I was told to eat everything when we were "guests". However, at home, my mom did not make me eat peas because I hated them. So, I sat there eating the things with tears rolling down my face.

[debm55]

108. peas and Lima beans are a no for me at anyone's house

[electric_blue68]

134. I got a story for you!

I was about 12, my sister 8. Our house. One set of aunt & uncle.

Mom puts peas on our plates.Sis tries them. Doesn't like them, and won't eat any more.

Uncle says to her to eat them. My sis says basically - we're in my house, so you can't tell me what to do. 😄😄😄
Our mom did not make her eat any more. 👍😄

[LudwigPastorius]

105. Haggis

On tour in Scotland, the band visited a cousin of the trumpet player for "dinner".

*shudder*

[debm55]

109. did you eat it?

[LudwigPastorius]

110. I gagged a couple of bites down, then...

mumbled something about having had a late lunch.

Just horrible...

[electric_blue68]

132. The Scottish comedian Craig Ferguson described what haggis was on one of his shows...

Gak! omg!

[3catwoman3]

106. Not out of politeness, but had to choke down liver...

…a few times in my childhood. My mother didn’t like it herself, but would occasionally serve it because it supposed to be good for you. One time, she tried telling us it was fish, which we did like. Nastiest “fish” I ever tasted. Lots and lots of ketchup did not help.

Whe I took lunch to school, sometimes my mom would put cream of vegetable soup in my thermos. I thought it was disgusting, butI would make myself eat it anyway, fearing that if I dumped it in the lunchroom garbage can, somehow she would know and I’d be in trouble.

We were not allowed to not eat what was served.

[debm55]

111. liver--given same story- good for blood, It was like eating leather

Last edited Fri Jul 21, 2023, 10:31 AM - Edit history (1)

[3catwoman3]

112. My mom was a working mom...

…in the late 50s, and mornings were busy, so there was another school lunch thing we did in the interest of morning efficiency.

Every Sunday night, we would make 5 days’ worth of sandwiches and put them in the freezer. Pop one in the lunchbox in the morning, and it would be thawed by lunch time without getting too warm and risking contamination.

I’m here to say that egg salad on white bread does NOT freeze well. It changes the taste, and the bread gets all soggy - a disgusting, unappetizing mess. For the same reason already stated above, I would make myself eat them anyway rather than throw them out.

I really like deviled eggs, but to this day, cannot stand the thought of an egg salad sandwich.

[debm55]

116. My mother kept my tuna salad sandwith out all night, it had Miracle Whip in it. I took to school and

ate, Needless to say I got very sick. She also never put the butter in the frig.

[woodsprite]

113. Tomato and raspberry jello salad topped with mayo

Blech!!! My MIL made it. She served everyone a 3"x3" square topped with a dollop of mayo. We were all looking for a way to ditch it without her seeing.

[debm55]

115. Oh my. Did you eat it?

[woodsprite]

117. We all (17 of us) tasted it, but I don't

Remember any of us finishing it. It looked very pretty. We all thought it was whipped cream on top.

[debm55]

118. That's what I thought-take out the tomato and mayo and add whip cream

[RobinA]

119. King Crab Legs

purchased at Walmart and then cooked on the last day they could possibly be edible. Which they weren't. Like chewing fishy erasers.

[debm55]

120. I would has passed on that on.

[Emile]

121. Cottage cheese

[debm55]

122. I like the small curd and I doctor it up with different fruits. Plain cottage cheese is sort of

nasty.

[Emile]

123. It's just me, but it tasted like sour milk to me. You can

masquerade it in lasagna and I love it.

[electric_blue68]

124. I don't often have a problem with food textures but it's sort of small lumpiness, and wet texture...

combination? Uhhhhh...Nooo!


(eeew 😄 )

My mom had it a lot at certain points.

I think the fact that's it's cheese, and wet (vs melted) - that does it.

[debm55]

125. Oh, I understand.

[WestMichRad]

126. Tossup between liver and parsnips

Gag!!

[debm55]

128. I would pass on both too.

[electric_blue68]

127. This is sort of tangental. Something I've seen but I don't think I could eat....

We have this fun All you can eat Chinese, Latin, and American buffet place.

Except for the onion rings, and fried fish - everything else I eat is Chinese. Not eaten inside since covid but finally got back for take out. 👍
And very happy they made it through!!!

I continue to eat shrimp, and have eaten (it's a $ issue) lobster, lobster tails, crab legs. Yum.

They have soft shell crabs. Don't know how different they taste. Don't know the texture of the shell - rubbery? Can't get myself to try it.
Mind you, I've eaten Chinese fried chicken feet.

[debm55]

129. I have a hard time with seafood. Fish.I can eat, but shell no. It gives me migraines. I went with my

sister for her procedure on Monday. I was surprised they had a buffet as they were all closed because of covid. It was interesting picking out the a llittle bit American, Asian, and Salad Bar stuff.

[electric_blue68]

131. Aww, no fun re: migraines! I had one in my life - like 54 (!!!!!)Years Ago. I still remember. Yikes!

[Generic Brad]

138. Fish head

My father-in-law was bestowing a great honor to me when he presented it. I really didn’t want to even try it, but it was my only chance to score points with him at his home (he lived in Japan and did not speak English - nor did I speak Japanese). So I ate every scrap of meat I could take from it, ate the little brain, and scooped out and ate the eyeballs. My wife had told me in advance that if he served me the fish head I should not refuse because it would be a major insult if I did.

The things we do for love.

[debm55]

139. So it is traditional in Japan to give a guest of honor the whole fish head. They must of thought

highly of you, and you of your wife and in-laws. I don't think I could do it-maybe the meat but not the rest. Yes, you truly loved your wife.

[Generic Brad]

140. Honestly, I'm not sure if that is a universal Japanese custom

Her father's family had originated in Okinawa but he grew up in Taiwan. Then her mother's side was from Honshu. I am still not sure if it was a national, regional, or family custom.