This has caused any number of household arguments, but I have a strange fascination with food pickiness. Not to mince words--I just don't get it. Now, I'm not talking about having a few preferences and aversions. Heck, even that Bizarre Foods guy on tv (whom I've seen happily ingesting whale blubber and insects) can't stomach durian or fermented tofu. Everyone has a few things that they try to avoid. (For me, it's bananas, mushrooms, organ meats, and anything that could be described as "gelatinous.") I'm thinking here of people who can't abide whole lists and categories of perfectly ordinary food.
Example: I was reading about a British show that was supposed to be about helping super-picky eaters branch out, and apparently one of the guys on the show had a diet that consisted entirely of cheese and bread in some form. Essentially, the guy lived off of grilled cheese sandwiches. I seem to recall that during a family vacation in Greece, the grandmother had to come from England with some bread and cheddar so that he'd be able to eat.
Ok, obviously that's a super-extreme example, but I've still heard some damned weird stuff. My brother-in-law once dated a girl who seemed to eat only potatoes in some form. Seriously, we would all go out to eat, and she'd only ever order french fries or mashed potatoes. For awhile, I wondered if she was the most incompetent anorexic ever. I've also known people who won't eat any meat other than chicken breasts; who won't eat any Mexican/Chinese/Indian/etc. food; who swear that anything beyond salt and pepper is too spicy, etc., etc. Not a few of them claim that it's because they're "supertasters." Bitch, please. That's like claiming that you don't have any friends because you're "borderline Asperger's." You're just picky. Deal with it.
Anyway, for me the test of whether you're ridiculously picky is if you would rather starve or create a major social solecism rather than eat the things on your picky list. For example, I hate bananas and their half-firm, half-mushy texture, but I would have no problem eating a banana if I was very, very hungry or if it was part of the dessert at my dinner with the Queen of England. Still, in the spirit of fairness, I have been creating a list of things that would really try my resolve. Therefore, here are the things that--given the choice between starvation and eating them--would definitely cause me to hesitate for a few minutes:
1.) Balut. Like so many completely mysterious definitions of "food", this hails from Asia--specifically, the Philippines. This is the partially fertilized egg of a duck or chicken. Essentially you eat a partially-developed bird embryo. All of it, including partially-developed bones. I once watched my grandfather eat one and it made me want to run away from home. And I was in my own apartment at the time.
2.) Bird's Nest Soup. I have a horror of all things slimy and gelatinous, and in one of his books, Anthony Bourdain (who, for the record, didn't want to eat it either) describes it as both. Also, it's made from old swallow nests, which are built with bird spit and have often housed actual birds for some time. Ick.
3.)Stinky Tofu. Frankly, even regular tofu isn't exactly on my all-time favorites list, and this is tofu that has essentially been allowed to "ferment" until it turns black and malodorous.
4.) Any kind of grub or beetle. Honestly, I'm not even sure whether this should count sinc though some people eat them, I can't imagine that it's anyone's favorite snack. And I'm being specific to grubs and beetles here--basically anything where a large outer casing hides a rich trove of mushy insect guts. I'm not nearly as concerned about other insect-based foods. For example, the Thai deep-fried chili-spiced grasshoppers. I'm not going to seek them out, but I wouldn't ponder death over eating them either.
So that's what I've got for now. Any additions?
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