Ah the ignorance of youth...strange food beliefs as a child...
I couldn't help but chuckle reading about the Miracle Whip ire of some Serious Eaters. I didn't even know that there was such a thing as real mayo until I had lunch over a friend's house in grade school, and the idea of trying it at home brought forth horror from my mother who to her dying day regarded mayo as fattening or somehow 'wrong.'
I also didn't know until like, college, that people made cakes and cookies from scratch. was allowed to do so from mixes, but only with great reservations from my sweet-fearing mom.My mother also hated to cook so much she would pour the entire pancake mix in one pan and serve me a monsterous, eggy cake--I still remember the first time I at McDonald's cakes and sausage, how small and light they were--it was a revelation. Ditto with pancakes & waffles from scratch.
I thought bagels with yucky until high school, mainly because I couldn't chew them with baby teeth.
I didn't know fried clams were well, clams. I thought they were 'yummy bits of fried things.'
I didn't know what Mexican or Chinese food was (even the American take-out kind) until I was 10 or 11.
I had no concept of the price of food, that McDonald's was a 'cheaper' restaurant than say,Squire's Pub. Or that some of my friends from bigger families ate more meatloaf, mac n' cheese, and stuff like that as 'extender' food. Ah, how far I've come...
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32 Comments:
I'm from State College, PA--home of the PSU Creamery (has anyone heard of it? It's very well known around here, and the line is always out the door on football weekends...)
Anyway, I never (and still don't) drank milk as a child, but my church would order huge coolers full of thick, rich creamery whole milk. My parents, being clever and trying to get me to drink milk, told me that the milk was "Sweet Cream"--kind of like a milkshake. That being told to me, I drank it right up (especially the chocolate milk). Obviously something tasted good to me, but I still hate the taste of other milk to this day and only recently learned that my parents (GASP!) had lied to me.
There are so many other horrific food stories that I believed and followed growing up. Until my health-conscious mind took over, I willingly ate my mom's Chicken Divan made with a sauce from mayonnaise and ate other dishes she made using Campbell's Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup cans. Regular soda was the norm for me--including the free refills from restaurants. And, I always ate lunch with a side of pretzels or chips. I just thought that was the way it was.
Now? YUCK! I cannot believe I just had to inclination as to how bad the food was for me. Makes me cringe...
luswim06 at 9:43AM on 05/21/08
This is utterly horrible and icky but, at the age of five I saw a restaurant worker smoking (at the rear entrance to the building). When my parent's salads arrived they were, naturally, offered fresh pepper from one of those huge grinders the waiters tended to cart about in those days. I became convinced that pepper was ashes. Refused to eat ANYTHING with visible pepper in it until college. Yeah, I can be a little ocd at times. lol
sbelle at 10:46AM on 05/21/08
Growing up Korean-American, I never knew identity of the majority of the foods I ate until I was a teenager or older. So those rubber-band looking thingies I ate in cucumber salad? Jellyfish. The soup my mom made on my birthday (even though I didn't really care for it)? Seaweed. That meat fried in egg that looked suspiciously like Spam? Oh wait - that was spam. (Koreans do love their Spam).
onespicymama at 10:49AM on 05/21/08
i am a vegetarian now... but when I was little I loved seafood paellas, but usually only ate the rice, the fish pieces and loved scooping the rice out the clam shells. That was it. I could not bear to eat the rest of the seafood that came with it.
When I turned 15, my parents threw a surprise birthday party for me and I raved to my mom about the wonderful "onion rings" I had had teh night before. My mom told me... "There were no onion rings there!! those were fried calamari rings!!!" That was how I once learned to eat calamari. I am sure I would have not tried them had I known what they were.
MadelynRodriguez at 11:25AM on 05/21/08
luswim06, you said it for me. I actually ate pretty well as a kid even when left to my own devices. I loved fruits and especially veggies yet my mom called me picky. I did however fall for the industry lines about food from the fast to the boxed starting in my teens and that took a long time to break out of.
There is however a huge difference between good fresh milk and the standard stuff in the big plastic jugs. I only buy milk now from a small local dairy (I've met and chattered with the owners). It comes in a glass jar with a deposit and I have to shake it to incorporate the cream. Sometimes the milk is less than 24 hours fresh. It reminds me of being a kid when my mom was buying the extra milk from a friend who had a cow. That's what a well-treated animal will produce. But I did just recently go over two weeks without buying any milk after drinking my last drop. Partly because I drink so little I do drink the whole milk but also because it's much more satisfying. When I was under the industrial influence I tried drinking 1% then nonfat and I drank more and more and never felt like I was getting enough (though my expanding pant sizes disagreed).
My daughter on the other hand wouldn't touch whole milk with a ten-foot pole. She'd go without, even if it meant skipping breakfast (cereal). It made no sense to me. Mind you, this was before I rediscovered the good stuff. Finally after several years she cracked and the truth came out that she believe whole milk was 100% fat or 98% worse than 2% milk. She thought half and half was better (to her mind being 50% fat...).
Sieseye at 11:36AM on 05/21/08
My mother told me this story because I was way too young to remember this. I was 2-3 years of age and wouldn't eat carrots, so my mother told me that my eyes would turn red like a bunny's eyes if I did. I immediately started eating carrots.
The other thing I would do as a little kid during the same era, not so much specific foods, but in general...if someone asked me, "give that [food/item] to me" I would refuse. If someone said, "please share [food/item] with me," I would immediately hand it over.
Cassaendra at 12:26PM on 05/21/08
I wouldn't eat potatoes, because whenever my dad cleaned my ears with a q-tip, he'd ask me if I had 'taters growin in my ears.
Then again, I was also the kid that was absolutely convinced chickens snuck into my room from the farm next door, slept with me, and gave me the chicken pox...
machellebelle at 1:16PM on 05/21/08
@machellebelle: LOL re: the chickens...seriously...chicken pox!
I wouldn't touch a bell pepper until I was at least in high school...nothing anyone could say to me would convince the that they weren't spicy. And then, when I finally ate one, for another few years, I only ate the green ones, because I was positive that the "warmer" the color, the hotter the pepper.
I was only "cured" by a college boyfriend who cut small pieces of jalapeno (green) and larger pieces of red bell pepper, and told me to eat them both and tell him if red still meant spicy. Damn him.
rosezilla at 1:31PM on 05/21/08
LOL...my kids (ages 10 and 7) are still working out which meats come from which animals...
My 2 year old loves meat (especially Tyson breaded chicken!) and doesn't care. He is, however, the only infant/toddler I've ever met who doesn't like fruit (and never did, even as a baby he would eat baby pureed veggies but not baby pureed fruit). It took him until 18 months to accept that fruit juice was OK, and even now he prefers more tart juice (orange and cranberry) to the apple juice and fruit punch that most kids like.
akk328 at 1:38PM on 05/21/08
When I was a baby I wouldn't eat scrambled eggs, but I loved applesauce. So my mom would just take a spoonful of scrambled eggs, pretend to dip it in the applesauce jar very theatrically, and spoon it into my mouth. Sadly, I was fooled, and ate the eggs with glee. She said she did this for almost a YEAR!
megannesta at 1:52PM on 05/21/08
In my family, milk was always served for the kids with dinner. It was the only option. Except for when we had spaghetti or pizza. Then we were always allowed to have soda. Not sure why this was, but the rule was enforced throughout all households within the fam... grandparents, parents, aunts/uncles, cousins.
Kerosena at 2:34PM on 05/21/08
@HeartofGlass, I'm sure we all have tons of stories of growing up thinking the way our family did things (from food, to expressions, to vacations) was the only way. I can certainly remember a few eye opening experiences:
- Realizing scrambled eggs could be made on the stove top and be moist and delectable. My mom hated eggs, so she'd only make them for us by microwaving them into oblivion.
- Similarly, my mom was a big fan of the microwave and it was how she "baked" potatoes. I was awed to see them come from the oven at a friend's house when I was in my teens
- That lasagna came from the freezer. My mom only made fresh, no wonder everyone always liked it so much!
- Why on earth my best friends sandwiches tasted so weird - miracle whip!
As far as odd food belief from childhood, I was a pretty "good" eater. Not picky at all, possibly because my mom is the world's pickiest eater so she rarely served anything out of the ordinary. But my one spaztastic issue was expriation dates. After hearing a story of my neighbor throwing up from "bad fish" I was constantly on the lookout for food that might be "bad."
And @Kerosena, milk with dinner was another phenomenon I couldn't understand as a child. I guess my mom figured we got our calcium when we had milk with cereal, so we were never forced. To this day, I still can't drink milk with normal foods. It has to be on cereal, or with rich foods like PB&J, cookies, or cake.
LizNYC at 3:00PM on 05/21/08
So I can't believe I'm admitting this but some of you might find this amusing:
When I was younger (maybe like 6 or 7) and my mom served steak, I would ALWAYS ask for everyone's fat that they weren't eating. I liked the fat more than the meat part. Naturally, everyone would gladly hand it over because they thought I was nuts. It became the running joke "Hey Hillary, do you want my fat?"...I'm not sure at what age I came around but now, looking back, I could just gag when I think of even going near the fat.
And irony couldn't be written any better: the only steak I order out is filet mignon (because it has no fat).
Hillary
Chew on That
Chew on That at 3:22PM on 05/21/08
I loved raw hamburger meat as a child .....I known people still eat this but I just could not think of doing this now>>
rabbitriddle at 3:55PM on 05/21/08
As a child I believed that only women could cook - that it was somehow mysteriously impossible for men to be able to.
Then when I grew up and entered a restaurant kitchen the men there told me it was only men who could really cook well professionally - that women could only cook well at home.
Funny how life offers up the "choose your myth" game so very often. :)
foodvox at 5:03PM on 05/21/08
We were told that if you swallowed your chewing gum too often, it would eat away at your liver. Seriously.
BITTER at 5:10PM on 05/21/08
I had a weird opposition to artificial fruit flavoring as a kid (still do) and refused to believe that any other M&M's except for the brown ones were chocolate. So I'd pick out all the brown ones and eat them.
I also had a few other weird texture things - refused to eat popcorn (too close to styrofoam), cotton candy (too close to insulation), gummy candy (too close to rubber). I've broken down and tried popcorn, but not any of the other stuff, which I guess isn't such a bad thing...
Although interestingly, I can recall freaking out at an Olive Garden as a small child because the ravioli there did not resemble Chef Boyardee's. I had never encountered ravioli in a sauce that wasn't bright orange before. Luckily I've gotten over that one!!!
QueenHerm at 6:15PM on 05/21/08
As a child, I didn't like meat. It wasn't a philosophical thing--it was a texture issue. I've always had major issues with food textures.
Then there was the mayo-sour cream-cream cheese thing. I refused to eat anything white and creamy because it all resembled mayo. I've always hated mayo--the smell and texture are enough to make me not want to taste it.
I still don't like dairy milk--again, texture.
beth1 at 8:55PM on 05/21/08
@Kerosena - my mom made us drink milk every night unless it was pizza! How funny. Spaghetti, we still got milk. But with pizza, soda was OK. So curious as to why, and what our moms have in common.
I loathe and despise milk, always had to choke it down, and while I will use it for cooking/baking/a tiny bit in cereal sometimes (I often eat cereal dry), I will not drink it. Ugh.
wellred at 10:23PM on 05/21/08
I once found a bag of rolls on top of the fridge and and thought the mold spots for blueberries. I was confused when the little spots tasted nothing like berries, but ate them nonetheless, and I didn't realize what I did until years later.
FidelGastro at 11:42AM on 05/22/08
I didn't eat seafood willingly until I was a teenager. I thought that it all tasted like the mullet my mom served occasionally - oily, disgustingly fishy, and full of sharp shards of bones. I wish I could go back and kick my 12-year-old self for turning down fresh lobster and shrimp in favor of hot dogs.
My mom was a miracle worker in general - we always ate well, and we always ate amazingly healthy and delicious food. Sure, my 12-year-old self balked at collards and fish, but - man! - pork chop night was always a great night at our house. It wasn't until a few years ago that my mom told us how poor we really were - her weekly food budget was $35 for four people. Even when I was a kid, that wasn't a whole lot of money. I'd always thought we were pretty well-off because we ate so well.
jenilowrance at 12:13PM on 05/22/08
I have the greatest mom in the world, however, it wasn't until I started eating other people's food that I found out that rice is not a mound of mush (but I still don't care for rice) that you could cook chicken in a lot of other ways than boil it (yuck, no flavor) that vegetables actually tasted great when not boiled beyond recognition, that meatballs tasted pretty good when mixed with spices and things and not just ground meat balled up, etc....(I used to hang around my friend's mom who was Italian and hoped to be asked to dinner) I love you mom! p.s. my mom made killer BIG dinners like roast beef, roasted potatoes, turkey dinners, & pork roasts.
stephie at 12:24PM on 05/22/08
This thread reminds me of that episode of Friends where Joey finds out his mother's homemade tomato sauce is Chef Boyardee!
@Kerosena and wellred - my mom was the SAME WAY with the milk except with pizza thing. Weird... I think there was some secret mom memo we all missed, I'll have to ask her about the logic behind that some time.
@MadelynRodriguez - I had the same experience with calamari, and actually after my dad told me what it was, I refused to eat it ever again, even though I liked it. Funny side note, a few months ago I was at a bar with some friends, and after a few too many cocktails I ate an ENTIRE PLATE of calamari before someone told me what it was. Damn.
I thought capers were fish eyeballs (don't ask) and that the little pieces of cartilage you sometimes get in hot dogs were plastic (thank God nobody filled me in, because I don't think I'd have eaten another hot dog, which was one of the only things I ate for awhile.) I also ate fish sticks thinking they were chicken fingers (my mom was sooooo clever, I still don't knowingly eat fish or seafood).
I refused to eat Brussels sprout for most of my life because I saw an episode of the Care Bears once that said they were evil (nice 80's educational television, huh?)
embolini9 at 1:11PM on 05/22/08
I didn't know what to post at first, but reading other folks entries (which are hilarious btw) I was able to come up with a few things:
@Kerosena: Funny you should mention Milk. I never knew milk was a beverage served with a meal-other than dessert. You can imagine how puzzled I was going over a friends house and milk was alreay poured. I promptly asked, "Dessert for Dinner?" My friends parents were just as confused. I explained it was either water or homemade Iced Tea for dinner drinks. Mind you-I drank the milk with dinner, but did not like it as I always did every time I ate dinner over there.
@ChewOnThat: Ahhh, Fat. Let's talk about it. I grew up not eating it-always taking it off. It Iooked gross and my mom said she only cooked with it because it added flavor. So, imagine my surprise when I am over another friends house and I see them eating it. Then, they notice I was picking it off and placing to the side. They told me I should eat it, it was the best part. I told them I couldn't-they told me to try it (even though I already had before at home). I respectfully did and I couldn't get it down. They left me alone after that. I still hate fat. So gross.
I understand the texture problem. I associate jello, marmalade, and jelly like products equivalent to fat in my mouth (see above). So, I don't eat those products. There are others but I won't bother you with those details. :)
Butrflygirly at 5:08PM on 05/22/08
stephie, I relate to the 'hey that tastes good' phenomenon--I thought as a kid I hated baked potatoes, then I went away to college to find I adored them--when they had been cooked more than the 20 minutes my mother believed was necessary. 'It doesn't matter if it's good as long as its fast and done' was her motto about dinner.
I also relate to the texture thing regarding gummis--I also never could understand how kids could eat Pixie sticks--that pure, sandy-grain like sugar didn't look like food to me (which I guess it wasn't come to think of it).
I also had a weird theory about how, during 'hot dog lunch' days at school, all of the skinny kids got their hot dogs plain, the normal-size kids (like me) got them with mustard, and the chunkier husky kids got them with ketchup. Also at McDonald's how the more immature kids got strawberry sundaes, the normal kids (again like me) liked chocolate, and the most sophisticated like carmel--with nuts and carmel being the most 'grown up.'
HeartofGlass at 6:28PM on 05/22/08
@ Butrflygrl - Thanks for agreeing with me! I can't believe I ate it as a child. Now I gag just thinking about it...I'm glad they left you alone!
Hillary
Chew on That
Chew on That at 6:40PM on 05/22/08
@Kerosena, @wellred, @embolini9:There must have been a secret mom convention somewhere! To this day, the only time pop gets drank with a meal is with pizza.
Strangely enough, yogurt and milk are never to be consumed in the same meal according to my family. Old Indian rule I guess. No other Indians or indo-Canadians I've met drink milk with meals that have yogurt.
browntown at 7:07PM on 05/22/08
After I found out what chicken eggs were, I had an abnormal fear that my mother would crack open an egg to fry it, and a baby chick would fall out.
dbcurrie at 9:10PM on 05/22/08
I wouldn't eat "green stuff" (AKA any garnish) until I was about 9 or 10, but other than that, I ate basically anything.
The Gastronomic Gamer at 1:49AM on 05/23/08
In my home, pizza was a rare treat and soda came with it. That was the only time we ever had it - two treats together.
Milk was served with every meal and I quit drinking it as soon as I was on my own.
PerkyMac at 2:20AM on 05/23/08
Raisins. When I was about 5/6 my father once pointed out rabbit droppings to me and said they were "bunny raisins". I then saw said bunny "drop" said raisins ... and it was years before I would even look at a raisin.
The things our parents do to us ...
AmazonGoddess at 2:13PM on 05/23/08
My jokester great-uncle Lester used to tell me that if I swallowed watermelon seeds, they'd grow in my belly and sprout vines from my ears. To this day, I can't eat watermelon without first carefully picking out all the seeds, even the little translucent white ones.
butterface at 8:33PM on 05/23/08