Trying New Dishes

I love Thai food, followed by Mexican American and Cajun. Heat does something to me but I like different spices also. Before I leave the planet, I'd like to try Vietnamese, Ethiopian and Korean cuisine.

 

Late last month, we were in Vietnam for a holiday vacation. There were Japanese food and continental dishes but our first meal was in Pho-24, an authentic Vietnamese eatery, the cheap one but decent. We had their noodles with beef and vegetables. I also ordered spring roll. For dinner, we went to a classy restaurant and had the rice meal which also has a lot of vegetable garnishings. It's nice to sample foreign dishes native to the place. Next week I will be in Hongkong so expect me to eat Chinese dishes.

 

I got to admit that I am a person of habit when it comes to food. I saw the commercial for Bizarre Food with Andrew Zimmern, no thanks. I like to find new veggies and fruits like dragon fruit dried crystals that I didn't know existed until I looked up a strange red fruit I saw at Chinatown. I'm choosy about new things to eat or drink.

(image from:

Log In

10/16/2015.)

 

I love food and will try something at least once, just as long as I don't find it disgusting to look at LOL Admittedly, I do tend to stick to my favourite dishes once I've identified them. I'm one of those annoying people who'll have the same thing each time I eat out. But I eat all sorts and love different cuisines from Chinese, to Italian, to Caribbean right through to West African food.

 

I have to say I'm a pretty adventurous eater. I love all different kinds of cuisine. I'll try anything once and give it an honest taste. If I don't like it that's it I won't try it again. But I have a pretty wide birth in what I'll eat and what I like to eat. For me it's about textures and flavours. I grew up eating chicken and duck's feet. I've had crocodile and frog's legs. I love curries and stir fries. The only food that I haven't tried yet that my husband has tried is a goat roti.

 

I'm generally open to trying new dishes, but my one caveat is that I at least know what I am eating first - I'm not big on surprises, such as something being insanely hot, or finding out there were some really gross ingredients in the dish.

A recent episode of Chopped for example, had them eating a pigs rectum. I'm sorry, but I would have to pass on that one. Another time, I ordered "sweet breads" on a menu at a restaurant thinking they were some sort of fried dough or fritter, only to find out they were organ meats, usually the pancreas or thymus gland. I almost threw up when I found out what they were. Though it explained why nobody else at my table wanted to try any of them - they apparently knew exactly what they were.

I also want to know in advance if a dish is really hot. I don't mind trying out hot and spicy foods, but I tend to eat fast and take large bites of stuff, and if something is over the top hot, I won't be able to handle that. I'll eat it more slowly and cautiously instead.

 

My boyfriend tries to get me to try new food, but I don't really like trying thing other than what I am used to. I just don't know if I am going to get sick so I am not much of an adventurous eater. I wish I could be a person who can just try anything on a whim!

 

I usually just stick with what I'm used to, especially if I'm on a budget, since I usually have a certain set I know I can depend on when the budget is tight. Some dishes I can stretch out to multiple meals and it's actually fun for me to find these, so I can't say I don't try and discover either since at some point I had to take a leap to actually come across these now regular dishes I frequent. I only do it during times when I'm more loose though and I just simply make a note of it if I liked it in particular and if I felt I could integrate it with my cheapskate menu for whenever I need it.

 

I am not that type of person , for the simple fact that I am actually afraid to prepare new stuff. I guess I kind of got traumatized when I tried some stuff in college and ended up having to throw the whole thing away. Such a waste of money and my time! I will often now try some stuff when I really want to try them and they are easy. Often I have success, but only because those are very simple recipes, I don't go for the more more complex stuff!

 

I will often try new dishes and new cuisines. To me that is half the fun of eating out. I like to vary where I eat and the dishes I eat. I just think it is good to eat and enjoy a variety of foods and broaden your horizons when it comes to eating. It is a good way to understand a bit more about an ethnicity I think.