Which Side of the Cilantro War Are You On?
I was only partially shocked to learn that there is a website called I Hate Cilantro.com. Personally, I love the stuff, I love it almost beyond measure, but Timmi? She hates it.
I didn’t understand for a long time why some dishes that I loved so much weren’t appealing to Timmi. Sure, Timmi and I are pretty finicky eaters in general, but we’re actually pretty closely aligned in terms of what we both liked. Growing up in Woodstock, I’d never been exposed to fresh cilantro, so I didn’t know what the wonderful taste was at first.
One day I isolated the flavour and happily told Timmi. She said she’s always known that it was a vile weed and couldn’t stand it.
I remained perplexed until a study announced that the taste’s perception of cilantro was genetic. Some people just genetically tasted cilantro as a stinky soap taste, which the rest of us tasted that fantastic citrus-y spicy taste.
Even though I’m on the other side of the fence, I admit, I like I Hate Cilantro.com. I love the idea that something could inspire such bile and anger. I love the idea that the taste of cilantro could inspire people to write haikus, like:
If MacGyver could,
He would destroy cilantro,
Using his duct tape.
So tell me people, which side are you on? Love it or hate it?
Love it!
Hate it! Blech.
love it with the passion and the strenght of the Gods. But hey, I’m in the Mexican club so it is kind of a birthright.
I really like it. And this genetic thing is interesting b/c my brother has only recently grown to like it…I remember making swordfish kabobs about 8 years ago with a marinade that included chopped up cilantro…like in a blender chopped up…little pieces, really little pieces…he took one bite of the swordfish post bbq and said, “It’s in here, isn’t it?!” Maybe this and the red hair (that no one else in my family has) really does mean that the milkman is my father?!
I like cilantro, but I wouldn’t say I love it. Maybe I’m heterozygous for this particular herbal gene? (somebody stop me, I just made a genetics joke in a post about cilantro!)
I’m going to have to vote on the HATE CILANTRO side. Yuck. Blah. Yuck. That being said there is a lot of stuff I eat and love with cilantro in it… I guess I’m just weird.
Matej says that he’s learned that the genetic thing is largely a myth. I didn’t fully absorb ths information as I was still having unpleasant feelings from him even having said the word cilantro.
Why, why, why do they even let it touch the other fresh herbs in the grocery store. I can’t even be ear anything that has touched it. EVIL, VILE, HORRENDOUS stuff that shares it’s evil dominion with fennel, dill and anise.
Love it!
Love it, love it, love it!
Did I mention I love it?
Also, I didn’t exactly say it was a myth. I just read that the theory it was genetic had never been proved. But that information may have been wrong, or at least outdated.
So, who’s up for starting ilovecilantro.com?
Can’t freakin’ stand the stuff, which was problematic when I was dating a Thai girl (man, they put it in/on everything!). My current gf understands, but likes Thai restaurants… it’s an issue.
You can take my gf to dinner, and Timmi and I will eat at the sushi place across the street, okay?
Can’t freakin’ stand the stuff, which was problematic when I was dating a Thai girl (man, they put it in/on everything!)
So many jokes!
The people who say cilantro tastes like soap are being kind. A mixture of soap and kerosene is more like it. The smell alone makes me recoil and want to brush my teeth. But for some reason I can’t taste it at all in salsa.
Hate it.
I’ve heard some people claim that Tex-Mex cannot be made without it, but that can’t be further from the truth. The cilantro invasion happened in the 80’s — most Tex-Mex restaurants with a longer heritage don’t use it at all. I live in Austin, love Tex-Mex, and know the places to avoid. Many of them have “Fresh” in the name of the restaurant.
What really bothers me is that the places that use it don’t make it optional. Take guacamole for instance. Guacamole when made right has a beautiful nutty flavor that’s completely ruined by the slightest hint of cilantro. Some restaurants mix it in when they make the day’s batch instead of just garnishing with it. If they just sprinkled it on, I could ask them to leave it off. They still have the chopped cilantro available so it’s not like it costs them anything to make it optional.
In the mid-90’s, a chain restaurant started putting cilantro in their guac and I complained. This was the “Fresh-Mex” Chevy’s chain that’s popular in California. I got the manager to agree to make guacamole fresh for me, without cilantro, whenever I came in. As managers came and went, I had to re-train them, but the “Fresh-Mex” label is hard for them to hide behind.
Reuel,
Thank you for your comments regarding Tex-Mex food.
You know, I don’t mind that there is a difference of opinion on the taste of cilantro. What drives me nuts are the people who claim you “can’t have X food without it.” It is if they belong to the culinary police and are trying to dictate what Mexican food is.
I had lots of Mexican food up until I a couple of years after I moved to Portland with no detectable fresh cilantro in it. Dried cilantro perhaps, but I know it didn’t have the freshly chopped soapweed in it because if the slightest partial leaflet lands on my tongue, I have an immediate reaction, not unlike the effect of licking the poles on a 9 volt battery. Bleck.
Cilantro No!