I’m with you on that one. I’ve never understood why people slop that stuff all over fries, burgers, steaks, eggs, etc. A small amount goes a very long way with me.
…steaks? 
Sesame oil. Very good with a couple-three drops in a stir-fry right before serving, but too much and it dominates everything, and not in a good way.
Cheese. Why does everything have to be smothered/drown in melted cheese? Pizza should have a sprinkle, or maybe just a few slices of fresh mozz, but most pizza it’s piled-high with cheese. And adverts seem to think the stringier the glop is, the better. Lasagna - please just a little bit - I do not need to be eating a tub of melted cheese.
Our tastes differ. For me, the point of pizza is to deliver flavored cheese to the mouth. Enough of a pleasantly crispy crust to hold it, enough sauce and add-ons to flavor it, but I’m there for the cheese.
I like a little bit of cilantro in some recipes, but my wife sometimes goes crazy with it.
A tortière without cloves is like winter holidays without snow. It’s just not right. But for me, those were really lean times so I was looking to do what I can to liven up bland and cheap meals.
Tangentially related, cayenne pepper is a thing I must use in moderation. Not for me, I barely notice it. Just cayenne, though. Other forms of heat I very much do notice (and apreciate) but cayenne just brings a pleasant, warm tingle to the mouth. I’ve coloured food bright red with it, to the shock and horror of my wife.
She loves spicy food as well, but she doesn’t share my near-immunity for cayenne. If I’m cooking for both of us, I must go light on cayenne or it’s my backside on the line.
(And as for mustard, I like only a little, a delicate little smear, but I want it to be face-meltingly strong, like English mustard.)
Yeah, I was about to mention cilantro, too. I’m one of the unlucky ones who tastes the soapy flavor in it. But it’s in enough foods that I like that I’ve learned to appreciate it anyway… in moderation.
Another one for me is anise. When you can just barely even tell that there’s anise in something at all, it really improves a lot of sweets, such as pizzelle cookies. It doesn’t take much at all to be too much, though.
I’ll also mention nutmeg, mostly because it’s a lot stronger than one might expect. I once made an apple pie, and put in a little less nutmeg than I did cinnamon. The result didn’t actually taste bad, but you couldn’t taste anything other than the nutmeg. I was much stingier with it the next time, and the pie improved as a result.
On the other hand, I firmly believe that the proper amount of garlic, rosemary, and/or cheese is “more”.
I agree that nutmeg is delicious but overpowering. Like garlic. And yet, so very different than garlic.
I’ll add grated lemon zest. I can be pretty strong. It’s one of the ingredients in my hummus and I’ve overdone the zest before.
While I’ve never opened a can just to snack on, I do eat the remaining anchovies after using a couple for a recipe. Eddie Murphy once likened the texture to ‘eating an eyebrow’ which I think of every time.
That’s a good one. Though I like it, I kind of avoid cooking with it myself, to be honest.
The yeast spreads like vegemite, marmite, cenovis are wondrous in the right amount, but it doesn’t take much extra to be excessive. I find a teaspoon of vegemite in a gallon of stew/chowder/pasta sauce is the max. And I adore vegemite.
I took the first girl I was ever serious about out to an expensive Japanese restaurant that served the best steak in the city. She asked the Japanese server for ketchup. It wasn’t part of the server’s English vocabulary, so she had to find someone to translate. The guy looked at my date with some disdain and offered a curt “No!”. I was embarrassed by the whole exchange and that was end of the relationship.
I’ve been told this is the mistake Americans often make when trying vegemite for the first time. You just want a paper thin layer on a cracker or something, not huge gobs of it.
But the one for me that I came here to post is raw onion. I didn’t used to like raw onion at all (although I’ve always loved grilled onions), but I have recently learned to like a very thin slice of red onion on a burger. But that’s the key – a thin slice. Just enough to add a bit of flavor, otherwise it just overpowers the burger.
I will never eat an anchovy without remembering this. Thanks (?)
No, you sure won’t.
I just spent waaaay too long looking for the clip and found nothing. I wonder if it wasn’t Eddie Murphy like I remembered. The context of the joke was he didn’t realize there was an anchovy hidden in a bite of Caesar salad and being surprised by the eyebrow.
I feel this way about all sorts of “new flavor” items. Chips are a big one. I have to try the new flavors and the first few are amazing. Then I’m done with them. In my mind chips are something you can’t stop eating. I’ve never had a “new flavor” chip that I bought a second time or even had a second helping. Candy bars and Oreos with new flavors/add-ins are the same.
I tend to agree with you, but I’d say Kettle brand Jalapeno flavor chips are the exception-- those are really good, and my whole family likes them. I’ve bought those many times.
There is an English style pub/brewery we go to in Springdale. They have Walker brand crisps in small bags. Steak & Onion, Pickled Onion, Worcester Sauce, Hot Dog & Ketchup, are a few varieties I’ve tried. The bags are really small so you don’t get sick of the odd flavor.
Truffle oil. I’ve never used it, but all the judges on the cooking shows say that. Also rose water.
That’s because truffle oil is generally crap. Use real truffles or leave it out entirely.
Saffron is definitely a little-is-a-lot herb/spice to me. Good thing, too, given it’s cost, but I have accidentally overdone the saffron before and it’s … man … perfume-y/floral.
Cloves are another one to go easy on in most cases. I tend to like the punch of cloves, but it’s easy to overdo. Nutmeg and mace similarly.
With vegemite/Marmite/etc., I spread the stuff on, while not quite as thick as peanut butter, quite thickly. I like that flavor very aggressive. When I want yeast extract, I want yeast extract flavor. As far as an ingredient goes, though, I actually am one of the few people who don’t like it in punching up a stew. If I want umami, I’ll go for the straight MSG or the fish or soy sauces. The yeast spreads have a bit of a bitter, minerally edge to them (now that I think of it, maybe it’s the B vitamins) that I don’t like in stews and soups (yet somehow I don’t notice or it doesn’t bother me on toast and sandwiches.)
I find the bitterness greatly reduced in Cenovis, the swiss yeast product. A pity it’s so hard to find in the US