# Cilantro: Soapy or Bliss? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 13, 2009, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662 "2009-10-13T15:45:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2009, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662/1 "2009-10-13T15:45:56Z")
I’m a “soap-taster” when it comes to cilantro (aka coriander) and even the tiniest of molecule of it will ruin any dish for me. How 'bout you? ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2009, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662/2 "2009-10-13T15:47:53Z")
Bliss. I’m fortunate enough to not have that mutation, and so no soap for me. That being said, it is a strong herb and should not be overused in food, just like most any other herb or spice. ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2009, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662/3 "2009-10-13T15:50:58Z")
More of a meh for me. It’s not soapy but a little goes a long way. I cringe when I watch cooking shows and they put huge handfuls of rough chopped cilantro in a dish, I know then that I won’t like it. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2009, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662/4 "2009-10-13T15:55:41Z")
I love cilantro. It turns a cheap breakfast taco into something that makes my mouth sing. ---
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2009, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662/5 "2009-10-13T15:58:33Z")
I tasted some cilantro leaves my mom was cutting up. It didn’t taste like anything, really. Maybe a bit bitter. ---
**Author:** ![Pray\_for\_peace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Pray\_for\_peace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pray_for_peace)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2009, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662/6 "2009-10-13T16:11:51Z")
I don’t cook with it, but I love chopped fresh cilantro (raw) in salsa or burritos. Mmmm. Do soap tasters dislike fresh cilantro uncooked as well as cooked? ---
**Author:** ![Rushgeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rushgeekgirl/32/3715_2.png) [@Rushgeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rushgeekgirl)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2009, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662/7 "2009-10-13T16:51:59Z")
It’s vile. It doesn’t just taste like soap to me. It tastes like dirty, rancid dishwater smells. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2009, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662/8 "2009-10-13T16:57:18Z")
> [@Sidney Evgeni Jordan](#): > > Do soap tasters dislike fresh cilantro uncooked as well as cooked? “Soap taster” here. No, it doesn’t matter whether it’s cooked or not cooked. Would boiling dishsoap or making soup out of it make it taste better? No. Cilantro tastes like poison to me regardless of how it prepared. Anyone who actually _likes_ the stuff is welcome to have my share of the world’s supply of it. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2009, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662/9 "2009-10-13T16:58:41Z")
What in blazes are you people talking about? Cilantro tastes like soap? ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2009, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662/10 "2009-10-13T16:59:40Z")
cmyk: kudos on an excellent poll that actually covers all the conceivable options! ---
**Author:** ![MissMossie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f6c823/32.png) [@MissMossie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MissMossie)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2009, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662/11 "2009-10-13T17:04:41Z")
It’s a little soapy, but in a good way. I’m happy to see that I’m not the only one who took that option. Cilantro discussions usually leave me feeling like a weirdo. ---
**Author:** ![TheMadHun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@TheMadHun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheMadHun)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2009, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662/12 "2009-10-13T17:06:50Z")
Cilantro is the one ingredient I know to look for and avoid when buying salsa. No matter whether it says hot, medium or mild, I will like it without cilantro, but not with it. P.S. May I ask why we had to go “on record” with this? It’s an odd thing to be “taking names” for. ---
**Author:** ![Cagey\_Drifter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@Cagey\_Drifter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cagey_Drifter)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2009, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662/13 "2009-10-13T17:10:37Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > What in blazes are you people talking about? Cilantro tastes like soap? Some people have a genetic predisposition to not be able to taste cilantro the way it’s “supposed” to taste; apparently, a lot of these people feel like it tastes like soap. I like cilantro, and have recently gained a greater appreciation for it. Don’t try to make guacamole without it. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2009, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662/14 "2009-10-13T17:11:18Z")
I looove cilantro. When I’m cooking with it I munch away. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2009, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662/15 "2009-10-13T17:14:26Z")
Okay, I’ve never even heard or read anyone say anything about cilantro tasting like soap once, and was genuinely baffled that _multiple people_ would suggest such a thing. It was as though someone started a thread titled “Do Grapes Taste Like Shoe Polish?” Uhh, no, not at all. So I Googled “cilantro taste like soap” and found [this NPR article](http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=98695984) about some unfortunate, genetically-damned people who are unable to experience the joy cilantro brings me. It’s really quite sad. ---
**Author:** ![TWDuke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e495f1/32.png) [@TWDuke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TWDuke)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2009, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662/16 "2009-10-13T17:24:32Z")
Four options and no “I can take it or leave it”? or “It doesn’t taste like soap and I kind of like it”? ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2009, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662/17 "2009-10-13T17:27:55Z")
“Damaged” is a loaded term - try “human variation”. It’s not “damage” any more than being blue-eyed (another genetic minority) or left handed. It’s just human variation. ---
**Author:** ![BleizDu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9dc877/32.png) [@BleizDu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BleizDu)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2009, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662/18 "2009-10-13T17:30:15Z")
Yes yes yes, for me it smells and tastes like dish soap and unless it’s only a tiny tiny amount and cooked with many many other things, I won’t be able to eat that food, sorry, no hard feelings. My boyfriend loves the stuff and loves even more some vietnamese herb called rau ram which tastes like coriander and lemon. I dislike both. We have a small bush in the garden and the smell of the fresh leaves when we pick some for, say, soups or salads…ugh He thought I was crazy not to like it till I showed him an article about how it’s genetic for some of us to perceive coriander as soapy. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2009, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662/19 "2009-10-13T17:31:25Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > “Damaged” is a loaded term - try “human variation”. It’s not “damage” any more than being blue-eyed (another genetic minority) or left handed. It’s just human variation. I used the word “damned,” but I’ll say “damaged” works too. Having blue eyes doesn’t cause you to miss out on wonderful flavors. If it did, then yeah, I’d call that damage. ---
**Author:** ![Audrey\_Levins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Audrey\_Levins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Audrey_Levins)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2009, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662/20 "2009-10-13T17:36:25Z")
Coriander and cilantro are the same thing…?? Really? Why does it have two names? I LOVE cilantro. The more the better. I love a salsa that’s full of it. Cilantro and pico de gallo make EVERYTHING better. I’ve never heard of this soapy business, but it does explain the strong feelings of people who don’t like cilantro, which have always baffled me. I’d be pretty peeved if I put something on my breakfast taco that tasted like soap. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro-soapy-or-bliss/513662.md?page=2)