# Cilantro **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 2, 2013, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro/657281 "2013-05-02T01:45:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![MrSquishy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9e5f3/32.png) [@MrSquishy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrSquishy)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro/657281/61 "2013-05-02T18:39:39Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Cilantro is the Spanish name for coriander. In the US, the leafy green is known as “cilantro” and the seeds are known as “coriander” or “coriander seeds.” In the UK (and other English-speaking countries outside the US, although I’m not sure about Canada), the leafy green is known as “coriander” and the seeds are specifically referred to as such. In Canada, at least where I live, it’s the same as in the U.S. The leaves are cilantro, the seeds are coriander. I don’t really like cilantro, but I can tolerate it in small amounts. ---
**Author:** ![kath94](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/67e7ee/32.png) [@kath94](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kath94)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro/657281/62 "2013-05-02T19:23:51Z")
> [@Implicit](#): > > It tastes bitter to me and people use waaaaay too much. I avoid it. > [@Charley](#): > > Hate it with the passion etc. etc. it’s not food, it’s chopped evil. > > But I’ve never got the soap taste. To me, it tastes like the inside of an ashtray (and, yes, I have tasted the inside of an ashtray, short but dull story). Seriously, it’s shudderingly bad. I don’t taste soap, either, but I’d rather not have cilantro. I’ll tolerate it in very small doses, but when I can avoid it I do. ---
**Author:** ![delphica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9a140/32.png) [@delphica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/delphica)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro/657281/63 "2013-05-02T19:31:51Z")
Another one who LOVES cilantro, but I agree it has a soapy taste. I always say it tastes the way soap smells … like when soap smells really good, you almost think it would taste good as well. But of course it doesn’t, it would taste like soap. Cilantro is the solution to this issue, in my opinion. ---
**Author:** ![Blackberry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecd19e/32.png) [@Blackberry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blackberry)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro/657281/64 "2013-05-02T19:49:18Z")
> [@Yllaria](#): > > Are you saying that it must suck to have salsa taste like soap, or that eating salsa without cilantro must suck? Because salsa tastes just fine without it. The second one. What else do you put in salsa to make it salsa instead of just a bowl of tomatoes and onions? Jalapeno I guess, but those are too hot (obviously just my opinion). ---
**Author:** ![Angel\_of\_the\_Lord](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/angel_of_the_lord/32/2949_2.png) [@Angel\_of\_the\_Lord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Angel_of_the_Lord)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro/657281/65 "2013-05-02T20:44:37Z")
I can taste what people mean when they say it tastes like soap, but it’s not strong, and it’s not…bad, really. I like it in certain applications, and far more than, say, cumin (which I can’t abide for some reason). ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro/657281/66 "2013-05-02T20:52:09Z")
> [@Blackberry](#): > > The second one. What else do you put in salsa to make it salsa instead of just a bowl of tomatoes and onions? Jalapeno I guess, but those are too hot (obviously just my opinion). Heh–salsa without cilantro is terrible, but salsa without chiles is fine? A good salsa, IMO, needs onions, tomatoes, salt, and something tart,. Everything else is optional. Make mine with some chiles and lime juice and crushed garlic and cilantro and I’m happy. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2013, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro/657281/67 "2013-05-02T22:00:33Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > I love cilantro! El Torito makes a Cilantro Caesar salad dressing that is wonderful on a summer salad. I am practically addicted to this stuff. Several years ago I had a salad with it at the restuarant and it’s the dressing I now buy most often at the store. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro/657281/68 "2013-05-03T01:41:02Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > Heh–salsa without cilantro is terrible, but salsa without chiles is fine? > > A good salsa, IMO, needs onions, tomatoes, salt, and something tart,. Everything else is optional. Make mine with some chiles and lime juice and crushed garlic and cilantro and I’m happy. And it’s not like salsa is one thing either. One of my favorite “salsas” is just three ingredients: roasted habaneros, bitter orange or lime juice, garlic (well, and salt to taste.) That’s it. Or arbol chile salsa, which is just arbol chiles, garlic, and salt, with optional tomatoes and/or tomatillos. Cilantro is certainly not a requirement for salsa. Chile is far more important in most Mexican-style salsas. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro/657281/69 "2013-05-03T01:46:39Z")
Here you go: [expand your salsa horizons](http://www.saveur.com/article/Kitchen/Burning-Bright-Mexican-Salsas). ---
**Author:** ![stui\_magpie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stui_magpie/32/11010_2.png) [@stui\_magpie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stui_magpie)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro/657281/70 "2013-05-03T01:48:19Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > And it’s not like salsa is one thing either. One of my favorite “salsas” is just three ingredients: roasted habaneros, bitter orange or lime juice, garlic (well, and salt to taste.) That’s it. Or arbol chile salsa, which is just arbol chiles, garlic, and salt, with optional tomatoes and/or tomatillos. Cilantro is certainly not a requirement for salsa. Chile is far more important in most Mexican-style salsas. Wow, you either have a very high chilli tolerance or you have mild habaneros.:eek: I grow habanero’s at home and one bite of one sends most people sprinting for the ice cream or milk ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro/657281/71 "2013-05-03T01:54:35Z")
> [@stui\_magpie](#): > > Wow, you either have a very high chilli tolerance or you have mild habaneros.:eek: > > I grow habanero’s at home and one bite of one sends most people sprinting for the ice cream or milk I do tend to like it hot. There is another variant called xnipec that is kind of like a habanero pico de gallo with bitter orange juice (so chopped tomatoes, onions, habaneros, bitter orange, and cilantro). That stuff is crack to me. The roasted stuff I use more on pork tacos (cochinita pibil to be exact), but the xnipec I like as a table salsa to eat with chips. Reminds me that I should make some soon. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro/657281/72 "2013-05-03T02:09:33Z")
> [@Meatros](#): > > I usually can’t taste cilantro at all - unless it’s used in obscene amounts. It doesn’t taste like anything to me, either. Feels a bit warm, but heat isn’t a flavor. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro/657281/73 "2013-05-03T02:15:36Z")
I’m curious about these “heat” descriptions. You guys mean like peppery or chile heat or something else? I think of cilantro as the opposite: cooling. But there’s a few descriptions of it here that seem to go the other way. ---
**Author:** ![gwendee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/35a633/32.png) [@gwendee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gwendee)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro/657281/74 "2013-05-03T02:21:14Z")
My sister has always said is tastes like toothpaste to her. I enjoy it enough for both of us. ---
**Author:** ![Runs\_With\_Scissors](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/278dde/32.png) [@Runs\_With\_Scissors](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Runs_With_Scissors)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro/657281/75 "2013-05-03T03:37:59Z")
I’m one of the unfortunates. Of all the lotteries to win… ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro/657281/76 "2013-05-03T07:33:28Z")
I said I love it, but I admit it’s not very good by itself. 😃 It’s kinda minty flavored. I wouldn’t really call it either hot or cool, though I would refer to it as producing a “burning sensation,” which doesn’t always mean hot (cf. heartburn, for example). But it has that “green” taste of mint, albeit one that does not go nearly as good with sweets. It works best accentuating sour or spicy heat. If I had to pick something else to compare it to, I’d probably go with parsley. But the green taste of parsley is a different green taste. But the spiciness is about right. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 7:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro/657281/77 "2013-05-03T07:53:26Z")
soapy, slight burning rubber and a hint of vinyl. That’s ok, taste is very subjetive, to me phosgene ‘tastes’ like your mouth does if you hold a handful of pennies, nickles and dimes in a hot sweaty hand - slightly odd and metallic hints without any seriously strong taste. This is at 2 parts per _billion_ environmentally. Next off scientific fact - you can tell the relative concentration of atmospheric chlorine by sight. Back in the day before I got burgled, I had a gizmo given to me that had a set of colored sight glasses to compare to the environment for calculating chlorine concentration. Back in the day before electronic toys to check the atmosphere, you did it visually. Oddly enough, it was actually fairly accurate. And it makes the [reports](http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/FWWchlorine.htm) of seeing chlorine gas creeping across the battlefields of WW1 chilling. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2013, 7:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro/657281/78 "2013-05-03T07:58:01Z")
You needed an “other.” I like cilantro. In general I don’t think it tastes like soap. But I have bought bunches of cilantro that did, in fact, taste a bit soapy, and everyone in the family noticed that. We did not suddenly develop some genetic thing. We just got a bad batch. This is one of the things I grow in the summer and the cilantro from my garden has never tasted soapy. Mint can also taste bad to me, or not. (I grow it, too. Not on purpose. It seems to have just happened, like bindweed.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cilantro/657281.md?page=3)