# Foods that nobody buys, even in a pandemic. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 24, 2020, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187 "2020-03-24T16:49:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![DummyGladHands](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/49beb7/32.png) [@DummyGladHands](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DummyGladHands)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2020, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187/81 "2020-03-26T03:43:06Z")
“Ranch” beans in a can, lots. What the hell, them things are great in so many things!! ---
**Author:** ![psychobunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/54ee81/32.png) [@psychobunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychobunny)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2020, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187/82 "2020-03-26T05:03:11Z")
Local Safeway pasta aisle completely empty except: Spaghetti (just a few boxes of one brand-looked like they had maybe restocked) Lasagna noodles Ditalini All gluten-free/non-wheat pastas Why the ditalini hate? I would think that people might be making soup. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2020, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187/83 "2020-03-26T05:07:18Z")
> [@psychobunny](#): > > Local Safeway pasta aisle completely empty except: > > Spaghetti (just a few boxes of one brand-looked like they had maybe restocked) > > Lasagna noodles > > Ditalini > > All gluten-free/non-wheat pastas > > Why the ditalini hate? I would think that people might be making soup. They strike me as more of a filler than a foundation. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2020, 7:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187/84 "2020-03-26T07:07:27Z")
Wait— removing because this is a thread about food! Don’t eat bleach, y’all! ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2020, 8:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187/85 "2020-03-26T08:02:03Z")
I needed some alcohol wipes for my insulin injections. All they had was Curad brand, which are small and flimsy. I bought them anyway, but hate them. ---
**Author:** ![Brayne\_Ded](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Brayne\_Ded](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brayne_Ded)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2020, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187/86 "2020-03-26T15:25:20Z")
> [@Aspidistra](#): > > Last time I was out of the house for shopping, all the bread loaves were like dust in the wind … but the gluten-free remained. Nobody wants to eat that shit unless you really HAVE to. Same with lactose-free milk. Expensive, and tastes awful. Gluten-free wheat bread is always heavy, the same for bread made with spelt. Regarding okra, it’s very much a love it or loathe it thing. Mainly due to the sliminess, the taste is OK. Hint for broccoli and cauliflower haters: never over-cook it, and it is better if a bit under-cooked and then fried. ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2020, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187/87 "2020-03-26T15:35:32Z")
Circus Peanuts ---
**Author:** ![mundylion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mundylion/32/3604_2.png) [@mundylion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mundylion)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2020, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187/88 "2020-03-26T16:11:45Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Yeah, while I do like a lot of frozen vegetables (peas and corn for example), I’ve never had broccoli come out with a texture I like from frozen. Same with frozen green beans (that said, better than canned for most of my purposes.) I highly recommend frozen green beans from Trader Joe’s. I think they call them haricot verts and they are indeed the thin, young bean. Delicious. ---
**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:** [March 26, 2020, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187/89 "2020-03-26T16:54:15Z")
Just got back from a grocery run (2 stores, same chain, about 2 miles apart). Got to use the Golden Oldies entrance and shopping time for the first time! TP was sparse at one store and totally gone at the other. Canned veggies were all restocked at both stores, and the liquor and produce sections were full to overflowing. Good luck on finding frozen veggies, however. Nothing but bare freezer cases. Starting to see some distribution delays in cat litter as well. Dairy was full, but cheese was very picked over. Meat cases packed. What seemed to be around in great abundance was any item that was “reduced sodium.” Regular chicken stock? Nope. Reduced sodium? Cases of it. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2020, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187/90 "2020-03-26T16:57:47Z")
Yep, the yogurt shelves are nearly totally stocked as always. And nobody is buying coffee or tea. Ditto for various fruit juices. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2020, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187/91 "2020-03-26T17:43:14Z")
> [@HeyHomie](#): > > Circus Peanuts I loved those when I was a small child. Don’t think I’ve eaten them since, and I’m tempted now to buy some next time I see them to find out if they really are as nasty as everyone says they are. ---
**Author:** ![GoodOmens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/d26b3c/32.png) [@GoodOmens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GoodOmens)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2020, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187/92 "2020-03-26T18:47:02Z")
Last time I was at Target (10 days ago or so) the pasta aisle was empty except for the lentil-bean based pasta, because nobody wants that. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2020, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187/93 "2020-03-26T18:57:08Z")
> [@GoodOmens](#): > > Last time I was at Target (10 days ago or so) the pasta aisle was empty except for the lentil-bean based pasta, because nobody wants that. LOL I think my wife just bought a box of that at Target yesterday. I don’t know if it was voluntary or if that’s all they had left. She also got a box of “normal” spaghetti. ---
**Author:** ![TimfromNapa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d26b3c/32.png) [@TimfromNapa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TimfromNapa)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2020, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187/94 "2020-03-26T19:00:44Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Make lots of [SOS](https://www.navyhistory.org/2016/04/chow-creamed-sliced-beef-on-toast-s-o-s/). Yum. Me like much. One of the best memories of USAF basic training. ---
**Author:** ![TimfromNapa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d26b3c/32.png) [@TimfromNapa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TimfromNapa)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2020, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187/95 "2020-03-26T19:03:01Z")
> [@Brayne\_Ded](#): > > Same with lactose-free milk. Expensive, and tastes awful. > > Gluten-free wheat bread is always heavy, the same for bread made with spelt. > > Regarding okra, it’s very much a love it or loathe it thing. Mainly due to the sliminess, the taste is OK. > > Hint for broccoli and cauliflower haters: never over-cook it, and it is better if a bit under-cooked and then fried. Okra is great in gumbo. On its own, it is great floured and fried. That way it is very tasty and not at all slimy. ---
**Author:** ![TimfromNapa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d26b3c/32.png) [@TimfromNapa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TimfromNapa)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2020, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187/96 "2020-03-26T19:06:16Z")
> [@chappachula](#): > > AHHHH!!! Chef Borardee in a can!!! The stuff of memories… > > Just wait till you open the can, and discover…that you aren’t twelve any more. 🙂 > > (I liked it, too,… when I was a kid.) I still like it if I am coming down and have the munchies. It is great comfort food. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2020, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187/97 "2020-03-26T20:04:46Z")
Although dogs aren’t exactly vegan… \*\* Audra Favor:\*\* I can’t imagine eating a dog and not thinking anything of it. **John Russell:** You even been hungry, lady? Not just ready for supper. Hungry enough so that your belly swells? **Audra Favor:** I wouldn’t care how hungry I got. I know I wouldn’t eat one of those camp dogs. **John Russell:** You’d eat it. You’d fight for the bones, too. **Audra Favor:** Have you ever eaten a dog, Mr. Russell? \*\*John Russell: \*\*Eaten one and lived like one. _Hombre_ (1967) ---
**Author:** ![songsearch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b77776/32.png) [@songsearch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/songsearch)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2020, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187/98 "2020-03-26T22:06:03Z")
> [@Ukulele\_Ike](#): > > Aghhhh! Okra stewed with fresh corn kernels and onion and tomatoes is “Southern succotash.” I’m a lifelong Yankee, but I look forward to the summer harvest so I can make that shit. Goes great with BBQ, fried chicken, or panfried po’k chops. Wife bought some baked okra at Trader J’s last week. Bag lasted about 3 minutes. Completely changed my bad opinion of 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:** [March 26, 2020, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187/99 "2020-03-26T22:51:56Z")
Oh, yeah. Okra gets a totally undeserved bad rap. Yes, it can be slimy if cooked wrong. But do it right and the vegetable is quite versatile. I really like it pickled as a horse ovary. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2020, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187/100 "2020-03-26T23:19:56Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Oh, yeah. Okra gets a totally undeserved bad rap. Yes, it can be slimy if cooked wrong. But do it right and the vegetable is quite versatile. I really like it pickled as a horse ovary. Um, what? I don’t get the “horse ovary” reference. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-that-nobody-buys-even-in-a-pandemic/850187.md?page=6)