I actually wanted to call this thread “The Curse of the Superior Tastebuds,” but I realized I might offend those of you who have yet to recognize that I have evolved beyond the desire for chocolate.
My commentary is actually inspired by this thread, but I didn’t think it belonged in IMHO because I know what the poll results would look like if I asked y’all if I was in the minority.
The fact is, I’ve never met anyone in my life who hates chocolate as much as I do. Not just the taste, but the smell as well. My wife has had to politely ask me to leave the house when she has made fudge, because if I don’t do so ahead of time, I’ll do so involuntarily at some point. There is no form of chocolate I can handle without gagging.
What’s that? Try some white chocolate (heh heh heh)? Yeah, I hate that, too. Really. Yes, I know it’s not really chocolate. Yes, I’ve known several people who have tried to sneak it to me because they don’t believe me. Guess what? Really, truly repulsed.
Other than recognizing, as stated above, that I must have taste buds superior to 99% of the planet, there seems to be no logical explanation for it. But if anyone else out there either has an explanation, shares my feelings, or is willing to acknowledge that I’ve reached an advanced state of being, please feel free to elaborate below.
The burgers I’ve consumed in my lifetime have more than made up for any amount of chocolate I’ve “missed” up to now, I assure you. While my cholesterol suffers, I have had a surprisingly small number of cavities in my life due to a lack of sweets consumption.
I don’t dislike chocolate, but I’m like Asimovian. Fast food, salty stuff or pizza would be my comfort foods of choice. I loved chocolate as a kid, but over the years, my desire for it has subsided. It probably doesn’t help that the higher the quality of chocolate, the more likely it is to give me a stomach ache. I’ve been on Weight Watchers for many months, but I can safely keep chocolate in the house for the kids with no problems. Not so with potato chips or anything like that.
Eh, I eat chocolate and other sugary things all the time and haven’t had a cavity yet. I think it has more to do with the strength of your teeth and your oral hygeine habits than how much sweet stuff you eat.
I’m pretty meh on chocolate, personally; chocolate by itself is indifferent, and though I’ll occasionally get a taste for a mug of hot chocolate, I don’t generally keep the stuff around due to its limited shelf life, at least for the better than Nestles/Hersheys stuff.
I’m not big on baking, so I don’t really use it there, but back when I was trying to gain some measure of proficiency in Mexican cuisine I did experiment with moles, but of course that uses unsweetened chocolate.
I’m pretty meh on chocolate, personally; chocolate by itself is indifferent, and though I’ll occasionally get a taste for a mug of hot chocolate, I don’t generally keep the stuff around due to its limited shelf life, at least for the better than Nestles/Hersheys stuff.
I’m not big on baking, so I don’t really use it there, but back when I was trying to gain some measure of proficiency in Mexican cuisine I did experiment with moles, but of course that uses unsweetened chocolate.
My dad hates chocolate, but his hatred stems from a bad childhood experience.
His mother (a certified crazywoman) had abandoned him and his brother, leaving them with no money and little food. After a few days, they had eaten all the food in the kitchen. In the next day or so, they found a bag of chocolate chips that they hadn’t found before. They were so hungry they split the entire bag between the two of them, then and there. Then they both got miserably ill. Thus the chocolate hating.
FYI, I don’t remember if she came back or his aunt took them in (or his grandmother), but they didn’t starve to death. My dad doesn’t like his mother. I’ve never met her.
I’m not jealous, I’m genuinely sad that Asimovian is missing out. For me, really good chocolate is a half-brick inna sockful of endorphin rush. Everyone should have the chance to enjoy something so simple.
My comment was supposed to have a on the end of it.
I don’t think I get that kind of feeling from any food experience; my carmelized onion and spinach torte with tomatoes was pretty wicked according to all parties partaking, and I really enjoy the peculiar combination of whiskey and kalamata olives (with a bit of Kerrygold Dubliner cheese, perhaps) but I wouldn’t call it an “endorphin rush.”
I’m just not that excitable about food, I guess. That’s probably why I was never tempted to become a career cook.
Your sorrow is wasted on me. Seriously, I get that a lot, but I have plenty of other simple joys in my life that keep me from feeling the least bit sad that I don’t eat chocolate. For example, every so often, a scoop of vanilla ice cream is something that just can’t be touched. I rarely have it, but once in a while…
Really top quality apple pie or peach cobbler can also have this effect. As does my mother’s macaroni and cheese.
So please, enjoy your chocolate and don’t worry about me! Think about the benefits my wife gets from my lack of desire. In fact, every year when our office Christmas party comes around, all the employees are given a box of See’s Candy. Each is asked what type of chocolate they would prefer, but my office manager now knows to ask me, “What type of chocolate does your wife want this year?” Everyone wins!
My grandfather often says that he would not walk across the room for chocolate, to which my grandmother always replies, “You do if the chocolate is for me!”
I am more my grandmother’s than my grandfather’s, apparently. I’ll walk across the room for dark chocolate, but not for milk chocolate or that abomination of nature, white chocolate.
I suspect it is more common for men to be apathetic about chocolate than it is for women.
It’s more surprising to me that you don’t even enjoy the smell of chocolate!
I hate the taste of coffee, but I still love the way it smells.
Of course, good quality fudge is one of my all-time favorite treats anyway.
I am definitely a chocolate fan, although certain kinds of chocolate are definitely far better than others. I dislike dark chocolate in general (although sometimes it is good when it has almonds in it), and while I have never tried any fancy pants expensive chocolate brands, I tend to dislike the really low-quality kinds of chocolate that taste waxy.
Not a huge fan myself; I don’t mind chocolate, but I don’t crave it at all, and if a dessert/treat contains chocolate, it better be less than 50% chocolate (like muffins with chocolate chips) or it’s too much and I’m not interested. IOW, I can’t do fudge or chocolate ice cream or chocolate cake with chocolate icing, etc…and a bar of plain chocolate just isn’t for me.
I can eat it, sure. But I could also go my whole life not eating it, and be just as happy.
I think the only thing I hate with the passion of the OP is, perhaps, green beans. I can’t stand the taste, the texture, or the smell, particularly when they’re cooking. They make me gag. I used to stuff them in the upholstery of my mother’s diningroom chairs when I was a kid.
I will not eat them. I will not go near them. I will not apologize.
If it makes you feel more superior than you already do, Asimovian, I have several friends who dislike chocolate, and the one who dislikes it most intensely–to the point of mania, as in your case–is a chef with an intensely adventurous palate.
He cannot abide chocolate in any way, shape, or form.
