I love cilantro, and admit that it’s flavor is not easy to describe. Kind of spicy and bitter. And in an undefined way, the perfect complement to raw onion.
I recall when first trying cilantro 35 years or so ago, it tasted like soap to me also. I guess I just stopped noticing that - I can still imagine the soapy flavor when eating it, but it’s not prominent.
My answer to your question that I was going to say was “green,” but “fresh” is also a good description.
ETA: My family loves it when I make salsa, but it’s a pain. I would always puree a whole batch of cilantro and start from there. But I’ve discovered that I can buy a cheap jar of salsa, and just add finely-chopped cilantro to that, and it’s great.
This without a healthy dose of fresh raw onion not too many folks would like cilantro.
I hate cilantro, and the soapy taste is not overwhelming for me either. It’s there, but it’s other things that make it seem just wrong. It tastes like real herbs that have something wrong with them, like they’re going bad, and someone added even more because they weren’t as strong, so you get more of the off-ness as well. Honestly, it doesn’t taste like something that should be food. It tastes like how I always imagined poisonous plants would taste when I was little, and my mother told me to stay away from this or that.
IIRC, it contains the same (or closely related) compound partly responsible for giving stinkbugs their smell, so your interpretation of the scent is pretty good. (Googling seems to indicate the compound is trans-2-decenal).
I like to start with store-bought salsa, add minced roasted jalapenos or poblanos or chiles, a ton of cilantro, a diced avocado, etc.
No, I love it, but it has never occurred to me to think of the taste as soapy in any way.
This is exactly, word for word, my take on cilantro, too.
I can’t stand cilantro and I know this thread was not addressed to me, but “soapy” is not the way I taste it. I’ve tried to like it. I wish I could as it’s in all the cuisines I love, but
to me it tastes the way your mouth tastes after you throw up.
It’s gross because it’s true :eek: I think it’s the bitter, mouth pucker thing.
I love cilantro. I was 19 when I first tasted it after arriving in Los Angeles from the midwest. My first reaction was “Pthhhh, what the hell is THAT?!?!?”:eek:
But it grew on me. Now a burrito without cilantro is a like a day without sunshine.
That’s kind of how the reaction was for me the first half dozen or so times I started going to our neighborhood’s local Mexican restaurants in the late 80s/early 90s. I kept thinking, what the hell is wrong with this salsa? Are they just not rinsing their dishes? It tastes like soap! And then, over time, I just got used to it and only later found out it was cilantro I was tasting. Now, it’s one of the most common herbs I use, as I cook a lot of Mexican and South and Southeast Asian dishes.
I love cilantro and I would describe it as citrusy. I don’t get bitter or soapy at all. Now – Early Grey tea – that is soapy. ick.
My experience with cilantro has been much as **pulykamell **and **CurtC **described above. First time I can recall having it (raw leaves laid on top of a ‘Thai pizza’), the cilantro leaves tasted exactly like Ivory soap smelled.
Since then, I’ve had cilantro frequently. So long as it’s a complimentary flavor, and not the main act, I enjoy it fine. I’ve never again had the strong soap sensation I had that first time.
I’d describe the flavor of cilantro as a mix of (a) plain ol’ grass (mown-lawn smell), (b) spearmint, and © a floral/soapy note. That soapy undertone … I kind of liken it to how it would taste sucking on, say, a rose petal or something. It makes some culinary sense (to me) to think of the “soapy” note as a “floral” note, though, since flower petals are sometimes used in food & drink.
To me, the floral note is overwhelming and akin to paperwhite narcissus. These flowers have been said to “stink real pretty” by detractors like me. I don’t really taste soap in it, but the floral stench is quite similar to scents used in some soaps. The citrus note is there, but it reminds me of rotting grapefruit, and I don’t like grapefruit much when it’s good. There is also a kerosene/petrochemical back note that doesn’t add favorably to the mix. Any grassy or parsley-like taste there is undetectable to me.
Nope, I don’t like it. I have TRIED to like it, but I fear it’s impossible unless I lose my senses of smell and taste.
Some limited sampling tells me that the bitterness develops after it’s been picked. The fresh picked cilantro I’ve had along with some recently picked with the root still intact have been less bitter. I think the other flavors change over time after picking also. I’ve never noticed the soapy flavor.
And I like it. It’s a staple in Mexican style cooking, and I use it to make a Polynesian style dish of ham and shrimp with a pineapple juice sauce. The combination of the pineapple and cilantro is an excellent mix.
To me it tastes like clean, strong parsley with an astringent soapy aftertaste. I love it.
You took the words RIGHT out of my mouth. Couldn’t stand it in the 80s when I was little and it first started showing up at Mexican joints. Now I buy it at least once a month. 
It’s addictive.
I think it tastes quite a bit like tarragon, but grassier.
Missed the edit window:
While we’re on the subject, I can hardly taste Italian flat parsley, but I love the curly old-fashioned kind. Try lightly battering and briefly frying some if you’re doing fish or something…it’s an old school french garnish that nobody seems to do anymore. Also, thisis the best herb you’re likely to find at the edge of your yard. Seriously, eat it! It’s a good sub for lemongrass, too.
Mmmm, I love sorrel.