# What the heck is that taste? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 13, 2001, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-heck-is-that-taste/65284 "2001-05-13T04:00:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Linear\_Crack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Linear\_Crack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Linear_Crack)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2001, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-heck-is-that-taste/65284/1 "2001-05-13T04:00:32Z")
I decided to buy some canned chili today and make it for lunch. I got home from the store, opened the can of chili, and cooked it on my cooktop. After I was finished with my meal (and even a little bit during) I noticed I had this strong metal taste in my mouth. (the kind of taste you’d get from licking a railroad spike!) All day I’ve been trying to get this flavor out of my mouth and can’t seem to do it. It absolutley sickening. Does anyone know what this is exactly? I know it’s most likely from the metal can, but is it harmful? Is it little metal pieces in my mouth? Is this some type of bacteria that is growing? _hack_ Even brushing my teeth won’t eliminate it. Anyone? ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2001, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-heck-is-that-taste/65284/2 "2001-05-13T05:07:27Z")
I don’t know what would cause the taste, but I wouldn’t be too concerned about baceria/food poisoning. The stomach and bowels are pretty good about, er, recognizing and getting rid of contaminated food, so if you ate the chili at lunch and are posting now, I’d doubt that there was any dangerous bacteria - I’m assuming that the taste is the only side effect you’ve noticed? I’d try a couple of fingers of a good single malt, for two reasons: 1. Scotch has a pretty strong flavour and it might get rid of the funny taste from the chili. 2. Even if it doesn’t, you’ve had a couple of fingers of a good single malt. ---
**Author:** ![JillGat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9fc29f/32.png) [@JillGat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JillGat)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2001, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-heck-is-that-taste/65284/3 "2001-05-13T05:23:57Z")
[[The stomach and bowels are pretty good about, er, recognizing and getting rid of contaminated food, so if you ate the chili at lunch and are posting now, I’d doubt that there was any dangerous bacteria]] You can get sick days later from food poisoning. Just sayin’. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2001, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-heck-is-that-taste/65284/4 "2001-05-13T05:35:11Z")
I defer to **JillGat**. ---
**Author:** ![Linear\_Crack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Linear\_Crack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Linear_Crack)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2001, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-heck-is-that-taste/65284/5 "2001-05-13T05:38:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by YOZZER2001 \* > \*\*1"the kind of taste you’d get from licking a railroad spike"HELLO!!! > 2 try cleaning with brasso(metal polish)might not work but comes up with a lovely shine > 3"Does anyone know what this is exactly"big spike that holds rails on railways(should not be licked) > 4 LOL:D > \*\* YOZZER banned on my post. I’m honored. I think. Anyway, I’m quite amazed that this “steel-like” taste is still hangin out in my mouth. I even tried Pipers suggestion (though I didn’t have any Scotch, I made myself a Gibson Martini instead). Nope, now I’m drunk with a bad taste in my mouth. I’ve had food from a can before and never experienced this after-taste. I only had food poisoning once, and it was from sushi. I didn’t experience the “horror” til 2 days after. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2001, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-heck-is-that-taste/65284/6 "2001-05-13T12:22:46Z")
My only personal experience with an unpleasantly strong metallic taste from eating canned food comes from canned orange juice (usually Bluebird brand, but that may just be local). For some reason, this is what always seems to turn up at conference breakfasts, etc., and is often the only option available for O.J. It has a strongly metallic tinge to its flavor, which I have always assumed was the result of the highly acidic juice leaching a certain amount of minerals from the can itself. Perhaps this is what happened to your chili? If it was acidic enough, it may have leached some iron (if the taste is similar to that of blood, I’d guess it’s iron) out of the can. Your OP didn’t say so in so many words, but I’m assuming you had the sense to pour the chili out of the can and into a pot or something to heat it up. If you heated it in the can, hobo-style, then you’re asking to leach metals and whatnot into the product. BTW, I really expected this to be another oral sex thread. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![robinh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b77776/32.png) [@robinh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robinh)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2001, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-heck-is-that-taste/65284/7 "2001-05-13T15:30:20Z")
I don’t suppose you heated it up in a cast iron pan, did you? The acids in the tomatoes will leach iron from the pan and can cause a metallic taste to your food. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2001, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-heck-is-that-taste/65284/8 "2001-05-13T18:11:56Z")
The chili was possibly contaminated in some fashion. If it was just an off taste in the food itself it should have dissapeared by now. Something may be in your bloodstream and is manifesting itself as a metallic taste on your tounge . Unfortunately many poisons have this “metallic taste” attribute. Is there a medication you are taking that the chili could be interacting with? If you’re not dead by now it’ll probably go away in a few days. Here are some possible causes of a metallic taste. [http://medlineplus.adam.com/ency/article/003050.htm](http://medlineplus.adam.com/ency/article/003050.htm) "Common causes: common cold nasal infection due to infection (such as salivary gland infections), polyp, etc. influenza viral pharyngitis mouth dryness aging (the number of taste buds diminishes with age) heavy smoking (especially pipe smoking) which causes mouth dryness vitamin (vitamin B-12) or mineral (zinc in diet) deficiency injury to the mouth, nose, or head gingivitis drug side effects such as antithyroid drugs, captopril, griseofulvin, lithium, penicillamine, procarbazine, rifampin, vinblastine, or vincristine Bell’s palsy Sjogren’s syndrome streptococcal pharyngitis (strep throat) ---
**Author:** ![Lance\_Turbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lance_turbo/32/6156_2.png) [@Lance\_Turbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lance_Turbo)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2001, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-the-heck-is-that-taste/65284/9 "2001-05-13T20:27:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by robinh \* > \*\*I don’t suppose you heated it up in a cast iron pan, did you? The acids in the tomatoes will leach iron from the pan and can cause a metallic taste to your food. \*\* I also think it is probably the pan. I’ve had some long lasting metallic aftertaste from Chef Boyardee heated up in copper cookware.