# What Weird Things do You do to Make Food Good. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 15, 2000, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328 "2000-11-15T17:25:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Wildest\_Bill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Wildest\_Bill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wildest_Bill)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2000, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328/1 "2000-11-15T17:25:39Z")
I think vineger on New York style pizza(like Sbarro)is excellent. Do you any of you do this? I also like putting alot of Lawrys Seasoning Salt in lemon juice(where it is almost thick) stirring it up then dipping lettuce in it. MMM MMM good. One more take summer sausage marinate it in Balsamic vineger then but that Pinnaple cheese spread and the marinated sausage on a Sociable cracker. ---
**Author:** ![missbunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/76d3ee/32.png) [@missbunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missbunny)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2000, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328/2 "2000-11-15T18:02:00Z")
I like to brush my teeth - must be with Colgate; Crest, Aim, etc., won’t do at all - and then drink Earl Grey tea. The Colgate really brings out the flavor of the bergamot in the Earl Gray. Mmm mmm good. ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2000, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328/3 "2000-11-15T19:07:14Z")
I like my food—well, the kind you cook—burnt to a crisp. Chefs hate me. But to me, it’s not “done” unless you have to call in the DNA records to identify it. Charred black steak remains? More, please! ---
**Author:** ![ReservoirDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8edcca/32.png) [@ReservoirDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ReservoirDog)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2000, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328/4 "2000-11-15T19:14:37Z")
I’ve been told that by habit of putting regular butter on the bread before I make my PB&J sandwiches is rather strange. I do believe I have even heard the word “gross” bandied about. ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2000, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328/5 "2000-11-15T19:18:04Z")
Stale popcorn is really, really good. Y’know, like when you make a big batch and leave it sit out overnight. Very yummy to eat in the morning. ---
**Author:** ![stofsky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dfb087/32.png) [@stofsky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stofsky)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2000, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328/6 "2000-11-15T19:28:32Z")
2 things, one of which I probably ought to put in the recipe thread: White bread, chunky Jif, and sharp cheddar aerosol cheese. Sounds gross, tastes great–think about it, those orange crackers in the vending machine are cheese, right? Weiner boats. Quarter a hot dog–not all the way through the skin–and spread it out. Glop on a dollop of leftover or instant mashed potatoes, top with a slice of american cheese, and put under the broiler until the cheese starts to brown. Mmmmm-mmmmm-mmmm-good! ---
**Author:** ![cher3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/da6949/32.png) [@cher3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cher3)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2000, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328/7 "2000-11-15T19:29:22Z")
I like to put dill pickle slices in my grilled cheese sandwiches. My husband dips his in ketchup, which is odd, because he really doesn’t like ketchup on the usual things. Also, when no one is around to see me, I’ve been known to put unconscionable amounts of Worcestershire sauce on a perfectly good steak. ---
**Author:** ![hypergirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/49beb7/32.png) [@hypergirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hypergirl)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2000, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328/8 "2000-11-15T19:35:21Z")
Sometimes at the olive garden I put Italian dressing on my pasta. The strange thing is that I would never think of doing it at home. ---
**Author:** ![Wildest\_Bill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Wildest\_Bill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wildest_Bill)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2000, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328/9 "2000-11-15T19:38:07Z")
\*Originally posted by cher3 \* > [@](#): > > \*\*I like to put dill pickle slices in my grilled cheese sandwiches. > > Also, when no one is around to see me, I’ve been known to put unconscionable amounts of Worcestershire sauce on a perfectly good steak. I do the same things. All except I mix the Worcestershire sauce with ketchup it is really good. Give it a try cher3. I even do it to a marinated steak. All except I don’t care if people see me do or not. I tell them I love the sauce the steak just makes it chewy. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![tevya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4491bb/32.png) [@tevya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tevya)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2000, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328/10 "2000-11-15T21:04:48Z")
I love sweet pickles (gherkins) and extra sharp cheddar cheese. I love to take a bite of the pickle and then a bite of the cheese. MMMMMM. I like to dip my grilled cheese sandwhiches in mustard. I don’t eat steak often, but when I do I smother it in either A-1, ketchup or both. I love braunshweiger (liverwurst) on white bread with ketchup although I hardly ever eat it. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2000, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328/11 "2000-11-15T21:13:13Z")
Hot pepper goes on everything from soup to sandwiches. Tobbasco on eggs, instead of Ketchup. White Vinegar and salt on deep fried crinkle-cut french fries. A MUST! 🙂 Yummy. How about eating the whole pumpkin seed and sunflower seed? There must be a lot of that going on. ---
**Author:** ![delphica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9a140/32.png) [@delphica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/delphica)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2000, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328/12 "2000-11-15T21:14:18Z")
Weird thing I do that is OK to do in public: use cornflakes as a topping for vanilla ice cream. Yummy yum! Weird thing I do that is NOT OK to do in public: put slices of cheddar cheese (jack or munster is ok too) on a chocolate bar. This has a very high gross factor for others, so I only do it if I’m home alone. ---
**Author:** ![Zenster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/cdc98d/32.png) [@Zenster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zenster)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2000, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328/13 "2000-11-15T21:33:57Z")
I’m fairly conventional. Past the ocassional peanut butter and mayonnaise sandwich there’s not much weird that I do (in the kitchen, that is) besides actually enjoying large curd cottage cheese. If you count dipping cold broccoli in a mayo and ketchup mix, ok, I’m strange. One of my recent pursuits has been to recreate school cafeteria spaghetti. So far the results indicate that you must:[list=1] [li]Overcook the pasta until it is bloated[/li] [li]Use a relatively sweet and smooth tomato sauce[/li] [li]Bake the pasta and sauce with cheese on top[/li] [li]Use Monterey Jack, Parmesan **and** Cheddar[/li] [li]Have extra Parmesan on top of the cheese layer[/li]Anyone else have pointers on this recipe? ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Cynical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ee59a6/32.png) [@Mr.Cynical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Cynical)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2000, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328/14 "2000-11-15T21:55:40Z")
I know! To 1 pint of the school-style spaghetti sauce, add : 14 Gallons water, 1 cup peanut oil 1 bay leaf. ---
**Author:** ![cher3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/da6949/32.png) [@cher3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cher3)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2000, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328/15 "2000-11-15T23:05:36Z")
Zenster: You’d love a book called “Square Meals” by Jane and Michael Stern. They recreate a number of, um, classic recipes from various periods in American history (the '50s section is particularly hair-raising). One of their recipes is school cafeteria spaghetti. I don’t recall the details, but, I believe, the tomato sauce actually incorporates ketchup. ---
**Author:** ![PolarField](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b77776/32.png) [@PolarField](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PolarField)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2000, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328/16 "2000-11-15T23:28:52Z")
When heating up day old chinese/mexican food: 1. Take a paper towel, thoroughly soak it in the tap 2. Spread it out over the food 3. Microwave as usual The wet paper towel keeps the rice from tasting like day old rice. Just try it! You’ll never heat up rice “naked” again! ---
**Author:** ![jb\_farley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9d8465/32.png) [@jb\_farley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jb_farley)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2000, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328/17 "2000-11-16T00:54:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by tevya \* > \*\*I love braunshweiger (liverwurst) on white bread with ketchup although I hardly ever eat it. > \*\* Me too! A childhood treat. People say this is grody, but I like making an english muffin, buttering it, then putting ketchup on it. Yummers. jb ---
**Author:** ![Sue\_Duhnym](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/91b2a8/32.png) [@Sue\_Duhnym](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sue_Duhnym)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2000, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328/18 "2000-11-16T01:59:00Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ReservoirDog \* > \*\*I’ve been told that by habit of putting regular butter on the bread before I make my PB&J sandwiches is rather strange. I do believe I have even heard the word “gross” bandied about. \*\* What the heck is wrong with this? It keeps the bread from getting soggy! ---
**Author:** ![SSgtBaloo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ac91a4/32.png) [@SSgtBaloo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SSgtBaloo)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2000, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328/19 "2000-11-16T02:26:54Z")
I “pickle” hard-boiled eggs in the brine from pickled “firecrackers” (a brand of hot sausage). They’re tasty. _ **WARNING!** _ Never, _ever_ eat these less than 24 hours prior to attending any funcion where you are required to exhibit the least amount of decorum. Avoid poorly-ventilated spaces – the sulpherous emissions created by ingesting pickled eggs will stun a skunk at 10 paces. My dogs won’t enter the room if I’ve eaten any (I can’t determine if it’s the noise or the “aroma” that scares 'em though). ~~Baloo ---
**Author:** ![Kat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b19c9b/32.png) [@Kat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kat)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2000, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328/20 "2000-11-16T02:55:00Z")
Garlic. I like to put garlic in everything I cook. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-weird-things-do-you-do-to-make-food-good/41328.md?page=2)