# You gave in to the food temptation and regretted it forever **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 30, 2005, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900 "2005-04-30T22:53:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Velma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/85e7bf/32.png) [@Velma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velma)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900/81 "2005-05-02T19:02:04Z")
Zataran’s jumbalaya is better if you don’t add the oil. It is not as good as real jumbalaya though, and much more bland. I add a few spices when I make it. I like it all right, but I would take the real stuff over it any day, it’s kind of like comparing Kraft dinner to real homemade macaroni and cheese. I like them both, but they are not the same. Or canned chicken soup to homemade, one is an imitation of the real thing. My disaster was flan. I made it for my Spanish class, it turned out beautifully and looked very nice, but no one ate more than a bite. Bleh. ---
**Author:** ![Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c77e96/32.png) [@Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Speaker_for_the_Dead)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900/82 "2005-05-02T19:09:24Z")
> [@Athena](#): > > Whadaya mean? One of the great old pasta sauces is Carbonara - spaghetti, bacon, parmesan, and eggs. Ooooh so wonderful! That’s what it’s called! I was fed it by a French family, and I couldn’t understand what they were calling it. Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![mack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mack)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900/83 "2005-05-02T19:11:56Z")
> [@Athena](#): > > Whadaya mean? One of the great old pasta sauces is Carbonara - spaghetti, bacon, parmesan, and eggs. Ooooh so wonderful! Well, it might have been ok had I included all those ingredients. I’m just talkin’ spaghetti and eggs. No sauce. Maybe some butter. Maybe I thought…eh, I don’t know what I was thinking. > [@zweisamkeit](#): > > What’s the problem? Jackfruit is wonderful! Mmmmm! The problem is probably that it came from a can. ---
**Author:** ![lisacurl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/41988e/32.png) [@lisacurl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lisacurl)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900/84 "2005-05-02T19:12:10Z")
I have to agree with Velma. The Zatarain’s jambalaya mix calls for far too much oil. That was the slimy factor. Anyone been to the World of Coke in Atlanta? The international cola flavors room at the end of the tour is the stuff of legend. I could tolerate most of the flavors, and even lamented that I wasn’t able to purchase Lychee-Mello in the gift shop, but the Beverly drink from Italy? Tasted like carbonated deodorant. It was so horrible that people would sip it, and then hang around that fountain to get unsuspecting new arrivals to try it. It was like “The Ring”, and you had to pass the virus in order to live. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900/85 "2005-05-02T19:25:07Z")
> [@Marlitharn](#): > > I used tofu in a stir-fry for the first time a few weeks ago. > > Either I did something horribly wrong or there really is no way to make that crap edible. Didja marinate it well, drain it, and saute it? If you leave out these steps (especially the marinating), you’re gonna hate it. Turkish delight is fantastic. There’s a restaurant in town with good Turkish delight, and good Turkish coffee; but if you have the two together, it is a transporting experience. The bitterness of the coffee is exactly complemented by the nectary sweetness of the delight. Yum! Fry’s, however, is truly repulsive. I’m with **matt**. My food regret? Two words: boiled peanuts. Daniel ---
**Author:** ![Velma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/85e7bf/32.png) [@Velma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velma)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900/86 "2005-05-02T19:34:33Z")
> [@lisacurl](#): > > I have to agree with Velma. The Zatarain’s jambalaya mix calls for far too much oil. That was the slimy factor. > > Anyone been to the World of Coke in Atlanta? The international cola flavors room at the end of the tour is the stuff of legend. I could tolerate most of the flavors, and even lamented that I wasn’t able to purchase Lychee-Mello in the gift shop, but the Beverly drink from Italy? Tasted like carbonated deodorant. It was so horrible that people would sip it, and then hang around that fountain to get unsuspecting new arrivals to try it. It was like “The Ring”, and you had to pass the virus in order to live. My high school band / choir visited the Coke place in Atlanta, I remember that drink. We did take great delight in getting others to taste it. Man they had some weird flavors, although I think that Diet Coke with Lime is heading into similar territory. ---
**Author:** ![matt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@matt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900/87 "2005-05-02T19:34:53Z")
> [@+MDI](#): > > BTW, the only Turkish Delight worth eating is Fry’s Turkish Delight This is some evil joke you’re playing on the Merkins, right? Like telling them all the best sights in London are within walking distance of Ongar tube station? I’m with you on the liver and kidneys, though. ---
**Author:** ![tiltypig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dbc845/32.png) [@tiltypig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tiltypig)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900/88 "2005-05-02T19:45:28Z")
It’s got to be TRUFFLES. They cost so much money, they must be good, right? When I was living in Italy, I bought a little baggie of white truffle-scented Arborio rice from a market (they put the truffle inside a jar of rice and it “perfumes” the entire jar with its scent and flavor). I kept smelling whiffs of methane on the bus home. When I got home, my roommates also thought they smelled gas–the distinctive smell of natural gas was all over the apartment, and we were really scared. Until I opened my backpack and realized the smell was coming from the bag of rice… and now, also, my clothes, books, backpack, etc. I thought the rice might taste better once I cooked it. I couldn’t bring myself to put it in my mouth. My truffle-loving roommate ate it with gusto. I just don’t like it. I don’t understand the appeal of strong truffle flavor and I particularly don’t know why you would pay so much money for it. The only times I’ve had truffle that didn’t make me want to gag, it was in other foods with strong flavors and nearly imperceptible amounts of truffle adding a weird complexity to the food. Once it’s strong enough for me to pick out the flavor, I can’t stand it. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900/89 "2005-05-02T19:49:14Z")
> [@Big Bad Voodoo Lou](#): > > Except over there, they just called it “Delight,” right? While this is a funny line, I just thought I’d be educational and let everyone know that in Turkey (and also Greece, which stole all its good food ideas from Turkey) it is called lokum. However, this is not the Turkish Delight from TL,TWATW. That refers to salep, a drink. Here’s the wikipedia page on it:[Salep](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salep) ---
**Author:** ![Licentious\_Ectomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/5e9695/32.png) [@Licentious\_Ectomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Licentious_Ectomorph)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900/90 "2005-05-02T19:57:37Z")
> [@Alan Smithee](#): > > Only two things. > > In college I took a Buddhism class and in the course of learning about Buddhist monasticism it came up that at a certain monestary the monks for one or two of their meal each day ate only steamed rice and a salted plum. Someone in the class obligingly procured some salted plums so we could see what they ate. I can understand why Buddhists see the annihilation of the self as the goal of existance. I just spewed a mouthful of Oreo all over my keyboard. At work! ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900/91 "2005-05-02T19:59:51Z")
Caviar. Josh’s reaction in _Big_ was spot-on; the stuff has the taste and consistency of the eraser end of a pencil. > [@Speaker for the Dead](#): > > I was severely disappointed with Twinkies. They looked so good in the ads, but they ended up tasting like pure preservative with a creamed-preservative filling. I felt like my GI tract had stopped aging. Do you drink coffee? A Twinkie dunked in coffee is absolutely delicious, and the only way I’ll eat them these days. ---
**Author:** ![FilmGeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@FilmGeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FilmGeek)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900/92 "2005-05-02T20:18:47Z")
> [@slortar](#): > > My dad went to Turkey once and brought back Turkish Delight. It was wonderful. I can, however, imagine how a cheap knock-off could go horribly, horribly wrong. > > My contribution to this thread? Lobster. Blech. Agreed. I hate the stuff. Nasty nasty taste. I love shrimp and crab, though. Odd. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900/93 "2005-05-02T20:29:24Z")
Those of you who hate Turkish Delight: have you had other things flavored with rosewater? If so, do you hate them, too? It took me awhile before rosewater desserts didn’t taste like dish-soap to me; but once I got past that association, I really dig them. Daniel ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900/94 "2005-05-02T21:48:04Z")
> [@](#): > > My food regret? Two words: boiled peanuts. You poor, lost soul. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![tracer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tracer/32/20578_2.png) [@tracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tracer)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900/95 "2005-05-02T22:02:30Z")
92 posts in this thread, and **no one** has yet mentioned LUTEFISK?!? ---
**Author:** ![Gilligan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Gilligan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gilligan)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900/96 "2005-05-02T22:07:07Z")
Mine isn’t really a normal food, but I definitely regretted it. I love dark chocolate, and was always looking out for the darkest I could find. So when I saw Baker’s Unsweetened at the supermarket, I figured, hey, you can’t get much darker than that. My mother warned me I wouldn’t like it, but I had to try it. Very bad stuff. ---
**Author:** ![tiltypig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dbc845/32.png) [@tiltypig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tiltypig)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2005, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900/97 "2005-05-02T22:38:54Z")
> [@tracer](#): > > 92 posts in this thread, and **no one** has yet mentioned LUTEFISK?!? I think it’s because nobody has ever lusted after lutefisk! I could be wrong, of course, but the name and description just never seemed appealing to me. Mmm… fish soaked in lye… aaahh. ---
**Author:** ![medstar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f07891/32.png) [@medstar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/medstar)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2005, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900/98 "2005-05-03T00:25:51Z")
> [@flickster](#): > > Jambalaya is food of the gods. It’s actaully very simple to make from scratch. Hardest part is all the chopping of onion, celery, pepper and sausage. I also use fresh peeled shrimp (add at the end and don’t overcook) The consistancy should come out on the dry side instead of slimey. The best recipe I ever found for jambalaya came from America’s Test Kitchen. This program is on PBS, so check your TV listings for dates and times. Anyway, the premise of the show is that different foods are made in the test kitchen several times until a fool proof method that can be done in a home kitchen is devised. The main pointers of easy fool proof jambalaya are: 1. Use chicken thighs for the meat and leave the skin on while sauteeing. Remove the thights when outside is crisp and remove the skins before returning chicken to the pot. 2. Don’t crowd the pot when sauteeing the chicken or the sausages. You want the meat to sear and get brown, not steam in its release juices. 3. When the onions, carrots and garlic are finished sauteeing, add the rice and cook it slightly before adding the liquid. 4. Leave the shrimp till the last five minutes. When the jambalaya is almost finished, put the shrimp in the pot and spoon the contents over the shrimp and immediately put the cover back on. Turn the heat down to low and let the shrimp cook by the residual steam. When you take the lid off the pot, the shrimp are just cooked and are springy and juicy instead of dry and rubbery. I love this series because of their in depth testing and explanations. HTH ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2005, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900/99 "2005-05-03T00:48:43Z")
> [@ouryL](#): > > Ain’t Turkish Delight simply a nougat? I don’t think so, but judge for yourself. Here’s the recipe according to the Wikipedia – [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lokum:](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lokum:) > [@](#): > > 2 c sugar > 2 tb cornstarch > 1 c water > 1/2 ts cream of tartar > 2 tb rosewater (if unavailable, substitute 1/2 ts rose food flavoring) > 1/2 c chopped toasted pistachios or almonds (optional) > confectioner’s sugar or desiccated coconut for dusting > Stir sugar, cornstarch and cream of tartar into water and boil for 3 minutes. Remove from heat and add rosewater and (optionally) chopped nuts. Apply non-stick cooking spray to form (ice cube trays will do nicely) or shallow pie pan and pour mixture. When cool, release from form or cut into cubes as applicable and roll each piece in powdered sugar. > > Store at room temperature in airtight container. And “rosewater,” in case you were wondering – [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosewater:](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosewater:) > [@](#): > > Rosewater is the hydrosol portion of the distillate of rose petals. Due to the perfume industry’s immense demand for rose oil, rosewater has the status of an inexpensive by-product. > > Rosewater has a very distinctive flavour and is used heavily in South Asian, West Asian and Middle Eastern cuisine—especially in sweets. For example, rosewater gives loukoumia and gulab jamuns their distinctive flavour. It is also used for religious purposes in Hinduism and Islam. Never seen any in an American supermarket. And what’s nougat? [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nougat:](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nougat:) > [@](#): > > Nougat is a confectionery made with sugar or honey, roasted nuts (almonds, walnuts, pistachios or hazelnuts are common) and sometimes chopped, candied fruit. The consistency of nougat can range from chewy to hard depending on its composition. White nougat is made with beaten egg white and is soft, whereas brown nougat is made with caramelized sugar and has a firmer texture. > > Nougat is particularly popular in southern Europe, for example in France in Montélimar and in Spain at Christmas (where it is called turrón or torró). > > The nougat found in many modern candy bars is not very similar to traditional nougat recipes, being a mixture of sucrose and corn syrup aerated with a whipping agent such as egg albumen or hydrolyzed soya protein. It may also have vegetable fats, milk powder and nuts added. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2005, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900/100 "2005-05-03T01:08:23Z")
**Tracer** That’s because I’ve never had a chance to try lutkefisk. I have to know if it’s as bad as people say or if I will develop cravings for rotted, gelatinous fish. I’m also looking for kosher haggis. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/you-gave-in-to-the-food-temptation-and-regretted-it-forever/301900.md?page=6)