21. Here's a second on the cilantro vote. It used to be easy to avoid. Then everybody started using it. My wife loves Mexican food but it's gotten to the point where I just refuse to go anymore because it's in everything. And being an herb, usually chopped, it's impossible to completely pick out. It's one of those things that, for the life of me, I can't understand how, let alone why, people voluntarily put the stuff into their mouths?!?! Mi esposa es no allegre. (Sorry, I haven't taken Spanish in years)

Posted at 2:19PM on Aug 31st 2007 by wintem01

22. Mine is papaya. Tastes like vomit and makes me want to.

Also, the crap, winter tomatoes we get up here in N.E.

I have several Italian friends who simply cannot tolerate the taste or smell of fresh cilantro. To me it's a beautiful thing. To them you might as well ask them if they want parmesan on their seafood.

Posted at 2:30PM on Aug 31st 2007 by Jay L

23. I second the papaya motion, it truly tastes like vomit. I also detest any color bell peppers but I like all other kinds of peppers. I don't like cooked fish (except shellfish), but i will eat several species raw. I love cilantro but I have heard that to some people it tastes like soap. I also hate fennel and carraway and anything that contains them. Not a huge fan of celery but if it's cooked to the point where it doesn't have much flavor I will just swallow it whole; otherwise I pick it out. And summer squash. I love most winter squashes but the summer ones make me want to gag.

Posted at 2:37PM on Aug 31st 2007 by Alex

24. Balut. 'nuff said.

Posted at 2:42PM on Aug 31st 2007 by sdjim

25. I don't eat mammals, avocados, mayonaise, or "obvious" eggs (fried, hard-boiled, poached, etc). I also hate "Wisconsin Beer Cheese Soup" and "Philadelphia Cheese Steak Chowder", which they always seem to have at my cafeteria. Other than that, I'm open to anything.

Posted at 2:54PM on Aug 31st 2007 by zamir.evan

26. Mushrooms. I have gotten better though - now at least I'll pick them out, or if I absolutely have to, eat them.

Cilantro is probably the worst tasting herb, ever! I find the flavour stays with me for days and days on end, and won't leave. I can just think of it and get that awful taste in my mouth. ICK!

Posted at 3:31PM on Aug 31st 2007 by MammaMe

27. Durian.

Posted at 3:46PM on Aug 31st 2007 by Michael Schmitt

28. Peas, coffee, white meat chicken, white meat turkey, olives, anything licorice flavored. I just plain don't like the taste of these things. With peas, my whole family loves them so I've often had dishes cooked with them incorporated into them. I just push them aside as I'm eating, it's quite subconscious now. Coffee I can't stand even a little of - not in coffee ice cream, not in tiramisu - blech! White meat chicken and turkey just dry my mouth out. Even when they are really juicy. I need to put gravy on them or make a salad with them to eat them. Olives I can easily avoid, and if they are found in a meal I just push them aside, like peas.

Posted at 4:01PM on Aug 31st 2007 by Amy Z

29. My list has definitely changed from when I was a kid. I used to love corned beef hash and canned salmon and I cannot deal with those things at all now. The texture and the smell defeat me and I don't like the taste enough to push through it.

I have always disliked white gravies and sauces thanks to the horror that is creamed chipped beef on toast. I have never been able to deal with wax beans or raw tomatoes. I will happily eat cooked tomato sauces, ketchup, soups, and salsas. Finally, baby corn. It smells and tastes tinny and kind of grassy to me. Unpleasant.

Posted at 4:06PM on Aug 31st 2007 by WendyH

30. My friend's husband hates onions and many other members of the onion family. I hate peanuts and peanut butter except in savory dishes.

My rule for disliked foods is that I have to try them approximately once a year. Over the years I've discovered that I no longer dislike: pickles, olives, some kinds of tea, bourbon, and many other things.

Posted at 4:10PM on Aug 31st 2007 by jess

31. Goat cheese--I know, I know, cry your pity, but yes, I'll KNOW if you snuck it into something. No thanks to the vomity aftertaste!!

Another vote for cilantro here--tastes like burned rubber. Plus I'm allergic, and don't really like being in the hospital that much :)

Durian--OK for the first minute. Awesome texture, terrible burps for the next 24 hours. Gag.

Also allergic to papaya and avocado, neither of which have ever tasted good to me.

Melon liqueur. Double gag. And artificial banana flavor (like circus peanuts--whose idea was THAT?)

This was a good question, Marisa!

Posted at 4:33PM on Aug 31st 2007 by eva

32. okra....the slime, the fuzz...nasty lil things!!

Posted at 4:34PM on Aug 31st 2007 by Eve

33. I have a variety of texture things, I was a horribly picky eater as a kid. Getting better. Sort of.

Can't handle garlic, I think I'm maybe one 4 people. Especially big chunks of it. And since I hated the texture of meat as a kid, I've been veggie for ages and chefs usually overcompensate by adding more garlic.

Mushrooms. Slime and dirt, bad.

Avocados, too intense and squishy. Overpowering. I've tried and just can't do it.

Posted at 4:56PM on Aug 31st 2007 by Susan

34. Pickled beets top my list of most hated foods. Oddly, I love borscht.

The thought of haggis makes me gaggy but I've never tried it so I don't know. Liver and onions, together, are not at all to my liking but I love pate and foie gras.

Watermelon, apple, and banana flavored foods make me feel queasy but orange, lemon, lime, and cherry flavored (even artificially) don't bother me a bit.

Posted at 4:59PM on Aug 31st 2007 by Ima Wurdibitsch

35. I've got a theory that cilantro's flavor is tied to genetics. For some people, it's a terrible, bitter, soapy flavor -- for others, it's a delicious, fresh herb that's work seeking out. I'm in the second category -- I adore cilantro, I grow it at home, and use it all the time. It's a fantastic flavor.

Picky eaters drive me nuts. Come on, folks, relax about food -- eat what other folks made for you, and enjoy it for what it is. Being closed-minded about foods and flavors is really, really irritating.

Posted at 5:10PM on Aug 31st 2007 by Gobo

36. I absolutely cannot stand the texture of onions. I love the taste, and I'll use them in pureed soups or in stews. I just hate the simultaneous crunchy and slimy sensation.

Mushrooms are equally hated. Once again, it's a texture thing, and the whole idea of eating fungus. I'll eat mushroom gravies or sauces, but only if all the little pieces have been strained out.

Needless to say, my brother always hated me when we were little because my mom wouldn't put onions in our hamburgers or meatloaf. He loves them and eats them raw and whole, like an apple. It makes me want to vomit.

Posted at 5:13PM on Aug 31st 2007 by Kitty

37. Okra -- "snot from the ground." Ick. Mushrooms. Almost all fish and shellfish makes me gag, except for flounder, swordfish and very tiny softshell crabs. Cilantro (tastes like soap). Tarragon (that's probably from being subjected to a roast chicken with so much tarragon you couldn't taste chicken). A vast array of cheeses -- mold is something I fight against, not something I eat, and if it smells like gym socks and/or ammonia it's not fit for human consumption. Hey -- it's not that I'm picky, or anything!

Posted at 5:14PM on Aug 31st 2007 by Marion in Savannah

38. Distaste for certain foods (aside from allergies, of course) is a psychological impairment leftover from childhood and I have a certain amount of distrust for anyone who "avoids" certain foods. I feel the same way about people who avoid spicy foods.

I mean, do they still carry their blankies around with them? It's ridiculous.

Posted at 5:16PM on Aug 31st 2007 by mike

39. I'll happily eat just about anything, although I don't like calamari or intestines much.

But cold pizza/sausage/hot dogs/soup? BARF. It makes me gag. People who can eat pizza right out of the fridge, or a hot dog out of the package? I get sick thinking about it.

Posted at 5:23PM on Aug 31st 2007 by Hawk

40. Well, Mike @ 39, I don't actually "carry my blankie around with me," but do have me over to dinner and feed me the stuff that makes me gag. I'll be sure to ralph for you. I used to try eating fish and cheese once or twice a year to see if I "outgrew" my aversion (as I have to some things that I just didn't care for) but they still make my gorge rise. Oh -- and the spicy thing? I'm different from other people -- pain hurts me. Thanks for reminding me.

Posted at 5:28PM on Aug 31st 2007 by Marion in Savannah