One of my best friends growing up was one of the pickiest eaters I know. Then at age 40 she was diagnosed with celiac disease. Her picky eating made a lot of sense after that.

Anonymous wrote:Picky adults are a huge pet peeve of mine as well. I have this one friend (acquaintace, really) who is 32 and pickier than both my kids put together. Can't eat any cooked or dried fruits (not in cookies, or banana bread, cereal, ice cream, yoghurt), the different food groups can't touch (seriously, you realize they are all going to the same place, right?), no casserole or stew-type foods cooked in the same dish, weird texture issues, it is a nightmare to cook for this person. I mean, come on - you're an adult now - can't you just suck it up and be polite and not give me the third degree about the recipe or show up and say "oh, I don't eat x" with a sigh... Sorry, vent over.

Lol. I have a 33 yr old guy friend and going out to eat with him is like eating with a picky 10 yr old. Every meal must involve burgers, pasta with red sauce, or tacos. Stir frys are too exotic, as is all Chinese food. But he is still easier to cook for than your friend.

Gawd. MIL here for the past 10 days. Can't eat turkey. Can't eat seafood. DH can't eat beef. WTH? We're not vegetarians! So I made a stuffed pork loin for Christmas dinner. Can wait for MIL to leave tomorrow. Might go have a giant hamburger--by myself!

Anonymous wrote:Op here--to the lady who can't eat spices, I totally sympathize with you! I really do, I have seen friends literally cry and sweat from the same spices that do nothing to me. But my BIL who would happily eat potatoes and enjoy them unless he knew there was sour cream in it? Totally irrational. My fil who will never try a bite of something he hasn't had before? Totally irrational. The pp who knows someone who won't eat white foods? Totally irrational. I'm not knockin food aversions, or even choices like veganism. But acting like 5 year old when your 35 or 65? Drives me crazy!

I'm the lady who can't eat spices. Thank you, and I agree with the irrational-ness of it. I would not eat sour cream plain, or like, on blitzes or something. But I've had it in pancakes and they were good.

To the other posters, the easiest thing to do is ask the person if they like a couple of things "I was thinking of making baked chicken, salmon, or manicotti - do you like those?" and see what their reaction is, then just make them mild. Don't decide THIS is the time you'll put spinach in the pasta dish, and wherever possible put things on the side. If you offer two or three fairly bland things that are pretty different from each other, chances are good you'll get a green light on one of them.

The point of inviting people over is to have a nice time with them. If the company is stressing that there's no food they like, and the hostess is stressing that the food they served is not being eaten, then people aren't having a good time. A quick phone call and a smidge extra prep can take care of all that for both parties involved.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Picky adults are a huge pet peeve of mine as well. I have this one friend (acquaintace, really) who is 32 and pickier than both my kids put together. Can't eat any cooked or dried fruits (not in cookies, or banana bread, cereal, ice cream, yoghurt), the different food groups can't touch (seriously, you realize they are all going to the same place, right?), no casserole or stew-type foods cooked in the same dish, weird texture issues, it is a nightmare to cook for this person. I mean, come on - you're an adult now - can't you just suck it up and be polite and not give me the third degree about the recipe or show up and say "oh, I don't eat x" with a sigh... Sorry, vent over.

This sounds like OCD or some other disorder, not mere pickiness.

Yes, this sounds like OCD or an eating disorder.

Anonymous wrote:Picky adults are a huge pet peeve of mine as well. I have this one friend (acquaintace, really) who is 32 and pickier than both my kids put together. Can't eat any cooked or dried fruits (not in cookies, or banana bread, cereal, ice cream, yoghurt), the different food groups can't touch (seriously, you realize they are all going to the same place, right?), no casserole or stew-type foods cooked in the same dish, weird texture issues, it is a nightmare to cook for this person. I mean, come on - you're an adult now - can't you just suck it up and be polite and not give me the third degree about the recipe or show up and say "oh, I don't eat x" with a sigh... Sorry, vent over.

This sounds like OCD or some other disorder, not mere pickiness.

*You ARE*

Op here--to the lady who can't eat spices, I totally sympathize with you! I really do, I have seen friends literally cry and sweat from the same spices that do nothing to me. But my BIL who would happily eat potatoes and enjoy them unless he knew there was sour cream in it? Totally irrational. My fil who will never try a bite of something he hasn't had before? Totally irrational. The pp who knows someone who won't eat white foods? Totally irrational. I'm not knockin food aversions, or even choices like veganism. But acting like 5 year old when your 35 or 65? Drives me crazy!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I made a delicious cajun chicken pasta a couple weeks ago. It wasn't spicy as in hot, but it did have quite a few spices in it. Very flavorful. My DH, who is also a picky eater, took a few bites and said, "I just don't like spices." : (
It gets difficult being married to a picky eater, so just be glad you only have to deal with it with in laws!

Forget your DH, give me that recipe.

Me too!

OKAY but it is not healthy or anything, so... caveat emptor.

I cut up a bunch of chicken tender pieces ( or breast pieces) into bite size chunks and coat them liberally in Tony's seasoning. (Or, if you can't find that, any kind of Cajun seasoning.) Brown in a pan with onion and garlic. Add some more Tony's if you think you need it- it seasons the whole dish. When the chicken is browned, add in a can of diced tomatoes and about a cup of heavy cream- enough to mostly cover the chicken. Then add in (to your tastes) some parsley, oregano and basil. (And if I am making this just for myself, I add crushed red pepper. And sometimes some garlic and onion powder on top of the fresh garlic and onion, just to make sure it's very flavorful.) Let this simmer away while you cook up some bowtie pasta. That will take about 13 minutes to al dente, so the sauce will thicken a bit. When the pasta is done, add about 1/2 cup (or more!) of parmesan to the sauce, then dump the bowties in and mix well. It's even better the next day. I have always toyed with the idea of throwing in some diced green bell pepper and some mushrooms, which I think would make it even better. Also, I think this would be good with shrimp.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I made a delicious cajun chicken pasta a couple weeks ago. It wasn't spicy as in hot, but it did have quite a few spices in it. Very flavorful. My DH, who is also a picky eater, took a few bites and said, "I just don't like spices." : (
It gets difficult being married to a picky eater, so just be glad you only have to deal with it with in laws!

I am what you would consider a picky eater. However, some of it is not mere preference. What is "barely spicy" to you will physically burn my tongue and take 2-3 days to go away. What is "warm" temperature-wise to you, will also burn my mouth, and my body perceives as very hot.

I really DO understand that it's frustrating for you. But please understand with hot or spicy foods it's literally physically painful for some of us out there.

ok, but that is not the situation the PP is stating. She is talking about her DH who is fine eating spices, he is just too particular to want to try.

He DID try. He didn't like it.

There is a difference between "he didnt like that particular dish" and "he just generally doesnt like spices". Yes he may have "tried" it. But he certainly didnt give it a chance. He was acting like a spoiled kid. In my house if you cant point out what it is that you don't like, you are not taken seriously. "spices" as a whole, meaning ALL spices, is not a valid "dislike"

Picky adults are a huge pet peeve of mine as well. I have this one friend (acquaintace, really) who is 32 and pickier than both my kids put together. Can't eat any cooked or dried fruits (not in cookies, or banana bread, cereal, ice cream, yoghurt), the different food groups can't touch (seriously, you realize they are all going to the same place, right?), no casserole or stew-type foods cooked in the same dish, weird texture issues, it is a nightmare to cook for this person. I mean, come on - you're an adult now - can't you just suck it up and be polite and not give me the third degree about the recipe or show up and say "oh, I don't eat x" with a sigh... Sorry, vent over.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I made a delicious cajun chicken pasta a couple weeks ago. It wasn't spicy as in hot, but it did have quite a few spices in it. Very flavorful. My DH, who is also a picky eater, took a few bites and said, "I just don't like spices." : (
It gets difficult being married to a picky eater, so just be glad you only have to deal with it with in laws!

I am what you would consider a picky eater. However, some of it is not mere preference. What is "barely spicy" to you will physically burn my tongue and take 2-3 days to go away. What is "warm" temperature-wise to you, will also burn my mouth, and my body perceives as very hot.

I really DO understand that it's frustrating for you. But please understand with hot or spicy foods it's literally physically painful for some of us out there.

ok, but that is not the situation the PP is stating. She is talking about her DH who is fine eating spices, he is just too particular to want to try.

He DID try. He didn't like it.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I made a delicious cajun chicken pasta a couple weeks ago. It wasn't spicy as in hot, but it did have quite a few spices in it. Very flavorful. My DH, who is also a picky eater, took a few bites and said, "I just don't like spices." : (
It gets difficult being married to a picky eater, so just be glad you only have to deal with it with in laws!

I am what you would consider a picky eater. However, some of it is not mere preference. What is "barely spicy" to you will physically burn my tongue and take 2-3 days to go away. What is "warm" temperature-wise to you, will also burn my mouth, and my body perceives as very hot.

I really DO understand that it's frustrating for you. But please understand with hot or spicy foods it's literally physically painful for some of us out there.

ok, but that is not the situation the PP is stating. She is talking about her DH who is fine eating spices, he is just too particular to want to try.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ugh! I find it so unappealing when an adult male is a picky eater. i could never marry one. That kind of behavior would absolutely destroy any desire for them. It is so childish, petulant, and immature.

My husband was a picky eater when we met in college - I think his parents just decided both boys were picky as kids and stopped making an effort to have them try different things. He's not picky any more, and neither is is brother. Sometimes people just need to try things!

This. There are many families that let kids try something once. Predictably when the kid hates it the first time, they just go with "Johnny is picky and doesn't eat spinach" instead of continuing to offer it without making an issue. Just because a child said he didn't like meatloaf at age 4 doesn't mean he couldn't like it at age 16.

I agree. Kids hear parents say this and remember. "I don't like this".

My daughter loves a wide range of foods because its what we eat. She doesn't know not to love them them.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I made a delicious cajun chicken pasta a couple weeks ago. It wasn't spicy as in hot, but it did have quite a few spices in it. Very flavorful. My DH, who is also a picky eater, took a few bites and said, "I just don't like spices." : (
It gets difficult being married to a picky eater, so just be glad you only have to deal with it with in laws!

Forget your DH, give me that recipe.

Me too!