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Cucumbers, scary? They can be, says one Dallas Morning News reader.<\/p>\n
Michael Hogue\/Staff Artist<\/p>\n
Which foods give you \u201cthe ick,\u201d Dallas diners? Bugs and brains are strong contenders for scariest foods from Dallas Morning News<\/a> readers during spooky season.\u00a0<\/p>\n Dallas chef Leigh Hutchinson<\/a>, owner of Via Triozzi on Greenville Avenue, said she\u2019s turned off by candy corn, one of the most polarizing Halloween candies of all time.<\/p>\n Slimy stuff, like wet cucumbers, got a mention. So did slippery food, like octopus.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n East Dallas resident Sheetal Patel took a wider stance. \u201cBland food,\u201d she wrote on Instagram. That\u2019s what scares her. Preach!<\/p>\n The list goes on: Some Dallas diners fear fish with a face, the squishy feel of mushrooms and the way you scrape artichokes against your teeth to eat them.\u00a0<\/p>\n We asked Dallas Morning News readers to tell us about scary foods. Fermented shark, a staple in Iceland, was one.<\/p>\n Michael Hogue\/Staff Artist<\/p>\n Irving resident Ranjin Mathew doesn\u2019t like kiwifruit because it makes his tongue feel fuzzy. Maybe this is a \u201chim\u201d problem, actually. (\u201cI suspect I\u2019m allergic,\u201d he said.)<\/p>\n Check out these nine food frights. Did we pick yours? Tell us here.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Name a food ingredient that scares you. Why’s it so terrifying?<\/p>\n Tinned anchovies<\/p>\n Texas Monthly barbecue editor Daniel Vaughn, who has appeared on The News\u2019 Eat Drink D-FW podcast<\/a>, has a love-hate relationship with tinned anchovies. \u201cI love adding them to dishes for extra umami but rarely need the whole tin,\u201d Vaughn said, \u201cso I store the leftovers in the fridge.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n There they sit, like a science experiment.<\/p>\n \u201cHow do you know if they\u2019ve gone bad when they already stink?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Cucumbers<\/p>\n \u201cThey taste like wet and infect everything they\u2019re in,\u201d said Jamil Bata, an attorney and Dallas food insider who spends his evenings and weekends visiting restaurants. Bata is full of hot takes. When we asked chefs and influencers about the most overrated ingredients<\/a>, Bata said he hated seltzer water. (\u201cIt tastes like static noise sounds.\u201d)<\/p>\n Octopus<\/p>\n Don\u2019t put pulpo in Dallas Morning News journalist Zaira Perez\u2019s tacos or ceviche. It\u2019s a texture problem, she said. \u201cThe more I chewed, the more I freaked out.\u201d For similar reasons, she won\u2019t eat lengua (cow tongue).<\/p>\n The rubbery texture of octopus makes\u00a0Zaira Perez shudder.\u00a0<\/p>\n Michael Hogue\/Staff Artist<\/p>\n Lab-grown meat<\/p>\n \u201cI will go vegan before I eat lab meat,\u201d said Dallas chef Aubrey Murphy, a former fine-dining steakhouse chef who will soon open a restaurant called Brute on Greenville Avenue<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Why? \u201cIt is the biggest hammer PE [private equity] can swing at small independent farmers to wipe them out completely,\u201d he said. He believes fewer farms mean more space to build data centers. Lab-grown meat was banned in Texas for two years, starting in 2025<\/a>.<\/p>\n Lab-grown protein could be the future for fast-food chains that want a cheap option, Murphy suggested. You won\u2019t find this Dallas chef going near it.<\/p>\n Olives<\/p>\n Don\u2019t come for our dirty martinis!<\/a> North Texas diner Aaron Horowitz won\u2019t: His dad told him olives were poisonous when he was a kid \u2014 so Dad could have more to himself.\u00a0<\/p>\n Old habits die hard, and Horowitz still doesn\u2019t love olives.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s one of the only things I\u2019m still not a fan of,\u201d he said, \u201cbut I\u2019m trying to get more used to them.\u201d<\/p>\n Related: Are martinis out of style, Dallas?<\/a><\/p>\n Olives are not for everyone.<\/p>\n Michael Hogue\/Staff Artist<\/p>\n Fermented shark<\/p>\n Now we\u2019re really getting deep. Chef Hutchinson is haunted by fermented shark, the national dish of Iceland. Lauded for its healthfulness, h\u00e1karl smells like ammonia or cat urine and has a salty, pungent taste.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Not one to sit by and watch, Hutchinson tried it on a trip in 2017 to Iceland.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI will never forget the taste,\u201d she said. Not in a good way.<\/p>\n Bitter melon<\/p>\n Bitter melon looks like a cucumber covered in warts and earns its name because of its bitter taste. Laotian chef Uno Immanivong<\/a> grew up eating it at home, where her mom would stuff the green gourd with pork, then simmer it in collagen-rich\u00a0consomm\u00e9. “Even then,” Immanivong said, “that sharp, green bitterness had nowhere to hide.”<\/p>\n \u201cAs a kid, I wanted no part of it,\u201d she said. \u201cAt 49, my palate has changed, and I\u2019m curious about the very flavor I used to avoid.\u201d<\/p>\n Bonito flakes<\/p>\n Some see bonito flakes, or dried fish shavings, as a salty topper to an umami-laden dish. Bonus: They often \u201cdance,\u201d or wave in the air, when placed on top of hot food.\u00a0<\/p>\n Former Dallas resident Matt McCartney (and a groomsman in my wedding) isn\u2019t having it. He doesn\u2019t like the free show or the flavor. \u201cThey taste like fish farts,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u2018Natural flavors\u2019<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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