It is shameful, isn't it?!?
My kids are allowed to politely say they don't really like a certain dish or ingredient but they also have to eat a few bites of it if it is part of the meal. For instance, if onion soup is part of the meal, they have to eat a few bites of it but then can just eat the other meal items. I don't make several different meals each time we eat but I do make sure that if we are having something they hate (onion soup) there is something with it that is also part of the meal but something they like (or tolerate).
But they still have to eat a few bites of the unliked dish.
I tease Hubby because he won't eat beets which is one of my favorite vegetables. He has tried them occasionally in the past few years but still says they taste like dirt. Actually, I kind-of prefer not having to share.
Then yesterday it occurred to me that I first tried coleslaw 30+ years ago when I was 4 and . . .
Well . . .
Let's just say it didn't like me. My mother insists that I already had a stomach bug but I have always had my doubts about that. And I wouldn't try it again.
Since I generally wasn't a picky eater and was willing to eat almost everything else, my mom let it slide. She would occasionally ask me to try it but didn't try to force me a second time.
So over 30 years passed with me refusing to try coleslaw. I also wouldn't have it on my plate. I would have it served in a separate container so I could put it as far away from me as possible if the waitresses wouldn't substitute. I didn't even want to look at it. Or smell it (shudder).
Coleslaw was the only dish that could turn me back into a 4 year old.
I wasn't fond of guacamole but I would taste it periodically to see if I still didn't like it. A year ago when we first started gluten-free and were also doing dairy-free, I tried some avocado and it tasted buttery (in the best of all possible ways).
Coleslaw was still avoided.
And this was my facebook status yesterday
It says "I just googled "coleslaw" on my phone and autocorrect suggested "vile" - I agree with google."
But what I didn't say was that I realized it was a double standard and was googling it to find recipes.
I realized I needed to try coleslaw again but I also knew that homemade would taste better. I found a recipe and all of the ingredients were ones that I didn't mind eating either by itself (carrots & cabbage) or mixed with something else (apple cider vinegar). I did cut the cabbage too thick so it didn't look like coleslaw and then I was able to call it salad so my kids would try it with a more open mind than mine.
They won't request it but both said it wasn't bad. They were somewhat surprised when I told them what it was and possibly even more when I apologized for the double standard. Hubby loved it. He has long liked coleslaw and was happy at the idea of homemade coleslaw (possibly also happy about all the probable leftovers.)
Did I like it?
Well . . .
to be completely honest . . .
Yes, I did. I don't think it is my favorite salad (I love green salads with fruit) but I would be more than willing to eat it again. I also want to try out some other recipes that I avoided because they were "slaws."
Do you have a favorite slaw recipe?
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