I used to hate cilantro because I thought it tasted soapy. Then my kid was telling me about this “gene” one day and I said that I must have it. Then I asked them what they thought cilantro tasted like, and they told me it was onion-y like chives.
We were at a restaurant at the time and I was eating something with cilantro which is why it came up. So I took a bite and tried to see if I could taste what they meant by onion-y. And damned if I couldn’t make out that chive sort of flavor.
Since then, I can’t taste the soapiness, it just tastes good.
So I doubt it is actually a gene of any sort if you can reprogram your brain like I did to get the taste.
So I doubt it is actually a gene of any sort
So because you were able to gaslight yourself into liking it that means genetic science is fake?
FUCK Cilantro. It tastes like someone wiped their ass with a sweaty gym sock. I don’t even get the “soap” taste that many people report, it just tastes awful and even the tiniest amount ruins whatever dish its in.
I have a black bean and rice recipe I make a lot and cilantro takes it from a 5-6 in terms of flavor to a 10.
I’m sure it’s tasty as heck for you but I’d be unable to eat it. Anything with coriander, even the seeds, tastes awful to me. I simply can’t eat the stuff.
It tastes like someone wiped their ass with a sweaty gym sock.
so you’re saying it’s an acquired taste?
I love LOVE cilantro!
I have the soapy cilantro gene. Cilantro is one of my favorite flavors. No, I don’t generally like the taste of soap. The soapiness of cilantro is very mild for me and is lost in the strong flavor of the herb unless I specifically am looking for it.
So it’s interesting, I have the soapy gene but have found that I do enjoy it, in modest amounts, in certain foods. It primarily just exists for me as an acquired, slightly off flavor that balances the rest - think like trying coffee for the first time versus later in life.
That said, some food trucks really just give you whole scoops of the stuff and I can exhaust that good will pretty quick when I have a bowl of hot soapy pork broth
What is the soapy gene?
A gene has been identified as a likely cause of why some people enjoy the smell and taste of coriander (also known as cilantro) while others have exactly the opposite reaction to the point of repulsion. Depending on ancestry, somewhere between 3% and 21% of the population associate it with unpleasant taste, including a combination of soap and vomit, or say that it is similar to the foul smelling odor emitted by stinkbugs. This is due to the presence of aldehyde chemicals, which are present in soap, various detergents, coriander, several species of stinkbugs and cinnamon.
