Culinary Stim: Everything tastes better in....

[MildredHubble]

Now this post has me thinking. Glasses and mugs have to be a very precise weight. So l shop for weight, aesthetic, and composition. My glasses are multipurpose, lightweight, easy to clean, and are fun to look it. I am like the Martha Stewart of all those products that occupy my shelves. Lol

I like weighty cups and mugs. Drinks taste awful to me from those thin bone china style cups and mugs. It's a definite known phenomenon. The type of metal used in cutlery can change the perception of taste. There's restaurants that will serve food with copper or gold plated cutlery for example as they believe it enhances the flavour. I saw this on a news report maybe 15 years ago, so I'm not sure if it's a fad that died out by now.

Years ago I worked in a bar and we had draught beers and cider but they sold identical drinks in cans as people preferred the taste from cans. I don't drink alcohol, but I like coke zero and I definitely notice a bit more of an alkaline taste from a can, but it tastes just the same as bottled to me if I pour it into a glass.

So if ever I have someone ask for a particular type of cup or glass I usually try to find one as I can understand how important it can be to their enjoyment.

I tend to pour cold drinks into plastic cups as I have an awful clumsy habit of smacking my front teeth with the rim of the glass. When we have guests I've noticed that they tend not to drink as much when I've (out of habit) poured them a drink in a plastic cup, so I try to remind myself other people generally prefer glasses

I do like the feel of a weighty glass though. Probably for the same reason I like weighty cups and mugs. I made some glasses out of glass pop bottles as they are really nice thick quality glass and they are basically free! My dad likes them, I keep smacking my teeth off them

 

[Aspychata]

@MildredHubble , yup, culterly also feels better with a good weight. My soup mugs have a nice solid heaviness and a firetruck red color. Reminds of a Campbell soup ad. We could probably bore people to death on this topic.

 

[MildredHubble]

Reminds of a Campbell soup ad. We could probably bore people to death on this topic.

Lol! Probably! On that subject... I read in a media studies text book at school that Nescafé always advertised their coffee in a red mug. When they did blind taste tests against competitors, they served both brands in red cups and they found that they would identify both as being Nescafé lol! And I will try to make that my last bit of trivia on the subject! I promise

 

[AuAL]

I tend to pour cold drinks into plastic cups as I have an awful clumsy habit of smacking my front teeth with the rim of the glass. When we have guests I've noticed that they tend not to drink as much when I've (out of habit) poured them a drink in a plastic cup, so I try to remind myself other people generally prefer glasses

I do like the feel of a weighty glass though. Probably for the same reason I like weighty cups and mugs. I made some glasses out of glass pop bottles as they are really nice thick quality glass and they are basically free! My dad likes them, I keep smacking my teeth off them

I was given a set of novelty glasses that are moulded to the shape of cheap, throwaway plastic cups (the ones made of really thin plastic that always bends and dents.) So your guests can have the visual aesthetic of the plastic cup with the reassuring feel of a weighty glass.

(It’s about 4 inches high.)

 

[Cryptid]

 

[Misery]

I will die on the hill that individual overpriced sodas bought from the gas station taste way better than the sensibly priced bulk soda you can get at Sam's Club.

That's because of how they're done. Different mixes of syrup, water, carbonation, and such can create a different taste than the same brand as sold in bottles. I say this as a bit of a connoisseur of gas station fountain drinks. The gas stations, they all know me around here.

That being said there are a couple of issues though. The first is when the blasted thing suddenly runs out of carbonation as you're pouring it.

The second is when you hit the button to pour it and you get some free spiders. Yes, really. It's happened more than once.

And yes, I drank it anyway. After getting the spiders out.

I'm not addicted, you're addicted. I can stop anytime I want.

 

[MildredHubble]

I was given a set of novelty glasses that are moulded to the shape of cheap, throwaway plastic cups (the ones made of really thin plastic that always bends and dents.) So your guests can have the visual aesthetic of the plastic cup with the reassuring feel of a weighty glass.

View attachment 129873
(It’s about 4 inches high.)

I love that! It's the sort of thing that appeals to my sense of humour Especially since the kinds of cups they are modelled on, I'd always somehow unconsciously end up squeezing and end up wearing a substantial amount of the contents!

 

[Princess Viola]

We have a total of eight forks in the silverware drawer and yet there's only three of them that I will actually ever use to eat with.

Genuinely if I grab a fork out of that drawer and see that it's one of the wrong forks, I will put it back in the drawer and try and grab one of the correct forks.

And if none of the forks I use are in the drawer, I will take one of them out of the dish drain. I don't care if it's still wet, I'll wipe it dry.

I only use those three forks whenever I'm eating at home, I don't like and don't want to use the other forks.

 

[Mary Terry]

I don't have specific dishes or silverware that I use, but I do like a thick, ceramic mug for hot coffee and tea. I preheat the mug with hot tap water, pour it out, and then pour in my drink. Preheating the mug keeps the drink hot for a longer time than just using a cold mug. I also preheat plates and bowls for hot foods, and put salad bowls in the freezer before I put salad in them. I guess I'm obsessed with the temperatures of food and drink. I always tell servers in restaurants that I want my soup to be screaming hot when it is served to me.

Food definitely changes flavor, depending on what I use to cook it in. I love my cast iron skillets and enameled cast iron cooking pots, and my stainless steel All-Clad pots and pans. Cheap, lightweight cooking vessels such as aluminum pots are awful. I don't even own a non-stick skillet because I've read many negative reports about them, and a well-seasoned cast iron skillet is non-stick if you properly heat it up before you add the food you're cooking.

 

[Misty Avich]

I don't have a specific dish or cup but when I drink water, juice, soda or milkshake I always prefer it in a glass because it seems to 'taste better' somehow. But hot drinks seem to 'taste better' in ceramic mugs.

 

[Captain Jigglypuff]

When I cook, I rarely use any salt unless I’m following a recipe and then I just put on the amount necessary. I mostly like my food to taste just the way they should without overpowering the flavor with extra seasoning. If you see me adding salt to anything after it’s done being prepared then you know something went wrong with the food.

 

[Princess Viola]

Also I gotta add that I also don't really have specific plates I use for things, but also I've just been using the same sets of dishes and things for my entire life so I guess I kinda do use specific plates then?

I will say that I can't drink any hot beverages like tea or hot cocoa (I don't drink coffee) out of anything but my mug I have that's got a cat on it and the handle is shaped like the cat's tail and the lid has cat paw prints on it lol.

 

[MildredHubble]

I will say that I can't drink any hot beverages like tea or hot cocoa (I don't drink coffee) out of anything but my mug I have that's got a cat on it and the handle is shaped like the cat's tail and the lid has cat paw prints on it lol.

Cat mugs are the best! Sometimes you have to be careful if they have pointy ears though! I like mine as it has the ears inline with the handle so it doesn't poke you in the eyes when you drink from it

 

[agateboy]

I have a clear purple PYREX bowl I keep at mother's (I will break it at home) that I have had, ever since I can remember. I use it everytime I eat there. This is cool to find other people have a special bowl or cup or something

Also heavy silverware is extremely irritating.