Something unusual you put on food

[Hank Hanover]

What is something unusual, you put on food?

For example:

Pepper on cantaloupe.
A mix of chili powder and cayenne on pineapple chunks.
Salt on watermelon. Doesn't everybody?
Salt in chocolate or caramel. That one is pretty common.
Sweetened condensed milk on popcorn. Popular in South America
Sweetened condensed milk on toast like jam.
Sour cream and brown sugar on strawberries

[mucho gordo]

My wife's aunt puts tabasco sauce on her oatmeal......YUK!

[bbqboy]

yuck? That sounds intriguing since I hate oatmeal but love tabasco. Hot Oatmeal!

[mucho gordo]

Just melted butter on mine, thank you. To me, Tabasco isn't that hot; just too vinegary. A drop or 2 on raw oysters and 'down the hatch'.......

[im_nomad]

Growing up I can remember having miracle whip and sugar on at least one or two occasions. Same for butter and sugar, and butter and molasses. I also used to put corn syrup on my corn flakes...which I would never do now as I not only don't have much of a sweet tooth, but really don't enjoy cold breakfast cereals.

I put mayo on things mayo really should never be on..... Tartar sauce on fries...etc. Sriracha and mayo makes a great popcorn dipper .

[kellysnoms]

I got through some leaner times by making this nearly every day for dinner: steamed brown rice mixed with peanut butter and soy sauce (also works with ramen). Toss in whatever veggies might be lying around and if I'm lucky, some kind of meat. It's almost like a thai peanut sauce... sweet and salty and very filling!

[woodleyparkhound]

Two things I learned from Brazilian friends (both very common there, but not in the US - both absolutely delicious...)

1) Sugar and lime juice sprinkled over half a ripe avocado

2) Atop a mashed ripe banana on a small plate, uncooked oats (the long-cooking kind), cinnamon and other things you might like (e.g. nutmeg, vanilla, sugar, etc.) -- then all are mashed together. The ripe banana "cooks" the oats - they become sort of "al dente".

[grayelf]

Dunno if this counts as "on" a food, but my maternal grandmother's favourite sandwich was thinly sliced oranges and onions, not the mild kind either.

[gentlyferal]

*My parents did sour cream and brown sugar on strawberries. It's wonderful.
*My husband likes barbecue sauce - the thick KC Masterpiece or Bulls Eye style - on vanilla ice cream.
*My son used to like Taco Bell taco sauce on popcorn.
*Sometimes I'll put parmesan, butter and soy sauce on a baked potato or rice.
*Homemade chai mix (spices only, no tea powder) in coffee. Of course, spiced coffee isn't *that* weird.
*Mustard and chopped garlic on a grilled cheese sandwich; standard in our house. No butter, except for frying.
*My husband also makes a killer potato salad with mayo, sauerkraut and capers.

My daughter, when she was a toddler, would break up her hot dog and stuff it into her juice/milk glass, and then not eat the hot dog or drink the beverage. I learned not to serve those two items together :)

Some of you guys' "weird" garnishes actually make sense (Italian dressing on cottage cheese or noodles, horseradish on burgers, tabasco on mac/cheese, milk and sugar with avocado (oh come on now: I once had a recipe for avocado ice cream; it wasn't bad at all).

[Peg]

Horseradish sauce in cottage cheese - I can eat a whole (big) carton in one sitting.
Horseradish sauce in mashed potatoes - as a child this was the best part of Sunday dinner (I never liked the roast meat), I'd save the potato till last and add a huge dollop of horseradish to it and mix it in - much to my parents digust. I think they thought I was playing with my food.

[mcap]

not quite on food, but I love warm french fries in a cold tossed salad

[gmm]

Soy sauce on an over easy fried egg. One of my favorite late night snacks.

[gentlyferal]

Hey, for that matter, soy sauce on almost anything but dessert :)

[Popkin]

Just a teensy bit (gotta be a teensy bit to be perfect) of bbq sauce on macaroni and cheese. Probably came about because bbq meat tastes so good with the mac, and were often served on the same plate in my home.

I still have the little bear-shaped bottle my grandma used to keep at her house and carry in her purse for me with cinnamon-sugar for my toast when we ate out.

When I was little (OK, I still do this lol) I LOVED to dip my macdonald's fries and chicken nuggets in the vanilla or chocolate shake. Somehow they were just made for each other. Also, KFC gravy on KFC macaroni and cheese. Just something about that particular combination.

[Cherylptw]

Hot white rice in a bowl with milk & sugar and eaten like cereal

Raw chopped onions & vinegar on top of mixed (my grandmother used to call them salad greens) greens which is a combination of turnip, mustards, rape, arugula

Raw chopped onions & hot pepper vinegar and/or hot sauce in a bowl of black eyed peas with the juices they were cooked in

Family is from the south so at my Grandma's house, she always served chickory coffee with evaporated milk, which made it extra creamy.

And this might sound strange, but growing up, we used to eat chopped scallions drizzled with warm bacon grease with pieces of soft white (wonder) bread to pick it up with. Something about the bacony flavor with the light onion flavor that was so good. My mom still does this....

[guilty]

I have often made "instant rice pudding" by putting soy milk & maple syrup on freshly made brown rice.

[Cherylptw]

I really like brown rice, it has more texture & depth of flavor than white rice. I made a "risotto" this week using brown rice and it was just so good. I'll have to try "rice pudding" using the brown rice.

[Emme]

i used to make "instant 'rice' pudding" using cooked barley too. love the toothesomeness of barley. i'd stir it into cottage cheese, add my sweetener, vanilla and cinnamon then nuke in the micro til gooey.

[goodhealthgourmet]

Emme, i did the *exact* same thing with barley! great minds ;) sigh. i miss barley...

[tcamp]

Hot rice with milk and a spoonful of jam. My dad's favorite dessert.

[gentlyferal]

That sounds wonderful, the scallion thing. Nowadays I'd approximate it by gently sauteeing the scallions with smoked paprika.

[Evilbanana11]

Condensed milk on avocado.
Maggi and butter on steamed rice.
sugar and butter on toast.
Granny smith apples/unripened mango with salt and thai chili or fish sauce and thai chili

[EWSflash]

A fried egg (over medium) in my quesadilla.

[tcamp]

Yum, that's breakfast at my house half the time. Love when the yolk pops and I can wipe it up with tortilla bits.

[tarteaucitron]

Looking through this thread, I claim that I have heard of or experienced many of these pairings, either from my own childhood (somewhat multicultural), my older relatives' childhood or some friends' childhood.

I love how many of these are old school, and represent traditions and good memories, passed from one generation, one culture, or one friend, to another!

[zen1979]

Grated cheese with mango chutney sandwich

[mangetoutoc]

It's an in vs on, but I think weird enough to qualify. I've developed a taste for adding ribbons of beaten egg into miso soup, sort of like a funkier bastardization of egg drop soup. It's awfully strange, but adds such a lovely heartiness when I feel like a bit more substance. Did it once when I had a touch of agita and it was so yummy, it's stayed in the soup rotation.

[mamachef]

Avocado with a lemon/condensed milk drizzle
Oatmeal with unsalted butter, salt and pepper
lime pickle or mango pickle on scrambled eggs
grilled pineapple with caramel sauce
hot dogs with kraut, crushed pineapple, swiss cheese and ketchup. : )

[TuteTibiImperes]

mamachef -

I was with you up until that last one. It sounds like the type of craving one gets right before becoming a mama.

[mamachef]

Nope; it's called a "Choriperro", and I had it on the beach in Panama. It's actually the way they traditionally sell them there, and I forgot to mention the layer of crushed potato chips. It sounds unbelievable, I know....but it was.so.good.

[grayelf]

Oooh why didn't I think of adding citrus to the avod and c. milk, duh! I bet lime would be good too!

[occula]

I don't have too much goin' on here, but if it's a sandwich, it needs mayo on it. Hot dogs, burgers, brats, veggie versions of the above all count as sandwiches.

[link_930]

Pickled jalapenos on vanilla ice cream (used to be a college favorite).
Coconut oil or milk in coffee.

[Veggo]

Chimichurri on baked potatoes.

[goodhealthgourmet]

Veggo, try pesto sometime!

[mariacarmen]

pesto in mashed potatoes.

[1sweetpea]

Homemade harissa on potatoes is incredible. I've also tried pesto and chimichurri, along with an Asian version (cilantro, garlic, black pepper, fish sauce and chiles) -- YUM! All of these also make good sandwich spreads, along with veggies, chicken, tuna or even tofu.

[eclecticsynergy]

Garam Masala is great on potatoes also!

[Hank Hanover]

I have never tried it but just as the fat in an avocado tames heat and sugar tends to tame heat.

I would think you could combine cayenne or whatever spicy compound de jour you have in mind with peanut butter.

Also, for the same reason Alton brown used an avocado for the main ingredient to a cake frosting(fat), I would think you could use peanut butter as the main component in a cake frosting.

[Hank Hanover]

You know I just love having these little epiphanies. I went searching and found out that peanut butter is a major component in the Thai cuisine. (Shakes head) I just never thought about because I had never had Thai pad.

[gentlyferal]

Google "peanut butter + chicken + African" and you'll find recipes for a wonderful chicken stew with a peanut sauce - you can approximate it by adding peanut butter, as many of these recipese will advise you. Many of them also call for some quantity of chili pepper.

[im_nomad]

I just had a "peanut butter stir fry" for supper.... something I regularly throw together with whatever vegetables I have on hand, garlic, ginger, soy sauce, sriracha.... and peanut butter.

[JungMann]

Yogurt on toast. With curried pickles.
Ranch dressing on cheese pizza
Shrimp paste on green mangoes
Sriracha on duck embryos

[Krislady]

I love peanut butter on a pumpernickel bagel - especially when the bagel is still warm or has been toasted, and the peanut butter gets all melty. Yum.

And I used to have a friend whose brothers (both of them) would mash up an entire PB&J sandwich, cram it into a milk glass, then fill the glass with milk.

[TuteTibiImperes]

You reminded me of one of my favorite 'odd' sandwiches. Liverwurst, raw thick cut onion, and mustard on pumpernickel is a classic, but a light smear of crunchy peanut butter added to that takes it over the top.

[Emme]

my ex used to put salted crunchy PB or almond butter with dried cherries on whole wheat and shove in a glass/bowl with sweetened condensed milk!

[EWSflash]

What, no blender? :-)

[flylice2x]

Shoyu and Mayo on a half of avacado still in the skin.
shoyu and sugar dipping sauce for half ripe mango

[Hank Hanover]

Crackers(saltines) and milk... crunch em up in a glass then fill the glass with milk. Eat it like cereal.

My deceased fathers favorite, especially when he wasn't feeling well.... Milk Toast. Just toast laid in a bowl and milk poured over it.

[melpy]

We used to do cookies and milk. Oreos or Chips Ahoy and it was called a "mushy" (rhymes with bushy) eaten with a spoon like cereal for dessert.

[invinotheresverde]

Milk Toast brings back terrible memories of my first sleepover. My friend raved about this Milk Toast stuff. I was excited to try it. Then I found out it was just a bowl of mushy bread. I knew it was rude, but I just couldn't swallow it, and mushy bread still creeps me out to this day.

[Antithesisofpop]

Buffalo wing sauce on my burger - along with blue cheese, grilled onions and bacon.

[melpy]

Salt and pepper on applesauce.
I used to pepper my cottage cheese but i gave up on that one.

[Hank Hanover]

You mean everybody doesn't put pepper on cottage cheese?

[melpy]

Where I live it's either fruit (like canned peaches or pineapple) or apple butter (I think it's the Amish influence).

[goodhealthgourmet]

growing up in Jersey i was introduced to it in both sweet and savory ways. mixed with preserves or canned fruit, or served in a cantaloupe half was most common for sweet. for savory, Italian salad dressing was popular - i loved that as a kid!

[melpy]

I used to cook ramen noodles (no seasoning), drain them, add wishbone Italian dressing and parm cheese. mmmm

[EWSflash]

Tons of pepper, and capers and their juice (lots ) when available

[BeefeaterRocks]

I remember as a child putting sugar on my cottage cheese, now I use pepper if eating it with vegetables and mayo if eating it with fruit.

[L987]

i ate cottage cheese with suger and cinnamon or with honey and fruit/berries

[Krislady]

My father used to love his "cottage cheese salad" - either canned pears or pineapple slices, cottage cheese, and a dab of mayonnaise, and maybe a sprinkle of paprika if my mother was feeling fancy - it was a super-special treat growing up. I've never heard of anyone else EVER putting mayo on cottage cheese!

[BeefeaterRocks]

Oh I forgot, I always add a dusting of paprika. I have been racking my brain trying to remember when or why I started adding mayo and I just can't recall, maybe it's a family thing, I'll have to check with my sisters.

[Hank Hanover]

Cottage cheese salad was standard fare at truck stops all over the midwest in the 40's and 50's. My mom who worked at a truck stop back then served it me and my siblings. I still serve it to my children and grand children.

[eclecticsynergy]

My Mom always put sour cream in her cottage cheese.

[mangetoutoc]

Ooooh! Speaking of cottage cheese ... used to eat it all the time topped with fresh salsa or pico de gallo. NOM NOM

[AntarcticWidow]

Milk and sugar on mashed avocado.

[grayelf]

Or just cut to the chase and use condensed milk :-).

[cheesepowder]

Sugar on tomatoes.

[soypower]

My grandfather loved this! He would put about a layer of sugar about an 1/8 of an inch high. When he passed away in his 90's, he did so with a full set of teeth. Even after consuming huge amounts of sugar and crunching on ice his entire life! And for that, he is my hero.

[EWSflash]

Mine too!

[Hank Hanover]

I think the sugar was to cut the acidity of a whole stack of tomato slices. When my wife was a little girl, she would eat tomatoes out of the garden like an apple. Often, she would get canker sores in her mouth because of it.

[bbqboy]

an earlier version:
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/5686...

[soypower]

Butter & soy sauce on steamed rice
Raw egg & soy sauce on steamed rice
Tobasco/sriracha on turkey sandwiches
Grated parm on instant ramen (no soup)
Chogochujang drizzled over raw sugar snap peas
mayo and ketchup on scrambled eggs

[goodhealthgourmet]

"Grated parm on instant ramen (no soup)"
~~~~~~~
is the parm in addition to the flavor packet? hello, umami bomb! ;)

[soypower]

Yep. I think beef flavor works best for this, but chicken is also good. Basically just cook instant ramen as usual (though for this application i tend to use alot less water), then strain out all the soup and mix grated parm into warm noodles. Parsley to top it off if I'm feeling fancy! :o)

[Hank Hanover]

Sugar snap peas are naturally sweet but are they sweet enough to stand up to Chogochujang, a korean chili paste?

Also, if you got rid of the Ramen liquid after cooking, you would have a bowl of warm cooked noodles. I would think you could put anything you could put on any pasta on it couldn't you?

[soypower]

Chogochujang, at least in our house, is korean chili paste + vinegar + sugar + garlic and is a remarkably delicious with fresh snap peas. Trust me, it's an incredible combination. But I have also dipped them in straight gochujang. Still delicious.

The noodles will still have a thin coating of the somewhat concentrated soup base and this combined with the parm imparts a unique flavor. I don't think instant ramen noodles would stand up very well to any sort of heavy sauce. The noodles overcook too easily and just don't ever have the same bite that traditional pasta has.

[BigSal]

We have discovered Ssamjang (seasoned gochujang) as a great dipping sauce for raw vegetables. Addictingly good!

[1sweetpea]

I like the sound of some of these. You and I have similar tastes, soypower. I quite like salted duck eggs on rice too. Try Pecorino on noodles, with freshly ground black pepper. I'm not so much into the butter, mayo and ketchup, but sriracha, fish sauce, soy sauce, gochu jang, hot sauces, chiles, dried shrimp ... love them all as condiments. I also like hoisin, Dijon mustard and chaat masala as condiments.

[EWSflash]

Sam Fujisaka was disgusted at the thought of butter on rice, but sometimes it's a pretty good dish. I like it both ways.

[soypower]

He was also disgusted by the California rolls that I adore. What can I say? He had a way classier palate than I. I'm what you would call yellow trash. :o)

[Hank Hanover]

I have seen my wife treat left over rice like a breakfast cereal or cream of wheat. She warms it in the microwave, adds milk, butter and sugar or maple syrup and eats it.

[mangetoutoc]

Mmm! Butter on rice, with fresh grated parmesan, is a yummy treat.

[goodhealthgourmet]

i stir powdered goat milk into cottage cheese because i love the flavor of goat milk...i really just need to make some goat's milk cottage cheese, it's not like it's very difficult!

[Hank Hanover]

It is sorta from another thread but I wonder if sprinkling buttermilk powder on cottage cheese would be any good?

[goodhealthgourmet]

it is - i've done that too :)

[Emme]

my mom does brown sugar and sour cream on strawberries

balsamic vinegar and black pepper and a little sugar on strawberries - let macerate

ketchup on everything - when i could... even liked it on lobster claws and blackened fish

sage or basil on nectarines and peaches

poppy seeds and honey on/in chicken salad

[MinkeyMonkey]

+1 for basil on peaches (or mint)

brie and rustic bread with either red pepper hot sauce or dijon or yellow mustard.

[TuteTibiImperes]

My dad liked to melt a piece of cheddar cheese on top of a slice of apple pie, I've tried it that way myself a few times, it can be pretty good.

I like chopped raw white onions soaked in vinegar as topping for collard greens.

[Hank Hanover]

The cheese on apple pie is very old school.

There is even a saying. "Apple pie without the cheese is like a hug without the squeeze."

My father and father in law liked it and I am pretty old. Old enough to have grandchildren.

[goodhealthgourmet]

grated cheddar baked into the apple pie crust is traditional in some regions as well.

[MrsT]

The first time I ever heard about a slice of cheese on apple pie was in the movie "Taxi Driver." That's how Travis Bickle ordered his apple pie.

[MrsT]

My entire family and I put salt on French Toast. No syrup, just salt.

[Delucacheesemonger]

When my first wife met my parents for the first time, she served matzoh brei, the Jewish version of French Toast. My father ate it with salt, my mother sugar, my first wife with ketchup, and me with syrup. l am sure each thought the others crazy

[mamachef]

I can get behind every version except the ketchup one! My brother liked his with brown sugar and applesauce; I was a syrup maven. Dad salted/peppered, and mom actually just ate hers as it came because no matter what you do to it, it's so rich.

[goodhealthgourmet]

"I can get behind every version except the ketchup one!"
~~~~~~
ditto!

i always went with preserves OR cinnamon sugar.

[guilty]

I used to put ketchup on matzoh brei. But syrup? No way.

[goodhealthgourmet]

depends on whether you prefer sweet or savory. ketchup makes sense for the salt & pepper direction, but many of us grew up eating it sweet - with cinnamon & sugar, or maple syrup, or fruit preserves.

[kellysnoms]

When I was growing up, my mom used to make french toast by dipping bread in beaten egg, frying it, and shredding cheddar cheese on top. I was in my teens before I realized french toast was supposed to be sweet!

[jenni49]

sour cream on rye toast
salt on Italian bread
horseradish on burgers
tabasco on mac&cheese

[goodhealthgourmet]

i love hot sauce in/on mac & cheese - that's actually pretty common.

[paprkutr]

I used to always eat rye bread with sour cream and onions to break the fast, because I didn't like what else they were serving

[dump123456789]

"Sweetened condensed milk on toast like jam"

I've been doing this since childhood. A modified version is to dip a piece of bread in a beaten egg, fry it up on both sides in butter, and top with sweetened condensed milk. That's a lazy person's French toast - the sugar and milk are moved out of the dip and into the topping instead, and the need for syrup in completely eliminated.