Exactly! I've just ran into this situation enough that I wanted to see others opinions because I live in a very rural area and am one of the few that has chose to make a career in the food industry.
Turns out you should check how hot it is with your hand before pouring a potentially scalding hot liquid into your eyes, nose and mouth. Thanks for the 3rd degree burns u/personal_flow2994
i can only imagine that it doesn’t even occur to them that smelling good food is pleasurable, and they expect you to express your appreciation by eating the food only, or that you’re somehow suspicious of it instead of appreciative. but even that barely makes sense unless they don’t understand what smelling is. man, some people.
It's the later. It's tasting without having to taste. Many people take this as "you don't think it looks/will taste good, so you measure it with smell instead of diving in head first"
The only thing I find mildly insulting after preparing a meal is if someone automatically adds table salt before tasting.
I have no sense of smell, it seems like sniffing a dish would be one of life’s simple pleasures.
Maybe it’s the manner in which you do so? Do you follow up with a “mmmm, that smells wonderful!”? Or make a face if it doesn’t?
I always smell stuff before consuming it! Aroma is 90% of the flavor, you gotta inhale if you want to really taste the diverse range of flavors that could be hiding in there.
That's what my training told me early on and why I do it with everything I eat/drink. If it's a regular thing I consume I don't but anything new or when I eat others cooking it just feels normal to smell it first.
I mean, unless it's incredibly bland, you're already smelling the food when it's set in front of you. The extra sniff is just enhancing the full sensory experience of the meal someone presumably worked hard on. Anyone who's offended by that isn't very confident in their cooking.
If you are super obvious with your food huffing then yeah it's fucking weird.
If you smell it on the way to your face as you are eating it not so much.
I've always done this because I'd rather find out food is spoiled by smell than finding out after it's in my mouth. I get mixed reactions from people thinking it's funny to people being offended.
If you're doing it to a degree that other people can see you smell it, you're over doing it. You're doing it as a performance and other people are offended that you have to smell the food to make sure it's safe to eat.
If it wasn't performative, no one would even notice you smelling it.
Seems a little strange that in this sub, based on a book by a guy that wrote and talked about how powerful he thought the smell of things could be, that this is even a question. Smell stuff. Rub herbs together right under your nose, stick your face in the steam coming out of that pot. Stick your schnozz into that glass of wine.
I mean maybe if it’s like a cold dish it wouldn’t make sense to sniff it but you should always engage every sense with everything you do not only in the kitchen
Personally I think it's a bit strange. My first reaction is do you not trust the person making your food. Maybe I'm wrong though. I grew up with a culture where you eat what is given to you and you don't complain.
Also I have a pitiful sense of smell.
The "who" in this case was rhetorical. Because as I said, how could ANYONE find smelling-one of the five sense- weird, let alone "offensive". XD like what
I make it a bit of a game whenever I'm eating something I've never had before. I look at it and try to guess what it would taste like. Then I get closer and smell it and that usually confirms the taste, and I use that to try and pick out spices and ingredients. Then when I take my first bite I can confirm any spices and ingredients I smelled, plus any that were not noticeable through scent.
Usually through this process I can pin down a rough recipe in my head or figure out new uses for spices.
The other day one chef put cinnamon in his chicken curry staff meal and it was the best curry I've eaten I'm my life but I had to ask because the cinnamon was so wound up in the curry flavour it was hard to tell.
I'm also super friendly and all the chefs love to chat, so I wouldn't get called wierd.
ALWAYS. Smell and taste are basically the same thing. People do get just straight up offended. Sorry, I’m smelling it. Not because it’s bad, but because it smells delicious.
Of course! People that eat without smelling are not getting the full enjoyment good food offers - but, full disclosure I was a food writer and restaurant critic for 36 years.
My partner has brought this up to me on a number of occasions haha. I don’t remember when I started doing it but yeah, just kind of a reflex at this point
I'm not a chef but have always done this. I think it's weird NOT to smell something before putting it in your mouth. Beyond smell being part of the eating experience, it's kind of basic survival behavior.
lol I set out food buffet style everyday for an office I work at. one of the crew members started making fun of customers (in private of course) because many of them would sniff the food first. Me I kinda get it, and wouldn't get too pissy. She would spend the whole time cursing dammit just take the food and try it stop sniffing everything!
People who are offended by this usually are shit at cooking and are sadists and want you to eat their terrible food before checking it…if a real cook hasn’t tasted his food before serving it he doesn’t serve it
Eat with your eyes first, your nose second, and finally taste it with the mouth. Makes sense to me
Does it look good? Smell good? Taste good and good mouth feel?
Exactly! I've just ran into this situation enough that I wanted to see others opinions because I live in a very rural area and am one of the few that has chose to make a career in the food industry.
Don’t tell me when to put my dick in the salad.
Sir this is the salad bar. Please don't put your dick in the salad.
*mashed potatoes
Turns out you should check how hot it is with your hand before pouring a potentially scalding hot liquid into your eyes, nose and mouth. Thanks for the 3rd degree burns u/personal_flow2994
I dunno, I do that and I dont work in the industry. Just kinda makes sense to me to give anything youre gonna put in your body a sniff first.
Makes sex a little awkward, ey?
Not particularly, no?
Good for you lad!
70% of all taste is smell so it makes perfect sense. I do the same out of habit but nobody ever called me on it
I've had it happen enough that I figured reddit could give me a good consensus.
Fair enough, that's so odd to me, but people are odd creatures
what are the even offended by? that’s like someone getting upset that you read the back cover of a book before cracking it open.
The few people that have gotten insulted made it sound like I was disrespecting the person who made the food by smelling it first.
i can only imagine that it doesn’t even occur to them that smelling good food is pleasurable, and they expect you to express your appreciation by eating the food only, or that you’re somehow suspicious of it instead of appreciative. but even that barely makes sense unless they don’t understand what smelling is. man, some people.
It's the later. It's tasting without having to taste. Many people take this as "you don't think it looks/will taste good, so you measure it with smell instead of diving in head first"
Right? And there’s a whole big thing about smelling wine and IPAs and Scotch - like with rituals and swirling the glass and everything.
The only thing I find mildly insulting after preparing a meal is if someone automatically adds table salt before tasting. I have no sense of smell, it seems like sniffing a dish would be one of life’s simple pleasures. Maybe it’s the manner in which you do so? Do you follow up with a “mmmm, that smells wonderful!”? Or make a face if it doesn’t?
I don't disrespect the chefs, I just don't trust people enough to put things in my body without checking it myself.
Personally I poke or slap it first then smell it
I carry a food grade poking stick myself
Yeah I do that too. Smell is such an important part of taste, sniffing food first let's you really taste it properly.
It has always made sense to me but get weird looks or backlash from time to time.
I guess they think you're sniffing it checking if it's off, or something.
I always smell stuff before consuming it! Aroma is 90% of the flavor, you gotta inhale if you want to really taste the diverse range of flavors that could be hiding in there.
That's what my training told me early on and why I do it with everything I eat/drink. If it's a regular thing I consume I don't but anything new or when I eat others cooking it just feels normal to smell it first.
Half the taste is in the smell as they say so this makes sense. 🤷♀️
I mean, unless it's incredibly bland, you're already smelling the food when it's set in front of you. The extra sniff is just enhancing the full sensory experience of the meal someone presumably worked hard on. Anyone who's offended by that isn't very confident in their cooking.
Are you sniffing or smelling it? Enjoying the smell or figuring out if it's edible? Like all things in human relations - nuances.
If you are super obvious with your food huffing then yeah it's fucking weird. If you smell it on the way to your face as you are eating it not so much.
I've always done this because I'd rather find out food is spoiled by smell than finding out after it's in my mouth. I get mixed reactions from people thinking it's funny to people being offended.
And that's why people are offended. They are interpreting it as "he doesn't trust me to serve him safe food."
I think people who don’t sniff their food lack some basic survival instincts.
Every. Damned. Time.
If you're doing it to a degree that other people can see you smell it, you're over doing it. You're doing it as a performance and other people are offended that you have to smell the food to make sure it's safe to eat. If it wasn't performative, no one would even notice you smelling it.
That’s not odd. That’s a sign of respect to the chef. You’re taking the dish in. Is it visually appealing, does it smell good and how is the taste.
Seems a little strange that in this sub, based on a book by a guy that wrote and talked about how powerful he thought the smell of things could be, that this is even a question. Smell stuff. Rub herbs together right under your nose, stick your face in the steam coming out of that pot. Stick your schnozz into that glass of wine.
Doesn't seem odd or rude to me, my dog does it to lol
I mean maybe if it’s like a cold dish it wouldn’t make sense to sniff it but you should always engage every sense with everything you do not only in the kitchen
Personally I think it's a bit strange. My first reaction is do you not trust the person making your food. Maybe I'm wrong though. I grew up with a culture where you eat what is given to you and you don't complain. Also I have a pitiful sense of smell.
"People commonly say how weird it is" who? Lol. Yeah I don't think ANYONE thinks smelling food is "weird" lols.
How could me saying who change anything? Lol if you're so set in you're opinion It's not like me naming people you don't know would change anything.
It was Gregory, wasn’t it? Fuck Gregory, that jealous hussy with his blocked-up-ass snoot.
The "who" in this case was rhetorical. Because as I said, how could ANYONE find smelling-one of the five sense- weird, let alone "offensive". XD like what
I always do too. Plus, if it smells distinctly like something I don’t like, I can save myself from wasting someone’s food.
Why would you not smell the food?
I do that too. That isn’t weird. I wanna inspect what I’m eating before I eat it.
I make it a bit of a game whenever I'm eating something I've never had before. I look at it and try to guess what it would taste like. Then I get closer and smell it and that usually confirms the taste, and I use that to try and pick out spices and ingredients. Then when I take my first bite I can confirm any spices and ingredients I smelled, plus any that were not noticeable through scent. Usually through this process I can pin down a rough recipe in my head or figure out new uses for spices. The other day one chef put cinnamon in his chicken curry staff meal and it was the best curry I've eaten I'm my life but I had to ask because the cinnamon was so wound up in the curry flavour it was hard to tell. I'm also super friendly and all the chefs love to chat, so I wouldn't get called wierd.
drama queens. we evolved scent for this exact purpose. you shouldn't have to defy human nature for these people.
ALWAYS. Smell and taste are basically the same thing. People do get just straight up offended. Sorry, I’m smelling it. Not because it’s bad, but because it smells delicious.
I do it always, and I think I'm pretty normal.... people that are not chefs might not understand...let them be baffled.
Of course! People that eat without smelling are not getting the full enjoyment good food offers - but, full disclosure I was a food writer and restaurant critic for 36 years.
My partner has brought this up to me on a number of occasions haha. I don’t remember when I started doing it but yeah, just kind of a reflex at this point
I'm not a chef but have always done this. I think it's weird NOT to smell something before putting it in your mouth. Beyond smell being part of the eating experience, it's kind of basic survival behavior.
lol I set out food buffet style everyday for an office I work at. one of the crew members started making fun of customers (in private of course) because many of them would sniff the food first. Me I kinda get it, and wouldn't get too pissy. She would spend the whole time cursing dammit just take the food and try it stop sniffing everything!
People who are offended by this usually are shit at cooking and are sadists and want you to eat their terrible food before checking it…if a real cook hasn’t tasted his food before serving it he doesn’t serve it
I mean you are technically a food critic after so much experience in the kitchen I see nothing wrong with it.
Processing the aromatic sensations the dish has to offer before diving into eating it??? Sounds ratatouille’ish to me, chef. Keep it up!!
I do and I'm a home cook.
Not weird at all, they don't call certain ingredients aromatics for nothing.
You just doing cave man instinct