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28 March 2006

Coriander. Love it, or hate it. Obviously, there's [More:]
OK. You bastards. All this talk of cilantro, and I assumed it was some U.S. Specific foodstuff. In my mind, I imagined the consistency of bladder-wrack with the tongue tingling properties of fugu. But, noooooo! It's nothing but bloody coriander. Coriander. As in, Carrot and Coriander soup. Of course, I blame myself for not listening or not remembering or possibly just not googling, but who would know. It's Coriander. That's what you were talking about. Cilantro=Coriander.

Now, can anyone explain to me what all the fuss was about.
I think I can.
posted by Eideteker 28 March | 17:55
In the US, from what I can tell, the leaves are cilantro, and the seeds are coriander.

I know people (like my boyfriend) who hate the leaves (as you might find in salsa), and love the seed (as you might find in curry).

I guess, to some people, the leaves have a "soap" taste to them. I don't get it, but I have no reason to doubt that some people do.
posted by kellydamnit 28 March | 17:58
It's one of those foods that tastes awful to a subset of humans. Some people like it/don't mind it, but that subset hate it vehemently.
posted by me3dia 28 March | 17:59
I'm not sure I fully buy into Eideteker's theory, but I don't have an alternate to offer. I like the seeds and the leaves of that plant whatever you want to call it.
posted by safetyfork 28 March | 18:01
I don't think coriander is a posh herb here. Coriander is used in almost all asian (indian) cooking. Come 12:30 at night, after the beer and the being thrown out of the pub, you're not going to get a sit-in chicken rogan josh without a sprig of coriander resting on the top of it. We also use it (seeds + herb) all the time. Hence the weird cultural frisson when people descibe it as a "posh herb".

It's not posh. It just is. Like parsley, or pepper, or thyme.
Weird.
posted by seanyboy 28 March | 18:08
People add cilantro to things here to make them trendy. Like "mango salsa" and fancy coffees (as Denis Leary said; whatever happened to coffee-flavored coffee?) and other sorts of "fusion" cuisine. I dunno; I'm just guessing. I have no formal culinary training. I don't even like eating.
posted by Eideteker 28 March | 18:13
It's also known as chinese parsley. And I'm one of those people who hates the flavor of it.
posted by crunch 28 March | 19:21
First time I had it ("cilantro") was at a place that had the ubiquitous Big Ass Burrito; said burrito was chock full of cilantro and I was nauseous for hours afterward. I had no idea what it was or its name but I knew it tasted not-so-great and made me wonder if I was allergic to it.

The second time I had it was at a Chevy's Fresh Mex restaurant in Marin Co. They put a generous amount of cilantro in their salsa they bring with tortilla chips while you wait for your food. I plowed through two Blue Agave margaritas while downing a hefty amount of chips and salsa. Suddenly, I knew it was a good thing to go outside (not wanting to ralf in a public bathroom). I managed not to puke but I sat in my car, put the seat back, and fought off that urge to vomit for about a half hour while my stomach settled.

So, I wouldn't say I vehemently hate cilantro, but I definitely would say it does not agree with me. If I have a food that sneaks in some cilantro I try to make sure I stay away from tequila when I do so.
posted by hyperlith 28 March | 20:19
I think maybe that says more about Chevy's than it does about cilantro.
posted by crunch 28 March | 21:16
Kellydamnit has it
posted by trondant 29 March | 00:41
Tunes on Random || OMG BURGLAR BUNNY!

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