Being idle as I am, I fell to thinking about food. Well who doesn’t?

Now there are very few things I really will not eat. Oysters and tripe are two which immediately spring to mind.

But there are quite a few things which, if you show me a recipe or a menu item containing them, I’ll pass on by. Pretty much top of the list are:

• Sweet Potato
• Butternut Squash

however they are rapidly followed by:

• Pomegranate
• Pumpkin
• Gnocchi
• Polenta
• Tofu
• Sourdough
• Spelt
• Cavalo nero

Those top 10 are followed by a few lesser horrors which will be considered under duress:

• Beetroot
• Goat’s cheese
• Kale
• Cranberry
• Sweetcorn
• Egg custard

And there are a few cuisine choices/combinations I will avoid:

• Anything sweet with meat – I can’t abide jam with meat!
• Anything which is unnecessarily vegan
• Pretty much anything that I don’t know what it is – why do all chefs have to always include something which no-one has ever heard of?

And I am sure there are others I’ve forgotten.

But why is this? Well obviously it is in part because I actually don’t like many of them them and sometimes that is down to texture as much as taste. I’d eat them if I had to but I’ll never choose to if there is a half-decent alternative. But it is also partly because many (though not all) are/have recently been trendy and fashionable, which I find an immediate turn-off – I’m resistant to jumping on bandwagons and following the herd: thank you, I’ll decide what I eat, drink, like, think, believe; I don’t need you to decide for me!

I’m sure I’m not alone in this. What do other people refuse to eat not necessarily because they dislike it?