Research has found that Brits have an average of eight foods they refuse to eat, with five of those being ones they have never tasted including sushi, black pudding and kimchi.
A staggering six out of 10 Brits say they dislike foods they have never even tried, reveals a study. The research discovered that on average, Brits have eight food items they won’t touch, with five of those being ones they have never tasted.
Sushi, black pudding, and kimchi top the list of foods most commonly dismissed without a taste test, along with plant-based cheese alternatives and anchovies. Tofu, liver, and plant-based milk substitutes also made it into the top 10. Yet, paradoxically, 65 per cent boast of having adventurous taste buds, while 74 per cent claim they are open to trying new foods.
The study was commissioned by Boursin Plant-based, which has partnered with TV foodie Frenchman Fred Sirieix, to investigate food biases by hosting blind tastings at food festivals throughout the summer. It comes after a writer claimed ‘I tried butter from Tesco, Aldi, Lidl and big brands – and the winner is not Lurpak’.
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Fred Sirieix said: “Brits claim to eagerly embrace culinary trends and global flavours, but they can be particularly prejudiced when it comes to certain foods, and this is one of the biggest barriers to discovery.
“Many ingredients including plant-based alternatives to cheese have huge negative preconceptions. But despite many claiming they’d be able to differentiate plant-based from dairy, even the most discerning foodies were fooled by this plant-based alternative to cheese when we let taste do the talking.”
Despite these findings, only 17 per cent actually confessed to being picky eaters.
Six out of ten people claim they would be upfront when faced with a dish they were not keen on, while 28 per cent were willing to sample a small portion.
Over half have changed their minds about something they thought they wouldn’t like after giving it a go. The biggest motivators for trying new flavours were blind taste tests or learning about a food’s health benefits.
Seven in ten said they were adamant they would be able to tell the difference between dairy and plant-based alternatives to cheese – with nearly a half (46 per cent) willing to give it a go if it tasted as good as the ‘real thing’.
Fred Sirieix, on behalf of Boursin, added: “People are very clearly confident in their ability to tell dairy from plant-based alternatives but as we saw from experience, this was not actually the case.
“In reality, less than 10 per cent of people at the Foodies festival were able to differentiate between Boursin plant-based and dairy.
“It just goes to show – there’s a whole world of flavours out there waiting to be explored if you’re brave enough.
“Even ingredients you might dismiss because of previous experiences, judgements, or assumptions can still surprise you if prepared in the right way. So, embrace the challenge and let the taste do the talking.”
TOP 20 FOODS BRITS REFUSE TO EAT WITHOUT TRYING:
- Sushi
- Black pudding
- Kimchi
- Plant-based alternatives to cheese
- Anchovies
- Tofu
- Blue cheese
- Duck
- Liver
- Plant-based alternatives to milk
- Prawns
- Olives
- Asparagus
- Spicy curry
- Kale
- Pickles
- Beetroot
- Coriander
- Brussel sprouts
- Mushrooms