#I’m always picky with fruit flavoured yoghurts

[lumiilys]

Trying a new yoghurt flavour! Wish me luck!

[tastesoftamriel]

What kinds of foods were you not expecting certain races to enjoy? Like, things you thought for sure the Altmer wouldn't eat EVER, but they actually do?

There are certainly a surprising number of culinary irregularities all Tamrielic races have, despite the overwhelming number of picky eaters (Skyrim and Valenwood, I'm looking at you). These are some of the ones which caught me off-guard...

Argonians

Traditional Argonian cuisine is known for being spicy and a whirlwind of flavours, so the mildness and complexity of foam frog soufflé was not what I expected! In terms of taste and texture, it's comparable to the classic Breton orange liqueur flambéed soufflé. The naturally-occurring foam generated by foam frogs is whipped with coconut milk and scuttlebloom nectar, then gently baked in delicate clay ramekins in a traditional stone oven. It is then sprinkled with a bit of coconut sugar, and drenched in sweet banana liqueur before getting blasted with a Flame spell right at your table! Don't think you can try this at home though- this recipe takes a lot of skill to pull off, and is considered one of the most impressive dishes in Saxhleel cuisine. And yes, it's Breton-approved, but don't tell them that the frog foam is actually residue from mating and is filled with tadpoles.

Breton

On that note, the Breton kitchen is full of surprises! It's well known that High Rock gastronomy is very focused on sit-down meals and the correct use of cutlery, so finger foods aren't very traditional, even among the common folk. It blew my mind when I first visited Daggerfall and found taverns and market stands selling Orcish kebabs! These messy, enormous rolls have been downsized (and underfilled) to suit Breton tastes, but the strongly spiced goat meat, frost mirriam yoghurt sauce, and tasty radish balls are true to the original! You'll even find nobles sending their butlers out to procure a hot kebab for them to eat out of view of the public eye...it would be mortifying if somebody saw a drop of chili sauce dripping down a noblewoman's chin!

Bosmer

Green Pact Bosmeri food isn't known for its sweets, so the very existence of meat-based desserts was initially baffling to me. A Valenwood favourite is the boiled pudding, which is made from eggs, milk, suet, and cricket flour, and sweetened with imported sugar, sweet condensed milk, or candied fruit. As such, these dense puddings are sometimes known as Falinesti Forbidden Fruit, and they're sometimes decorated to look like large oranges, apples, or coconuts for the shock factor! And if you're curious to try this strange but tasty dessert, you'll be pleased to know that a new recipe is coming soon...

Nords

I admit it, Skyrim cuisine can be a little bland compared to the food of most other races, but this little gem is a dish most outsiders don't know about- Akaviri casserole. I don't know if it's actually Akaviri in origin, or if somebody just thought it sounded exotic, but it is deceptively spicy, and not in a way most Tamrielic people know it. Its key ingredient is frost peppercorns, which grow at high altitudes in Skyrim and around the Druadach Mountains, are coveted by alchemists, but also pack a serious punch in any dish. While regular chilis have a sharp burn, frost peppercorns leave a numbing, tingly feeling that spice masochists love. Anywhere from a couple of peppercorns to a whole fistful of them go into a casserole dish with an eidar cheese sauce, venison, juniper berries, and vegetables like potatoes and carrots. In other words, it's just another Nord dish...but painful.

Redguards

I mentioned a while ago that Redguards detest moldy or fermented foods, due to the close association with rot and death. There is an exception to this however, and it's surprisingly something that's served in every Hammerfell household: fish paste. Similar in taste to the Imperial garum, fermented fish paste is literally made from leftover fisherman's offcuts which usually have been left out in the sun all day. Rather than leaving the scraps to the vultures, at the end of the day they're shovelled into stone amphorae containing gods know what (it's a closely guarded secret) and are left to ferment for two days in a cellar. Of course, there are plenty of posh Redguard fish pastes on the market with Abecean longfin caviar, but this is first and foremost a food of the common people, with humble (if slightly gross) origins.

Imperials

I've always loved the predictability of Cyrodiilic cooking...until you find something like barbecued minotaur ribs. Ribs aren't anything surprising, but Imperial ribs are usually tender, delicate lamb or faun. Eating is a serious, dignified affair, so this is a completely astounding defiance of customs. Minotaur meat is a rare delicacy, and they're normally basted in a red wine, honey, and mustard sauce, and grilled on flaming coals. The end result is a meaty, sweet mess, and definitely just as undignified to eat (if not moreso) than the Breton kebabs. If you're willing to get your hands dirty and abandon haughty Imperial decorum, you've found a carnivore's dream.

Khajiit

Gryphons can be dangerous pests to the Khajiit living outside city walls in Elsweyr. When they've snatched enough sheep or wounded people, villagers will often band together and hunt the responsible gryphon, and eat it at a communal feast. A successful gryphon hunt is a cause for celebration among Khajiit, and is seen as a good omen and blessing from Hircine, the Hungry Cat. The reason this is fascinating to me is that gryphons are sort of like a cross between turkey and beef in form and taste, and no other race eats them. After it is plucked, gryphon meat is hacked into chunks and distributed by the clan chief between households, who then cook and share it with the village. Gryphon dishes range from red curried gryphon with saffron rice to a simple roast gryphon with moon sugar.

Altmer

It's an industry joke that cooking for High Elves is like trying to milk a kagouti; it makes no sense, they're probably going to get mad, and it's impossible. Imagine my astonishment, then, when I learned that even haughty Summerset is not immune from the delicious clutches of...macaroni and cheese. They'll opt for ingredients like cave-aged, 80 year old vintage indrik cheddar or authentic Cyrodiilic buckwheat  orrechiette, but I was shocked that this humble dish was a treat that's well-loved in Summerset, despite its lack of technical complexity. It's a rare treat though, because all that cheese grease is bad for the Altmer complexion!

Dunmer

Nothing is particularly surprising from the old guard of traditional Vvardenfell cooking- after a few kwama eggs and guar steaks, you get the general idea. What I do find surprising is the emergence of Skyrim Dunmeri cuisine. It's been a couple of generations since the refugees fleeing Morrowind settled in Solstheim and largely Windhelm, and those born in Skyrim have developed a cooking style of their own. Based on traditional Dunmeri dishes like crab meat and scuttle, you'll find local ingredients used as substitutes. Apparently, the juices from Nord pickled herring makes the perfect substitute for kwama egg whites...I'll leave it at that.

Orcs

It's known that the radish is an Orc's favourite vegetable, and it's served tender, crunchy, baked or raw in any Orcish dish under the sun. Radish tea-sandwiches are therefore one of the more confusing foods I've come across, though they're mostly served by Wrothgarian and High Rock Orsimer. Soft wheat bread is buttered and layered with horseradish chutney, raw radish slices, and cucumber slices. They're cut into dainty triangles are are usually a snack food, though other races view them as canapés served at high tea or parties. However, when I asked an old hearthwife on Betnikh about radish tea-sandwiches, I was threatened a beating because it was embarrassing, and to tusk off and find some mammoth. If you never hear from me again, you know who got me.

[ziclovs]

                                            HSHQTASK042

behold, it me doing the task no one has done. i cheated though, i didn’t do the full list.

Q1. favorite fast food restaurant? ❛   ditsch. i really like pretzels, they are my favourite snack, to me, they are good for any occasion when i am back home.  ❜

Q2. favorite ice cream flavor? ❛   the yoghurt ice cream with mixed fresh fruit especially from ice cream united, in cologne. does that count?  ❜ Q3. favorite chocolate candy? ❛   kinder.  ❜ Q7. favorite cookie? ❛   basler läckerli, i used to eat them... at our home in basel, my mother would serve them in a little plate with either hot chocolate or a strong cup of milk tea.  ❜ Q8. favorite breakfast food? ❛   i’m not picky. i eat what is available, nothing too heavy. but i do like scrambled eggs, it feels indulgent i don’t know why. maybe foreign television.  ❜ Q9. favorite pizza toppings? ❛   flammenkuchen of course ! caramelised onions, bacon, mushrooms, gruyére . . . munster cheese.  ❜ Q10. favorite fruit? ❛   cherries.  ❜ Q11. favorite vegetable? ❛   baby spinach.  ❜ Q12. favorite dessert? ❛   eiskaffee. and käsekuchen.  ❜ Q13. favorite comfort food? ❛   obviously, pretzels.  ❜ Q14. favorite thing to cook? ❛   steak. with a good cut of meat, some practice, it is easier than you think.  ❜ Q15. favorite soda? ❛   no.  ❜ Q16. favorite alcoholic drink? ❛   beer, or riesling.  ❜ Q17. favorite flavor coffee? ❛   isn’t coffee a flavour ?  ❜ Q18. favorite harry potter movie? ❛   i think... the last two. which should function as one anyway.  ❜ Q19. favorite tv sitcom? ❛   i did not watch many.  ❜ Q20. favorite cartoon? ❛   x-men.  ❜ Q21. favorite movie? ❛   there are many, i cannot possibly choose.  ❜ Q22. favorite celebrity? ❛   it’s silly to have one, characters in films and books... you get to know them. celebrities, there is no anchor, nothing to... there is nothing that lets you know them, it’s just a picture.  ❜ Q27. favorite classic movie? ❛   the night porter, i think i am finally old enough to understand it.  ❜ Q28. favorite string instrument? ❛   guitar.  ❜ Q29. favorite instrument? ❛   guitar.  ❜

Q30. favorite band or music artist? ❛   zero 7  ❜ Q31. favorite music genre? ❛   i think it’s important to be open minded about these things, i change my mind often.  ❜ Q32. favorite song you’re embarrassed to like? ❛   love love peace peace.  ❜ Q33. favorite country you want to visit? ❛   alberta, canada.  ❜ Q34. favorite kind of vacation? ❛   i am a creature of habit, our summer home in strasbourg, or spending time in basel.  ❜ Q35. favorite way to travel? ❛   i use trains a lot. the first class is nice. functional.  ❜ Q37. favorite thing about traveling? ❛   transit sometimes allows you to do absolutely nothing. ❜ Q38. favorite breed of dog? ❛   labrador.  ❜

Q39. favorite season? ❛   spring.  ❜ Q40. favorite flower? ❛   tulips.  ❜ Q41. favorite animal at the zoo? ❛   snow leopard.  ❜ Q42. favorite animal? ❛   maybe the elephant.  ❜ Q43. favorite bird? ❛   falcon  ❜ Q44. favorite color rose? ❛   red.  ❜

Q46. favorite thing about spring? ❛   it always feels like magic to me.  ❜ Q48. favorite sport? ❛   football.  ❜ Q54. favorite winter sport? ❛   skiing.  ❜ Q62. favorite author? ❛   sir arthur conan doyle.  ❜

Q63. favorite color? ❛   aegean blue  ❜

Q64. favorite time of the day? ❛   dusk. ❜ Q65. favorite month? ❛   april.  ❜

[greaseonmymouth]

I’m tasteless celery anon. Read your list I literally love everything you hate. Recipes will say one clove garlic I add a whole gulf I love garlic cooked or raw. The one thing we agree on is rocket it’s bad. Love black coffee. It’s kinda like what you eat influences your taste buds. Like if you don’t eat a lot of dark chocolate and heavy rich surgery foods than a triple dark chocolate cake that I would describe as rich and decadent you’d say too sugary. I just think taste is neat.

oh I love garlic when it’s cooked though! I’ll add insane amounts to what I’m making if the recipe calls for garlic in the first place. my Italian flatmate revealed to me the other day that she’s never had garlic and I was like......but you’re Italian?? turns out the region she’s from doesn’t use it in their cooking. 

also I really love dark chocolate, but it’s an acquired taste. I used to be a milk chocolate kind of person, but then gradually went darker and darker. I draw the line at around 72% though which is the highest I’ll go, 80% and up is way too bitter for me. I can’t stand white chocolate though, it’s basically just fatty vanilla sugar, absolutely vile. I have also had the misfortune of being served what I thought was a rich and decadent dark chocolate cake and then it was mostly sugar and I was just...nope. how can you fail at putting enough chocolate in a dark chocolate cake???

to answer your other ask, some of my favourite foods (also prefacing this with: I am gluten intolerant so don’t eat a lot of pasta or bread because the gf versions are expensive):

Bland Category:

fish - fish and chips, boiled fish with boiled potatoes (I’m Icelandic don’t judge me), fried fish with potatoes (there’s a Theme here), fish stew, fish soup, fish gratin (my mum makes a really good one with yellow curry, pineapple, and grated cheese that she got out of a 90s cookbook). Fish is always cod, haddock, salmon, or rainbow trout (aka the ‘cheap salmon’). I detest herring. I’m very suspicious of most fishes that are eaten in Denmark that aren’t cod because in Iceland where I’m from those fishes are generally considered ‘inedible’ fish and are mostly used as animal feed or bait. Why would we eat them when we can have the Good Fish instead? It’s a cultural thing, I’m sure there’s nothing wrong with those fishes. Herring I just have an irrational hatred towards. It’s the Worst fish. 

CHEESE and various dairy products. I like everything from ricotta and mozzarella and cream cheese to mature cheddar to goat cheeses, blue cheese, and Parmigiano. Yogurt. Skyr (Icelandic product). Kefir. Buttermilk. Viili (Finnish product). Rahka (another splendid Finnish product). Sour Cream! Cottage Cheese! I like it all.

The Fun Category:

Indian food - I cook a lot of simple curry dishes for myself though I definitely prefer getting it in restaurants or as takeaway as it’s often much better than what I can manage to make. If it’s coconut based it’s the best. The ones I cook for myself are actually more Sri Lankan than Indian and call for coconut.

Mexican food - two of my staple dishes to cook for myself are chili con carne (or chili sin carne, increasingly, these days) and a soup that is likely more Mexican inspired than actual Mexican (the recipe comes from a Swedish cookbook and I modified it). This is also food I’ll go out for. 

Thai food - mostly fried rice/rice noodle type of dishes. Coconut based curries are my favourite. I go out for these.

Chinese food - if my dad isn’t cooking it for me, which he rarely is because we haven’t lived in the same country in 20 years, I go out for this. I’ll get rice and then chicken or vegetables in some kind of spicy sauce, depends on the restaurant (the ones I know of specialise in regions and the dishes vary drastically).

Vegetables:

eh this one’s hard because for a lot of vegetables it’s “DEPENDS” and also when I was a child I not only was a really picky eater who refused to eat anything but potatoes, fish, and dairy, but also a lot of fancy veggies weren’t available in my homecountry because it wasn’t grown there and didn’t ship well or whatever. so I’m not used to eating a lot of vegetables to begin with. hence why I like canned peas, because that was the only way we could have them. s lentil a vegetable? I love lentils. I’m not a huge fan of beans but I’ll put them in things like chilis, and I’ll have baked beans if I’m eating a full English/Scottish breakfast out somewhere.

I love tomatoes and mushrooms though. I don’t like most vegetables raw, I prefer them cooked. Roasted or fried. I have been served far too many boiled broccoli/cauliflower/carrot mixes in my life to ever want to eat them again. I

These days for my lunches I’m assembling them out of: bistro salad mix, fried mushrooms and fried bell peppers, fresh tomatoes (cherry, san marzano, or other very flavourful tomato that comes in small sizes), mozzarella if I have it (or avocado if I have it), hard boiled eggs or spicy fried chicken or other lunch meat if I can find it reduced in the supermarket. salt, pepper, oregano, sweet chili sauce. if I don’t have mozarella, eggs or avocado in there I’ll add some mayonnaise to the sweet chili sauce to add some fat. it’s very basic stuff but it’s easy to make, filling, and is made of things that I like.

sometimes I don’t have the energy to make lunch and will either have whatever Indian curry & rice on the menu from the restaurant on campus (it’s not great food but the servings are huge and very extremely affordable) or I’ll just eat gluten free oat biscuits.

Fruit:

see above. the only fruit I’ll eat fresh basically is bananas and I don’t even like bananas that much. They’re just the easiest to eat. I kind of like apples but I can’t just bite into one (it’s a texture thing), I’ll have to have it cut and sliced into small bits. Same with pears. Every now and then I’ll get a craving for some soft and sweet fruit and buy like, 1 peach, or 1 nectarine or 1 mango and then eat half of it and then I’m Done. I’ll sometimes get those little plastic cups with bits of melon and pineapple and grapes and eat the contents of that and be like I have now had A Fruit and be good for like, a month.

I like berries to an extent and usually cooked or baked in something. I love bilberries in pie and if I can find reduced raspberries at the supermarket I’ll turn them into a sauce to put on plain yoghurt. I like orange juice and prefer squeezing it myself, but I will not actually EAT an orange (or another citrus) because once the juice is all gone what you’re left with is the fleshy bits and they’re bitter as hell and a Bad texture.

I grew up with artificial fruit flavours in candy so generally I’ll prefer a cherry flavoured sweet over a real cherry because the real cherry will taste Green a lot of the time and the candy will not, and the candy will have a more intense flavour. The only exception to this is marachino cherries in those fancy jars, I’m happy to eat those in desserts.

But also most of the foods that I cook for myself are just Generic Pan European foods or Random Dish I Just Made Up. I’ll be making lasagne one day not following any authentic Italian recipe (I mean, it just has Things In It That I Like and also a can of tomatoes), and the next I’ll be having grilled cheese toast for dinner and the next I’ll not bother cooking and just have yoghurt and the next day I’ll go look at the reduced vegetables section in Tesco and come away with random stuff that I can put into a soup or stew (always tomato based) that again doesn’t follow any known recipe but rather a ‘these are tasty things I like that happened to be on sale and when combined like this will be tasty to me’ method. Not a huge fan of butternut squash for example and would never buy a whole one to cook but here in the UK it’s often in mix bags with sweet potatoes and onion (all diced), and if those are reduced to idk £0.85 down from two pounds whatever you bet I’m taking that bag and making soup or stew out of it. I’ll add lentils, stock cubes, can or two of tomatoes, whatever other veg I have if I have it, spices, and have rice with it. I’ll usually get dinner for at least 4 days out of it. My staple spices (aside from the sri lankan spice mixes I use) are paprika, cayenne pepper, cumin, chili flakes, oregano, salt, pepper, cinnamon. we have a basil plant but I’d otherwise have dried basil as well. these are all spices that go well with tomato based dishes and/or mexican dishes and are pretty versatile.