I: Cilantro
Today, just a poem that's also a clip show.
Good morning. Today is primidi, the 11th of Messidor, Year CCXXXI. We celebrate la coriandre, an herb that the Brits call coriander.
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It's come to light in recent decades that some people think cilantro tastes like soap not because they're picky eaters but because their genes are uniquely tuned to detect soap flavor, and cilantro accidentally triggers those receptors. Specifically, it's the aldehyde group (most famous member: formaldehyde) is the specific chemical that's being super-detected by about 15% of Europeans (and somewhere around 5% to 10% of other genetic ancestries). This means the same people are going to extra enjoy vanilla and cinnamon, which also owe their tastes to aldehydes, but cilantro's version of the chemical is literally a single atom away from that of soap. If someone tells you they hate cilantro, believe them.
The herbs, they are a struggle. There are seeds that get used in brewing and mulling, and roots that get used in Asian cuisine, and leaves that infiltrate every Mexican dish. Honestly, with herbs, for the most part the fun is in the name.
