Gumbo. My mom made it a few times and I always hated it. Turns out she wasn’t making it correctly until I had my extended family make it the way our family did from Louisiana and now I can’t get enough of the stuff.

My family goes all out on gumbo, making a pot that will cost around $400 (pre-pandemic pricing, not sure how much it went up since) but have every little thing everyone wants from shrimp and sausage to chicken and all the little fixings in it.

i used to hate peanut butter. idk why

I fucking love Cauliflower, I thought I didn't like it because I grew up poor and didn't really get fancy veggies

Pig and chicken feet. Fat is so good.

Guldens Spicy Brown Mustard. Dad was from Brooklyn and loved it, as I kid I just wanted the neon yellow stuff all my friends had. Now, many years later, I always have it in my fridge.

Onions

• Brussel Sprouts: I tried them in a salad and fell in love with them instantly. Now they're included in every roast. They have to be fresh, because the frozen ones can just be mushy. And those little, crispy, flavorful leaves that fall off are just 🤌🏾
• Tomatoes: I won't just bite into one, but I've been making them more prominent in my dishes. I mostly stick to the sundried variety, haven't been able to eat them raw.
• Mushrooms: I love them so much I don't understand why I hated them.
• Some Cheese: I general, I still would say I don't like cheese, but I've become more forgiving of mozerella, which was unheard of when I was a child. It's the only cheese that broke through.

Still don't like bacon though 🤷🏿‍♀️

I used to be a picky eater, but years ago I decided that I wanted to like more food - - that life would be better if I actually enjoyed foods that I would otherwise have to suffer/avoid.

I started by putting small amounts of different ingredients in my dishes (when it made sense) and I quickly developed a taste for all of them.

(Only found out later that this was a great way to do it as your microbiom directly impacts your cravings).

Onions, mushrooms, tomatoes, olives, pickles, brussel sprouts, oysters, mustard are all things I now genuinely enjoy.

Blue cheese
Brussel sprouts
Cauliflower soup
Green peas
Brocoli
Olives

Most fish. I always liked salmon, but didn't like most other fish; now I like all fish I'm aware of.

Asparagus! I hated that shit when I was 12. And now I can't wait for asparagus season.

Italian cured ham, I used to hate the taste and texture, but now, it's great!

Ranch dressing. I hated it for years, but I moved to the suburbs and suddenly it tasted good (seriously). 🤷

Bananas, pickles, onions, mustard. Now it’s like, “Whatever, just shove it down my throat.”

Kale. I hated it as a kid, but that's because my parents never removed the stems, and then boiled it down into mush, neither of which is the correct way to cook kale. Now that I cook my own, I love it and eat it regularly.

grits. the way my mother made them when I was a kid was plain and kind of unpleasant. I add sausage and cheese to mine.

Brussel sprouts used to be truly awful, made me literally wretch. Now I eagerly make and order them as a bar snack.

To be fair there are two reasons beyond my changing tastes for this. First, my mom liked to steam brussel sprouts whole and serve them with margarine, salt, and pepper, now I generally cold sear them or roast them in the oven with much better seasoning. Maybe even some bacon pieces and blue cheese mixed in. Second, brussel sprouts did actually change over time to get less bitter and awful since I was a kid.