Are YOU the Picky Eater in Your House?

Updated on February 16, 2012
R.D. asks from Richmond, VA
22 answers

I sure am! I mean, my 2 year old son is p-i-c-k-y, but he's... well, he's 2!!

My 8 year old only doesn't like shrimp.

My 6 year old only doesn't like 'spicy' (she has food allergies, but likes the things she's allergic to).

My husband will eat anything, and I mean *ANYTHING*.

I guess because I'm the one who plans and cooks all out meals, I had never given it too much thought before. But sure enough, I'm the picky eater! I separate my peas and carrots! I won't eat pork, grits, mushrooms, tomatoes, oatmeal, won't drink milk... the list goes on and on! Never really thought of it before now!

So are YOU the picky eater in your house?

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Featured Answers

A.G.

answers from Houston on

Yes! Vegetarian, whole grain , I prefer my veggies raw and my fruit fresh and my condiments to be made from better ingredients. I hate additives and I like my cheese and beer to be snobby.

We are big about not using corn products unless they are in fact ....corn. And nothing with meat or meat cooties ( term I read on this site) are allowed in my kitchen. Barely anything comes from a can, the occasional soup maybe.My girls eat the same way.

My husband eats meat but when he does he slow smokes it in the backyard and has a party with it.

I guess you could say we are picky, I truly believe we are what we eat.

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E.J.

answers from Lincoln on

I'm not the picky eater, my son is. He is actually rather smart about it though. I found out he was telling people he was allergic to apples b/c he hates them so much. I have to give him credit for his ideas! What adult is going to force a child to eat a food they claim they have an allergy to? haha!

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☆.A.

answers from Pittsburgh on

Nope. That would be my husband.
Least picky? My 8 year old.

3 moms found this helpful

K.I.

answers from Los Angeles on

No! That would be my husband!

And it's freaking irritating!

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B.W.

answers from Washington DC on

No, it is my husband and almost 2-year old. The 2year old makes sense. My husband has no desire to eat anything with flavor. If I add onions or something to a recipe, I make sure they are big so he can pick them out. He doesn't eat mushrooms and hates shrimp or much seafood at all (he considers popcorn shrimp seafood!). There is not much seasoning on anything. Sometimes I tell him to deal with it other times, I try to be mindful and meet him 1/2 way. It is hard when I grew up eating losts of spicy food or even eccentric (sp?) dishes that my mom learned how to make from her housekeeper (2nd Mom really since hers abandoned her and her siblings, but i digress.....) who I imagine was not in this country legally. So I learned how to make lots of stuff from 'scratch'. His family, not so much. I see where he gets the lack of flavor from!

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Y.C.

answers from Orlando on

Not at all, I eat almost anything, and many things few people would. My kids are not too picky either, not by option but for me, lol.
But my husband, ohhhhhhhh!
He is a sweet and he would eat my food but since I know what he doesn't like and he only eats with us on weekends I don't even bother.
He doesn't like fish, any kind, no spicy, few vegetables, not too much seasoning, no Thai or Indian food, and other weird (to me) things, like he would eat the solid of a soup and leave the liquid, he likes meat balls/hotdogs/hamburgers but only if they are made of "real" meat, lol, no those healthy options with chicken or turkey, and totally not tofu, and not my specialty tacos ( tripe, pork skin, etc), his lost!

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K.B.

answers from San Francisco on

Definitely. Although my husband isn't completely adventurous, I'm the most picky one in my family. I also don't like some foods based on texture. I'm a beige food eater: meat and potatoes. I dislike most vegetables, but do like lots of fruit.

I try to make stuff for my kids to eat even if I don't like it. But I haven't really branched out from more of the common foods. If I make something I don't like, I just don't eat part of the meal or I eat something different. Our nanny feeds them dinner on weekdays so I usually don't eat until after they go to bed. So far they haven't noticed that I'm not eating everything they are eating. Not sure what I will do when they won't eat their spinach unless I eat some too.

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P.M.

answers from Denver on

NO WAY! My husband is. OMG, he was eating a banana (that I had to put in front of him) the other morning and wouldn't eat it because it had a couple specs of brown in the middle. He is SO weird about textures. He will eat most things I make, his mother taught him well ;-) but if it weren't for me he'd live off of chips and salsa, cheese pizza, macaroni and cheese, chicken strips, beer and coffee.

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V.W.

answers from Minneapolis on

Definitely. And the list of foods that I don't like is way longer than the ones that I do like.

⊱.H.

answers from Spokane on

Yes, I am the picky one. My 3 y/o is pretty picky too, but will hopefully get better with age.
I don't cook for my tastes b/c I am too picky. I try to make a variety of foods b/c my husband is like yours, he will eat anything! I also don't want my boys to grow up with a limited palate like mine.
There are only 2 things my husband won't eat ~ sandwiches (he doesn't really like bread) and stuffing.

J.W.

answers from St. Louis on

Nope, that would be Andy. The rest of us will eat anything.

The problem I have with cooking is I will cook something I really like over and over until no one likes it anymore. :(

C.M.

answers from Washington DC on

I am very picky! Although my son won't eat bread, cheese, or pasta, I think I am worse but on a different level. I won't eat any type of seafood. None. The smell of it even cooking makes me want to throw up. I won't eat pork, lamb, most veggies (I will eat peas, carrots, corn and PLAIN artichokes). I don't like oatmeal either but will eat it if it's loaded with sugar or cinnamon only so I can't taste it too much. I hate any type of nuts. I hate tea and coffee. There is some fruit I won't eat either. I have recently in the last year been sorta ok with tomatoes (home made salsa only). Oh and I will only eat eggs if they are boiled. So, I am pretty picky. Between me and my son and my daughter (she won't eat anything with sauce on it), we don't eat much, lol! My husband will eat anything and everything though.

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A.B.

answers from Sarasota on

Yes. I'm also really bad about not wanting to eat leftovers.

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S.F.

answers from Utica on

I am definitely the picky eater around here yes. I love MOST veggies and a variety of fruits and I am an insane pasta and carb eater but if it was once alive I am so damn picky. I wont eat any type of smoked/cured meat. If it has a bone on/in it forget it and as for seafood it has to be a basic piece of fish - No shrimp, crab, lobster. etc. I lose my appetite if even the slightest piece of fat goes in my mouth and if I see 'the yuckys' ie. guts from the meat on my plate Im done for that meal, at least

I have a 2 year old too and she eats way more than I do LOL

A.C.

answers from Salt Lake City on

Nope. I am pretty much a human garbage disposal, unfortunately. I like food way too much. The only thing I would get squeamish about is eating something weird like bugs or eyeballs or something. And I hate pickles. Anything else is fair game.
Husband is fairly picky. He won't eat soup, will only eat a few veggies or fruits, won't eat anything to "hippy" like quinoa, flax seed, wheat pasta or wheat bread, tofu, squash, bok choy. If I substitute anything in a recipe like applesauce instead of oil or flax seed instead of an egg, he won't eat it (if he sees me do it. He can't tell the difference by tasting it). He will eat meat and potatoes in any variation. No foreign or ethnic foods like Indian or sushi. Makes it hard to eat healthy. I will often cook a healthy meal and he will snub it and cook a lean cuisine instead :(

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C.S.

answers from Milwaukee on

That'd be me. And my son. It irritates me when people say that you 'create' a picky eater. I dunno-maybe that is true for some, but it's definately not in my case and I don't think so in my son. There are some foods that just literally cause a gag reaction for me.

I've been this way since I was little and I've slowly started expanding my palette. Still however, I have my favorites and don't generally stray to far. My husband and daughter eat anything and my husband does the majority of the cooking and I don't limit what he cooks so it's not that the options aren't there. And we always encourage my son to try something new.

Yes I get that you may have to try something '20' times, but if at the first time it makes you gag why would I make me or my child keep trying it...?

My son takes the exact same lunch to school everyday-he won't eat at school-and he's not a brat about it, if he didn't have his lunch he just won't eat and he'll say.."i don't think I like that". I'm guessing that if he was picky just to be picky he'd eventually eat if he was hungry enough, but he doesn't.
Which is the same for me.

N.G.

answers from Dallas on

I teach my kids to be adventurous and not close-minded with food, and to always try new things. You may not like them, but it's important to try. My nutritionist says it takes up to 20 times trying something to really decide if you like it so no, I'm not picky, because I wouldn't want to model that behavior to my kids!

K.M.

answers from Chicago on

Yes, the picky eater here!

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S.B.

answers from Kansas City on

Yes, I always have been. I try to try new things, but I'm so picky.

J.S.

answers from Jacksonville on

Yes, yes I am. I am better about it than I used to be, but I am the picky eater. My daughter seems to be copying me. I do eat all the things I hate, just so she will try new things too, but honestly it rarely works.

Honestly, I never turn anything away, I just stomach through it. Never matters, she is just as picky as can be. My husband will eat anything, I think he is part goat.

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B.D.

answers from Pittsburgh on

I don't consider myself to be a picky eater at all, but I am the one responsible for procuring and preparing all the food that goes on the table so there are some things that will never be appearing on the dinner table.

F.H.

answers from Phoenix on

I'm lucky that none of us are really "picky" but my kids are older but we never really had to deal with that in our house. Even now, I'm trying new recipes and the kids have been really good at trying everything and so far, so good. My hubby will eat anything as well as my step dtr but she can't have any sugar because of her disability. The only thing I'm picky about is I don't like my food to touch on my plate! ESPECIALLY the hot/wet stuff (like gravy) touching cold stuff...yuck...at buffets I have about 3 different plates going on at once...lol!

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