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10 Disturbing Food Combos You Should Never Try

Abundance Favour
By Abundance Favour 7 min read

When it comes to food, the possibilities seem endless. From sweet to savory and everything in between, creativity knows no bounds in the kitchen. However, not every combination is meant to be, no matter how adventurous your palate may be. In fact, some pairings are downright shocking and often make you question the sanity of the person who came up with them.

In this article, we explore some of the most perplexing and truly bizarre food combinations that should never see the light of day. Whether they are a result of culinary experimentation gone wrong or just plain bad ideas, these are the top 10 food combos you should definitely avoid.

The Unholy Combination of Snails and Garlic Butter

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French cuisine is renowned for its elegance and sophistication, but even the French have their fair share of culinary missteps. Case in point: snails in garlic butter. While the idea of covering something in rich, flavorful butter might seem appealing, the taste of snails is hardly one that anyone would consider savory, let alone delightful.

The problem with this dish is simple: snails are inherently flavorless, and the garlic butter only masks their rubbery texture, adding no real taste. Despite this, it’s become somewhat of a delicacy, especially in France. However, in reality, garlic butter is better suited to crusty bread, not a slimy mollusk that offers very little beyond its chewiness.

Marmite and Marmalade

Marmite is one of those love-it-or-hate-it foods, which means it’s already polarizing enough without introducing another flavor to the mix. But in the bizarre world of questionable food combinations, some genius thought it would be a good idea to combine this salty yeast extract with sweet marmalade.

On paper, the idea of mixing something sweet and something savory sounds okay. However, the result is nothing short of disastrous. The sweetness of the marmalade clashes terribly with the salty, umami-rich flavors of Marmite, creating a strange, off-putting taste. The two just don’t work together, and any attempt to do so is bound to leave you with an unsatisfied stomach.

Fool’s Gold Loaf

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If you ever find yourself wondering how Elvis Presley’s indulgence affected his diet, look no further than the infamous Fool’s Gold Loaf. This monstrous sandwich consists of a hollowed-out French loaf stuffed with an entire jar of peanut butter, grape jelly, and a hefty portion of bacon.

While this dish was once considered a novelty and a rare treat, its sheer size and richness make it an incredibly unhealthy choice. The mix of creamy peanut butter, sweet jelly, and salty bacon is a disaster waiting to happen. The bread serves only as a vessel for an excessive amount of fatty, sugary, and greasy ingredients. It’s a heart attack on a plate, and the kind of sandwich you’ll regret the moment it touches your lips.

Fabada Asturiana

Fabada Asturiana, a hearty stew from northern Spain, is made with white beans, chorizo, blood sausage, and various fatty cuts of pork. While the dish is beloved in Asturias, it’s a ticking time bomb of digestive destruction, especially if you’re not used to its heavy ingredients.

Aside from its gastronomic effects, Fabada has another issue: it produces large amounts of methane during digestion, making it a surprisingly bad choice for the environment. So, not only will you spend hours recovering from the meal, but you might also contribute to global warming. Is a warm belly really worth it?

Blue Cheese Ice Cream

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For many, ice cream is a sweet treat to end the day, and blue cheese is a strong, tangy addition to a cheese platter. But when these two come together in a blue cheese ice cream, the result is enough to make anyone reconsider the fundamentals of dessert. The creamy sweetness of the ice cream clashes with the pungent blue cheese, creating an unsettling combination that leaves a sour taste in your mouth, literally.

No matter how you dress it up, the savory notes of blue cheese simply do not belong in a dessert. If you’re craving something sweet, stick with your classic vanilla or chocolate ice cream.

Beetroot Brownies

Brownies are a beloved dessert, whether served on their own or with a scoop of ice cream. But adding beetroot to the mix is a questionable choice that results in a bizarre taste that doesn’t belong in the realm of desserts.

Vegan bakers may argue that using beetroot instead of dairy products is a clever way to make brownies healthier, but the earthy flavor of the beetroot interferes with the rich, chocolatey goodness we expect from brownies. Additionally, preparing the beets for the recipe is far more time-consuming than it’s worth, especially given the result is so underwhelming.

Haggis

Haggis, a traditional Scottish dish, is made from sheep offal (heart, liver, and lungs) mixed with oats, onions, and spices, all stuffed into a sheep’s stomach. While haggis is a staple of Scottish cuisine, it’s not exactly the most appetizing dish for those not accustomed to eating organ meats.

Despite its cultural significance, haggis has an off-putting texture and a strong, gamey flavor that takes some getting used to. If you’re not fond of the idea of eating the innards of an animal, this dish might be one you want to pass up, especially when it’s served in its traditional form.

McChoco Potato

In Japan, McDonald’s tried to innovate by adding a sweet twist to the classic fries with the McChoco Potato. Fries were topped w