In the age of social media, any food pairing will be born, some great and some bizarre pairings. While it’s true that you should never trust a dish without tasting it, some pairings just aren’t it, no matter how hard you try. If you’re one of the adventurous foodies, we’ll bring you 10 weird food pairings you can try. Note: don’t come running after us when the taste is too awful for you to handle. 🤣
10. Ice Cream and Soy Sauce
This weird pairing got traction from social media under “trust me, you’ll love it.” But honestly, it’s ice cream and fermented soy sauce, which you supposedly use to add flavor to your dish. It has this weird umami aftertaste, which you would say no to. Choose salted caramel or sea salt chocolate if you like the salty and sweet contrast.
9. Peanut Butter and Pickle
This peanut butter and pickle combo made rounds on social media, with TikTokers attempting to try them out. Whatever happened to the classic peanut butter and jelly, right? This weird combo is a craving of some pregnant women, while others acquired the taste of sourness and sweetness in a nightmare. Just imagine the soggy and sour bread mixed with nuts.
8. Tuna and Olives
Yup, as weird as it sounds, there is such a thing as tuna and olives. People combine the two to create a tuna olive salad and even pasta. The olives clash with the fishiness of the tuna, which doesn’t even complement each other. Instead, you end up with mushy bread from the tuna and rubbery olives. Not the greatest pair, right?
7. Apple and Mustard
We understand why apple and mustard aren’t popular, but sadly, they exist. They’re two random flavors for an Apple and Mustard Grilled Cheese Sandwich or Pork Chops with Apple and Mustard. Meanwhile, some people simply dip apple slices in mustard as a snack. Yup, it’s just like a fruit with a hot dog topping.
6. Strawberries and Balsamic Vinegar
It might not be too weird if you’re thinking about strawberries in a salad with balsamic vinegar. However, when you simply dip a strawberry in balsamic vinegar, then that’s when you get the odd looks. Just imagine the vinegar’s acidity overpowering the strawberries’ sweet and sour flavor. Not exactly everyone’s cup of tea.
5. Cottage Cheese and Jell-O
This weird dessert combination was a staple of the 50s, and it’s probably the dessert your grandma misses the most. Remember those odd Jell-O desserts with salads on them? Jell-O pretty much paired with everything back then. Scrolling through the internet, you’ll see cottage cheese paired with it to create different dessert recipes like Green Jell-O Salad, Orange Jell-O Salad, and even Lime Jell-O Marshmallow Cottage Cheese Surprise.
4. Nutella and Cheese
Scrolling through the internet after searching for Nutella and cheese will give you the Nutella Grilled Cheese Sandwich. The cheese texture simply clashes with the sweet hazelnut Nutella, giving you an odd feeling. Maybe you can opt for cream cheese instead? The same one where you create your cheesecake, since they’re better suited for dessert.
3. Breakfast Cereals and Orange Juice
Forget the OG breakfast cereals and milk, as orange juice has come to save you (?) According to a Kellogg survey from 2015, ⅕ of Americans are using orange juice. This is why in 2022, Tropicana created a cereal meant for their orange juice. Still, that’s sugar overload. Just imagine the sweet glaze of breakfast cereals clashing with the sweet fruity drink. That’s just unacceptable.
2. Hot Chocolate and Turmeric
Believe it or not, there’s such a thing as a Turmeric Hot Chocolate drink, combining hot chocolate and turmeric. Turmeric’s earthy and slightly bitter taste overwhelms the comforting sweetness of the chocolate. The spice from the turmeric gives the hot chocolate an orange-brown flavor, which is unappetizing to consume.
1. Pickles and Kool-Aid
For the love of pickles, people can’t stop leaving them alone! There’s such a thing as pickles and Kool-Aid juice, which originated from the South, specifically from the Mississippi Delta Region. Some people say they taste like candy, as you store those pickle slices in a jar of Kool-Aid. The pickles just lose their crunch with the salty juice, which loses its refreshing taste.