Tumblr Users Discussed the Mouth-Itching World of Fruit Allergies

The thing about food allergies is that some people don’t even realize they have them.

Recently a Tumblr thread went viral with users talking about their physiological responses to certain foods and mostly making light of the allergies.

It started when user @circusbutch posted about their love of orange juice, and the nostalgia it evokes.

@circusbutch: oragne juice is the superior beverage because it makes your tongue feel like you ate a bunch of ants which reminds me of my childhood when I would put ants in my mouth and eat them except this time it tastes good too. @spacefroggity: hey OP, I think you're probably allergic to citrus?

Image credit: Cheezburger

Good on @spacefroggity for not simply scrolling on by.

I have family members whose tongues itch when they eat certain fruits, otherwise I would not have known this was a thing.

Another user responded with either a mistyped question or statement about the OJ inducing itchy tongue.

Then another poster reposted an old conversation with @kramergate describing their their own potato allergy–and how, like many of us, it doesn’t stop them from enjoying potatoes!

@luckylesbiano: is. this not what oj is supposed to make your tongue feel like. @kramergate: every time I tell someone about my potato allergy they go 'oh that sucks i can't imagine not eating fries or mashed potatoes!' and i'm like oh rest assured neither god nor the devil himself could stop me from trebucheting hot spoonfuls of starchy face-swelling throat-itching good sh** into my dumb as he** gaping potato receptacle.

Image credit: Cheezburger

Potato sweats. That sounds pretty horrifying if I’m being honest.

@noxtheox: kramer, I'm still not over the fact that you thought the potato sweats were A Thing. @kramergate: I simply assumed we were all willing to suffer for our passions.

Image credit: Cheezburger

I mean, I like fries as much as the next person (or maybe not), but usually when I have an adverse reaction to food I’m less inclined to eat in the future.

Like ice cream. And wheat.

And mushrooms. (shudder)

Other users went on to describe additional bad reactions to different kinds of fruit.

@darkersolstice talked about kiwis which, fun fact, I learned were in the melon family when I gave one to my then-boyfriend and his tongue swelled up.

@darkersolstice: Did you know that if your mouth itches when you eat kiwis, it is not from hairs left over on the fruit after you peel it? I didn't until I was about 26 or so! @solarpunkarchivist: Confusingly, pineapple is supposed to feel like that, the d**n thing is attempting to digest you right back.

Image credit: Cheezburger

I had to go verify that claim, because depending on how fresh it is, I absolutely have that burning sensation with pineapple.

And @solarpunkarchivist is right! According to Spoon University:

Pineapple is the only food known to contain bromelain, an enzyme that digests protein. The truth is, pineapple hurts to eat because bromelain is digesting the tender skin inside of your mouth.
The pineapple is eating you.

Wow.

Another user chimed in about peanut allergies and @demonsgold had enough.

@justketerthings: Numb lips are not part of the intended experience of peanut butter, apparently. @demonsgold: yALL.

Image credit: Cheezburger

But the very best comment came at the end of the thread.

@calamity-ashley: Are we just gonna ignore the part where OP says they ate ants?

Image credit: Cheezburger

I’m with you @calamity-ashley. That’s what I focused on too.

Do you have any foods that you didn’t always know you were allergic to? Tell us in the comments.

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A Girl Shared Her Boyfriend’s Mango Hack and It Went Viral

I’ve only tried to prepare mango a few times. Both times, I had to google what to do with the thing.

I guess it depends where you live, but it seems like everyone struggles just a little over what to do with a mango. That’s why a woman’s TikTok about her boyfriend’s unusual mango hack took social media by storm.

I was taught to cut a sort of grid into the mango and then peel the sin back and scrape the cubes off the skin.

But Katie Feeney’s boyfriend had a different sort of technique.

First, he sliced the mango around the middle, crosswise.

Image credit: Katie Feeney via TikTok

Next, he pried the two sides apart.

Image credit: Katie Feeney via TikTok

As Buzzfeed explained:

Then, he pops out what he calls the “lollipop” center…

Image credit: Katie Feeney via TikTok

After scooping out the inside of each half, he is left with a perfect, delicious mango, ready to eat or cook with.

Image credit: Katie Feeney via TikTok

This method totally blew my mind. Because if you’ve ever eaten a fresh mango, you know how completely frustrating the process of getting that massive seed out of the middle is.

And this guy did it like it was nothing!

A lot of viewers felt the same way.

Image credit via TikTok

They really appreciated the clever ingenuity and vowed to try it themselves.

Image credit via TikTok

Some even went so far as to describe it as life-altering.

Image credit via TikTok

Others, however, were less impressed.

Image credit via TikTok

It seems that this is a very common way of preparing a mango in Middle Eastern and Asian cultures.

Image credit via TikTok

In fact for some, it was the only way they knew how to eat a mango.

Image credit via TikTok

Isn’t it funny how something that seems completely revolutionary to one group of people can be just as mundane to the other?

Take a look at the video, and see what you think for yourself.

@katiefeeneyy

what do you guys think?? #howto

♬ original sound – ☆ katie feeney ☆

Ordinary? Or extraordinary?

Let us know in the comments!

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You Can Stop Putting These Foods in the Fridge

Some foods will quickly spoil if you don’t put them in the refrigerator.

And then there are other foods that you should honestly never put into the fridge at all.

Some of these foods simply don’t need to take up precious fridge space when they could easily sit out on the counter. Others can actually become lower-quality in the fridge.

In the first category are pickles and hot sauce. Both contain ingredients that naturally keep the product from going bad, even if they’re not in the fridge. Nuts are another example of foods that easily stay fresh at room temperature.

Photo Credit: Pixabay

In the second category, there are many types of produce that don’t need to be in the fridge, including onions, garlic, potatoes, tomatoes, bell peppers, cucumbers, whole melons, and basil. In all of these cases, the cooler temperatures actually change the texture of the produce, making them less fresh.

Instead, store these in a dry place with plenty of ventilation.

Photo Credit: Pixabay

The fridge can also interrupt the ripening process for certain types of produce. Avocados can go in the fridge or on the counter, depending on whether they’re ripe (if ripe, put in fridge to keep them good for longer). Stone fruits like peaches can also be left at room temperature to ripen perfectly.

Photo Credit: Pixabay

Other items that should never go into the fridge include olive oil and honey, which can actually turn solid when cold (and it’s kind of icky).

The more you know!

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This New Way to Eat Pineapples Is the Biggest News of 2019

Pineapples are absolutely yummy (unless they’re on a pizza, but that’s a whole other story). Sadly, they’re also kinda hard to eat if you’re actually trying to do it from scratch and not get the syrupy canned versions. Do I peel, then cut? Do I cut, then peel? What’s the best knife for it, and how do I not chop my hand off in the process?

Even if you’re a pineapple-slicing professional, it’s a whole elaborate process. Your other options are to buy pre-sliced pineapple or just… give up on this delicious fruit.

But wait. THERE IS A BETTER WAY. You can apparently just eat pineapple with your bare hands, and honestly, this is the biggest development of the year, as far as I’m concerned!

Photo Credit: TikTok

This pineapple hack comes to the world courtesy of a TikTok user. @dillonroberts22 posted a video that shows someone ripping off individual pieces of pineapple and (really loudly) chomping on them. It’s about 2 seconds long, and those 2 seconds basically changed the world.

The video spread like wildfire on Twitter, where people were genuinely shocked that there is a whole other way to eat pineapple that nobody knew about WTF.

Photo Credit: Twitter

Some people even ventured to try the trick at home, sure that the TikTok video was a hoax. But nope – it’s 100% real, folks.

A few wise Twitter users took everyone else to Pineapple School, where they explained that pineapples actually consist of a whole bunch of berries fused together. Each individual piece is a berry, which is why they can be torn off like that.

Mind blown. It’s almost too good to be true.

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Pineapples Were Once So Expensive, People Rented Them by the Hour

Pineapples are available almost year-round in most grocery stores across the United States these days, but it wasn’t always this way. Pineapples actually have quite a long and storied history. They weren’t always as readily available as they are today, and much like anything that’s simultaneously desirable and scarce, they quickly became a symbol of wealth and status.

Between the 16th and 18th century in Europe, pineapples were actually so rare that they were put on display like fine works of art. It’s hard to estimate how much a single, whole pineapple would have cost in today’s money, guesses range between $5k-$10k – definitely not chump change for something that would eventually rot. So, why was it that valuable?

Photo Credit: Wikipedia

The pineapple is indigenous to South America, which is where Europeans first encountered it. The European royals loved the fruit for its natural sweetness, but having them imported was hit-or-miss. Only the fastest ships (and ideal weather conditions) would deliver the fruit while still edible, while finding a way to grow it back home turned out to be an expensive – and not at all simple – endeavor.

We don’t know who, exactly, was responsible for first growing a pineapple in a non-tropical climate, but the consensus is that it happened in Holland in the late 1600s. The Dutch West India Company had a stranglehold on Caribbean trade that allowed them to import pineapple plants to experiment on, which almost certainly led to them being the first ones to crack the growing-tropical-fruit-in-the-cold problem.

Photo Credit: Pixabay

In fact, Dutch cloth merchant Pieter de la Court invented the hotroom – spaces kept warm and humid – to try and accomplish the task. His design worked, though issues with ventilation, the release of hot fumes, and the stability of soil and air temperatures all presented constant and evolving challenges.

England wanted pineapples, too, and so sent men to Holland in search of the secret to putting the tropical fruit on royal tables on a much more regular basis. It would be many years, however, before a pineapple was grown on English soil – and when it was (around 1715), it was a Dutchman named Henry Telende who accomplished the feat.

His method, which involved a hothouse, special soil, pits lined with pebbles, manure, and tanners bark, was a delicate balance even in the best of times, but once he got it down to a science, more English were able to afford the fruits. But even though pineapples became more available, many nobles still declined to eat something they were spending so much cash on. Instead of serving the fruit to guests, they would display the pineapples around their homes.

For lesser nobles and regular rich people (as opposed to filthy rich people), it became fashionable to rent a pineapple just for a party, then pass it around to others having parties before returning the fruit to the person who could actually afford to eat it (if they so chose).

Photo Credit: Wikipedia

The fact that refined sugar was also a rare and expensive commodity only added to the allure of actually eating the fruit. Charles II was said to love pineapple – both because of its sweetness and partly because he thought the fruit looked to be wearing a tiny crown (he referred to it as “King-pine”).

People remained obsessed with the pineapple well into the colonial period, and you’ll see it carved into any number of wooden and stone pieces in both the old and new world. The fruit remained a symbol of wealth, and eventually morphed into a symbol of hospitality as well.

Fun fact: this is why you’ll still find pineapple designs on bedposts, gateposts, bath towels, and other items often left out for guests.

Fun fact #2: in colonial times, serving a pineapple upside-down cake would be a subtle way of suggesting your guests were overstaying their welcome and should make plans to depart.

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11 Photos That Prove You Have No Idea How Food Grows

We all know what our food looks like once it’s sitting on shelves, poured out of a can, or on our plates at a restaurant, but most of us never get to see what our fruits, vegetables, seeds, etc., look like when they’re still in the fields or on the trees.

I hope you find these pictures as interesting (and enlightening!) as I did!

#12. Sesame Seeds

Photo Credit: Wikipedia

They look like beans!

#11. Pistachios

Photo Credit: Panoramio

I would have guessed some exotic fruit. And why are they not green?

#10. Vanilla Bean

Photo Credit: Flickr

*resists making limp joke*

#9. Kiwi

Photo Credit: Blogger

This is like some kind of fantasy. Like New Zealand itself, really.

#8. Peanuts

Photo Credit: WordPress

They have flowers! Who knew?

#7. Brussels Sprouts

Photo Credit: Flickr

These aren’t weird or anything. I just think they’re so pretty in their natural state.

#6. Almonds

Photo Credit: Flickr

So many of these are prettier than expected.

#5. Cinnamon

Photo Credit: Blogspot

Or just a tree?

#4. Cranberries

Photo Credit: Wikipedia

They’re green before they’re floating in a bog like in the commercial.

#3. Cacao

Photo Credit: Wikipedia

I could not have picked this out of a food lineup.

#2. Saffron

Photo Credit: Garden of Eaden

Look how it grows in the rocks – I love the color!

#1. Cashews

Photo Credit: Wikipedia

Wut. They look like peppers!

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