BlackShanglan
Silver-Tongued Papist
- Joined
- Jul 7, 2004
- Posts
- 16,888
I don't think it's just the price. Like Cloudy, I've tried caviar a few times and given up on it. It just doesn't appeal to me. Really good balsamic vinegar, now ... that's worth the money.
It's true that I have a few expensive tastes. However, I think it's also true that if you sold me the same thing for a dollar, I'd buy enough to stock up for the rest of my life. Sometimes really good things do cost more because they are more expensive to make. Chocolate is a good example; cocoa butter and cocoa solids are a good deal more expensive than sugar, cheap fats, and fillers. If one happens to really like the flavor of chocolate itself, it will be necessary to pay more to get it.
A few other things I've found that are well, well worth their price:
Truffles. You can get jarred black summer truffles for about $45, and they are complete and wholly worth it. The absolute proof: I once served a dish containing them to thirty-five people, most of whom did not know that it contained truffles. I've never had so many people rave about the flavor of a dish. It had a challengingly unusual texture as well - the sort of thing one would expect anyone who didn't like new foods to object to.
Lobster. I remember reading a cookbook once that contained the line "Everyone eventually gets tired of eating plain boiled lobster and butter." I'm still waiting for that moment, in no particular hurry.
Elk meat and yak meat. The most delicious meat I have ever tasted. Almost impossible to spoil.
Pummelos. They look like humungous grapefruit, cost about two dollars each and have very thick rinds that take a great deal of work. Who cares? I can eat an entire one at a sitting. Sweet and beautifully juicy.
Portabello and shittake mushrooms. Their flavor really is quite different, both from white mushrooms and from each other. Gorgeous things.
It's true that I have a few expensive tastes. However, I think it's also true that if you sold me the same thing for a dollar, I'd buy enough to stock up for the rest of my life. Sometimes really good things do cost more because they are more expensive to make. Chocolate is a good example; cocoa butter and cocoa solids are a good deal more expensive than sugar, cheap fats, and fillers. If one happens to really like the flavor of chocolate itself, it will be necessary to pay more to get it.
A few other things I've found that are well, well worth their price:
Truffles. You can get jarred black summer truffles for about $45, and they are complete and wholly worth it. The absolute proof: I once served a dish containing them to thirty-five people, most of whom did not know that it contained truffles. I've never had so many people rave about the flavor of a dish. It had a challengingly unusual texture as well - the sort of thing one would expect anyone who didn't like new foods to object to.
Lobster. I remember reading a cookbook once that contained the line "Everyone eventually gets tired of eating plain boiled lobster and butter." I'm still waiting for that moment, in no particular hurry.
Elk meat and yak meat. The most delicious meat I have ever tasted. Almost impossible to spoil.
Pummelos. They look like humungous grapefruit, cost about two dollars each and have very thick rinds that take a great deal of work. Who cares? I can eat an entire one at a sitting. Sweet and beautifully juicy.
Portabello and shittake mushrooms. Their flavor really is quite different, both from white mushrooms and from each other. Gorgeous things.
