'It destroyed my childhood fantasy': Dairy lovers react to Chinese people trying cheese for the first time

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Ally Perry • Writer and Editor
Feb 28, 2024 4:00 PM EST

Chinese food (or at least a watered-down, fusion-led version of it) is one of the most popular cuisines in the world, and China itself is famously host to all kinds of culinary delicacies. However, it has one big oversight that the Western mind cannot comprehend: it doesn't really have any cheese.

While it may sound unthinkable, an amusing Twitter thread has shone a light on the fact that a lot of Chinese people do not try cheese until later in life. If the reviews are anything to go by, they don't enjoy it, either.

Twitter user @XiranJayZhao took the liberty of translating a few reactions from those in China trying cheese and also turkey for the first time, and it's an interesting read. Some lifelong cheese eaters were horrified, but others couldn't help but be fascinated by this cultural phenomenon. One thing's for sure, coagulated dairy can be an acquired taste. 

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  • 01
    Xiran Jay Zhao @XiranJayZhao Follow Totally forgot cheese isn't really a thing in most of China and it's absolutely wild to read a thread full of people going "I thought cheese would be so delicious by the way Tom and Jerry ate it on TV but when I had it for real for the first time I was so disappointed: ("
    via XiranJayZhao
  • 02
    Xiran Jay Zhao @XiranJayZhao Follow Come to think of it I legit don't think my grandparents have ever tasted cheese
    via XiranJayZhao
  • 03
    Xiran Jay Zhao @XiranJayZhao Follow User 1: "It was a bit sour, with a very heavy taste and kept making me suspect if it'd gone bad. I thought the first time was a fluke, then I went to McDonald's and got a cheeseburger and confirmed that I do not like it" cmd5 ⑥ ▶ Anye 带点酸,味道很重,总有一种是不 是霉变了的怀疑。 ... 我吃了一次还不信,又去麦当劳弄 了个芝士汉堡”,最后确认是真不喜 欢。 01-10-IP 属地江西 Q015
    via XiranJayZhao
  • 04
    Xiran Jay Zhao @XiranJayZhao 5. Follow User 2: "I once bought a block, it had a faint fishy smell so I ended up throwing the whole 50RMB thing away" 玉米 F*cmd5 我买过一块,问起来有股淡淡的腥 臭味。最后50块钱全扔了 01-10. IP a ... ♡ 2
    via XiranJayZhao
  • 05
    Xiran Jay Zhao @XiranJayZhao Follow User 3: "I always thought cheese would be sweet with a hint of milky taste, but it ended up having no taste at all and " destroyed my childhood fantasy 吃饭吃饭吃饭 我一直以为奶酪是带点奶味的甜甜 的,结果是没味道,打破了我的童 年滤镜Ⓡ 20 小时前 ·IP 属地湖北 ..
    via XiranJayZhao
  • 06
    Xiran Jay Zhao @XiranJa... 20 Jan User 4: "Anyway it wasn't the soft, milky taste I imagined when I saw cheese for the first time. It actually had a pungent smell, it wasn't soft at all and was a little dry and on the hard side. Not much of a milky fragrance either. " (Incomplete translation cause word limit) Liu Vicki Anye 反正不是第一次看到的时候幻想的 那种柔软又有奶香味的奶酪。实际 上有腥臭味(不过说公道话,在西 方的奶酪里不是最腥臭的)。口感 也不软,有点儿干,还稍微偏硬, 奶香也不是那么浓郁。口感复杂, 和其他食材搭配好了也能吃。 论为什么很多中国娃在出国之后厨 艺突飞猛进。 01-11 - IP 属地云南 6
    via XiranJayZhao
  • 07
    Xiran Jay Zhao @XiranJa... 20 Jan (About turkey now) "There are records of turkey way back in the Ming dynasty. Their conclusion was that the wings and legs are edible, but the rest should be fed to dogs. That's right, that's the conclusion by a people who don't even throw away intestines." 彼得小帝 你经常看 TA 的内容 火鸡在明代就有记载 +关注 明朝人给出的答案是:翅膀和腿可以 吃,剩下的建议喂狗 没错,这是一个连大肠都不放过的民 族得出来的食用火鸡的结论 编辑于 2023-11-14 01:37·IP 属地河北
    via XiranJayZhao
  • 08
    Xiran Jay Zhao "*feeds [turkey] to dog* @XiranJa.... 20 Jan Dog: What the is this? This is disgusting, it has the mouthfeel of wood. Are there are no leftovers or offal in the house??" 仪狄 喂狗 ... 狗:什么东西,这么难吃,和木头 一个口感,家里是没有剩菜剩饭, 或者是下水了吗 2023-11-14·IP属地江 苏 热评 a 2337
    via XiranJayZhao
  • 09
    Xiran Jay Zhao @XiranJa... "In the 80s my grandpa worked on importing turkey, but gave up because it was just too inedible. Then he switched to studying the use of radiation to improve silk. For that generation of 20 Jan ● scientists, using cesium-137 to manipulate silkworms was easier than making turkey edible." 江牡丹 Ⓡ + 关注 你经常看这个问题 我爷爷曾经在80年代做过火鸡的引进 育种, 最后因为太难吃放弃了,转而研究用 放射物改良蚕丝品质。 在我爷爷等老一辈农业科研人看来, 用放射物铯137°去辐射定向影响蚕宝 宝,都比让火鸡肉好吃更容易。
    via XiranJayZhao
  • 10
    Xiran Jay Zhao @XiranJa... ·21 Jan Lmao I found another gem "I bought some solid cheese from the supermarket, the taste was way too terrible, very difficult to swallow on its own. Eating it also tends to make you cough. Possibly this was caused by the high sodium content." 隔壁师傅忙 O 三 我在超市买的干奶酪°,口感太差,单 独吃难以下咽。吃完还容易咳嗽,可 能是含盐量高导致的 发布于 2023-08-13 03:59·IP 属地辽宁
    via XiranJayZhao
  • 11
    Xiran Jay Zhao @XiranJa... ·21Jan "Yesterday I tried the cheese from Tom and Jerry. It turned out to be salty and bitter. I didn't give up, so this morning1 got my mom to put it in an egg custard with sugar. Wow, the taste and smell made a perfect combination!" 月亮弯弯在天上 自由工作者 三 1人赞同了该回答 昨天尝了猫和老鼠里面的奶酪,咸苦 味的,不信邪,今天早上我特地让我 妈做鸡蛋羹放上,加糖!好家伙,芝 士焗饭香甜和鸡蛋羹的腥气完美融 Â!
    via XiranJayZhao
  • 12
    Xiran Jay Zhao @XiranJa... 21 Jan "Why is cheese bitter and gross? In my imagination it should've been better than milk slices (a Mongolian snack) and delightfully fragrant but it was the worst food I've eaten in years!" (Looks like they got cheddar and gouda from the store) Amlat 恩美莱 切达 威造臺納 Weißener 高达奶酪粒(再制干酪) Gouda Processed Cheese Cubes BERD 32:365(98) Net weight 38g@ Cubes 2019/04/25 22:00 在我相象应该是相比奶片更好吃醇禾到去逗
    via XiranJayZhao
  • 13
    Xiran Jay Zhao @Xiranja... 21 Jan swear some of you sound ready to hop on a plane to China as cheese missionaries with a bible full of recommendations on what type of cheese they need to get for the texture and flavor they want
    via XiranJayZhao
  • 14
    * Dr. Meme Man Replying to @Xiran JayZhao Wait, if China doesn't have cheese, then what do they use as a substitute for it on hamburgers and stuff??? 92 195 Xiran Jay Zhao @XiranJa... .21 Jan They have cheese wherever they have burgers (like in McDonald's), but burgers are eaten as rarely as cheese @Doct... 21 Jan 172 ● il 115K L
    via XiranJayZhao
  • 15
    Basil Yeo @basilyeo . 21 Jan Replying to @Xiran JayZhao and @AudiKhalid That's interesting because I reckon parts of China have would have perfect cheesemaking temperatures 2 ♡86 Q2 Xiran Jay Zhao @XiranJa... - 21 Jan In some specific regions, particularly Inner Mongolia, they do! 10.7K
    via basilyeo
  • 16
    James Chen @jchensor 20 Jan Replying to @XiranJayZhao I always end up blowing people's minds when I tell them there is almost no cheese in Chinese cuisine. They stop and think about it and almost always go, "OMG!" Considering cheese is in EVERYTHING it's definitely odd a major cuisine is missing it almost entirely.
    via jchensor
  • 17
    Yuan Gao Replying to @XiranJayZhao you know what china does have? cheesecake that has a distinct smell of blue cheese. it's as if they read "cheesecake" and decided "ah of course it must smell like cheese, it's in the name" @mesetatron • 21 Jan
    via mesetatron
  • 18
    for @ethersince · 21 Jan ● didnt occur to me that anyone who did not grow up eating cheese would have a similar confusion as westerners when they are exposed to anything unfamiliar and fermented this kind of owns
    via ethersince
  • 19
    Cristine Rice @Pstafarian Price Cheese is China's Turkish delight KART PA Follow
    via PstafarianPrice
  • 20
    sans @sabokisser. 21 Jan this is the most bizarre thing I've ever read bc I can't even fathom not enjoying cheese. like my brain can't process the concept of someone not enjoying cheese
    via sabokisser

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reviews twitter cheese Twitter Thread chinese food Turkey food eating funny twitter chinese
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