Spoiler: Don’t read this if you’re feeling hungry!

Pic: now not such a rare sight! Pizza in Greece.

Recently, it has struck me how many things I now appreciate that I really didn’t before. These are mostly food-related, hence the spoiler alert. For example, when I was younger I had something irrational against pizza. I can’t explain why, but it wasn’t until I ate a proper pizza in Italy that I began to realize what I was missing. Furthermore, as I have travelled, I have broadened my horizons as well as my taste buds to the point where I will try everything and anything at least once.

 So now I’m surprised to find myself eating foods like sweet potatoes, broccoli, pesto, peanut butter and mushrooms rather often. A few years ago, you wouldn’t see me eating any of these! There seems to be no limit now to the possibilites for my palette. I have to thank my younger brother for bringing sweet potatoes into our lives - I now swear by them as the best side dish for almost every meal. It's just a pity they're not really grown in Europe. 

I also turn out to be quite a fan of very hot, spicy food, whether it be Indian, Nepalese, Mexican or whatever! The more spice, the better. I became accustomed to this when I lived in Finland; that may seem unorthodox considering Finnish food is not known to be particularly spicily scrumptious, but I’ll address that later. My love of hot food developed thanks to my Bangladeshi neighbour whilst living in Finland, who made the best, spiciest, chicken curry that I’ve ever tasted.

Back to Finnish food. Despite it’s poor reputation in the food department, which can be relatively justified (if only by Mammi or the opinion of Gordon Ramsey), it can be accredited with my fresh appreciation of fish and reindeer meat. Generally, with the expense and rather poor quality of meat, fish is a much better alternative in Finland. Nevertheless, reindeer meat proved to be a delicious treat, especially when served as the main dish of a Sami buffet in Lapland! This was one of the best eating experiences I've ever had, thanks to Matti for the idea to go there. Reindeer ribs, reindeer leg, reindeer tongue, you name it, they eat it! And it is a beautifully tender meat that simply melts in the mouth.

Picture: Ulster Fry. Potato bread=the best.

So many people have influenced my improved and growing palette: My mum, who serves the best fishcakes and pavlova (not together of course!), amongst many other creative dishes. My dad, who makes simply the best Ulster Fry in the land – the signature dish of Northern Ireland that can’t be matched elsewhere. My granny, who introduced me to the best chocolate cake, ice cream, peppermint creams, and homemade stew. My man, Tom, who continuously inspires me with the best spontaneously cooked meals. Eni, my best chef and educator about food, whose dishes I simply can’t get enough of. Nipoon, for enticing me to try the best, homemade, spicy food that would light my tastebuds on fire with a hearty warmth;  and Henri, who became the best provider of opportunities to cook and eat together, a tradition that I long for and value more and more … There are of course so many others who have also featured in my international recipe book and have brought a new lease of life to my palette!

Here in Austria, I’ve tried a few curious new dishes that I never would have thought would work in combination with each other. For example, in a local Einstein restaurant I had heated brown bread with brie and apple slices – mouth-wateringly good! It was also my first time trying different flavours of ice cream: the highlights and most unexpectedly good flavours being poppy seed ice cream and cinnamon ice cream.

Furthermore, I have previously, strongly underestimated vegetarian food, which is sometimes, or more often than not, the better option. Sushi is also something I'm becoming a big fan of. Although, I do miss proper meat – for me, meat tastes best at home. I maintain that the “meat deal” one can avail of at St George’s Market in Belfast delivers the best meat around for the best price. I could sell it myself but I hope I’m far beyond my first job working in the butcher section of a supermarket!

It's interesting how drastically your taste can change during your lifetime. Sometimes our tastebuds just haven't been exposed to the range of quality flavours that are out there and opening yourself to new cultures and possibilities is the best way to enhance your experience of food. And especially, finding healthy food more attractive to eat, instead of being sucked into the trap of a vicious cycle of junk (easily done.) 

In short, I’ve come to realize that healthy food can be really tasty if cooked creatively. Don’t get me wrong though, I’ll still be occasionally accustomed to a good ol’ dirty McDonalds, or the sweet treats that are impossible to resist in Vienna, Switzerland or at home.