I was talking to Heather the other day on the phone when I pronounced myself finished with posting nonsensical junk on my blog. Only the best posts from now on, only the most thought-provoking, the best written! No more wasting my readers’ time with crap!
Well, I lied.
But see, here’s the thing. This is type of thing that, if you and I were just hanging out together, sitting on the couch, eating some Bugles and drinking some Coke, watching some quality TV, I would probably bring up in conversation. I guess I like to talk about stupid topics.
You wouldn’t believe how much fun I am at parties.
So here’s what I’ve been thinking about. Ketchup. And my very specific rules about ketchup and where it should and should not be squirted.
Ketchup is great for french fries, but only ON THE SIDE. NEVER, EVER squirted on top of the french fries. I feel irrationally strong about ketchup never being put ON french fries, ONLY beside french fries.
Wanna ruin my day? Pour ketchup on my french fries and watch me get ridiculously irritated.
This same rule applies to fish sticks.
Oddly, I like ketchup in my vegetable soup. The juxtaposition of the hot vegetable soup mixed with the cold ketchup! Mmm.
Ketchup is NOT great for hot dogs or corn dogs, as those are MUSTARD ONLY foods. I don’t feel as strongly about hamburgers and ketchup, though I feel that hamburgers are best-condimented (I made up that word) with mustard and mayo.
My daughter Ella is big fan of ketchup, eating it by the handful. I think that’s a bit of an overkill.
What are you feelings on ketchup? Do you have any quirky food rules?
I’m a ketchup on the side girl, too.
And also wondering when I’ll post something of beauty again. Or at least something that isn’t just drivel would be nice.
Headless Mom´s lastest post..Birthday Songs
Ketchup definitely needs to be on the side with fries, but it can be touching some of them; that’s okay. I don’t like mustard, so I totally eat ketchup on hot dogs (sorry!). My family loves them some ketchup on scrambled eggs. It doesn’t do anything for me, but, then again, I don’t eat eggs. Also, the only way I’ll touch corned beef is if it’s smothered in ketchup, but even then it’s 50-50 as to whether I’ll actually eat it.
Hillary´s lastest post..WW–Looking Forward To (and Back At) Summer
My only strict rule is ‘there cannot be enough chocolate”
(Ketchup, or as we call it “Tomato Sauce”, has to go beside the fries, not on, because otherwise you get too much on some and not enough onothers. Ewwww! Just the right amount of sauce is mandatory – even if you have to dip 3 times!
)
ketchup totally belongs on the side. do NOT pour it on top of my fries, because i’d have to kill you.
roo is a ketchupaholic. it goes on EVERYTHING. which gets pretty gaggy after awhile.
the planet of janet´s lastest post..How I turned sloth into a parenting success
I am mostly anti-ketchup. I do not even put it on my fries. I keep a small container in the house for when we have family BBQ events, otherwise I can not do it. I will eat a burger from a restaurant with it on, but only because without it it tends to be to dry. My kids do not use it either and that is more than OK with me!
However I LOVE tomatoes. I love them every way EXCEPT ketchup. The memories of my brothers drowning their eggs and mac-n-cheese in ketchup STILL turns my stomach 20 years later!!!
simply anonymom´s lastest post..Spring is here!
Oh I totally agree about the fries. NO SAUCE DIRECTLY ON THE FRIES.
However, I put ketchup and mustard on hotdogs, but I am ANALLY RETENTIVE about getting it absolutely perfect. Little squibly lines of intertwining k & m good enough to photograph and use as a lightbox for a hotdog advertisement. Otherwise it doesn’t taste as good as it should.
Ness @ Drovers Run´s lastest post..Weekly Winners
Looking back at some of my posts, I think someone hijacked my blog. Surely, I didn’t write that?
I am flexible with ketchup but it depends on the fry. Some fries are better with mayo, or vinegar and salt, or with no condiments. I could go on and on about fries.
Joanna´s lastest post..Thanks Officer
Tomato sauce goes on the side of fries/burgers/lamb chops/on cold roast lamb sandwiches. In my book anyway. My kids put it on chicken (!), totally wrong, and any vegetable they don’t like.
It must be on the side of the fries – otherwise it makes them soggy.
Ketchup also must be on top of the meatloaf, but not in it.
catnip´s lastest post..life’s little irritations #11
First of all, I sense a lack of sincerity in the “quality TV” comment with a link to our generation’s Masterpiece Theatre, “Rock of Love Bus”, so that’s very upsetting.
My Italian-American husband is mortified, but I love ketchup on pasta. But he and the kids put ketchup on their scrambled eggs and that’s just unAmerican.
Marinka´s lastest post..How to Have a Nervous Breakdown: Part One
I like ketchup on a lot of things, the weirdest of all being macaroni and cheese. I think it comes from the years of eating hot togs and mac n cheese and the ketchup from the hot dog getting on the macaroni.
I also like peanut butter spread on Ritz crackers dunked in my tomato soup. No idea where that came from, and I’m aware it’s totally weird and gross, but I love it.
AndreAnna´s lastest post..Aura
I’m with you…no ketchup on top of the fries! They get soggy and I get angry. I also think hot dogs/corn dogs are mustard-only food. I like ketchup on my green beans. I started eating it that way when I was a kid and it just kind of stuck. My sister in law puts it on her pizza.
Jen L.´s lastest post..Gross Tete
For the most part, Ketchup belongs on the side. Unless it is a steamed hot dog – which I only eat once or twice a year – it belongs on the bun under the dog along with the mustard.
BTW – these nonsensical junk posts ARE quality
Ashlie- Mommycosm´s lastest post..The Legion of Angels: Prologue – Chapter Three
I hardly ever give my kids ketchup for one reason…I hate cleaning up the left over ketchup on the kids’ plates…..it never just rinses off and that totally grosses me out. Sorry kids!
My six year old uses ketchup as a dressing on SALAD. What does that do to your rules?
The only time ketchup should be ON the fries is when you’re 12 and at Six Flags Magic Mountain in California and you’ve got the large bucket of fries you’re sharing with friends. Good times.
all things BD´s lastest post..Oh Hey Guess What?
I really hate it when people put ketchup on potato products other than french fries. Wanna see ME get skeeved out? Take a nice pile of hash browned potatos and douse it in ketchup.
Ketchup on the side please (the fries get way too soggy otherwise, yuck). But I had to comment to say – where the heck are you finding Bugles? They sound so good right now (not quite 38 weeks pregnant) and I haven’t seen them in FOREVER!
Erin´s lastest post..Who would have thought?
I only have one hard and fast ketchup RULE and it mostly doesn’t apply in these days of squirty bottles. When there is a good old fashioned GLASS bottle of ketchup and someone sticks a butter knife in it to get the ketchup to come out I totally freak. I can’t take it. Especially if they lay the ketchup tainted knife on the table. EW.
My oldest son puts ketchup on his tacos. It completely grosses me out. My ketchup problem is that I am a total ketchup snob. I will ONLY use Heinz ketchup. The others taste like watery tomato paste to me.
I agree with all of your ketchup laws. I haven’t tried it in soup yet, but I will..just to see.
When my now adult son was a toddler, he went thru a faze where he only ate sliced cheese. DIPPED in ketchup. ACK. Glad it only last a couple of days!
S´s lastest post..Cautiously…
Just like you, I like my ketchup on the side.
Oh, I mix that ketchup with mayonnaise and result is really fantastic. You should try it sometimes.
Wow who woulda thought ketchup was a hot topic of debate!
Ketchup on the side for fries is the only way to go.
I also like ketchup on my chili with crumbled crackers. I think it gives the chili some kind of sweetened balance like brown sugar. Yum!
Jean M.´s lastest post..Adventures In Babysitting: The "Millers"
Sorry but my one and only ketchup requirement is with my eggs. Always. Must have it. No negotiation.
I know some people think that’s gross but everyone’s entitled to their opinion.
Stepford Mommy´s lastest post..It’s a sunny day!
Ketchup should never be on top of any food, EVER. Also, unless you want to see me hurl, never ever lick the peanut butter knife.
Jenny´s lastest post..Updated
My rules are more about what brand of ketchup and where the ketchup is stored. It MUST be Heinz. Do not even attempt to make me eat that generic crap. And you MUST refrigerate your ketchup. People who leave it sitting out are just wrong.
Also, it’s spelled “ketchup” and if I catch you spelling it “catsup” I will stab you.
Karly´s lastest post..Her Moods Swing Like This Too.
My feelings about ketchup are that I could not live without it, that it belongs on the side, and that it is delicious paired with grilled cheese sandwiches, scrambled eggs, sausage, and of course the usual suspects like fries and burgers. I am a ketchup on hotdog/brat person even though that is a no-no here in Chicago.
mep´s lastest post..Grains on the Brain
I am all about quirky food rules – my husband needs a play book. But I won’t hog your comment space with them.
I agree, ketchup on the side (and if the fries are good I skip it all together).
Ketchup can be applied to a hotdog but only if there is only yellow mustard. If there is good stadium mustard, keep the ketchup away. And corn dogs only if there is absolutely no mustard to be found. Ketchup on a hamburger if there is mustard and mayo and pickles – if not then nothing. Ketchup can be applied directly (but sparingly) to dry scrambled eggs.
I will eat ketchup with my fries but only if its mixed with a touch of mayo. It needs to be in its own container and not directly on the plate with my fries, because…ewww!
Domestic Extraordinaire´s lastest post..I have no words
Actually, I like ketchup on hamburger – with pickles and tomato. (I KNOW the ketchup is made from tomato). As for french fries, I no longer put ketchup on my french fries. I have found that I like to dip my french fries in ranch dressing. And hotdogs are supposed to be eaten with mustard, onion, and dill pickle relish.
lceel´s lastest post..(Almost) Wordless Wednesday
Ketchup is my mortal enemy. Sure it tastes good, and buying Heinz supports the local economy, but my husband goes through enough ketchup in one year to keep the entire Human Resources department at Heinz gainfully employed. He puts it on burgers. On fries. On chicken. On eggs. On pasta. On rice. ON EVERYTHING.
The best part? He’s been doing it since he was a kid. It all started because his mom is the master of bland cooking, so he used ketchup to fix it. Now he uses ketchup to “fix” what I cook.
I kind of want to smack him in the face with a ketchup bottle. Or ten.
Burgh Baby´s lastest post..Spring Flowers on the Brain
ketchup and grilled cheese. yum.
and i’m completely with you on the ketchup touching fries thing. actually it’s a dietary move for me. i will NOT eat the ones that have touched ketchup.
You know, this is important stuff. I agree that ketchup should NOT be poured on top of foods. Ick.
I’m a big fan of the ketchup and mayo mix on hamburgers. It goes all the way back to my childhood and trips to Hardee’s with my granddad. Mmmm…good stuff.
Mary @ Giving Up On Perfect´s lastest post..I guess I would’ve had to sing “Copacabana.”
I am sure I have food eccentricities, but I can’t think of them right now.
But one time I was on a weekend trip with my cousin, who is from Pennsylvania, and she FREAKED OUT when a waitress at a restaurant provided us with Hunt’s ketchup instead of Heinz. You would have thought the world was going to explode the way she carried on. So…sometimes it’s all about the brand, I guess.
NGS´s lastest post..A Tale of Woe! And Spring Break!
I love ketchup on grilled cheese sandwiches (although grape jelly is better) and on mac and cheese. Things I don’t like ketchup on include hamburgers, french fries and pretty much everything else.
Hunt’s Catsup is an abomination unto the Lord.
Amen
Mrs Marcos´s lastest post..Zorbeez…is the new SHAMWOW!
wow. i really wish you hadn’t said the ketchup in soup thing. *barf*
i don’t really have any rules… but i do prefer ketchup on my hot dogs and corn dogs.
Mmmmmm….. corn dogs….
MommyNamedApril´s lastest post..Happy (ever-so slightly early) Birthday, Mom!
Ketchup must be on the side, for sure and is only used for fries and hash browns. Mustard is the hotdog and hamburger condiment only.
Same for salad dressing. Salad dressing must come on the side in a container, then I dip my fork in the dressing and then into the salad. The only time its acceptable to mixed in before it gets to my plate is the salad at Olive Garden or Ceaser Salad.
Mrs Soup´s lastest post..Wordless Wednesday – Geeky Baby
I’m a ketchup on the side kinda girl myself.
My SON though has an unhealthy love affair with the stuff.
He dips his green beans and corn in it, drags forkfuls of mashed potatoes through it and you wouldn’t want to watch him eat runny eggs, over easy, with ketchup.
He will even take a tortilla, sprinkle it with cheese, douse it in ketchup and roll it up and eat it.
He needs a 12 step program.
Have the T-shirt´s lastest post..Time for a Quarter Life Crisis
I am definitely particular about where the ketchup goes on the fries. If the ketchup is on top of the fries, it gets on my fingers. The ketchup does not belong on my fingers.
I like ketchup in my beans (like the mixed beans Mom used to make for dinner with cornbread).
I do not eat Hunts ketchup.
I also do not eat “catsup.” I’m a ketchup only kinda girl.
I agree, it is not mean to be pour on the side. Are you trying to say that you put it on fish sticks though?
Corn Dogs and Hot Dogs are strictly mustard foods. period. end of story.
Ketchup is okay with fries, but don’t you dare put it ON TOP of fries. Ranch is better. or chipotle ranch, even better.
heh.
rachel-asouthernfairytale´s lastest post..Madeline Alice Sphor, Heaven’s Newest Angel
It must be on the side. I do eat it on hot dogs/corn dogs, and while pregnant I put it on my macaroni and cheese…..weird, but good. Oh and it must be Heinz ketchup nothing else.
Heather´s lastest post..Enchilada Cassarole
I’m lucky if I get 4 comments, so I guess people like the “anything goes” posts because it really is like a chat in your family room.
Ketchup must go on the side of fries, not on.
My only other food requirement is NO SCALLIONS on ANYTHING!!
Binks´s lastest post..Games Women Play
I dispise katchup. It’s gross. Franks Red Hot, various dressings, A1 Sauce? They’re acceptable. Katchup is NOT!
NO MIRACLE WHIP. EVER!
rule number one
ML´s lastest post..At Least 82 Reasons It’s More Than Miraculous I Haven’t Caved on the Lenten Sacrifice of Chocolate
Must be Heinz. Definitely on the side for fries and grilled cheese sandwich. Ok to put over scrambled eggs.
Also taco sauce on scrambled eggs is good too. Yum!
Thats hilarious! I hate stuff poured all over my food. I’m definately a dipper.
I have an unspoken rule when it comes to dinner at my house. My husband takes a few bites of his food before making a beeline for the hot sauce.He waits until I look up at him with my “Fine go get it face.” When we were first married I was an awful cook, I would like to say that its gotten better but I guess as long as the hot sauce comes out, I’m guessing that there’s room for improvement.
Katherine´s lastest post..Manicure emergency…solved
oh. YES. Ketchup always always on the side. YES.
Jen´s lastest post..one step forward, two steps back
not gonna lie, you lost me at bugles!! i haven’t had bugles in forever! and now i must have some!!
amanda´s lastest post..the lampshade and the bird
My boys like it on eggs. I like it on hamburgers, quesadillas, burritos, and breakfast burritos but NEVER on just eggs.