Everyone has peculiar food habits that may seem strange to others. Factors such as bad experiences, allergies, or just a strong dislike can influence how we enjoy certain foods - or give us reasons to avoid them altogether.

7 Nigerians share their seemingly strange food peeves.

Jacqueline, 21 

“Indomie noodles and eggs are a childhood nightmare”

“I’m allergic to eggs,  so of course, I hate them.  Indomie noodles traumatized me as a kid. Back then, my mother would pack my lunch in the morning and by lunchtime, I’d be left with noodles that had taken the shape of my cylindrical food flask. I hated that so much. The smell is terrible and it reminds me of primary school lunchtime, yuck.”

Taiwo, 32

“Put the onions away”

“Onions add great flavour to any dish, but seeing the slices in cooked food is absolutely irritating. What’s worse, biting into a burger or an egg and feeling some in your mouth. People like to say “caramelised” as if that makes it less bothersome. But, if you must cook with them, puree them, or make sure they’re burnt to a crisp à la agoyin stew.”

Ibukun, 28

“Mixing and matching soups is chaotic”

“Every swallow has a soup it was sent down from heaven with. Amala is married to gbegiri and ewedu. Pounded yam has a beautiful partnership with egusi. Eba is a bit polyamorous and gets with okra and ogbono. But this thing people do where they try to mix and match - amala and egusi, semo and ewedu. It should be banned.”

Fejiro, 22

“Abolish egg surprises in moi moi”

“This is extra annoying because it’s always hidden inside the moi moi. You’d be jejely enjoying your moi moi and the next thing you know, a random piece of an egg would rear its ugly head at you. This always makes me feel nauseous and I just want to fight everybody involved.”

Uche, 22

“Avocados are overrated”

“I guess the first time I had an avocado, I expected an explosion of taste. Instead, it was... nothing. It tastes like disappointment. People swear by it when some salt is added, but why can't it just be awesome on its own?”

Aboyowa, 24

“Only one animal/protein should be in stews at a time”

“Why in the world would you put fish inside stew prepared with meat or chicken. They just don’t mix. The fish flavour clashes with the meat and it just tastes like chaos.”

Bolu, 24

“Crispy chips are the only ones that matter” 

“Soft chips don’t have that crunchy you need to feel alive.  Soft chips kill the vibe.”