Sure, there are plenty of foods that we're allowed, even expected, to eat with our fingers. Raw veggies, hamburgers, and cookies come to mind. But we're much more interested in the foods you eat with your fingers when no one's watching. Say, at the end of a long work week when maybe the even idea of a fork is too much?
Five Unexpected Foods to Try Eating With Your Fingers
We certainly always use a knife and fork when company is present. Our mamas would give us That Look if we did anything differently.
But when we're all alone and about to curl up with a good book or a movie, there are a few foods we've gotten in the habit of eating with our fingers. We find it comforting, a little scandalous, and most of all, a fun break from our usual routine.
1. Salad - Lightly dressed salads full of crunchy leaves and raw veggies make a surprisingly good and easy-to-eat finger food!
2. Pasta Dishes - We have a special fondness for plain pasta with a splash of good olive oil and a healthy sprinkling of kosher salt, but any pasta is fun to try eating by hand.
3. Sautéed or Roasted Veggies - Let them cool a bit first, but cooked veggies are just as nice to eat with our fingers as raw veggies. With some sticky rice alongside, this can be a full meal!
4. Soup - Ok, technically we don't eat soup with our fingers! But we love to fill a cappuccino mug with warm soup and then sip it slowly.
5. Cake - We love to slice ourselves a big piece of cake and break off little bites with our fingers!
Are there any unusual foods that you secretly like to eat with your fingers?
Related: Survey: How Do You Eat Mussels?
(Image: Flickr member quinn.anya licensed under Creative Commons)
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Cereal.
Cold leftovers straight from the fridge, propping the door open with one hip.
Individual grains of rice.
ABreadADay.com
view eprewitt's profile
Rice pudding and macaroni and cheese, but I've eaten practically everything with my fingers at one point or another.
view mangabanga's profile
baked beans! No clue why but with barbecue, youre hands get dirty from the food and corn, etc..just dig into the beans with your hands.
Not a fan of cake with hands. Always feels lazy to me. If I'm eating cake I want to enjoy it so Ill savor the fork picking up the crumbs type thing.
For pasta, fettucine is awesomely fun with hands!
view jmorri26's profile
indian food! I know you're supposed to do that, but it still is fun.
view mlleErica's profile
Roasted asparagus spears. Have tried to use a fork, but can't.
view purdygirl's profile
This is the total opposite, but I love to eat popcorn with chopsticks. The same with Kraft Dinner. But not homemade mac n cheese.
view ctmagnus's profile
sipping soup out of a cup kind of weirds me out. i would rather use a spoon.
view fardaesm's profile
I've always seen eating cake with a fork as to be something that is only for a special occasion or a really moist cake. At any other time it tends to come of as pretentious.
view Ignis's profile
You covered my big ones--salad and roasted veggies and some pastas (especially cold noodles, like thai peanut noodles). I hate eating salad with a fork!
view katef's profile
When I'm on my own I eat just about everything not liquid or in a lot of sauce with my fingers. Most commonly would be scrambled eggs, rice, and most veggies cooked or raw.
The fork only became a common utensil quite recently, for most of human history knives and spoons were sufficient.
view Noadi's profile
When still dating, I told my wife she could eat soup with her thumb and forefinger!
I'm so happy sushi isn't on here! Seriously, put those poles down, and grab it. It falls apart cause you're doin it wrong!
view johndoughy's profile
Couscous when the pot has cooled and it comes off in chunks.
view All of a Doodah's profile
I also find forks to be a sub-par tool for salads!
Esp. when it's considered a no-no to cut your salad at the table. Well, then could there please be a memo to tear the salad greens up into smaller pieces to the prep chefs of the world (and my husband)! But not too small, because that just falls right through the fork before you can even get it to your mouth.
I had an epiphany at a Japanese restaurant years ago when I noticed how much easier and more dextrous chopsticks were for eating salads. So while, fingers are easier and forks are more "civilized," I gather chopsticks could be the best of both worlds.
view Slow Lorus's profile
Green beans. I almost never eat them with a fork. Same with asparagus.
view emilymch's profile
I agree with the green beans and asparagus above! They always seem to awkward to spear with a fork.
I used to pull individual kernels off cooled leftover cobs of corn when I was a kid. I've now lost the patience for that!
view minji's profile
Had to come back and add coleslaw after I caught myself eating it with my fingers this weekend and realized I always eat it one or two little pieces at a time, always with my fingers!
view katef's profile
Green beans straight from the can.
view ohjodi's profile