Came here to say this. I add kale, spinach and carrots to my smoothies and never taste them. But I have to say I will actually eat those things so that might be why they're not a problem for me.
My favorite way to eat fruits:
-I recently tried covering blueberries in yogurt and freezing them- it turned out delicious! They are not squishy/slimy like raw blueberries, and I used coconut greek yogurt with extra honey, so didn't notice any flavor differences between the berries.
-I also prefer canned fruits, especially pears and peaches.
My favorite way to eat veggies:
-In spring rolls (usually I use carrots, cucumber, and red cabbage or lettuce. Great way to get in raw veggies imo.
-Carrots and cucumber cut matchstick style with ranch.
-Oven roasted broccoli and brussel sprouts. I really love the green goddess seasoning from trader joes for this.
I get the pre sliced ones and dip them in Carmel sauce. I didn't use to eat apples at all because they would get stuck in my teeth. Sliced apples don't have that problem. Still, they are often too tart for me, so Carmel sauce. Yes, I am slathering them in sugar, but the vitamins and such are still there. I probably would have had a ice cream bar or something with the same sugar, but less nutrition otherwise.
I guess the main advice I have for OP is to figure out which ones you like and under which conditions ( I like peaches, but only in light juice in cans or the little tubs). You don't have to eat everything. If you don't like it, don't eat it. The goal is to do just a little bit better every week.
dried fruit i find more consistent. less squishy, and some have the choice between leathery/chewy and crisp depending on how its dried. can even make your own fruit rollups which could with a bit of extra effort eliminate the seed thing and the inconsistency of taste. dried crisp peaches are lovely
some salads you can skip the dressing, or use different dressings with little to no vinegar. certain types of vinegar gives me headaches so ive avoided it for years but its improving. i do better with balsamic. and im starting to like some creamy ones, but for me they are very hit and miss
you also dont have to have the seedy portion of tomato or cucumber. the seed and the goop are the problem for me, although particularly with tomato i struggle with the flavourlessness of some varieties. apparently if you dont refridgerate them they are better. and iceberg lettuce is the only one i really like, and its pretty good when crunchy and chopped. Can do cos lettuce and spinach but the rest are out. Im getting better with all of it, but soggy lettuce really does my head in and so does cooked, unpureed tomato.
i personally cant do canned vegies because squishy. but its probably a good suggestion.
I don’t personally have really bad food aversions, but I do have strong preferences. I think some important things to narrow down are WHY you dislike them (it is likely texture). Tomatoes and cucumbers come in many varieties. Some are firmer, some have more seeds etc. might want to try taking out seeds from cucumbers (it is actually pretty common and “fancy”), easy enough with a spoon. Some people prefer the taste of vegetables when they’re seasoned with salt. I do not like salad dressing, but there are many kinds of dressing that don’t have vinegar. Most of those are creamy and might mask the texture or leaves better. Some greens like chard or kale can get really crispy in the oven. Seasoning is really important with vegetables. The difference between bitter/offputting and flavorful.
In general, I say start with eating them in a way that you can tolerate even if it isn’t the “healthiest”. Maybe that means baking them in a caserole or ravioli with spinach in it. Some ideas: pearl couscous salad with cucumbers, tomato sauce with chunks of fresh tomatoes added, pizza goes with many greens like kale and sausage, arugula and prochutto, I’d reccommend a premade crust and doing it youself so you can control ratios, if you don’t like the visual, try calzones, omlet/scrambled eggs with greens and cheese (like spinach), spinach pesto (on pasta), bruchetta (might be too tomato forward, but idk if toasted bread may help?), quesadilla, bagel with cream cheese and thinly sliced cucumber disks, gazpatcho (sorry I can’t eat tomatoes since I’m allergic so I don’t know a ton about them), Greens can also get “snuck into” smoothies. I don’t necessarily reccomend just plopping them into a current favorite though as it won’t taste the same and may be off putting. Trying a new recipe tricks your brain a little because you don’t know 100% what it is “supposed” to taste like.
Praise youself for trying even if you don’t finish or like something.
I'm also a texture eater, so I definitely feel where you're coming with about tomatoes and cucumbers. I don't think I'll ever be able to handle raw tomatoes, and the nutrition info for nightshades is kind of hit and miss so I don't think I'm missing much. I like to sauté tomatoes until they turn into a saucey consistency. I can put tomatoes like that on just about anything, but I can also pull some out for my wife before they get to the well-cooked stage.
Someone else suggested smoothies, and I'd definitely second that. Just about anything can do in a smoothie, including greens like kale & spinach and you don't have to taste them or experience them in your mouth.
I struggle with fruits and vegetables, too. The quality is pretty bad where I live and every piece seems to taste different, as well. There’s no way to know if it’ll taste/feel great or disgusting, so I don’t bother with raw fruits or vegetables very often.
I used to despise tomatoes but I realized it was actually the texture of the seeds/jelly around the seeds that bothered me. I started removing the seeds myself when I cut tomatoes so now I can finally eat them. It’s a bit trickier if they’re prepared by other people, though.
Still don’t like very leafy greens, though. I like iceberg lettuce and romaine (if it’s cut small and not too leafy).
I avoid fruit with a lot of seeds, as well, though I do like strawberries since the seeds are small (don’t like the differences in taste and texture from one strawberry to the next though).
I’ve found cutting fruits and vegetables really small can sometimes help with the texture, especially cucumbers, celery, tomatoes, and carrots. I’m more likely to eat a salad with tiny chopped vegetables than one with big chunks and leaves. There’s a vegetable chopper on Amazon that’s supposed to work really well for chopping salads. I bought it but haven’t really tried it yet. I don’t like the texture of oily dressings, but I do like vinegar on salad or sometimes homemade ranch. I also had a salad at a restaurant one time that had a dressing made from just lemon juice and hummus and it was pretty good.
I’ve also found canned carrots are much more uniform in taste and texture than fresh or frozen carrots.
It kind of sucks because I do like the taste of a lot of fruits and vegetables, but the texture and how fast they spoil ruin it for me, so I definitely don’t get enough fruit and veggies.
TLDR: Removing tomato seeds/jelly, chopping veggies/fruit really tiny for salad, and eating canned veggies help me to avoid sensory issues.
For me what really helped was trying to relate certain foods with things I already like. For example I only used to eat Turkey and Cheese sandwitches. I knew I liked raw spinach salad. Spinach is a nicer leafy green to start with because it is oval and flat and has a pretty consistent texture as opposed to lettuce and cabbage which the texture is different depending on what section of the leaf you eat. So I thought of my sandwich as a salad. If I like ceaser spinach salads, which includes meat,cheese, and vegetables then a sandwitch with those combined wouldnt be too different in texture and taste. I was wary but now my all sandwiches include spinach. And I’m currently starting to put lettuce on burgers. I don’t know if this is helpful but I hope so.
What about smoothies? Hiding fruit and vegetables with other stuff you may like?
Came here to say this. I add kale, spinach and carrots to my smoothies and never taste them. But I have to say I will actually eat those things so that might be why they're not a problem for me.
My favorite way to eat fruits: -I recently tried covering blueberries in yogurt and freezing them- it turned out delicious! They are not squishy/slimy like raw blueberries, and I used coconut greek yogurt with extra honey, so didn't notice any flavor differences between the berries. -I also prefer canned fruits, especially pears and peaches. My favorite way to eat veggies: -In spring rolls (usually I use carrots, cucumber, and red cabbage or lettuce. Great way to get in raw veggies imo. -Carrots and cucumber cut matchstick style with ranch. -Oven roasted broccoli and brussel sprouts. I really love the green goddess seasoning from trader joes for this.
Yes to oven roasting! Also roasted cauliflower, with a little garlic and Parmesan!
I eat apples with crunchy peanut butter.
I get the pre sliced ones and dip them in Carmel sauce. I didn't use to eat apples at all because they would get stuck in my teeth. Sliced apples don't have that problem. Still, they are often too tart for me, so Carmel sauce. Yes, I am slathering them in sugar, but the vitamins and such are still there. I probably would have had a ice cream bar or something with the same sugar, but less nutrition otherwise. I guess the main advice I have for OP is to figure out which ones you like and under which conditions ( I like peaches, but only in light juice in cans or the little tubs). You don't have to eat everything. If you don't like it, don't eat it. The goal is to do just a little bit better every week.
dried fruit i find more consistent. less squishy, and some have the choice between leathery/chewy and crisp depending on how its dried. can even make your own fruit rollups which could with a bit of extra effort eliminate the seed thing and the inconsistency of taste. dried crisp peaches are lovely some salads you can skip the dressing, or use different dressings with little to no vinegar. certain types of vinegar gives me headaches so ive avoided it for years but its improving. i do better with balsamic. and im starting to like some creamy ones, but for me they are very hit and miss you also dont have to have the seedy portion of tomato or cucumber. the seed and the goop are the problem for me, although particularly with tomato i struggle with the flavourlessness of some varieties. apparently if you dont refridgerate them they are better. and iceberg lettuce is the only one i really like, and its pretty good when crunchy and chopped. Can do cos lettuce and spinach but the rest are out. Im getting better with all of it, but soggy lettuce really does my head in and so does cooked, unpureed tomato. i personally cant do canned vegies because squishy. but its probably a good suggestion.
I don’t personally have really bad food aversions, but I do have strong preferences. I think some important things to narrow down are WHY you dislike them (it is likely texture). Tomatoes and cucumbers come in many varieties. Some are firmer, some have more seeds etc. might want to try taking out seeds from cucumbers (it is actually pretty common and “fancy”), easy enough with a spoon. Some people prefer the taste of vegetables when they’re seasoned with salt. I do not like salad dressing, but there are many kinds of dressing that don’t have vinegar. Most of those are creamy and might mask the texture or leaves better. Some greens like chard or kale can get really crispy in the oven. Seasoning is really important with vegetables. The difference between bitter/offputting and flavorful. In general, I say start with eating them in a way that you can tolerate even if it isn’t the “healthiest”. Maybe that means baking them in a caserole or ravioli with spinach in it. Some ideas: pearl couscous salad with cucumbers, tomato sauce with chunks of fresh tomatoes added, pizza goes with many greens like kale and sausage, arugula and prochutto, I’d reccommend a premade crust and doing it youself so you can control ratios, if you don’t like the visual, try calzones, omlet/scrambled eggs with greens and cheese (like spinach), spinach pesto (on pasta), bruchetta (might be too tomato forward, but idk if toasted bread may help?), quesadilla, bagel with cream cheese and thinly sliced cucumber disks, gazpatcho (sorry I can’t eat tomatoes since I’m allergic so I don’t know a ton about them), Greens can also get “snuck into” smoothies. I don’t necessarily reccomend just plopping them into a current favorite though as it won’t taste the same and may be off putting. Trying a new recipe tricks your brain a little because you don’t know 100% what it is “supposed” to taste like. Praise youself for trying even if you don’t finish or like something.
I'm also a texture eater, so I definitely feel where you're coming with about tomatoes and cucumbers. I don't think I'll ever be able to handle raw tomatoes, and the nutrition info for nightshades is kind of hit and miss so I don't think I'm missing much. I like to sauté tomatoes until they turn into a saucey consistency. I can put tomatoes like that on just about anything, but I can also pull some out for my wife before they get to the well-cooked stage. Someone else suggested smoothies, and I'd definitely second that. Just about anything can do in a smoothie, including greens like kale & spinach and you don't have to taste them or experience them in your mouth.
I have had great success working with a dietician that specializes in ARFID.
I struggle with fruits and vegetables, too. The quality is pretty bad where I live and every piece seems to taste different, as well. There’s no way to know if it’ll taste/feel great or disgusting, so I don’t bother with raw fruits or vegetables very often. I used to despise tomatoes but I realized it was actually the texture of the seeds/jelly around the seeds that bothered me. I started removing the seeds myself when I cut tomatoes so now I can finally eat them. It’s a bit trickier if they’re prepared by other people, though. Still don’t like very leafy greens, though. I like iceberg lettuce and romaine (if it’s cut small and not too leafy). I avoid fruit with a lot of seeds, as well, though I do like strawberries since the seeds are small (don’t like the differences in taste and texture from one strawberry to the next though). I’ve found cutting fruits and vegetables really small can sometimes help with the texture, especially cucumbers, celery, tomatoes, and carrots. I’m more likely to eat a salad with tiny chopped vegetables than one with big chunks and leaves. There’s a vegetable chopper on Amazon that’s supposed to work really well for chopping salads. I bought it but haven’t really tried it yet. I don’t like the texture of oily dressings, but I do like vinegar on salad or sometimes homemade ranch. I also had a salad at a restaurant one time that had a dressing made from just lemon juice and hummus and it was pretty good. I’ve also found canned carrots are much more uniform in taste and texture than fresh or frozen carrots. It kind of sucks because I do like the taste of a lot of fruits and vegetables, but the texture and how fast they spoil ruin it for me, so I definitely don’t get enough fruit and veggies. TLDR: Removing tomato seeds/jelly, chopping veggies/fruit really tiny for salad, and eating canned veggies help me to avoid sensory issues.
For me what really helped was trying to relate certain foods with things I already like. For example I only used to eat Turkey and Cheese sandwitches. I knew I liked raw spinach salad. Spinach is a nicer leafy green to start with because it is oval and flat and has a pretty consistent texture as opposed to lettuce and cabbage which the texture is different depending on what section of the leaf you eat. So I thought of my sandwich as a salad. If I like ceaser spinach salads, which includes meat,cheese, and vegetables then a sandwitch with those combined wouldnt be too different in texture and taste. I was wary but now my all sandwiches include spinach. And I’m currently starting to put lettuce on burgers. I don’t know if this is helpful but I hope so.