A Vegemite Mystery

Our Australian food has arrived.

Jack ate some cheese and bacon Shapes.  It smelled SO good; like the Pepperoni sticks my mom used to pack in my lunch bag. It's one of the rare carnivore foods I miss every so often; that and Jack-in-the-Box Tacos.

We ate some Tim Tams and some Raspberry bullets.

We drank some Milo.

We had Vegemite on toast. I was a bit weary. I put a lot of butter on and mixed it with a small amount of Vegemite.  I THINK it was the same amount I used last year.

There was a difference this time though. Last year, the little bit went a LONG way.  It was very strong. This time I could hardly taste anything--just a subtle taste of salt. It tasted fine.I had another piece of toast. (Have I mentioned that the numbers on my scale keep going higher and higher?)

Yesterday morning, I had toast for breakfast.I took out the Vegemite in front of Tim. He said something like, None for me.  Keep that stuff away from me!

But then I guess he felt a bit guilty, being the husband of a woman who has an Australian blog and all that.

He decided to try some.  He put a little bit on his toast--except it wasn't as much of a little bit as my little bit.

I said.  I think that's too much.

He ignored me, probably trying to be all macho.

I waited for him to make an awful face and make some kind of negative comment.  I waited and waited.   

He said he liked it.

He scraped more out of the jar and put more on his toast.  He ate that too.

He's now a Vegemite fan.

So, I'm wondering what's going on?

The last time we ate the Vegemite, we had never stepped foot in Australia before. Now we are no longer virgins to Australia soil. Does that make our taste buds more tolerant of Vegemite? Is there something in the Australian air that contributes to the human body's acclimation to leftover brewers' yeast extract?

OR

Did we somehow get a bad batch of Vegemite last time?

OR

Maybe Kraft is making a NEW type of Vegemite--specifically for Americans.  It looks just like the Australian version, but with a much more mild flavor.  American eat it and think  I like this!  I can be Australian now.  Then they throw their boomerangs and ride around the room on their giant kangaroo stuffed animals.

I think that is totally it. We are eating Americanized Vegemite.

  

16 comments:

  1. Heheh. The stuff grows on you but most uninitiated adults won't try again after the first shock. That's why we start our kids on it young ;-)

    In my house there are 5 people (including myself) who will happily eat vegemite on toast with no butter or margarine.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I think if I wasn't obsessed with Australia I would have given up after the first try.

    But I feel this obligation not to give up. I'm actually starting to like it though.

    I'm not sure I'll ever be able to graduate to no butter and margarine.

    And I'm scared to try the Tim Tam Slam because the last time I did...I almost choked.

    Death by Australian food.

    That WOULD be ironic if I died that way.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Ohhhhhhhh the Tim Tam Slam is YUMMY!
    Yep, Vegemite slowly grows on you, sneaking up and gently wrapping it's tendrils around you till you can't go a day without smearing the black stuff on your toast.
    Wait till you have a sanga with cheese and Vegemite....then you're classed as an addict ;)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Jayne,

    What is Sanga?????

    I did think the Tim Tam Slam was yummy--even while I was choking. I finally catched my breath and was able to say something like "That's good!"

    ReplyDelete
  5. Yes, definitely an aquired taste our vegemite. Not that I would know given I've grown up with it. I find it depends on my mood as to how much I have. I like it best on top of the butter rather than mixed in.

    As for Sangers - that's slang for a sandwhich. Couple of bits of bread, cheese and vegemite. Another Aussie favourite.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Lightening,

    Thanks for clearing up the sangers thing!!

    I don't really like sandwiches much--so I probably wouldn't like it.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Dad won't eat vegemite - but he's dutch. Only arrived in Australia when he was four so I figure he wasn't weened onto it young enough lol

    I don't like vegemite with cheese - but I am quite partial to peanut butter and honey sandwiches.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Bettina,

    Maybe there should be a club for Australians who don't like Vegemite. I think I've had one or two comment on here.

    I had Vegemite on Cheese and I think that's what turned me off of it the last time. I was somewhat okay eating it. Then I tried it with cheese and it made me nauseated.

    I'm not a big fan of peanut butter. I can tolerate it if it's the natural kind. I don't like the really sticky thick stuff.

    I do love peanut butter in candy though--or in ice-cream.

    And honey's good : )

    ReplyDelete
  9. You may have discovered a secret of the Kraft, Dina...I've noticed that American tastes in lots of things seem bland when I've tried imported American foods such as mustard and chilli. I think they're sacrificing the real recipes to obtain an LCD form that won't offend. Of course if you like the powerful stuff, it will displease you.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Retaruius,

    That's the stereotype we have of the British--liking bland food.

    We're both offspring of the UK. So which one of us inherited the bland food thing ; )

    I know Americans drink weaker beer.

    I'm not sure about food.

    Spicy food seems popular here. I love it. But what's spicy to me might be bland to Australians.

    Who knows?

    ReplyDelete
  11. You crack me up. :-)

    At least you will be right for breakfast in our house when you're here ;-)

    I'll have the Tim Tams waiting for you too..and some Anzac Biscuits..actually that is what we should do with the kids one afternoon - make some anzac biscuits :-)

    ReplyDelete
  12. Tracey,

    I'm afraid I may have overestimated my Vegemite eating abilities. I put a little more on my toast today and I didn't tolerate it as well. Maybe by the time I get to your house, I'll be better!!

    I'm so excited about Anzac bisquits. That's something I haven't tried yet. I thought about buying some from the website, but all they had were the ones in the fancy tin and they were kind of expensive. Or maybe I should say....I'm kind of cheap.

    ReplyDelete
  13. This blog (including comments) is hilarious! For the record, I can't stomach vegemite but my two boys, aged 2 and 3 love the stuff! lol @ Americanised vegemite...I don't doubt for a second that someone would cook that up!

    ReplyDelete
  14. If you weren't a vegetarian, I'd say that vegemite makes a good steak marinade. Unfortunately, that's the only way I like it. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Cathy: Thank you!! I have one other person on my blog that doesn't like Vegemite either--I mean an Australian.

    Yeah, I can totally imagine Americanized Vegemite. I wonder what they'd call it though?

    Tors: My husband and son aren't Vegetarian. Maybe they can try it. Do you have a recipe we could see???????
    I sometimes eat this vegetarian steak stuff. I wonder if it would work with that?

    ReplyDelete
  16. I agree with jayne on the vegemite and cheese sangas (Yummy) i was addicted as a child. sorry it made you feel sick Dina. Also I was introduced to honey and peanut butter sangas in the states and I had to ban honey in the house because i would live on them.

    Lov Suz

    ReplyDelete