Etiquette For Hard To Eat Foods
We all had a moment when we wondered what is the proper way to eat a certain food. What is the proper Food etiquette for this food? Some foods have special etiquette and the only way to know how to eat them is to learn the right food etiquette.
Follow these simple food etiquette rules for eating complicated foods:
- Caviar. Use a small fork or spoon (plastic, wood, mother of pearl but not made of metal so not to oxidize when in contact with the eggs) to spread the caviar on small round toasts and add accompanying condiments, then pick up with your fingers and eat in one or two bites. [image source_type=”attachment_id” source_value=”894″ align=”right” size=”small”]
- Clams or oyster. Use your cocktail oyster fork to take out the clam or oyster. It is acceptable to hold the shell in you left hand and use your oyster fork to take out the oyster or clam. [image source_type=”attachment_id” source_value=”556″ align=”right” size=”small”]
- Cheese. As appetizers use your fingers. In a salad or in your meal use fork and knife to cut and eat.
- Shrimp. Use a fork when they are served clean with no skin or use fingers if tails are still attached.
- Shrimp cocktail. Use cocktail fork or regular fork. [image source_type=”attachment_id” source_value=”511″ align=”right” size=”small”]
- Asparagus. The food etiquette for this vegetable is divided and little controversial, some say by hand is ok and some say no use utensils. So we suggest use fork and knife to cut in small bite sized pieces and then eat with fork when everyone at dinner is using this method. It is also acceptable to eat asparagus by hand, you lift one with you hand and eat delicately, only use your hand when everyone else is using this method or follow what the host of the dinner party is doing.
- Artichokes. All food etiquette agree that you can use your fingers, remove one leaf at a time, if it is served with sauce on the side dip the tip of the artichoke in the sauce and then eat the small part at the end of the leaf, pulling the meaty part gently with your teeth. When you get to the center, you will notice the leafs are small, soft and a pale purple color you can take them off with your fingers and clean the center with your knife. Once the hart of the artichoke is clean you use your fork and knife to cut small pieces and eat with fork. (it sounds more complicated than it is). The used leafs are to be placed at the corner of your plate, not on the table or your bread plate.
- Avocados. In a salad use a fork and knife, if served in it’s shell as an appetizer use a spoon.
- Lemon quarters or halves. You can use you hand/fingers to lift the lemon and squeeze the juice with your fingers, make sure to use your other hand to cover the lemon when your are squeezing to avoid sprinkling the guest sitting next to you or across from you.
- Berries. Use a spoon when they are served without stems. When served with their stems use your hand to lift the berries from the stem and eat in one or two bites.
- Cake. Use fingers for small bite sized pastries. Use a fork and spoon for a normal sized dessert pastry or a whole piece of cake. Spoon in your right hand like other spoons used at dinner and fork in your left hand like other forks used for dinner. Use spoon to eat and fork to help get food into spoon.
- Oranges . When served peeled and in pieces eat using a fork, if served with skin you can peel with a knife or your fingers and eat one small piece at a time with your fingers or fork.
- Peaches. Use knife and fork to cut into small pieces, then eat with fork. You can peel it first with your knife and eat with fork after you cut it in small pieces.
- Pineapple. Use fork when the pieces are big or a spoon when served cut in cubes or small pieces.
- Watermelon. Use your fork and knife to cut small pieces and then eat, put seeds at the corner of your plate.
- Pickles and radishes. Use fingers, take small bites. Do not eat directly from serving dish, take the vegetable with your fingers and place them on your plate and then eat.
- Poultry /chicken and other fowl. Use a fork and knife. Finger food appetizers i.e. chicken wings can be eaten with your fingers.
- Corn on the cob. Never served at a formal dinner. Use your hands only in a picnic or BBQ. Eat it delicately small bites at a time.
- Lobsters/Seafood. Use a nutcracker when served whole with shell to crack the shell and pull the meat with your cocktail fork. To eat the meat use your cocktail fork. If you are served lobster tails or cleaned lobster use your fork and knife.
- Olives. Use your fingers to put a few in your plate, if they are big and un-pitted you have to be careful and take small bites, delicately removing the pit and placing it at the corner of your plate. If they are pitted you can eat them whole in a delicate manner, not too fast.
- Roasted Almonds. Use fingers to place a few on your plate and then eat with your fingers.
- Pasta. Eaten with a fork not spoon and fork. For spaghetti you should take a little at a time twirling around the fork, take small mouthful. For farfel, macaroni, shells, ravioli, penne or any other shapes use a fork. There is no need to cut your pasta.
- Baked potato. Use fork to eat the soft inside and then cut skin (if you eat skin) and eat it with a fork.
- Fries. Except for fast food restaurant where you can use fingers, use a fork, you can cut the fries when they are long.
- Sandwich Cut in four pieces and eaten by hand, do not pick the whole sandwich before it is cut, Hot sandwich with fork and knife
- Hamburger and Hot Dog (with condiments, ketchup and mustard) with fork and knife in a restaurant and by hand at a BBQ or Picnic unless it would be too messy
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