As a food writer, there really isn’t anything I won’t eat. However, over the years, there are a few ingredients I’ve determined I don’t prefer—OK, literally just one thing: tilapia. To some people, it’s an inoffensive white fish. To me, unfortunately, I thought it tasted like muddy cardboard.
When I first started writing about food in the mid-2010s and began reading menus with a more critical eye, this thin white fish seemed to be everywhere. Fish tacos? Tilapia. Pan-seared? Tilapia. I recall ordering it a few times—first without preconceived notions, then to give it another try. But ultimately, I swore it off and hadn’t ordered nor eaten tilapia since 2015.