We’ve heard of people who hate cilantro, but they’re pretty far and few between here in salsa country. However, it seems the anti-cilantro crowd is much larger than we’d ever imagined—even Julia Child threw it on the ground whenever she encountered it—and they have science on their side. Turns out cilantro, which is from the same plant that provides coriander seeds, gets it’s distinctive aroma from a chemical that’s also found in soaps, hand lotions and even certain insects. However, regular cilantro eaters have retrained their brains to associate it’s aroma with delicious foods, not cleaning agents or buggy environments. Which means, you’re not just pigging out on chips and salsa, you’reexercising your brain.

[NY Times]