Things I’ve just learnt

[hopeful777]

I just found out you can’t put a chopping board in the dishwasher unless you want it to break 😕

as my family are now laughing at me, it made me wonder what other things have people learnt in adulthood that maybe others assume should be intrinsically known?

I left my wooden chopping board too near the gas hob and it caught fire

@Violinist64

I am another who thought that a caper was a small fish until I read this thread.

I am still intrigued as to how so many people thought this! 'A significant minority of people think capers are fish' is the most interesting thing I've learned from this thread.

This website suggests people confuse them with anchovies because they're also brined?

Capers are sometimes confused with the brined and dried fish called anchovies, since both are harvested from the same regions and are processed similarly

though that doesn't make much sense either.
www.delightedcooking.com/what-are-capers.htm

I mean I can understand people getting capers and gerkins confused, particularly cornichons, but what kind of small fish is round and lives in a jar?

@WomanStanleyWoman

And in any case, how does being served with fish mean they are themselves fish?

It doesn’t. They’re not fish. But it might go some way to explaining what is clearly quite a common misconception.

But it's like saying you thought lemons were a kind of fish because they're often served with fish!

Why did he not say clockwise and anti-clockwise?

Because that's not very memorable. The whole point about mnemonics, rhymes, alliteration etc is that they make things easier to remember.

I came across the idea that you could pickle nasturtium seeds and use them as a substitute long before I came across capers.

I knew someone who said capers were nasturtium seeds but I’ve never actually met anyone who admitted to thinking they were fish.

@ememem84

That a dishwasher doesn’t actually fill up with water.

I only found that out last year-also from a mention on here that you can open it while it's going, to add stuff.

@TatianaBis

Most people in Britain will have only eaten them in tartare sauce. Which I've only ever seen served with fish.

?? You can do them with chicken, veal - ('piccata'), potato salad, pasta, tomato sauce. I always have a pot of capers in my fridge.

Fresh tuna with tomatoes, onions, garlic, olives and capers is great.

Same I eat them at least a couple of times a month if not more, since I was a child. Can't believe this thread! You are all missing out.

@Angrymum22

I agree with shoes not ageing well. DH had a pair of shoes he bought yrs ago but had remained packed in their box for over 10yrs. DS’s school shoes didn’t make it to the end of term so DH gave him his “brand new” old shoes to wear on the last day (Speech Day). As the day went in the shoes gradually disintegrated. DS was in and out of the cathedral where they have speech day, leaving a trail of crumbling sole material much to the amusement of his friends. They were not cheap shoes either.

I've had several pairs of sandals do that-I had to buy 2 new pairs in Tenerife when the ones I took with me gave up. Now when I wear a pair for the first time of the year, I take a pair of flip flops with me just in case.

Just to be confusing, there’s also the CAPERcaillie, which is a bird.

@godmum56
Mind blown, I had no idea!

I've just discovered that the magazine published Conde Nast (they do Vogue and GQ and other glossies) isn't just a made up name or perhaps after two people (Mr Conde and Ms Nast) but named after the guy who started it, who was called Conde Nast. Just doesn't seem very... namey.

@TatianaBis

I mean I can understand people getting capers and gerkins confused, particularly cornichons, but what kind of small fish is round and lives in a jar?

And green! If I came across a green fish, I wouldn't eat it. As I said hundreds of posts ago to resounding silence, if they're confused with anything, why isn't it olives, which are also Mediterranean, come in jars and taste of salt and sometimes of vinegar? (And may also be green.)

@Silversilverstreet

Just to be confusing, there’s also the CAPERcaillie, which is a bird.

And a band I saw about a million years ago.

My newest and best is that you can flip percentages. ie 20% of 50 is equal to 50% of 20. Its been revelatory when trying to do quick calculations of , for example 17% of something. I was always wary of Maths at school so actually finding something useful and interesting in the subject brings wonder.

[quote pinnerpearl]@godmum56
Mind blown, I had no idea![/quote]
what the cotton reel?

Oh and BTW, try deep frying capers or caper berries for an amazing crispy, sharp garnish for fish or steaks.

That wearing split peas is not a great look

Can't pull it off eh?

You know you can just push them out from the peel side of the avocado, right? I dig them out with a spoon.

@AnchorWHAT

All hail to my fellow kitchen explosion disaster people, yes lentils harden in a ridiculously short time, still finding bits on the unit doors! Pressure cookers really are safe as long as you cool them under a cold tap or leave to cool before attempting to open, which is where i went very very wrong 😃

Don't stick an electric one under a cold tap though!

But it's like saying you thought lemons were a kind of fish because they're often served with fish!

It’s nothing like that! For a start, everyone knows what a lemon is!

@Livebythecoast

That the lyrics in the song 'Ironic' by Alanis Morissette are 'it's a death row 'pardon' two minutes too late' - not 'it's a death row 'hard on' two minutes too late' .

Another one who knows that some shoes don't keep. I had a fabulous pair of cream wedge sandals made by Scholl. They were my summer smart shoes, blissfully comfortable and ideal for outside events. One year I took them out of their shoe bos and the soles, inners and where the leather was lined with padding had all gone into crumbs. I was sooo sad. of course they weren't replaceable.

@WomanStanleyWoman

But it's like saying you thought lemons were a kind of fish because they're often served with fish!

It’s nothing like that! For a start, everyone knows what a lemon is!

Quite honestly, going by this thread I wouldn't be so sure And my point still stands: just because something is commonly served with fish really really doesn't make it sensible to conclude that the thing itself is a kind of fish.