Tod was describing the unusual miso soup he had for lunch today, rich in aonori. His dining companion said she didn't like it and preferred wakame in her soup.
He told me this and I laughed. I knew exactly the subtle differences in flavour he described. Maybe to most non-Japanese, one seaweed is as good as another, but the difference between aonori and wakame is as stark as the one between peas and lima beans.
I wondered what other foods can be paired like that - obviously different if your palette is familiar with them, but indistinguishably similar if it is not. Tod & I made a list of a few. Can you come up with any?
Coke and Pepsi
Basmati rice and jasmine rice
Spaghetti and egg noodles
Chicken and...frog/crocodile/fill-in-the-blank exotic meat
Chocolate cake and devil's food cake
Butter and margarine
Roquefort and Gorgonzola
Shiraz and Merlot wines
Budweiser and Heineken
bacon and proscuitto
oolong and mugi cold tea
light and dark miso
japanese vs foreign short grain rice (ducks)
green vs black olives
filtered vs bottled water
Oh there are so many!!