MY ANOSMATIC LIFE

I lost my sense of smell while I was a college student. When I acquired anosmia, I was living at a house off campus. The kitchen was directly across from my bedroom. Me and my housemates would cook for each other sometimes and fellowship at the table over the deliciousness we prepared. It was there that I went from experiencing all types of wonderful smells to nothing. I don’t recall it really bothering me then because it seemed more temporary like a cold.

It’s tough to go from smelling and tasting foods, especially your own food creations, to detecting barely anything. But nowadays, I cook more than before. I think I’m quite an amazing cook. How so? Well, through compliments, facial expressions, and even being my own judge. My favorite things to make are stuffed peppers, ahi tuna tacos with jalapeños, veggie lasagna (when I do), grilled salmon with onions, and potatoes in all types of ways. I’m a flexitarian and only make meat dishes when requested, which means I mainly eat plant-based foods and fish and try my best to abstain from meat. Olive oil is and will always be my favorite oil of choice. I’m totally obsessed with air-frying foods right now.

I rarely do taste tests while cooking as most cooks do because my taste isn’t very reliable. From prepping to completion, I guess every bit of the way and go by how it looks and the texture. If it looks fine, I just go with it. My favorite seasonings are paprika, turmeric, ginger, garlic, cumin, curry, and pepper. I put pepper on EVERYTHING, but my fruit. Sometimes I overseason my food or made it too spicy for others by accident, but have gotten so much better. I can very easily get carried away with the salt shaker. Other times, I purposefully make my dishes spicy because I love all things spicy. What’s spicy for someone usually isn’t spicy to me.  I like that no one ever holds back their complaints. Thankfully I receive less of them and more of compliments (ha!).

Compliments and requests help tell me what tastes good, what ingredients/methods work, and what doesn’t. For example, my nephew loves asking me to make him pan-fried chicken tenderloins, which makes me feel like a winner because this kid loves fast food. My mom just told me that she finally mastered how I get the chicken tenders so good and juicy.  He and other family members also love requesting this queso and salsa meat dish that I got from a college friend.

Don’t let me forget about my potatoes. They’re my favorite to cook on Earth. Everyone loves my potato dishes. From friends to immediate family, they’re pretty memorable. When my Grandma came to town a couple of weeks ago and saw me making some potatoes for myself (fend for yourself the time of day), she requested that I cut up some extra ones for her because in her words “my potatoes are so good” and “nobody makes them like me.” When the best cooks in the family like my mom and grandma give compliments, it’s good.

My cooking kind of relies on the compliments I receive since I’m not so sure how my food really tastes at times. I have become more confident in the kitchen as an anosmic over the years. But I’ve also become a bit anxious about what everyone thinks about my food. As soon as everyone makes their plates and takes a seat, I impatiently wait for the first compliment. Seriously. If you don’t say something, I’ll just ask you how it tastes.  Of course, I get that this needs more salt, I don’t like it, or I liked it better the other way comments every now and then and that’s fine. But it’s always great to hear someone say, “This is good Sharika.”

Despite not being able to actually taste or smell what I create, my cooking is enjoyable. I enjoy it and my family and friends enjoy it. I’m an anosmic who loves to cook. Even though my sense of taste can’t really be trusted, my cooking can.