Long ago, when I first moved to Mumbai, my mother sent over a jar of Vegemite. She thought my husband might like to try it.
Vegemite is a distinctly Australian food, usually loved by Australians only. It’s a spread that’s dark brown/black in colour, and has a high yeast content. Back home in Australia, we put it on toast, sandwiches, and even eat it by the spoonful. It’s very nutritious and high in vitamin B.
Those who haven’t been brought up on Vegemite, and taste it for the first time, recoil in revulsion. As did my husband.
The jar is open. Husband is laughing and looking happy.
Vegemite on toast. My husband nibbles off a small corner....
...chews and swallows....
...and looks at it in disgust!
I showed my mum the photos and she exclaimed, “no wonder he hated it, look how thick you put it on the bread!” But that’s the way I love it.
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{ 44 comments… read them below or add one }
Is vegemite like Chawanprash?
Hmmm, I’m not to sure what Chawanprash is? I googled it and it said ayurvedic supplement. According to this research Vegemite was especially developed as food with a high Vitamin B content:
http://www.vegemite.com.au/vegemite/page?siteid=vegemite-prd&locale=auen1&PagecRef=670
Heeeheeeheee
Well, what’s it made of?
Pure and simple: Yeast extract, salt, mineral salt, malt extract (from barley).
Just found this on Wiki…
We’re happy little Vegemites
As bright as bright can be.
We all enjoy our Vegemite
For breakfast, lunch and tea.
Our Mummies say we’re growing stronger
Every single week
Because we LOVE our Vegemite.
We all ADORE our Vegemite.
IT PUTS A ROSE IN EVERY CHEEK!
Ah, the Vegemite Song!
That brings back memories….
This event called for a video!
Are you a professional journalist? You write very well.
Hahaha! Those pictures were great. I cannot imagine what it tastes like, must be an acquired taste
Feeding vegemite to my students here in Japan is one of my favourite things to do. They always look at it and think it’s chocolate flavoured and when they get a mouthful of salty tangy stuff they are horrified. Each country has their own “food from the cradle” foods that people from other coutries usually can’t stand. Here in Japan it is fermented soy beans that get whipped up into a slimey sticky mess and eaten with rice. I have tried for 7 years to learn to like it and I still can’t get past the rotten smell. At least you wont have to worry about your husband eating all your vegemite1
My grandpa was big into traveling to Australia and making friends there and having those friends then stay with him in America. Once, I even brought one of the Australian couples to my middle school so they could give a speech about living in Australia. I always thought it was all kangaroos and boomerangs since those were the souvenirs my grandpa would always bring home! I tried Vegemite once, and I looked just as your husband did! Nutella all the way!
Is that the stuff with the salty, soy saucy Umami type taste? Like Marmite/Bovril?
I think I even saw a few jars of it at Dorabjees in Pune.
Yup, I think it could be that Kiran!
MDG — people say that Australia must be a very lonely country because we throw boomerangs that we want to come back to us (well, they’re supposed to come back, but it’s actually near impossible to get them to do that. Takes so much practice).
The more time I spend away from Australia the more strange and foreign it seems to me!
I must say that I love the photos they say 1,000 words maybe it thier was not lot on it he would have liked it more or not. That how it is here My nana is PA German some of the things that she eat no way I don’t like those I guess becasue I grew up traveling all my life I got to try different things. I think that I would try it to see if liked it.
“The Day My Husband Tasted Vegemite”
Upon first glance at this title, I thought it said something else — which by the way, would make for a very interesting blog. LOL!
Oh my goodness… I’m changing the title!! Does tried sound less provocative?
HAHA Im American and I use Vegemite in my vegan Guinness stew! It gives the stew a very rich flavor…and it doesnt taste anything like it does in the jar.
LOL those pictures in sequence are hilarious.
Gold!!!
Vegemite is manly, peanut butter is for pussies.
For sure, Vegemite will put hairs on your chest!
AUSTRIA: Country of Vegemite, Paul Hogan, Mark Brandon Read and the Platypus, the best country in Europe.
Does that mean Australia has the Sound of Music and all those alps?
I thought alps were in Switzerland and Christopher Plummer is a Canadian.
haha! did you hear about the ‘iSnack 2.0′ controversy recently? what are your thoughts?!
Is that the same Austria, country of schwarzenegger and hitler…
@Ramit
Vegemite is made from the leftovers of the beer making process. Quite the natural thing to do in a Country like Australia.
@Sharrel
Maybe he’ll like the new iSnack2.0 or as they soon renamed it, the Cheesybite.
Vegemite, delicious! I couldn’t live without it. Actually, I like both vegemite AND marmite… ha, figure that one out! But vegemite I like spread thin. I guess that’s what comes with being Kiwi or Aussie
Beer left overs? OMG! Not having it ever then! Thanks for the tip Tuhin. You’re a good person.
What is iSnack 2.0? This must really be the tech age now if they are naming foods with version numbers too.
I agree. What is iSnack?
Hahaha @ Ramit.
Marmite is for weakass poms.
@Sharrel,
Kraft came up with a new blend of cheese and vegemite to appeal to the growing number of migrant population in Australia which did not take to vegemite as much as people did back in the day. Since Bakers Delight already had the rights to the name “Cheesymite” (they name one of their scrolls so), Kraft had an open competition to select the name for this new product. They chose iSnack2.0 as suggested by some bloke from Perth. The name however proved so unpopular that Kraft went back and had another poll over the internet and selected Cheesybite as the new name for this product.
Look it up… Daily TeleCrap should have a fair bit of coverage
My expressions were far more worst when i tried vegemite and my mistake i took a spoonfull of it. i literally tried everything in kitchen to neutralize my taste buds.
Hi,
Stumbled across your blog as I decided to check whether today is still being declared a 24 hour dry day or whether they have decided to open up the watering holes at 5pm.
It sure was a pleasant surprise and I indeed am enjoying reading your blog.
I lived in Australia for 2 years way back in the late 90′s and I remember my first encounter with vegemite clearly. Very simply – I hated it! LOL…
My aussie room mate laughed her guts out and we pretty much bonded over that vegemite session…
~ Cheers
Queenmatrai
Like black caviar you mean? I am yet to see many people of non-Slavic decent who can tolerate black caviar.
Ewwww! Must be like the French and their snails (escargot).
Ah the Vegemite… One bite ia all that it takes! LOL
We were coming back from Oz after a two month business trip and were shopping in one of the malls down there in Melbourne. The guy at the counter may be after looking at all the stuff we had bought guessed and asked us whether we were going on some trip. So we told him that we were on our way back home to India, on which he asked me if I had tried Vegemite and that it was a favourite with Australians with a big smile on his face. Another customer behind me showed the bottle of Vegemite in her hand and said ‘Oh yes, you should try it.’ So, I went gleefully to fetch a bottle myself. After I was back home, I put it on a slice of bread and tried a bite..and that is all that I could take, no more! I remember it to be quite bitter in taste.. But I still relish memories of the warm smiles I received at the counter when I accepted their suggestion and am happy that I tried it never the less.. a new experience and sweetest memories..
Ack! It must have been terrible! But I imagine that’s how you might react to Chyawanprash, Sharell
It’s one of those acquired tastes. You have to be force fed these things till you like them!
Love,
Looks like he hated swallowing it.
Hahahha those pics are classic! The first time i tried vegemite was off the spoon!! eugghh! haha I think enjoying vegemite is definitely an aquired taste..! I find it ok on bread with some butter but still….i dont find it great!
I’ve been having it on toast for breakfast every day for weeks now. Can’t get enough of it!!
I met Aussies in my little town in the Pyrenees summers ago and well they had vegemite with them. They were kind enough not to put too thick of a layer for us on crackers, ok super thin. I actually enjoyed it, but I couln’t eat it in the amounts you do.