Pizza Hut Tempts—Or Taunts—With ‘Too Much Cilantro’ Pizza In Japan
Bad pizza is still good pizza—but for one group, there can be bad ’za. Pizza Hut in Japan has unleashed a monster in the form of a ‘Too Much Cilantro Herb’ pie… or in the eyes of some, a crusty soap dish.
The divisive menu item, which would challenge even the taste buds of cilantro or coriander fanatics, piles a bed of green onto an innocent pie.
You know there’s too much of an ingredient when it’s taller than a pan crust.
Some people biologically cannot enjoy the flavor of cilantro due to a hyper-sensitivity to a chemical called aldehyde. They claim that the herb tastes like soap, which is a valid comparison as this chemical found in the plant is also used in perfumed soaps and detergents.
According to the BBC’s Science Focus, as many as one in five people have this super-sensitivity, which equates to at least 20% of Pizza Hut customers potentially finding the controversial menu item disgusting. We say “at least” because most people would stick to the classic pepperoni and cheese if they were going for a calorie-laden lunch.
To allow the “charm of cilantro” to shine through, the chain says the rest of the dish has been kept fairly simple with prawns, tomato sauce, and a sweet, sour, and spicy Korean sauce.
See—it’s not so bad, is it?
Regardless of where you stand on the cilantro debate, this isn’t something you order on a first date. You can’t let your glowing anecdotes be outshone by green teeth.
Pizza Hut Japan is hoping to appeal to Gen Z diners with this slice of madness. That’s smart, because if they don’t like the Too Much Cilantro pie, they can rail against it on TikTok.
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The brand says its limited-edition pizza falls in line with its slogan, “Always more than you can imagine.”
Unfortunately for both true lovers of cilantro and those who absolutely can’t stand it, the pie will only be served in a medium size.
[via SoraNews24 and PR TIMES, images via various sources]
