Six questions
1. How do you feel about the smell of sushi (raw fish)?
2. Cilantro (coriander leaves): love, hate, or meh?
3. Stinky tofu, blue cheese, or other "strong" fermented foods?
4. Did you grow up eating wild-foraged greens (purslane, dandelion, etc.)?
5. How do you feel about eating raw onion or raw garlic?
6. Have you tried houttuynia before?
How to read the result
The genetic factor
Some people carry a gene variant (OR6A2 or similar) that makes aldehydes in cilantro and similar compounds in houttuynia smell like soap or rotten fish. It's not your fault; it's your receptors.
The exposure factor
Many Chinese kids grow up with houttuynia and develop a positive association. Foreign visitors often don't have that priming, which is why the first bite is so divisive.
Asking to skip it
"不要折耳根" is universally understood. Most restaurants will simply leave it out. Some dishes (凉拌折耳根) ARE the herb — there's no skip option there.
What this tool can't tell you
- Whether you'll learn to love it. Many foreigners do — after the third or fourth try.
- The exact concentration in each dish. 蘸水 (dipping water) can have it finely minced or coarsely chopped.
- Whether the smell is stronger cooked or raw — usually cooked is milder.
- Whether the local restaurant will respect your "不要" request. Most will; a few won't.
Common questions
What dishes are almost all fold-ear-root?
Which dishes never have it?
Can I just push the leaves aside?
Sources & reference data
Tolerance buckets inspired by sensory-science research on cilantro aversion (Eriksson 2012) and applied to houttuynia. Houttuynia aldehyde analysis from phytochemistry literature.