We polled our friends, neighbors, readers — even the tellers at our bank — and compiled this exhaustive list of weird pregnancy cravings. Names have been omitted to protect the innocent.
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Pickles and Peanut Butter
This is a thing; it’s true. While not all the items on this list combine the two, they clearly show a trend in pregnancy food cravings.
- Peanut butter sandwich with nacho cheese Doritos in the middle.
- Peanut butter and pickle sandwiches.
- A spoonful of peanut butter, topped with Irish butter.
- Pickles and peanut butter with a Coke.
- Ramen noodles with pickle juice.
- Pickles with crushed up Funyuns.
- Peanut butter and chocolate cookies.
- Milk and peanut butter. Couldn’t get enough.
Downright Odd
Some pregnancy cravings are simply un-categorizable. Whether a one-off oddity or a — ahem — UNIQUE flavor combo, pregnant women crave it all.
- Tuna fish with chocolate milk.
- Tuna, tuna, TUNA. Like, enough for her OB/GYN to recommend a calendar of mercury consumption.
- San Pellegrino and canned salmon.
- Black olives, sour cream, and pickled beets. Together.
- Straight up, whole lemons. Actually, anything sour in general.
- Lemon juice. I drank it straight during my first pregnancy. Drank so many bottles of it.
- Chalk.
- Corn flakes (dry, no milk) with a side of tomato juice with lime and salt.
- Chinese food and Krispy Kreme donuts. Together.
- Cottage cheese, a hamburger patty, and pineapple. In the same bite.
- French fries dipped in a chocolate milkshake. (Maybe this one isn’t SO odd.)
- Chili dogs WITH ketchup.
- Gouda cheese and chocolate pudding. Not mixed together, but definitely back to back.
Oddly Specific
Yup. That about sums it up.
- Hellmann’s Mayonnaise.
- Olive Garden salad dressing. Like, to drink.
- Dill pickle chips with lemonade — and they had to be LAY’S dill pickle flavored potato chips.
- Homemade ranch dressing with Ruffles original potato chips.
- Lima beans with butter and garlic. Pounds per week.
- Only green Granny Smith apples with peanut butter.
- Red Powerade. NOT Gatorade; Powerade.
- The skin of a baked potato.
- A turkey sandwich with a Honeycrisp apple — and the apple had to be from Central Market.
- Snickers, chips and salsa, and pickles (at the same time, but eaten separately).
- Salt and vinegar chips and 7-11 slurpees.
- McDonald’s coke. I was obsessed and wanted it daily (even though I don’t drink soda regularly).
- Tuna fish sandwich from McAlister’s, which my co-workers were sweet enough to get me on Fridays since I could only eat it once a week. It became McAlister’s Day for everyone!
Love Me Some Fast Food
Ahhhhh yeah! You don’t have to be pregnant to crave the neon signs, drive-thrus, and takeout menus on this list. But it helps.
- McDonald’s breakfast bagels and iced coffee.
- Taco Bell bean burritos with green sauce.
- Sonic foot-long chili-cheese coneys.
- Pizza Hut buffet (never before or since pregnancy).
- Whataburger onion rings.
- Galligaskin’s cheese sticks.
- Jack in the Box — chili cheese fries or potato cheese wedges.
- Luby’s fried fish and collard greens (never before or since).
- Baja gorditas from Taco Bell, Arby’s sandwiches, and McDonald’s hamburgers. Alternate weekly.
- Anything from Braum’s!
- Chick-fil-a nuggets (from a devout vegetarian).
- Taco Bell chicken quesadillas.
- Chinese takeout. Egg rolls.
- Hamburger pizza.
- In-n-out double double with chopped chilies and a milk shake to dip my fries.
- McDonald’s double cheeseburger was “second dinner” several times a week.
- Dorito’s loco tacos from Taco Bell.
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Not Too Crazy
Here’s the thing about some of these. They’re not totally off the wall. Either they just get inside your head and constantly nag . . . or mama might need to practice some moderation. We’re not judging.
- Ketchup. Like, as a legit component of the weekly meal plan.
- Pasta: spaghetti, ramen noodles, or macaroni and cheese.
- Deviled eggs.
- Pickles.
- Dairy. You name it. Cheese, cream cheese, sour cream, whole milk.
- Anything mayonnaise-based.
- Chicken wings.
- Fried okra.
- Tacos.
- Waffles.
- Milkshakes from any place with a drive-thru window.
- Pineapple juice. Gallons of it.
- Cheetos.
- Sea salt & vinegar potato chips.
- Goldfish crackers.
- Steak/burgers/red meat.
- Cereal. Like, one family-size box per day. (Froot Loops, Special K, and Honey Nut Cheerios were some of the top mentions.)
- BLTs.
- Steak and broccoli. For every meal except breakfast.
- Hot dogs (never before or since).
- Mexican elotes.
- Ethnic comfort foods like chicken curry and vaca frita and maduros (fried beef with plantains).
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Dat Spice Though
Heat definitely warrants its own category. What is it about spice that speaks to a pregnant woman’s cravings?
- Cajun food.
- Salsa. By the spoonful.
- Chicken fajitas for every single meal.
- Jalapeños (never before or since).
- Spicy Asian food (Pad Thai, curries, spicy Korean pork, Szechuan anything, etc.)
- Hot sauce. With a side of bean burrito.
- Frito pie, extra cheese.
- Hot tamale candies.
- Jalapeños. I would eat them straight out of the jar.
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ALL the Sweets
Isn’t this so relatable? Even gals with admittedly ZERO sense of a sweet tooth can crave the cloying while pregnant!
- Gobstoppers candy.
- Bluebell ice cream.
- Klondike bars.
- Sour Jelly Beans.
- Dr. Pepper.
- Lemon sherbet.
- Fig Newtons.
- Strawberry tarts from Swiss Pastry Shop. (Not a sponsor, but . . . shout out!)
- Strawberry ice cream or cherry pie.
- Taco Bell cinnamon twists.
- Dairy Queen ice cream sundaes with extra, EXTRA hot fudge.
- Sonic Reese’s blast.
- Black Forest sundae from Braum’s.
- Sno cones.
- Peach ring gummies.
- Fudge brownie sundaes from Sonic.
- CHOCOLATE! We had responses of chocolate milk, chocolate shakes, straight up chocolate, and even chocolate croissants. The struggle is real.
Good for You
We saved this category for last because, honestly, we’re a little bit ashamed of our own pregnancy indulgences and A LOT impressed by these healthier cravings. You go, mama!
- Cucumbers.
- Kale salad and grapefruit.
- Lebanese cabbage rolls.
- Fresh plums (the juicy, squishy kind).
- Frozen grapes.
- Lentil soup.
- Salad! Greek, chicken, etc.
- Anything avocado.
- Pineapples.
- Blackberries. Like, two cartons per day.
- Tomatoes with lemon juice and salt.
- Salads. All the lettuce.
What were some of your craziest pregnancy cravings — or aversions?
A pasta made with tuna and cheese and noddles and sauce