Peter (as in the French verb, not the name)

The only rule I ever learned about food and flatulence was taught to me in song form at a young age. You might recognize it as such:

Beans beans the wonderful fruit
The more you eat,
The more you toot!
The more you toot,
The better you feel
So let’s have beans for every meal!!

As a young girl, I did not like beans. I claimed to not like how they tasted, but really I just avoided eating them for fear of farting uncontrollably afterwards. When I finally had enough courage to try beans (after I went to college), I discovered that they were delicious! Now I eat beans without a second thought to the dangers that may lurk on the other end.


Some beans I took with me from CA. I miss Trader Joe's!

One night at dinner, La Maman made FBF and I des poireaux. This was a new vegetable for me, and not even looking up the translation in La Maman’s French/English dictionary (leeks) helped me recognize it. Long, white on one end, green on the other, they smelled delicious, even if they looked a little stringy.

I dug in.

They were delicious! I helped myself to seconds. And then I helped myself to thirds.

“Alors tu aimes bien les poireaux?” (So you seem to like leeks?) La Maman half asked, half stated.

“Oui! Je les adore!” (Yes! I love them!) I exclaimed, ever the excitable American.

She laughed, and then told me, “bon fait attention! Ça fait peter, les poireaux.” (Well be careful! Leeks make you fart.)

At first I couldn’t believe it. Was she really informing me about foods that make one fart? “Ah bon?” (Really?) I said, testing the waters.

FBF replied, “Oh oui!” (Most definitely!) We all had a good laugh.

My knowledge on farty foods has only increased since this first diner conversation. Apparently there are a lot more foods than just beans that make you fart. And not just weird unknown vegetables, either. Foods I’ve been eating for years.

According to La Maman, and my personal use of the scientific method proving her hypothesis, the following foods make you fart:

- Les poireaux (leeks)
- Les oignons (onions)
- Les echalots (shallots)
- Les petits pois (peas)
- Chou (cabage)
- Choufleur (cauliflower)
- Les hauricots (beans, but we already knew that)


Fart inducing foods found readily in la cuisine (the kitchen).

Luckily I wasn’t raised in a French household, or I would have “not liked” a lot more foods.