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The holidays are all about food and gathering together to share that food. Sometimes those get-togethers happened at potlucks.

Black folks do not like potlucks with strangers and we do everything we can to avoid participating in them. However, regardless of your feelings, during the holidays, if you get invited to one, you may feel compelled to attend.

To help you get through the event relatively unscathed, we’ve got some tips for surviving holiday potlucks, including signs you shouldn’t eat the food, what dishes you should avoid at all costs and what to bring.

Animals Freely Wander Kitchen Surfaces

If you’ve seen the countless photos online of people allowing their pets to freely roam around the kitchen and even hop on food prep surfaces, then you know why this is a huge red flag.

Here’s the thing: No matter how well you clean the counter after your cat has walked all over it, you’re probably going to miss some bacteria. You have no idea what kind of germs your pets are tracking into the same areas and surfaces where you prepare your food. Hard pass.

An Extremely Sparse Spice Cabinet

Let’s be honest, when it comes to seasoning, there are definitely some cultural differences. We like to build a nice layer of flavors in our dishes. Others may feel like they’re OK with some seasoning salt and pepper. Sometimes this is enough, but not all the time for everything.

If you’re invited to a potluck, go in the kitchen and they only have three things in their spice cabinet, there’s a good chance some of the food may be bland as hell.

Empty Raisin Box In the Trash

Oh, the dreaded raisins. If we see an empty box, that means you put raisins in something, that more than likely, didn’t need raisins. We don’t know if it’s the potato salad, macaroni and cheese, dressing, or vegetable dish, but at some point, we’re going to be stuck with raisins that we don’t want.

Mayo Based Foods

Sometimes, looks alone will tell you what dishes to stay away from. You can see something on the table, look at it and just know to skip it. However, it’s also wise to pass if you come across any mayo based dishes like egg salad, chicken salad, macaroni salad, or potato salad.

No Matter What the Theme Is, Bring Food You Like

People love to come up with themes for their potlucks. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but if you’ve never been to New Orleans and don’t know anything about the city’s cuisine, why is that the theme of your potluck?

To avoid dealing with enchiladas made by someone who’s never done Mexican food before, just bring something you like to eat. Even if the theme is something ridiculous or unexpected, bring food you want to eat so you know there’s at least one edible dish on the table.

If you love potlucks and love hosting them, please don’t take this as an insult. However, Black people were wary of these invites before, but in a post-COVID world, we’re even more careful with what food we eat at strange parties.