If I understand it correctly, nouns for fruits (and certain types of foodstuffs, such as pizza) are used as mass nouns if thought of as "food substance", rather than "portions". So is it correct that I say "I like apple" instead of "I like apples"? Is such reasoning as "I like apple as food, especially in cut pieces", just like "I like soup, pork, etc." (instead of "I like apples as items served as food, especially as whole fruits") valid, or at the very least, applicable in any ways?
I know there's a similar question on ell, but the given answer is not satisfying to me. It flat out denies such a phrase as "I like apple" as grammatically incorrect. But is it though? If it is, when exactly do we use the mass nouns instead of the count nouns? Does the same principle go with "chicken" (the meat) and "chickens" the animal?
Edit: "Dog" is NOT a mass noun and the other question is completely irrelevant. This is absurd. My question concerns the use of mass nouns and count nouns for foods.
Best Answer
Yes, you can say “I like apple” if you are talking about the fruit pulp, its texture or its taste; i.e. when it is uncountable. The same is true for any fruit,
And when we talk about dishes, in this case dessert, the singular is used.
But normally when we use the word apple, we think of it as something that is countable, that we can pick up and bite into. We are talking about apples in general, not about a single apple. Which is why the phrase I like apples will always be far more common than I like apple.