Strange foreign food.

[ElMarko]

It seems that most countries have some food that outsiders really freak out about.

Australians have Vegemite.
Scandinavians and the Dutch have really salty licorice candies.
Mexicans have peppered sugar.

That's all that comes to mind now.

Now, I'm not talking about something that one would simply find unappealing upon first hearing about it yet be able to understand others liking it, like vegetables. I mean stuff outsiders really freak out about.

For instance when I tried Vegemite I had to run out the front door and hurl into a bit potted plant (alcohol was involved as well).

I'm wondering if there is something that the vast majority of Americans like but freaks out the rest of the world.

[kiwi]

Australians have Vegemite.

Oi so do Kiwis!!!

[AFPheonix]

Corndogs, perhaps?

[Seshat]

The Scots have haggis.
Australians also have musk lifesavers and musk sticks. But I balance that with the American lavender sticks, which I react to much the same as Americans react to the musk ones, so....


American foods that make me queasy to think about (or eat!):

Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Like, EWWWW!

Catfish. (To be fair, I'm allergic to seafood.)

Cheez Whiz.

That awful, far-too-sweet, fake cream stuff.

Over-sweet desserts (that I tried to balance with what I thought was cream, and discovered was the above-mentioned far-too-sweet fake cream stuff.)

Researching this, I found a recipe for 'shoofly pie'. Which sounds like the ultimate in over-sweet desserts.

The orange faux-cheese is another of my pet 'ewwws'.



Not to put down American cuisine, you understand! There's some great stuff there, like sourdough bread, soft pretzels, soup-in-a-bread-bowl and turkey with cranberry. And maize is one of my favourite grains. But the things above? Well, you asked!

[Greenday]

Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches? Really? That's probably one of the best sandwiches ever!

[IDrinkaRum]

I love me some PB&J sandwiches! How do you feel about Peanut Butter & Mayonnaise sandwiches, Seshat?

As for other American "delicacies"?

Chitlins - sheep intestines (Former President Bush was rumored to enjoy those).

Pickled Pigs Feet - Have you seen a jar of those in your local grocery store? Just ... there ... and a bunch of jars at that? *shudder* Yeah ... it makes me squeamish.

Can't think of anything else right off the top of my head. But now I'm hungry.

[AdminAssistant]

Also, cracklin's (basically, fried pig skin)

Hmmm....Rocky Mountain oysters and Rooster Fries?

[Boozy]

Some foods I automatically think of when I think of American foods:

Grits. I've had them while travelling, and am still unsure of what they are.

Bizarre mutated cheese-like products. That stuff called "American cheese" isn't cheese at all - admit it!

Really fattening foods wrapped in other really fattening foods. I'm thinking of those sausages wrapped in pancakes. Corndogs are another good example.

A few of these things are available in Canada, but aren't widely consumed.

[Slytovhand]

What?? You've got a problem with vegemite???? ..... yeah, ok It's an 'acquired' taste (ie - you've got to suffer through the first few times before your body can digest it - and you've killed off enough taste buds for it to get through...).

I can't really think of anything particularly American (or Canadian), but there was a ribs place I went to that was American style... and I couldn't believe I was actually eating meat that was sweet - like it had added sugar!! I don't think that place lasted all that long.

AA - Crackling is the best! Can't have roast pork without it

Part of the 'issue' with this topic is time. Many cultures have some strange and varied tastes, because they've been developed over years and years of mere survival. Australia (as far as colonised Australia) hasn't. Nor has that much of America (are any of the recipes you're referring to older than, say, 200 years??). When it comes down to having to survive, you'll eat anything... like chicken's feet, lamb's brains, sheeps intestines, blood drop soup, etc etc. (so, to make our mark on the culinary sickening world, Australia invented Vegemite )

Btw - we love our beetroot on hamburgers

[AdminAssistant]

The thing about America is that we just shamelessly steal from everyone else.

hmm...Now Memphis-style wet ribs (with sauce) can be kinda sweet sometimes, but not THAT sweet. I wonder which region they were trying to emulate? (For those that don't know, barbeque in the States varies by region, the top regions: Carolinas, Memphis, Kansas City, and Texas).

I've been searching my brain for other oddities...but it's breakfast time now. Perhaps a bit later.

[IDrinkaRum]

Boozy - wiki on Grits

grits is good for you! I love to mix mine with shredded cheddar and butter. Yummy! PUt a few over easy eggs on top and mix everything together (letting the egg yolks break) is the. best. breakfast I can think of.

[Dreamstalker]

Hmmm....Rocky Mountain oysters and Rooster Fries?

...given that those two are in the same sentence, do I really want to know what 'rooster fries' are?

My mom makes cracklins from duck skin/fat. Nummy. On my first-ever trip to Ireland, mom's friends were mildly amazed that I would devour black pudding even after knowing what it was.

I was raised to try everything at least once (unless it was something I knew I was somehow allergic to)...in the late 70s and early 80s my dad traveled all over the world for his job so that's probably where I got my love of the weird from.

What about fugu/whale meat in Japan? The former has always intrigued me, but "you can die instantly if the chef's knife slips" trumps the cool factor for me (apparently it's the one food that the royal family is never allowed to consume due to the risk). The latter...ick. Just....no.

[Sylvia727]

I knew a guy whose father had moved the family to South America (Venezuela?) for a job for a few years. Apparently, they eat guinea pigs down there. Even after the guy came back to America, he still enjoyed eating guinea pig meat. Cue the dumb jokes about keeping him away from your hamsters... Alligator meat. Deep-fried Twinkies dipped in chocolate, although to be fair most Americans wouldn't touch that either. I've heard poutine called "heart attack in a bowl". Do other countries eat raw cookie dough? Because that's a delicacy in my neck of the woods. I don't mean the fake cookie dough that you get in ice cream, either. We mix it up and eat it, raw eggs and all.

What's wrong with peanut butter and jelly sandwiches? I've heard that's the sandwich foreign exchange students wouldn't touch, but why? I was raised on those! They're good for what ails you! Also peanut butter and banana, and potato chips in just about any sandwich.

[Dreamstalker]

How about the all-holy fluffernutter? Yummy.

I've apparently horrified mom by developing a taste for mushy peas.

[AdminAssistant]

I'm an American and I don't like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I like a peanut butter sandwich. I like jelly on toast. Never both at the same time though. EW. I do like putting potato chips in sandwiches - crunchy!!

Rooster fries are exactly what you probably think they are. I'm told they are a delicacy. I'd rather not find out.

I have had a funny cross-cultural moment. I was friends with a girl from Japan, and she went home with me for Thanksgiving. Mom fixed a big traditonal Southern dinner - pork chops, milk gravy, turnip greens, boiled potatoes etc. My friend brought a sticky rice dish and a sweet potato dessert. My parents are not the kind that likes to try new things, but they also didn't want to be rude. Mom actually kind of liked it...and Dad was able to convince her he did. But I could tell he was choking it down.