"It Is Unthinkable In Europe": 28 American Foods That People From Other Countries Think Are Absolutely Repulsive, And I Kind Of Agree With Them On A Few Of These
"Squirrel is great because you don’t really have to season it. The flavor is naturally strong in a decent way. Just fry it in some oil and put it in whatever you please. I always made spaghetti sauce with it."
Food that's normal to you might not be quite so normal to somebody else. For myself, I grew up eating jam and cheese sandwiches, grilled inside a cast-iron sandwich press over an open campfire. As a kid, you could not tell me that was not the height of culinary delicacies. For other people, it was a bit of a harder sell.
Recently, a Redditor who goes by the name Winston_Duarte popped into the r/AskAnAmerican subreddit to ask, "Does the US have a weird food that sounds disgusting but is delicious?" Americans certainly had a lot to say, and some of the dishes they shared had me like, "Oh yeah! Big time yum!" and then others had me questioning what the actual hell my compatriots were talking about. Here's what people had to share:
1. "When I lived in Ireland, the first question people would ask me, upon hearing I was American, was, 'Do you actually eat pumpkin pie?' They thought it sounded awful, but it's my favorite dessert, by far."
2. "I remember going to a grocery store on the Big Island in Hawaii and being blown away by how many varieties of Spam there were. I mean, there was an entire aisle of Spam products."
—u/uhmerikin
3. "Squirrel. Lots of people think it's strange, but I've had it several times, and I love it. Lightly breaded, pan-fried, and smothered in mushroom gravy is the way to go with squirrel meat."
—u/101bees
"Squirrel is great because you don’t really have to season it. The flavor is naturally strong in a decent way. Just fry it in some oil and put it in whatever you please. I always made spaghetti sauce with it."
—u/Hatweed
"I soak squirrel in buttermilk before cooking it, and it's always good. I'm not entirely sure why I'm supposed to do that, but on my great grandma's recipe cards, that's what it says to do."
—u/Thel_Odan
4. "Meatloaf would be my entry. It gets a lot of flak, but done well, it’s amazing."
5. "Boiled peanuts are absolutely delicious when made right."
6. "People in the UK find it strange and think it's probably disgusting, even though it's phenomenal. The classic PB&J. A peanut butter and jelly sandwich, typically made with jam or preserves rather than jelly, is a 10/10."
7. "Rocky Mountain oysters (bull testicles). My mom had a deep fryer she’d pull out whenever we were castrating calves. She’d wash them, roll them in egg, throw them in a flour mixture with seasoning, and then toss them straight into the deep fryer. So good."
—u/Altril2010
8. "In PA, we have what we call scrapple, which is pork trimmings mixed with a binder like flour or cornmeal and some spices, then formed into a loaf. Good for frying up and eating with some eggs and toast."
9. "Biscuits and gravy. It is unthinkable in Europe, because you guys think cookies are biscuits, and you don't usually make sausage gravy. I think it's delicious."
10. "I grew up on banana and mayonnaise sandwiches. I haven't had one in years, but that might just be lunch tomorrow."
"In Central Kentucky, we have banana croquettes. Chunks of banana rolled in mayo, then in crushed or chopped peanuts. Everyone thinks they sound horrible, but I’ve never met anyone who has tried them and doesn’t find them delicious."
—u/jmontavon
11. "It's not really that popular anymore, but I still like tuna noodle casserole. Also, green bean casserole."
12. "Alligator tail isn't hard to find at restaurants here in Florida, especially at seafood places that cater to tourists. It's often served fried with some kind of dipping sauce. While it's not something I'd have every day, it's not bad. It's flaky like fish but tastes a lot like chicken."
14. "Garbage plate in Rochester, NY. Maceroni salad, home fries, two cheeseburger patties, meat sauce, ketchup, mustard, onions — delish."
15. "Chicken and waffles is weird in the sense that you'd never think to combine those foods, but chicken and waffles are damn good when they're done right, especially with maple syrup."
16. "So while tostilocos were technically created just across the border in Tijuana, Mexico, it's a staple in Chicano culture, especially in Southern California. It's generally considered pretty gross-sounding to most people when they first hear about it. The list of the classic/typical ingredients is: a bag of chips, pickled pork rinds, jicama, cucumber, fried peanuts, candy made from tamarind covered in chili powder, and hot sauce."
17. "Fried pickles. Whenever they're on the menu when I go out to eat with my family, I order them."
18. "Where I'm from, we have Sh*t on a Shingle (creamed chipped beef on toast) and Shoo-fly pie (molasses pie)."
19. "Pickled kelp is really popular in Southeast Alaska."
20. "Peaches and cottage cheese as a snack. F—ing delicious, but it’s mostly a Southern thing."
21. "Chitlins: fried pigs' intestines. Gizzards: fried chicken stomachs. Pickled pigs' feet: self-explanatory."
—u/infotechderp
22. "In Minnesota, we have lutefisk. It's jellified fish soaked in lye. You eat it by dipping it in copious amounts of melted butter."
23. "A fluffernutter sandwich. The sandwich is simple: two slices of bread, marshmallow fluff on one side and peanut butter on the other."
24. "Chicken-fried steak always sounded like a heart attack on a plate to me, but it is delicious."
25. "Livermush is popular where I live. I really like liver, but I don’t like livermush. My husband doesn’t like liver, but he loves livermush. 🤷🏻♀️"
—u/mst3k_42
26. "We have what we call 'tiger meat,' which is minced beef eaten raw. It's popular in the upper Midwest states."
27. "When I was learning German, my teacher said that putting ice cream in root beer and then drinking it is the most repulsive thing she’s ever heard of, and that you just don’t do it."
28. And finally, "Calf or pig brains mixed in scrambled eggs."
Are there any American dishes you think are delicious, but other people (especially in other countries) think are disgusting? Let me know which dishes you love and why in the comments, or use the anonymous form below. Your response might be featured in an upcoming BuzzFeed article!
Note: Responses have been edited for length/clarity.