# Foods Americans like that non-Americans find disgusting **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 21, 2015, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054 "2015-09-21T01:22:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2015, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054/41 "2015-09-21T19:30:04Z")
> [@usedtobe](#): > > All this time and no mention of Hershey’s? > > AIUI, the idea of ‘milk chocolate’ is an abomination to most palates. > > I certainly despise it. > > Has ‘American Cheese’ (imitation cheddar made with vegetable fat instead of milk fat - as oleo margarine is to butter) made inroads? Milk chocolate is readily available in Europe by most major brands. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2015, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054/42 "2015-09-21T19:36:16Z")
Even here in America, cheese in a can is mostly considered to be a joke food. At best, it’s seen as a guilty pleasure. ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2015, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054/43 "2015-09-21T19:36:18Z")
> [@](#): > > Pumpkin is the least edible of all vegetables, eh? it’s more or less like any other squash, we’ve just associated it with particular folklore. ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2015, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054/44 "2015-09-21T19:42:20Z")
> [@GreedySmurf](#): > > I would suggest Cheese in a Can meets the OP. Although I’m not sure how truely popular that is in the States. The thought of eating “cheese” sprayed from a can makes me shudder. :eek: I think it makes a lot of Americans shudder, too. I don’t know anyone, ever, who’s tried it… …except for a bunch of (East) Indians, who tried it on a dare while baked. Those crazy engineering grad students! > [@suranyi](#): > > Milk chocolate is readily available in Europe by most major brands. But it has higher percentages of butterfat, and tastes far better than Hershey’s, which is waxy. > [@Asympotically\_fat](#): > > Pumpkin pie: Pumpkin is the least edible of all vegetables, so why make a sweet pie out of it? Though I have never tried this uniquely American dish. It’s a squash and it grows readily across the country. As far as pie ingredients, no weirder than pies made of [vinegar](http://allrecipes.com/recipe/12228/vinegar-pie-i/). And certainly no one ever tried [pieplant](http://www.food.com/recipe/pie-plant-pie-aka-rhubarb-pie-213504)and said, YUM, let’s make pie! ---
**Author:** ![Motorgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e36b37/32.png) [@Motorgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Motorgirl)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2015, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054/45 "2015-09-21T19:48:26Z")
> [@GrumpyBunny](#): > > I think it makes a lot of Americans shudder, too. I don’t know anyone, ever, who’s tried it… I loved it as a kid in the 70s. A friend recently bought his first house, so we brought 3 cans to the housewarming as a joke. It’s still a lot of fun to make cheese flowers with it, but I was surprised to find it tastes like not much of anything - mainly salty. Basically like the “cheese” in the Handi Snacks packages. People had some fun with it, and then it was forgotten. It was all mysteriously gone by the next day, though, so we obviously ate it readily when drunk. ---
**Author:** ![Cyros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a698b9/32.png) [@Cyros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyros)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2015, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054/46 "2015-09-21T20:33:06Z")
I’m Canadian but when it comes to food stuffs we tend to mesh well with US sensibilities. I just wanted to add that [pumpkin pie](http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/pumpkin-pie-recipe.html) is food of the gods. [Pumpkin pie soup](http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/whole-pumpkin-pie-soup-recipe.html) is straight from Satan’s unmentionables. The fact that he unleashed this monstrosity back into the world is proof positive that Alton Brown is the antichrist. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2015, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054/47 "2015-09-21T20:40:24Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Biscuits (scone-like things, for the Brits) with sausage gravy. I’ve mentioned this before on the board: friends of mine emigrated to the US from Ireland. Shortly after arriving here, they went to a restaurant where they saw “Biscuits and Gravy” on the menu. Not being familiar with either American biscuits, or the idea of gravy made from sausage drippings, they pictured cookies with brown (beef) gravy on top. They ordered it, simply out of dire curiosity (and the thought that there was no way in hell that what they pictured could _actually_ be what it was), decided it was vile, and never ordered it again. (IMO, they’re missing out, of course…) ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2015, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054/48 "2015-09-21T20:41:40Z")
> [@usedtobe](#): > > All this time and no mention of Hershey’s? > > AIUI, the idea of ‘milk chocolate’ is an abomination to most palates. 😕:dubious: Belgium, Switzerland, Germany, England- all make and consume lots of milk chocolate. It was invented in the 1870s by a Swiss confectioner… or was it in 1839 in Dresden? “_Hershey process_” milk chocolate is almost 100% American. ---
**Author:** ![BrassyPhrase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ea666f/32.png) [@BrassyPhrase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrassyPhrase)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2015, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054/49 "2015-09-21T20:50:30Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Even here in America, cheese in a can is mostly considered to be a joke food. At best, it’s seen as a guilty pleasure. Yeah, I’m not saying I’ve never had it (it was great when drunk back in college–but–I WAS DRUNK) and occasionally I’ve bought a can when making my hurricane box during hurricane season (shelf stable–but lately there’s a lot of shelf stable stuff so I haven’t in years). And I’m no gourmet, but I shudder to think that the rest of the world thinks Americans live on spray cheese. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2015, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054/50 "2015-09-21T20:51:19Z")
> [@Pixel\_Dent](#): > > I bet you omitted part of the presentation. The proper way to drink root beer is with a scoop of vanilla ice cream floating in it. Ah ambrosia! Actually, root beer is the only flavor soda I like. Except for Frank’s black cherry available, AFAIK, sold only in Philadelphia. During the year my daughter turned 5, we lived in Fribourg Switzerland and there was a Lindt chocolate factory there. We indulged quite a bit. When we got back someone gave a piece of Hershey’s milk chocolate and she took one bite, spit it out and exclaimed, “This isn’t chocolate!” I know that Indonesian cooking uses peanut butter a lot. I like it pretty well. Once upon a time there was a health food store here in Montreal that had a peanut butter grinder. You bought your own pot, put a couple scoops of peanuts into the grinder and turned it. You got fresh ground peanut butter that had no salt and no sugar added and it was delicious. And if you kept it refrigerated, not only did it stay fresh, but the oil didn’t separate. Sadly that store is long closed. ---
**Author:** ![Marion\_Wormer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d07c76/32.png) [@Marion\_Wormer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marion_Wormer)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2015, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054/51 "2015-09-21T22:30:29Z")
> [@Mr\_Shine](#): > > Hershey chocolate bars taste vile. > > Edit: missed post 18. The English opprobrium against Hershey’s kisses is pretty strong. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2015, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054/52 "2015-09-21T22:44:52Z")
> [@](#): > > I know that Indonesian cooking uses peanut butter a lot. I like it pretty well. Once upon a time there was a health food store here in Montreal that had a peanut butter grinder. You bought your own pot, put a couple scoops of peanuts into the grinder and turned it. You got fresh ground peanut butter that had no salt and no sugar added and it was delicious. And if you kept it refrigerated, not only did it stay fresh, but the oil didn’t separate. Sadly that store is long closed. I think anybody would love peanut butter if it had pot in it. ---
**Author:** ![Do\_Not\_Taunt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/do_not_taunt/32/2968_2.png) [@Do\_Not\_Taunt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Do_Not_Taunt)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2015, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054/53 "2015-09-21T22:45:55Z")
> [@usedtobe](#): > > Has ‘American Cheese’ (imitation cheddar made with vegetable fat instead of milk fat - as oleo margarine is to butter) made inroads? Am I misunderstanding you? While there certainly exists American ‘cheese’ made this way, I don’t believe you can actually use the word ‘cheese’ if it doesn’t have milk fat. And you can certainly buy actual cheese which is American cheese, though I think it has to be labeled as ‘processed cheese.’ And it should only be consumed hot and melted. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2015, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054/54 "2015-09-21T22:58:50Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Even here in America, cheese in a can is mostly considered to be a joke food. At best, it’s seen as a guilty pleasure. Then, I’m guilty. I’ll grab a can and spray some on a cracker or chip for a quick snack. Although, it doesn’t “spray” so much as it oozes. Think of it as like Reddi-Whip, which I’ve been known to enjoy, too. I’m not proud, I’ll spray some right out of the can into my mouth. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2015, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054/55 "2015-09-21T23:10:25Z")
Hey, I like spray cheese and I know a lot about cheeses from all over the world. It isn’t fine dining but it certainly has its place and it has been around for a very long time so it isn’t just a flash-in-the-pan gimmick. Many people claim that truly “authentic” Philadelphia Cheese Steak sandwiches require a can of Cheese Whiz and I tend to agree. Sometimes fancier cheeses just fuck up a perfectly good recipe for no good reason. The same is true for American Cheese in general (really only Kraft American cheeses). American Cheese melts very well and is the best choice for all but the fanciest cheeseburgers and grilled cheese sandwiches. There are things like party dips that you can make with blocks of Velveeta that fail miserably when you try to substitute anything else. ---
**Author:** ![Greg\_Charles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@Greg\_Charles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greg_Charles)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2015, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054/56 "2015-09-21T23:35:20Z")
> [@stui\_magpie](#): > > I don’t mind A&E Rootbeer but it doesn’t have a market here. > [@stui\_magpie](#): > > Interestingly I thought that the A&E Rootbeer has a similar taste to sarsaparilla but my son thinks I have warped taste buds.:o Nitpick: A&W Root Beer. A&E is a cable network, whose name used to mean Arts & Entertainment, though both were abandoned a long time ago. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2015, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054/57 "2015-09-21T23:39:21Z")
> [@jz78817](#): > > eh? it’s more or less like any other squash, we’ve just associated it with particular folklore. Well, as someone else mentioned, pumpkin pie is more in the spicing. We frequently make pumpkin custard [pie without being in the pie crust. I am lazy and don’t feel like making the crust most of the time] We also eat mashed pumpkin [like mashed potatoes, just with pumpkin - salt, pepper, butter, milk], pumpkin chunks with butter and a drizzle of maple syrup [a variant of acorn squash recipe, split the acorn squash in half, flip cut side down onto a lightly oiled baking pan and bake until the flesh is soft. Serve cut side up with a pat of butter, some salt and a drizzle of maple syrup or honey. Amish comfort food my mom grew up with.] Pumpkin soup - simmer chunks of pumpkin in chicken stock until soft with some chopped onion, let cool and run through a food mill until pureed then put back in the pot with a dash of cayenne pepper, correct the salt and black pepper to taste, and when hot thin out with half and half or heavy cream until to the consistency you want. Same recipe I would use for a hubbard squash soup. And as always, you can use canned pureed pumpkin for any recipe that calls for you to cook and puree pumpkin instead of cooking and pureeing it yourself - just make sure not to get the pre spice puree that is meant for making pumpkin pie with 😃 ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2015, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054/58 "2015-09-21T23:53:34Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > It’s popular in the UK (and has been for a long time) - we call it jelly though. I have heard that part of many Brits’ horror at a PB&J is that they’re under the impression we eat peanut butter and Jello sandwiches. Any truth to that being an actual misconception? ---
**Author:** ![stui\_magpie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stui_magpie/32/11010_2.png) [@stui\_magpie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stui_magpie)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054/59 "2015-09-22T00:10:50Z")
> [@Cyros](#): > > I’m Canadian but when it comes to food stuffs we tend to mesh well with US sensibilities. > > I just wanted to add that [pumpkin pie](http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/pumpkin-pie-recipe.html) is food of the gods. [Pumpkin pie soup](http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/whole-pumpkin-pie-soup-recipe.html) is straight from Satan’s unmentionables. > > The fact that he unleashed this monstrosity back into the world is proof positive that Alton Brown is the antichrist. Dude, proper pumpkin soup is real gor met tucker. [http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/5175/pumpkin+soup](http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/5175/pumpkin+soup) Yummmm. ---
**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2015, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054/60 "2015-09-22T00:19:06Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > Then, I’m guilty. I’ll grab a can and spray some on a cracker or chip for a quick snack. Although, it doesn’t “spray” so much as it oozes. Think of it as like Reddi-Whip, which I’ve been known to enjoy, too. I’m not proud, I’ll spray some right out of the can into my mouth. With “Chick’n n a Biscuit” crackers. Oh so de classe…and yet if you set it out at a party, the horrible crackers and hideous cheese all disappear. PB, B & J sandwiches - add bacon. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/foods-americans-like-that-non-americans-find-disgusting/732054.md?page=4)