# New world food or old world food- you choose. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 26, 2006, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666 "2006-01-26T05:11:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666/1 "2006-01-26T05:11:38Z")
If you could only choose to eat food from the Americas, or only food from the old world (Europe/Asia/Africa) which would you choose and why. Just curious. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666/2 "2006-01-26T05:29:52Z")
I can’t imagine living without Mexican and Tex-Mex food. I guess I’ll take the New World. ---
**Author:** ![Hirundo82](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/919ad9/32.png) [@Hirundo82](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hirundo82)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666/3 "2006-01-26T05:41:20Z")
Old world food. And I’m blaming you for my craving for Indian food now. ---
**Author:** ![Sternvogel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc79bd/32.png) [@Sternvogel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sternvogel)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666/4 "2006-01-26T05:51:51Z")
I eat fruit practically every day. I recently read that there are only three native North American fruits grown commercially – blueberries, cranberries, and Concord grapes. I like rice and pasta well enough that I could live without potatoes. I like lots of New World fish and other seafood, but the Old World gave us cows, pigs, and chickens. Although I eat turkey every Thanksgiving, and enjoy it occasionally throughout the year, I’ll have to go with the Eastern Hemisphere. Of course, I’ll have to find substitutes for Coca-Cola and Mountain Dew if beverages are included. Still, I’d be willing to try complying with the restrictions if I received sufficient financial incentive… ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666/5 "2006-01-26T06:03:25Z")
My vote, by the way, is for new world. I can’t imagine life without the tomato, potato, chili peppers and beans- not to mention chocolate. I’d really miss bread and wine and it would be hard to get used to corn and quinoa as my main starches- but it’d be worth it just to not have to give up avocados. I guess I’d just have to learn to make pineapple wine =). I think being vegetarian probably makes this easier for me. ---
**Author:** ![Celyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9dc877/32.png) [@Celyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Celyn)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666/6 "2006-01-26T06:16:13Z")
No _wine_ in the “old world”? 😕 I think I’d be happy enough with the old world stuff (including the wine etc, of courser) ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 6:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666/7 "2006-01-26T06:48:48Z")
If I could still have Italian, Greek, Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Vietnamese, Indian, and Middle Eastern, I’d be pretty content, even if I had to give up Mexican, Southwestern, Cajun-Creole, and Cuban. ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 7:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666/8 "2006-01-26T07:21:29Z")
> [@Big Bad Voodoo Lou](#): > > If I could still have Italian, Greek, Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Vietnamese, Indian, and Middle Eastern, I’d be pretty content, even if I had to give up Mexican, Southwestern, Cajun-Creole, and Cuban. Well, you could have Italian with no tomatoes. Thai and Vietnaamese without any chiles. Indian without the aloo. ---
**Author:** ![Antonius\_Block](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/51bf81/32.png) [@Antonius\_Block](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antonius_Block)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 8:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666/9 "2006-01-26T08:21:10Z")
_O horrendous **sven’s** World, that hath such choices in it!_ I’m an Old-Worlder in the New World, and I’m going to have to revert to my roots. I’ll get to drink wine, and beer ([hops](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hops) were first cultivated in Europe, and I don’t _think_ that they existed in the Americas prior to European introduction). I’ll get to have [olives](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olives) (and hence olive oil), [basil](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basil), and [garlic](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garlic). Also [ginger](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ginger) (apparently North America has a native relative of ginger, but it’s carcinogenic ☹ ). My favorite bread is sourdough (and I make my own using a [_Lactobacillus sanfrancisco_ starter](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lactobacillus_sanfrancisco)), but it seems that there are Old-World equivalents, although AFAIK I’ve never tried them. So, given that my favorite meal **EVAR!1!** would include sourdough bread, olive oil, basil, garlic, ginger, mozzarella, and tomatoes, with wine or beer, [but I’d have to sacrifice the tomatoes as a New-World Johnny-come-lately], I think I’ll stick with the Old World. BTW, is there really no equivalent of Chilli peppers anywhere in Europe/Africa/Asia? Seems a shame, but I’d survive with _something_ among the spices from the East Indies. [I’d hate to think that the Portuguese and Dutch did all of those explorations for nothing!] I’m rather relieved to find that the “staple” items that I make for myself (beer, sourdough bread, and ginger beer) are all old-World options. I wonder what bread made with Lactobacillus\_lisboniensis tastes like? On the whole, I’m glad that we have **all** of the options available., and don’t **have** to choose. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Shalmanese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 8:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666/10 "2006-01-26T08:25:58Z")
Old world, I could live my entire life (short as it would be) on classic french food. Butter, Cheese, Cream, Foie gras, wine… oh my! ---
**Author:** ![irishgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8edcca/32.png) [@irishgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/irishgirl)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 10:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666/11 "2006-01-26T10:02:21Z")
Old world: much more variety! Although if you added Pacific Rim and new Australian food to your New World I’d be more tempted. ---
**Author:** ![Neidhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Neidhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Neidhart)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2006, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666/12 "2006-01-26T23:31:03Z")
Does pizza taste any good if you substitute olive oil for the tomato sauce? Does a Kielbasa in a hot dog bun count as old world? It’d be kind of tough to live without potato chips and chili peppers. But on the other hand, I don’t think I could get used to my only meats being buffalo and venison. So I’d have to say it’s a wash. ---
**Author:** ![photopat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e95f7d/32.png) [@photopat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/photopat)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2006, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666/13 "2006-01-27T00:42:18Z")
Have to go old world, even though I’d have many tearful nights missing my potatoes. Now I can understand how Rincewind felt. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2006, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666/14 "2006-01-27T02:34:54Z")
Old world-I couldn’t live life without pierogies. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2006, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666/15 "2006-01-27T02:58:18Z")
Corn, tomatoes, potatoes, avocados, cranberries – yup, New World for me. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2006, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666/16 "2006-01-27T03:15:53Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > Old world-I couldn’t live life without pierogies. What do potatoeless pierogies taste like? ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2006, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666/17 "2006-01-27T03:55:41Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > What do potatoeless pierogies taste like? Pasta. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2006, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666/18 "2006-01-27T04:52:30Z")
> [@Neidhart](#): > > Does pizza taste any good if you substitute olive oil for the tomato sauce? Arab cuisine includes _za‘tar_ bread, which is essentially as you described. Tomatoless pizza, with a topping of olive oil, thyme, and sometimes ground sesame seeds. The recipe could go back thousands of years given the ingredients, which are all from early ancient times. And it’s really really _gooood_. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2006, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666/19 "2006-01-27T06:12:37Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > What do potatoeless pierogies taste like? D’oh! (Although there are recipes for fruit pierogies) ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2006, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666/20 "2006-01-27T15:51:27Z")
> [@Neidhart](#): > > It’d be kind of tough to live without potato chips and chili peppers. But on the other hand, I don’t think I could get used to my only meats being buffalo and venison. So I’d have to say it’s a wash. There’s also dog, llama, bear, and turkey. And a bunch of different kinds of fish and seafood. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-world-food-or-old-world-food-you-choose/341666.md?page=2)