Typical American Dinner

Cafe Society
21

Just a caution that savory dishes are not a huge hit here in Thailand. Sure, some folks eat them, but not many in my experience. Cheese also might be a problem, although there are exceptions (pizza seems to be a hit here, but mac & cheese not so much). Especially stay away from stinky cheeses like feta or goat (in case you were tempted to crumble some into a salad).

There is Sizzler here, but every time I’ve gone there, I have never seen it more than 20% full. And there are only sweet dressings in the salad bar. I couldn’t find a tangy Italian or vinaigrette to save my life. If you do any kind of pot roast, I’d throw in a pinch or three of sugar. Not to make it sweet, but to take the edge off the savory flavor. Go light on the butter, too.

The family I’m living with here - nobody eats beef. I asked why, and they say “it tastes like cow”. I have no idea what that means. The most popular meats in my house are pork, chicken, fish and sea monsters (squid, clams, etc.)

Looking over the suggestions thus far and trying to pick out something I might try to get my in-laws to eat, I’d select:

Salad with ranch dressing (offer two or three dressings on the side, and try for two of them to be a bit sweet)

I Waldorf salad might be better, as the apples and raisins add some sweetness. I would still put the dressing on the side. Maybe add a pinch of sugar to the mayo dressing. Most mayo sold in stores here is extremely sweet.

Fried or roasted chicken - this is a safe bet.

Mashed potatoes with gravy - I would stay away from anything mashed or mushy such as MP or apple sauce, and gravy may be too savory and greasy for them.

Corn on the cob - good choice but serve it plain; don’t butter it for them.

Sauteed broccoli, baked beans

Pecan or apple pie (my in-laws don’t like apple pie because the apple is often mushy)

Baked sweet potatoes would be a good choice for the starch, but don’t hyper-sweeten them like we tend to do for Thanksgiving. I once made a baked potato and they watched me with undisguised disgust as I put butter and sour cream on it.

I would use ripe bell peppers (sweeter) in any dish rather than green ones. Don’t overcook veggies, bring them to the table with a firm crunch.

I think a tuna casserole might be good, as long as it’s not cheesy.

It’s going to be tricky to serve “typical American” and serve something they actually like at the same time. I know that anything I suggested above to help make the food more appealing may at the same time make it less “typical American”.

I’m not saying you should change the menu, but I wanted to list a few things you might want to avoid to improve your chances of the guests actually liking what you serve. Just don’t be insulted if whatever you serve is just tasted & picked-at. That’s often what I do when I walk into the dining room and see a typical Thai dinner on the table. Luckily the meals here are always “buffet style” and there is usually a broad assortment of dishes and I can find a few things that aren’t organ meat & sea monsters.

Oh, and make sure to have catsup on the table. That seems to go on everything that’s not traditional Thai food here. When Pizza Hut delivers they always includes catsup packets with each pizza.

Good luck.

22

And it should include corn on the cob. And maybe watermelon. Although I could imagine a foreign visitor not knowing how to eat those things.

23

Both corn on the cob and watermelon are common in Thailand. But the corn is eaten plain, neither salted nor buttered.

24

Not a big fan of Fawlty Towers, then?

The traditional American dinner consists of meat (steak, most likely, but meat loaf is also acceptable), potatoes (fried or baked), and a vegetable (corn, peas, green beans, etc.). The only seasoning would be salt (too much). Butter (for baked potatoes and the vegetable) and ketchup (for fries and often the steak) are on the side.

If there’s a salad, it should have Italian dressing (Ranch is a recent upstart for those who found that the Italian had too much flavor).

No sauces or spices or anything that might accidentally add an additional flavor.

25

Often a salad for starters. Then meat/starch/vegetable as many have mentioned, and usually dessert.

The meat can be mammal flesh, poultry, fish, or (just occasionally in most parts of the country) seafood. We also had liver once or twice a month but I wouldn’t choose that unless I knew for sure it suited my guests’ taste.

The starch can be potatoes, pasta, or rice.

Lots of choice on veggies. In my childhood home, corn was a vegetable. I’ve learned that many consider it a starch instead.

Lots of choice on dessert as well. Pie, cake, Jell-O, pudding, ice cream, etc.

26

Back before the ranch invasion, I remember that we used to make something that we called Russian dressing. I know it had mayonnaise and ketchup in it, and I can’t remember what else. I know it had some sort of seasoning in it. This dressing was pretty common among our friends and family. My family used homemade Italian dressing as well, because my father was first generation Sicilian and he grew up eating oil and vinegar and spices on his salad. When ranch came along, at first it was in packets, which we had to mix with mayo and buttermilk.

As for the stereotypical American dinner, I think that meatloaf, mashed potatoes and gravy, and some vegetable to be named later is a good one. Ice cream and/or cookies for dessert, if you have one. The pot roast is also a stereotypical American dinner.

Or just get some fried chicken and serve it out of a bucket, with French fries and maybe some cole slaw. :wink:

27

Neither feta nor goat are ‘stinky’ cheeses. You may be mistaking them with blue or gorgonzola.

When I first started dating my wife, we were having her Filipino family over for a cookout. I made a spinach salad with goat cheese as a side. To my surprise, not a one of them had tried goat cheese prior to that (cheese is almost non-existent in their diets). Everyone loved it.

While I can’t speak for Thai, my take from dealing with Filipinos would be you want to make something lighter than ‘typical’ American fare. I would try a seafood dish with an ‘American’ fish (local if you can, otherwise some type of fish not found in Thailand - salmon would be a good choice). If you are a fan, smoked foods and real American barbecue (as opposed to grilling and slapping some sweet sauce on top) seem to go over very well with my family. While steaks (with plenty of char) are liked, roast beef not as much. Potatoes and sweet potatoes are liked, as they are a good contrast to a rice-based diet.

I guess my biggest suggestions would be to contrast American cooking styles with foods they should be comfortable with, stay away from casseroles or especially cheesy dishes (including cheesecake as a dessert), include a gravy or a sauce, and stay light.

28

This sounds pretty much like our typical dinners as a kid, especially the steak. I remember being pretty bored with steak and wishing for a burger or something else as we had it all the damn time. The only thing I would change would be that our salad dressing was typically Thousand Island (remember that?).

29

I’d advise as much “on the side” as you can. So, like was mentioned, if you serve a vegetable serve it plain, with butter or a sauce that can be added to taste. Plain ingredients are traditionally American, and are less likely to include some dealbreaker flavor.

30

Out of curiosity, where would this dinner be taking place? I’m assuming based on context that the guests are coming to America where you live, but that’s not spelled out explicitly and it’s possible that you still live abroad and are incorporating “American” food as an homage to your nationality as opposed to your home. In any case, where you’re at could have an impact on ingredient options and an “American” meal will vary quite a bit based on location.

The Meat-Potato-Veggie meal is truly the common American meal and it’s a staple in the Midwest, but it might be considered much less common on the coasts. The South is it’s own animal and a Meat and Three dinner might be the more appropriate choice, which while very similar to the Midwestern standard the proportions and options would be quite a bit different. That said, when I first considered the OP a lasagna dinner was my first instinct. If you’ve got the skills and tools, a traditional southern BBQ with ribs, corn, fries and fruit would probably be a more distinctive bit of Americana if slightly less common in some parts of the country.

I have found the responses about the tastes of South Asians interesting to read.

31

Could you explain this, please? The rest of your post makes it sound like they eat mostly desserts at each meal: sweet, sweet and more sweet. How can an average meal not be “savory” in some way? Or are we using the word differently?

32

Thanks for the helpful info, Patty. Do you think Lamb might go over well? (Maybe grilled lamb chops?)

33

I haven’t had time to read every answer, but whatever regional specialty where you live is a good one. Maine? Lobster! Tennesee? Ribs! Where I live, we’d have our hometown natural casing frankfurters and little teeny potatoes boiled in heavily salted water. And beer. Lots of microbrew beer. (OK, that’s too casual. Pot roast, mashed potatoes and gravy, salad and veg.)

34

A lot of people have made great suggestions, but I recently moved back from Thailand and had some fun times cooking for a large number of hungry young people (our SCA group), and wanted to point out a couple more things from that experience:

  • Turkey was a huge, huge hit among our friends. It’s not that common in Thailand (although you can get them) and both the different taste, and the experience of the giant bird on the table, went over well. Maybe a scaled-down version of the “Thanksgiving” thing (roast turkey breast, stuffing, gravy) would be a hit.

  • As in most places in Asia, dark meat poultry seemed to be generally more popular than white meat (more flavorful).

  • Fried chicken is very common over there (they have KFC, as well as street stalls that make amazing local versions) so you might want to factor that in-- it would be a common American thing that would be familiar at the same time.

  • Plain is fine if that’s what you’re going for, but having condiments on the table to spice up the meal would be a nice touch. It’s a typical practice over there to adjust flavorings to taste, and Thais are generally more used to strong flavors than Americans are.

  • One of the most interesting comments made, after I served a medieval cold pickled beef dish, was that it tasted really good but felt a bit odd because “Thais don’t eat cold food”, as one of our friends observed. When I asked him to explain, he said that most food is cooked quickly before being brought to the table and so there’s very little that is served cooler than warm or at least room temperature (desserts are an exception and may involve ice). Plain salads also were not common.

Taste aside, a lot of people have made good suggestions, but something that comes to mind that might work would be American (Northern) Italian food: green salad with a choice of dressings, spaghetti with big hearty meatballs (and additional red pepper, oregano, parmesan, etc. available to spice it up), and garlic bread. Simple, hearty (but not uncomfortably so), good, and customizable. Lasagna (as already mentioned) would be another good option.

It’s honestly hard to say without knowing more about the guests involved, though I would hope that they would be willing to be a little adventurous and give you the benefit of the doubt!

35

As a Yankee who has learned the difference between BBQ and grilling, and has come to appreciate several different regional BBQs, I loved this. Thank you.

36

I’m having second thoughts about my suggestion (post #11) of tomato bisque.

Most adults of Asian genetic heritage are lactose-intolerant, so a dish featuring fresh milk may be a problem. Substituting a cultured-milk product (such yogurt, buttermilk, or sour cream) could work, but a non-dairy item might be a safer choice.

(Think twice about ice cream, too.)
I agree with the suggestions for offering a variety of dressings/sauces/etc on the side, allowing guests to try the unfamiliar with little risk, and to customize the food to their tastes.
Side note:

One thing that I get (possibly irrationally) a little bothered by, is the term “starches”.

“starches” is a term from popular culture. Academic nutrition recognizes “carbohydrates”. And they come from two plant sources – grains, and vegetables (including fruit).

Although both classifications are used as side dishes, they have different nutritional profiles with regard to vitamins, protein amount and type (amino acid make-up), and fiber content (and a few more, less interesting things).

Corn is a grain, same category as bread, pasta, and rice. Potatoes are a vegetable, same category as beans, squash, and apples.

For a company meal, serve whatever sounds good. But for day-in, day-out nutritional planning, the above may be useful to know.

37

Hotdogs and beans, with vanilla ice cream for dessert. Or hamburgers and fries.

38

If beef is not appreciated, I think lamb chops will be appreciated even less.

39

Beans, Sopa de Arroz, papas con chorizo

40

meat + carb + vegetable.

Meat can be anything from steak to meatloaf to porkchops to chicken. Carb is usually potatoes, rice, or noodles. Veggie is usually green beans, peas, corn, or carrots. Serving bread with butter along with it is optional.