# What Britishisms most baffle Americans? What Americanisms most baffle Brits? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 18, 2024, 8:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941 "2024-10-18T08:53:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 37
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2024, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/721 "2024-11-02T21:37:59Z")
It’s a commercial product that appears to fill a similar niche to Miracle Whip - that is, as a cheap-to-manufacture mayo substitute incorporating water. Originally a Heinz product, but also produced in many other brands and supermarket own-brands. > **[Salad cream](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salad_cream)** > > Salad cream is a creamy, pale yellow condiment based on an emulsion of about 25–50 percent oil in water, emulsified by egg yolk and acidulated by spirit vinegar. It is somewhat similar in composition to mayonnaise, but mayonnaise is made with oil as its main constituent whereas salad cream is based on vinegar and water. Both salad cream and mayonnaise usually include other ingredients such as sugar, mustard, salt, thickener, spices, flavouring and colouring. The first ready-made commercial pr Hi... ---
**Author:** ![Zyada](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zyada/32/3028_2.png) [@Zyada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zyada)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2024, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/722 "2024-11-02T21:38:02Z")
Miracle Whip is noticeably sweet - not candy sweet, but much sweeter than mayo. It is not noticeably sour. ---
**Author:** ![pjd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pjd/32/3009_2.png) [@pjd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pjd)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2024, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/723 "2024-11-02T21:38:45Z")
> [@Mighty\_Mouse](#): > > To my taste salad cream is less rich and more sour than mayonnaise It’s made with vinegar/water more than oil, and it’s lovely. See also Heinz sandwich spread (a blend of salad cream and relish), which goes very well with haslet, which is another pork luncheon meat type thing. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2024, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/724 "2024-11-02T21:38:49Z")
Salad cream is definitely quite vinegar-forward. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2024, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/725 "2024-11-02T21:39:17Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Oh, also, miracle whip. Not a thing here. > > We do have salad cream, which is an equivalently cheap-to-make mayonnaise substitute with a similar recipe to miracle whip, but whereas miracle whip is (I understand) sweeter than mayo, salad cream is significantly more sour than mayo. You know what that reminds me of? Actual mayonnaise— I assume we all know what it is— versus what the Dutch call _Fritessaus_. Miracle Whip may be a local brand name, that’s all. ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2024, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/726 "2024-11-02T21:39:24Z")
I’m guessing that some potato/pasta salads I’ve eaten had Miracle Whip as their base, because they were ridiculously sweet. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2024, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/727 "2024-11-02T22:18:46Z")
Miracle Whip is a brand name - but it’s not mayonnaise and I don’t know if any other company makes a comparable product. The FDA defines certain foods and Miracle Whip doesn’t contain enough oil to be mayonnaise. Mayonnaise also must have eggs, but I think Miracle Whip also does. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2024, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/728 "2024-11-02T22:38:23Z")
I mean I don’t know if any other company in the US makes a comparable product - that Dutch one seems to be similar in that it doesn’t have enough fat to be called mayonnaise. ---
**Author:** ![Pleonast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pleonast/32/1183_2.png) [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2024, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/729 "2024-11-02T23:31:19Z")
Thanks. I thinking that product couldn’t be called “salad cream” in the U.S. due to the lack of dairy cream. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2024, 10:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/730 "2024-11-03T10:00:36Z")
I just stumbled across a reddit thread where English and American folks appear to be arguing about the name for the # symbol, with confused assertion on both sides, it seems. As I understand it, in the USA, that’s called pound, octothorpe or hash. Here in Britain it’s called hash (and octothorpe too apparently but I’ve not encountered that often), but it’s not called pound, because ‘pound symbol’ (more commonly ‘pound sign’) refers to £ - the symbol for our currency, which is called the pound. Interestingly, on UK keyboards, the £ (pound) symbol is in the same place as the # symbol on an ANSI keyboard (shifted symbol on the 3 key on the numeric row) ---
**Author:** ![Tibby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tibby/32/17030_2.png) [@Tibby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tibby)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2024, 11:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/731 "2024-11-03T11:14:24Z")
Many American supermarkets have an “English” section tucked into the International aisle, which is where I go to pick up Birds custard, digestive biscuits (I’m obsessed), and Bisto gravy granules (super handy—and the beef flavor’s actually vegan, which my daughters appreciate). I wonder, do British stores have an American section in their International aisles? I noticed that on Amazon UK, you can find things like Newman’s Own Ranch dressing (along with a few other brands I don’t recognize) and, oddly enough, American hot dogs [in a can](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ye-Olde-Oak-American-Hotdogs/dp/B07H6ZS66Z/ref=sr_1_28?crid=29Q4NES0Y5S4Z&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.hxgn-BAsNeVIIzKenGbQ6pqPoKTukE5Qpp5imY9iI_9xf9a3bfOsNQ-_G0VFyzf_cKPQl2L8bYpw_qIz99rAPpBXrNhRbSSsvxWwm5vKfY3PRY17WrayoL8wCrZg9OC8PV0qP4DEzAID54k9E3J9oIv2AH8BmOM41OLnxadXIzzD3O0-FrxsB4RzmHQT31yjE4jbxFQTy8YO-bfW4KYJeRGNgV8tzupJXYUwb-k_hikmxrwdNPvCGenDYk0vFBCRjIF2MogVxSd7On-LLSDjZR0Pfx-54F0LJkL7oOV-HKk.LyITiiFHIkotIM3IXkJUE0K_7JilfAiWZ2Ayjlwl_Bc&dib_tag=se&keywords=hot+dogs&nsdOptOutParam=true&qid=1730632169&sprefix=hot+dogs%2Caps%2C335&sr=8-28), which I’d definitely be wary of! 😲 Over here, hot dogs usually come cellophane-wrapped in packs of eight—though buns, naturally, come in tens 🙄. I’m partial to Nathan’s All Beef hot dogs, especially with toppings like Coney Island chili, New York onion sauce, Chicago pickles, Carolina slaw, Seattle cream cheese, Baltimore fried with bologna or bacon, or just the classic yellow mustard and relish. Nothing beats a good dog! 🌭 ---
**Author:** ![WotNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e19b73/32.png) [@WotNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WotNot)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2024, 11:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/732 "2024-11-03T11:14:35Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Neither is salad cream. I mean ‘recipe’ as in ingredients and method of manufacture. You can make it. It was a popular salad dressing for decades before it was available commercially. Here’s a recipe from Mrs Beeton’s Book of Household Management: > [@](#): > > 1. INGREDIENTS.—4 eggs, 1 teaspoonful of mixed mustard, 1/4 teaspoonful of white pepper, half that quantity of cayenne, salt to taste, 4 tablespoonfuls of cream, vinegar. > > _Mode_.—Boil the eggs until hard, which will be in about 1/4 hour or 20 minutes; put them into cold water, take off the shells, and pound the yolks in a mortar to a smooth paste. Then add all the other ingredients, except the vinegar, and stir them well until the whole are thoroughly incorporated one with the other. Pour in sufficient vinegar to make it of the consistency of cream, taking care to add but little at a time. The mixture will then be ready for use. > > _Average cost_, for this quantity, 7d. > > _Sufficient_ for a moderate-sized salad. ---
**Author:** ![iamatractorboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iamatractorboy/32/21261_2.png) [@iamatractorboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamatractorboy)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2024, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/733 "2024-11-03T12:23:00Z")
> [@Tibby](#): > > I wonder, do British stores have an American section in their International aisles? Not that I’ve noticed but it wouldn’t surprise me. As you might expect, they tend to be focused on any communities local to the area, so where I used to live there were for example Polish and Portugese sections, amongst others. I imagine there definitely were American foods available during the cold war given the number of USAF bases around in Suffolk. Oh and there seem to be loads of ‘American Candy Stores’, they just pop up in empty units all over the place. One I saw recently was a mixture of ‘candy’ and vapes. Pretty cynical and a blatant ploy to attract young or underage people to start vaping. ---
**Author:** ![Tibby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tibby/32/17030_2.png) [@Tibby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tibby)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2024, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/734 "2024-11-03T12:28:47Z")
That’s almost as bad as an Adult & Kid toy store. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2024, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/735 "2024-11-03T13:03:07Z")
“there seem to be loads of ‘American Candy Stores’” Believed to be a money-laundering or tax fiddle. > **[The sour truth of Oxford Street’s candy shop curse](https://www.standard.co.uk/lifestyle/oxford-street-candy-shop-investigation-b1082733.html)** > > Garish sweet stores have been blighting the capital’s famous shopping centre in recent years, but with business rates unpaid, illegal goods seized and money laundering exposed, authorities are fighting back, says Anthony France ---
**Author:** ![JacobSwan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a6a055/32.png) [@JacobSwan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JacobSwan)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2024, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/736 "2024-11-03T13:44:03Z")
> [@Tibby](#): > > I wonder, do British stores have an American section in their International aisles? My local Tesco in Epping has an american section. It’s really just an aisle end, but it’s full of Hershey bars and peanut butter and other American treats. Not sure why, as I haven’t really noticed a lot of Americans in the area. If they had a section dedicated to food for former Eastenders actors it would make more sense. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2024, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/737 "2024-11-03T13:48:06Z")
> [@Tibby](#): > > I wonder, do British stores have an American section in their International aisles? Yes, although you might be disappointed by what appears in such sections. A lot of it is snack foods that we have heard of from American media - so, twinkies, red vines, various Hershey & Reeses confectionery items, plus additionally some things that are supposedly USA-style, but may not actually resemble anything that exists in the USA - jumbo hot dogs in brine in a jar, for example Here is a brief tour of the ‘American’ section in a large Tesco supermarket here in England: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/OlvfX_TsG2o/maxresdefault.jpg "Random Stuff - Silver Play Button, American Products, Silicone Sausage, Plantains, Tomatoes") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OlvfX_TsG2o&t=73) ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2024, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/738 "2024-11-03T14:24:03Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > but may not actually resemble anything that exists in the USA - jumbo hot dogs in brine in a jar, for example Yeah, that part of the video caused me pause. It feels like something you might find in a bar deep in Wisconsin, along with the jars of pickled eggs and turkey gizzards (yes, that’s a thing up there.) Never seen full-sized dogs like that. And whoever told you that the only authentic dogs are all beef are incorrect. There’s plenty of great pork-beef mixes and even all-pork. But the two big hot dog towns, Chicago and New York, focused on all-beef. (May have had something to do with the Jewish population, I don’t know.) My wife is from Buffalo and my favorite hot dog may just well be Ted’s Hot Dogs (made by Sahlen’s), and they use a pork-beef mixture (although all beef is available, too. The standard one is pork-beef and I feel tastes better grilled up over charcoal than the all-beef dog.) ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2024, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/739 "2024-11-03T14:32:06Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > And whoever told you that the only authentic dogs are all beef are incorrect. That happens quite a lot. America is too big to know itself and it frequently happens that someone asserts the conventions or quirks of their home state as universal to the country. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2024, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941/740 "2024-11-03T14:42:30Z")
My favourite example of that phenomenon was on one of my budget challenge videos, someone from the states commented to say I cheated because I didn’t include the tax on the groceries that is added on at checkout. In the next video, I thought it would be helpful to explain that, unlike some parts of the USA, we don’t have taxes on the vast majority of unprepared food, and if we did, it would just be included in the price shown on the shelf edge. Someone from the states commented to say that I was an uninformed idiot, because they don’t have taxes on food either. Reality: it varies by state and a lot of Americans don’t realise this. (the USA isn’t the only place this happens - I think it’s a ‘large country’ phenomenon - I’ve also had Polish people tell me that my kielbasa sandwich was the exact thing their town is famous for, while others confidently told me that nobody in Poland eats anything like that) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941.md?page=36) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-britishisms-most-baffle-americans-what-americanisms-most-baffle-brits/1008941.md?page=38)