# What dish immediately comes to mind when someone says \[Country\] cuisine? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 29, 2016, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226 "2016-07-29T20:36:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2016, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226/21 "2016-07-30T17:31:06Z")
> [@Projammer](#): > > That’s exactly what I was talking about with foreign perception versus reality. I’ve always ‘known’ that pasta was as much a staple to Italians as rice is to Asians. Italy leads the world in pasta consumption, at 23.5 kg per person. [Cite.](http://www.pasta-unafpa.org/ingstatistics4.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2016, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226/22 "2016-07-30T18:39:57Z")
> [@kiz](#): > > Pasta only plays a small role in authentic Italian cuisine, and when it does it’s an appetizer and more common in the south. Rice (as in risotto) and polenta are the equivalent in the north. Central Italy is a mix of the two. > [@Frank](#): > > Italy leads the world in pasta consumption, at 23.5 kg per person. [Cite.](http://www.pasta-unafpa.org/ingstatistics4.htm) Apparently by some people’s definitions, Saronno is the south… mind you, the one thing that was different between pasta in Italy and pasta in Spain was the ginormous amounts of cheese my coworkers would add. My family usually accuses me of putting too much cheese on my portion, the Italians always asked “areyou only going to have that little cheese? 😕”. For me the US = barbecue. And if you get a couple of Southerners from different denominations, national origins, genders, families or family branches, you can trigger a multi-day discussion by asking for their sauce recipes… reminds me of how to tell someone from Valencia from someone from Castellón: just ask if a proper paella has green peas, people from Castellón put green peas in everything. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2016, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226/23 "2016-07-30T19:09:01Z")
Based on my travels: Belgium: mussels, pepper steak and fries France: croissants and baguettes Southern France: bouilliabase Germany: wurst and beer Czech Republic: beer Poland: bigos, pirogi and Polish sausage Austria: wiener schnitzel (hey, it’s right in the name) Italy: Sunday gravy with meatballs Greece: baklava and spanikopita Spain: paella England: fish and chips Holland: stroopwafel Uganda: Indian food of any kind Switzerland: fondue Vietnam: pho Portugal: any dish made from bacalhau (salted cod). I don’t like it, but it’s the national food; also, pasteis de Belem and rissois de camarao, which I DO like **Tripolar** : paella is not native to Portugal, AFAIK ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2016, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226/24 "2016-07-30T19:34:12Z")
Ooh, another one nobody’s mentioned: Nepal has daal bhat. ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2016, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226/25 "2016-07-30T19:37:48Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > You just playing **Count**? Or did you really not read the OP? 😉 Sorry. The other posts were making me hungry; guess I got distracted. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2016, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226/26 "2016-07-30T19:56:25Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > **Tripolar** : paella is not native to Portugal, AFAIK No idea if it’s native to Portugal, but they have their own style of making it and it’s a very popular dish with Portuguese people around here. If I had included Spain I’d have to go with paella for them also. It was the one that came to mind immediately as I thought of countries, and I don’t know of a stereotypical food associated with Portugal otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2016, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226/27 "2016-07-30T21:35:43Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > No idea if it’s native to Portugal, but they have their own style of making it and it’s a very popular dish with Portuguese people around here. If I had included Spain I’d have to go with paella for them also. It was the one that came to mind immediately as I thought of countries, and I don’t know of a stereotypical food associated with Portugal otherwise. It’s native to the Valencia region of Spain. I remember one restaurant in Lisbon that made it when we lived there. It would seem to be a natural for them, though, as it’s a seafaring nation. And perhaps it’s more common in areas bordering Spain. As I mentioned above, the typical food for Portugal are dishes made with salted cod. Sadly, the Portuguese are poor cooks (IMO), but terrific wine and cheese makers. It was bad enough food that in two years we took two food vacations to countries with decent cuisine: Spain and Italy. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2016, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226/28 "2016-07-30T22:37:05Z")
Algeria (and much of North Africa) - cous-cous with a delicious stew of beef, artichoke, etc. Normandy - raie au beurre noir (don’t forget the capers) Northeastern Thailand - somtam (spicy papaya salad). Serve it with sticky rice, a minty herb and a little meat for a cheap but exquisite meal ---
**Author:** ![jsquire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ce73a5/32.png) [@jsquire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsquire)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2016, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226/29 "2016-07-31T01:33:48Z")
Bulgaria: kavarma Kenya: ugali Bahamas: grouper Iceland: hákarl, the cured rotten Greenland shark commonly considered the worst-tasting food on earth Canada: double-double and a maple glazed Conch Republic: wahoo Breaking down the “middle east” to individual countries… Lebanon: hummus Egypt: falafel Jordan: shawarma Syria: kibbeh There is no rhyme or reason to which food is assigned to which country, I just happen to love Levantine cuisine and think it got shortchanged. ---
**Author:** ![Emtar\_KronJonDerSohn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/58956e/32.png) [@Emtar\_KronJonDerSohn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Emtar_KronJonDerSohn)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2016, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226/30 "2016-07-31T02:18:25Z")
United States: McDonald’s Belgium: Waffles Brazil: Meat on a sword Canada: Maple syrup or poutine China: Bizarre foods that I don’t understand but enjoyed looking at in NYC Chinatown Cuba: Whole roasted pig from a China box England: a wall of #10 cans with turquoise colored Heinz Beans labels, or that fat grilled tomato slice that comes in an English breakfast France: cheese, pastries Germany: beer, brats, sauerkraut Greece: greek yogurt, honey, dates, falafel India: very fragrant sauces that don’t agree with me Ireland: fish and chips Italy: spaghetti neri Jamaica: jerk chicken Japan: tiny crabs you eat live, or of flavors of KitKat from a Japanese 7-11 Korea: Korean bbq Mexico: spicy carnitas with beans and rice with a sunny side up egg on top and a stack of fresh corn tortillas on the side with a steady supply of margaritas Poland: sausage and cabbage Russia: don’t be ridiculous! I’m a high ranking KGB operative - I have my beets delivered! Scandanavia: Greenland shark Scotland: warm chocolate chip cookies and scotch Thai: little red super hot peppers ETA - I copied and pasted the list from **TriPolar** and added my own foods. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2016, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226/31 "2016-07-31T02:36:56Z")
> [@Emtar\_KronJonDerSohn](#): > > Japan: tiny crabs you eat live, or of flavors of KitKat from a Japanese 7-11 I grew up in Japan and never had live crabs, or even recall seeing it on a menu anywhere in Japan. Is this some regional specialty? ---
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2016, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226/32 "2016-07-31T06:07:40Z")
Argentina - Carne asado with chimichurri Colombia - Bandeja Paisa Cuba - Ropa Vieja Peru - Cuy Venezuela - Arepas ---
**Author:** ![kambuckta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/53a042/32.png) [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2016, 8:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226/33 "2016-07-31T08:13:13Z")
USA: hamburgers China: dim sum and fried rice Vietnam: pho Italy: spaghetti bolognaise and pizza. Greece: spanokopita and taramasalata and pita bread Turkey: beetroot dip and baba ganoush. England: the big breakfast and chicken tikka. Bali: nasi goreng and babi guling. Austria: weiner schnitzel Scotland: haggis Ireland: anything with potatoes as the main ingredient. 😉 Faroe Islands: anything with lamb. New Zealand: a hangi Malaysia: curried whatever India: roti bread Thailand: chicken green curry Mexico: chili con carne and tacos Canada: chips with cheese sauce. Spain: paella Mongolia: yak meat cooked in yak milk. 😉 And finally, Australia. Australia’s national dish is the humble meat pie, a concoction of meat in gravy encased in pastry. The quality of the meat pie varies dramatically from vendor to vendor, and is only made edible (mostly) by liberal applications of tomato sauce (ketchup). But being a multicultural country, I am within driving distance of pretty much all of the above cuisines (no yak yet, waiting…). Oh, and although I can get a hamburger in five minutes, I don’t know whether it’d pass muster as an American burger. I feel privileged. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2016, 8:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226/34 "2016-07-31T08:25:31Z")
South Africa: Bobotie Other countries: United States: Fried chicken Belgium: Pommes frites with mayonnaise Brazil: Feijoada Canada: Poutine China: Cha siu bao Cuba: Cuban sandwich England: Cornish pasty France: Cassoulet Germany: Eisbein Greece: Spanakopita India: Masala dosa Ireland: Colcannon Italy: Risotto Japan: Onigiri Korea: Kimchi Mexico: Enchiladas Poland: Pierogis Russia: Borsch Finland: Reindeer with lingonberry compote Denmark: Pickled herring Scotland: Haggis Thai: Pad Thai Vietnam: Pho Spain: Paella Portugal: Bacalhau Netherlands: Stamppot Switzerland: Raclette Australia: Meat pie floater Israel: Falafel Morocco: Shakshuka Algeria: Tagine Tunisia: Couscous Egypt: Ful Lebanon: Baba ganoush Turkey: Shish kebab Saudi: Kabsa Ethiopia: Wat Kenya & Uganda : Ugali (actually, most of East & Southern Africa, just different names) Rwanda: Plantain with peanut sauce Ivory coast: Chicken maafe Angola & Mozambique: Piri-piri chicken Namibia: Braaied springbok Botswana: Mopane worms ---
**Author:** ![Emtar\_KronJonDerSohn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/58956e/32.png) [@Emtar\_KronJonDerSohn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Emtar_KronJonDerSohn)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2016, 8:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226/35 "2016-07-31T08:44:23Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > I grew up in Japan and never had live crabs, or even recall seeing it on a menu anywhere in Japan. Is this some regional specialty? I saw it on a show about parasites called Monsters Inside Me. Not a strong cite, but I still think about it when I’m eating sushi. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2016, 9:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226/36 "2016-07-31T09:28:37Z")
UK: Roast beef France: cheese Ireland: beer Japan: okonomoyaki Korea: kimchi Oz: shrimp Turkey: kebab Greece: kebab Belgium: mussels Argentina: steak India: curry Italy: pizza Spain: paella Canada: maple syrup ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2016, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226/37 "2016-07-31T11:49:57Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Ooh, another one nobody’s mentioned: Nepal has daal bhat. And momo, which are a little street food piece of heaven. ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2016, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226/38 "2016-07-31T12:20:08Z")
Thread relocated from IMHO to Cafe Society. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2016, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226/39 "2016-07-31T16:35:55Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > For me the US = barbecue. And if you get a couple of Southerners from different denominations, national origins, genders, families or family branches,\*\* you can trigger a multi-day discussion by asking for their sauce recipes\*\*… Or a war by asking the same question of a bunch of Texans. ---
**Author:** ![Ignotus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ecc23a/32.png) [@Ignotus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ignotus)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2016, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226/40 "2016-07-31T17:42:44Z")
Denmark: [Smørrebrød](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sm%C3%B8rrebr%C3%B8d). Finland: [Kalakukko](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalakukko). Iceland: [Svið](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Svi%C3%B0). Norway: [Rømmegraut](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R%C3%B8mmegraut). Sweden: Alas, [Falukorv](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falukorv). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-dish-immediately-comes-to-mind-when-someone-says-country-cuisine/761226.md?page=3)