People From Around The World Explain Which American Foods They Find Questionable
As an American and a foodie, one of my favorite things to do when visiting different countries is try local cuisine. Some foods, such as butterscotch ice cream, are more readily available -- and more delicious! -- in other countries.
However, there are some dishes that are just plain questionable. Personally, I never got why certain countries serve beans as part of their breakfast.
Of course, we're not the only ones that find certain foods questionable. People from other counties find some American foods questionable as well.
Redditors were only too happy to share their experiences with this topic.
It all started when Redditor HurtHurtsMe asked:
"Non-Americans, what American food do you find questionable?"
American Desserts
"My parents are immigrants, they always say the desserts (grocery store cupcakes and stuff) has so much sugar it feels too gritty and uncooked to them. Also soft baked things, like chewy chocolate chip cookies they thought were weird in the beginning, like the cookie was undercooked. I love soft baked cookies though so I baked them all the time, they’ve come around to liking them haha."
"Another one I hear a lot is the food coloring. My mom is often perplexed and grossed out by very saturated unnaturally colored foods. (Usually frosting or candy) She tells me it just LOOKS unhealthy and is unappetizing."
"Also, my mom is low key traumatized from twizzlers LOL. She said the first time she saw it she wondered why people were chewing on plastic. She then tried it and said it also tasted like plastic. Haha."
– DaburuKiruDAYO
Unaptly Named Restaurant
"As an Australian, I would like to know what in the flying firetruck a "Bloomin' Onion" has to do with anything, let alone the rest of Outback Steakhouse's menu."
– weyamav220
Not Just Lemonade
"Four loko. It’s banned here in Canada and I can understand why."
– AT1787
"Four Loko is a Canadian brand of lemonade. It originally had alcohol(~11% by volume)and caffeine. This mix was banned in Canada around 2010 so they dropped the caffeine and kept the alcohol."
– yeahmaybe2
"I turned 21 a year or so after they made the change...but my dad saved a box of 9 cans and sent them back to college with me. They were no f*cking joke"
– TurboShartz
Thanksgiving Food
"Sweet Potato Casserole recipe topped with pecans and marshmallows “traditional side at Thanksgiving table”"
– pixgarden
"I saw a youtube video of people trying traditional american thanksgiving food and I was convinced the potato marshmallow casserole was a joke. surely it's not for real ?"
– RonaIdBurgundy
In Days Of Yore
"Anything from the 50’s. Especially if it includes jello, mayonnaise or raisins"
– bakedmaga2020
"I will not be convinced that 50s cuisine was anything other than angry housewives taking revenge on society."
– Straight-faced_solo
"I remember a lime jello tuna salad ring made in a bundt pan by a distant relative. We told her with her work schedule she shouldn't bother with bringing food to pot lucks"
– DefrockedWizard1
Definitely A Werid One
"Corn candy or whatever the name is."
– le_krou
"Candy corn. It's good in small doses, anything more is too much."
– Freodrick
"To be fair, a lot of Americans find candy corn to be questionable"
– singleguy79
Ick.
"I feel a lot of our more unique foods were beaten out of the culture by the post-WWII obsession with frozen processed food pushing out traditional “poor” food."
"Kidneys, liver, beef tongue, chitlins, and other offal used to be staples of the American diet."
– DavidPuddy666
"My grandmother was born in 1936 and she is delighted that no one eats those things anymore lol"
– ibbity
Not A Staple Everywhere
"Pb&j had me confused for a while but when i took a bite i loved it. Not judging any other non-americans for not trying this because peanutbutter and jelly aren't put together in most countries outside of America."
– mastercubez
"I keep seeing this reference, and I am just gobsmacked that pb&j is mentioned so often. It's so ubiquitous in the US, that I have never even considered it would be considered odd by non-Americans."
– TesticularTentacles
Not Sure That's Even A Salad
"Minnesota salads 🥲😬 like WTF America! crushed pineapples and marshmallows are not ingredients that belong near a salad"
– Yalaeinhorn2704
"Majority of Americans share your sentiments lol"
– YoureHereForOthers
"I'm from Pennsylvania and I never heard of Minnesota salad. Just Googled it and YO WHAT THE F*CK'S GOING ON IN MINNESOTA"
– stealthbeast
Not Real Cheese
"I'm sorry but those slices of American cheese have always tasted so fake and plastic to me personally."
– weyamav220
"Slices of cheese product often are not cheese, so that's why."
– ooooooooooooolivia
"They are designed to melt quickly, which is why they're popular for burgers at cookouts or maybe a grilled cheese sandwich (though you really should pair it with other cheeses too). It's not "good" cheese by any stretch, but Americans really love convenience!"
– phantommoose
Double Tea
""Chai Tea""
"For anyone don't know - Literally means "Tea Tea""
"BTW, it doesn't taste like Chai"
– puripy
""What is this? Hot leaf juice?""
– Beowulf1896
Not For The Current Environment
"Hershey's Chocolate"
– SuvenPan
"100% agree. If I recall correctly it was supposed to be cheap affordable chocolate back in 1905 and really caught on as something the military would send with soldiers to help with morale since it lasted a long time and wouldn't melt as easily as other options."
– Dingo_Winterwolf
Kraft And Cheese
"Kraft Mac and cheese. It tastes nothing like real Mac and cheese"
– Rosieapples
"My Indian friend finds Kraft Mac and Cheese to be incredibly questionable. Honestly, I gotta agree that sh*t a bit too bright yellow to be normal."
– Incomingfenderbender
In A Can
"Spray… cheese??"
– spudboy226
"My mind is boggled by the amount of comments saying spray cheese. I’ve lived in the US my entire life (40 yrs) and worked in a grocery store for many years. I’ve never had it, and I’ve rarely seen people buy it."
"I think it is a niche thing. Definitely not flying off the shelves. It’s just so interesting seeing so many comments about it. Is that how we are advertised in other countries?"
– InspectorRatched
"I don’t know anyone who actually eats it either, but the vet clinic I work at goes through the stuff like crazy. Put a little on the exam table and it’s great for distracting dogs and some cats during vaccinations and minor procedures like nail trims."
– RoseFeather
What Witchcraft Is This?
"Orange circus peanuts. What are they? How do they have so much sugar but taste so horrible? What science experiments created them?"
– me047
"My dad loved them. I think he was the only one."
– Redditisgarbage666
I have the same questions!
- Americans Attempt To Describe What Walmart Is Like To Europeans ›
- Eaters Shamefully Admit Their Favorite Junk Food They Can't Say No To ›
Why are we still putting up with societal and cultural BS?
Seems like society has backslid into allowing behavior we proved was unacceptable.
I guess the learning was only temporary due to the pandemic.
We make excuses for the worst people.
Call out bad behavior.
It's the only way we'll grow.
A deleted Redditor wanted to have a discussion about what we as a society need to eradicate, so they asked:
"What toxic behavior does society still make excuses for?"
Being rude to waiters, because I'm 'just demanding.'"
If you are... you're evil.
Doctor's Note
"Looks like we are quickly returning to the 'go to work even when you’re sick' way of thinking."
tickingkitty
Gimme Space
"That Family is allowed to not respect boundaries. It's something I see a lot and often trying to set healthy boundaries with them makes them treat you like the bad guy. And media and society tends to promote this behavior as love, when it's often actually dysfunction."
"There's a difference between being close and taking care of your loved ones and being expected to give up reasonable rights to personal space or to self sacrifice for them."
thrashmetaldinosaur
Not so Bad
"White collar crime. And it often appears that the more money involved in the crime and/or fraud, the less likely commensurate repercussions will be brought. The consequences of big money financial fraud are widespread and significant. It ruins many lives and often leads to the death of innocents."
NoHedgehog1650
To the Bone
"Overworking and lack of sleep."
sesameball
"Plus missing meals to work more."
The_Hot_Stepper
Work. Work. Work. All the way to death. Welcome back to the office kids.
Hot/Crazy
"The 'cute but psycho'; mentality. It’s not cute to be toxic or treat people like crap because you think it’s 'cute' or acceptable because of your attractiveness."
lemonlady7
Bandwagon fallacy
"That if you agree with a majority of people, you are correct."
saltysaltedsal
"Not even the majority of people. If you can find people who share the same belief as you, it makes that belief even stronger. The internet has exasperated this problem."
"It use to be if you were into a niche taboo or out there conspiracy theory, you were pretty isolated. Now there are thousands of others who share the same thing connected from all over the world, so it’s no longer weird. In fact, it’s normal and everyone else is wrong. And they now have a thousand other people who will back them up on that!"
tie-dyed_dolphin
Calm Down
"Hustle Culture. You don’t need/have to monetise every moment of your private life to make more money - you don’t need a side gig or to start your own business or to turn your hobby into a job to be happy."
"It’s actually really scary that so many people get drawn into this way of living and don’t realise they’re literally missing the living part of their lives."
Action-a-go-go-baby
"Not to mention, turning it into a job can destroy it as a passion. I’ve talked to so many artists who, once they turned that hobby into a job, couldn’t even enjoy it anymore cause it felt like they were always working, even if they were just at home late at night doodling for fun."
Propain98
No Susan...
"Mistaking partner's possessiveness for love/caring."
SailorLuna41518181
"Sooo true many girls of my age think that he is possessive of me because he cares about me. No Susan he isn't possessive because he loves you he is possessive because he sees you as an object solely accessible/unique to him."
No-Possible4124
Misdemeanors
"Filming someone making a mistake (not crimes) and posting them on the Internet, without censoring their names and/or faces, for them to be judged and humiliated."
NoUsername817226
Snoops
"This weird culture where couples go behind each others backs and snoop through their phones is really weird to me. Especially when they get mad for not finding anything. Or when asked to see their phone they get defensive. Its very childish imo, especially when it's 30+ year olds doing it."
woahts
Production Abuse
"How corporate America looks down on pregnant workers and having kids. All they see is decreased productivity instead of treating new parents or parents-to-be as humans. I know we’ve gotten better, but it’s still bad out there for a lot of people."
ryoon21
As usual, society falls backwards.
Why do people leave the Church?
So many reasons.
It's an important question the Church should look into further.
Attendance has been steadily declining for decades.
Society has evolved on so many issues and behaviors that the Church just seems to stay stagnant.
People aren't going to stay where they don't feel welcome.
Redditor UK_Jay wanted to hear from everybody who left the church in the rearview, so they asked:
"Ex-Christians, what made you leave church?"
I don't mind the Church, but once I was done with Catholic school, it was see ya. Bye.
Truth
"The fact that everyone wants to be a disciple of Jesus but don't do what Jesus told his disciple to do."
"Luke 6:46 'Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?'"
wasd876
Pivotal Moments
"My high school religion teacher encouraged us to question our own faith. He told us that it was okay if we wound up walking away from our faith. But if we continued to believe despite his class, our faith would be that much stronger."
"One of the questions was, 'Do you believe because you actually believe, or is it because you were told to by your parents?' I finally decided that I was only Christian because of what my mom told me growing up."
"I wish every single Christian could have that religion teacher for a semester. That single semester was pivotal in my spiritual development."
kana503
I Quit
"Had many friends and acquaintances that worked for the church and quit. Found out their reasons for quitting. The higher up staff did and forced my friends to do a bunch of corrupt crap. And if they didn’t, they 'Weren’t committed to the church enough, didn’t love God enough, weren’t willing to make sacrifices, will never make it in ministry.'"
"It broke my heart. I thought this was a place of love, and people who preached love. Haven’t trusted religion since. This church is a mega church in my area and keeps popping up more locations all over town. Makes me sick to my stomach every time I drive by."
aquarinmarin
Out of Focus
"The total hypocrisy of those I grew up around. Claim to be about love, spend most of their time hating people not like them. Claim to be about evangelism, literally only hang out with and talk to each other."
"Claim to be about giving, spend all of their energy focused on making more money for themselves."
"Not to mention they have conditioned themselves to avoid critical thinking at all costs. Must accept blind 'truths' at face value, OR ELSE."
devilish-nerdclap
For my sister...
"When my younger sister with Down’s syndrome was told she wasn’t eligible for communion despite taking all of the classes because she 'didn’t understand.'"
TheLastSpiceGirl
Family first. Help someone understand.
Damage
"They damaged my mind. I always thought I would go to hell for things I like such as horror films, heavy metal and tabletop RPGs."
EuroCultAV
"the Lord spoke to me"
"Lack of answers, judgement, and hypocrisy mostly. I also read the Bible over and over and I just wasn't getting what other people were apparently getting out of it. Also everytime I prayed, nothing happened. Every now and then someone would be like 'the Lord spoke to me.' I always waited for something like that. It just never did."
"That lack of answers thing really bugged me the most though. I really wanted what I read in the Bible to be true but I just couldn't find anything to support most of it's claims. I was really sad for awhile. And scared that the devil tricked me. After awhile tho, I didn't believe in him either."
SpiritedDistance6242
Left Behind
"They left me. My first partner and I grew up in the church together. We were seen as the golden couple in our youth group. Good, proper Christian couple. Said our prayers, worked with the less fortunate, youth work, worship, I even led sermons. Eventually we moved away to start a new life together. We then broke up. I then find that I'm being kicked out of groups on WhatsApp and Facebook, people are unfriending me on social media, all from the church."
"I found out she'd gone home first and started talking to people. I don't know what she told them, but none of the people I saw as my second family, this fellowship I'd felt so welcome in even came to me to talk. I was left alone. I reached out to multiple people to say I needed prayer because I was struggling. I got nothing. I felt abandoned by God and abandoned by his people. So I walked away from that life."
c0_sm0
Disbelief
"I was a preteen locking myself in a dark closet because that's where I felt the closest to God - in the darkness. Like he was something that couldn't be seen - only felt. And I looked up into the nothingness of my closet ceiling after the millionth episode of physical and emotional abuse from my dad."
"I asked him to save me. God, not my dad. I was crying, screaming. Please. Please save me. I was just a kid. Surely I didn't deserve this. No one answered. And it occurred to me that anyone who could stop this and wouldn't, couldn't exist. So I stopped believing."
elaerna
Thieves
"Preachers having massive homes while the people that go to the church struggle. It’s hypocrisy from the top down."
prussianflyingcircus
Peace Out
"I gave it up for Lent and never went back."
ScaricoOleoso
"I did the same thing with New Year's resolutions. As far as I know, I'm the only one who has ever kept a New Year's resolution."
MaxCWebster
These certainly were some interesting stories where people encountered a crisis of faith.
Do you have any similar stories? Let us know in the comments below.
It's interesting what people are initially attracted to about a person.
Some are drawn instantly by one's appearance based on a person's general attractiveness or how they dress and groom themselves.
Others seem to be turned on by one's attitude–like how a person presents themselves in public and how much confidence they exude without an air of pretentiousness.
If and when the object of one's affection is romantically obtained, the way in which the next step in the relationship progresses could be a sexy success or a total deal-breaker.
Curious to hear strangers recalling a deciding moment, Redditor JokeRadiant3881 asked:
"How did you feel the first time you saw your partner naked?"
These were triumphant reactions.
For Lack Of A Better Word
"I literally said 'woah' out loud."– ALIEN_Human_HYBRIDRomantic Thrill Ride
"Like a kid at Disney world. Hadn’t been on any rides yet but was excited to be there nonetheless."
– -Praetoria-
Headrush
"don't remember, no blood flow to my brain at that point."
– DoctorNotAnEngineer
Revved Up
"Horny."
– Shaggy_Poop
Complete Looney Tunes
"Remember that cartoon dog where his jaw hits the floor, tongue rolls out, and his eyes bulge out to the sound of an old timey car horn? Basically that."
– squaredistrict2213
Confidence levels were challenged but these Redditors were pleased with the results.
We Are Not Equals
"Felt sorry for what I had to offer in return."
– CurlyBill03
MILF Love
"Same! I’ve had four kids and had a lot of extra skin and sag. Man did NOT care. He seemed just as stunned as I was."
– TooTallMcCall
Embracing It All
"I felt the same way for a bit, with my hubby after baby. But every time I'm naked, even though I don't like where my body is at, he looks like he hit JACKPOT. So I feel better, knowing he thinks I'm hot, sexy, beautiful, even more so then before because I'm the mother of our child."
– DiamondEyedBarbie
Physical endowments were admired.
Life In Real-D
"She had deceptively big boobs."
– HappyDodge2
Object Appeared Larger Than Expected
"I felt like WOWZA im one lucky girl."
– Professional_Hour702
Breakfast Show
"Well, I’m 54 and got out of a marriage where my ex never felt comfortable being naked around me. My new fiancé has no problem getting naked and gives me a little show each morning she gets dressed. And she’s got an amazing body at 55!"
– macgiv
I'm very self-conscious when it comes to my body, but nothing says sexy like seeing the physical response from another man giving me a huge thumbs up, so to speak, after seeing me in my birthday suit.
Verbal affirmation isn't all that it's hyped up to be.
But body language? Now that is everything.
Mothers Explain How They'd Feel If The Father Asked For A Paternity Test
In every relationship, there are bound to be some tough conversations, like how to budget and deciding whether to move somewhere new.
But there are other conversations, like getting a paternity test or going through someone's phone, that potentially imply a lack of trust.
Redditor BlueSharker asked:
"Women, would you care if your husband wanted to do a quick, basic, cheap DNA test to make sure the kids are 100% his? And why?"
Healthy Relationship
"I love the wording of a 'quick basic cheap' test, like hey, it's no big deal, this is a totally normal quick little thing healthy strong couples do!"
"Like, Baby, it's no big deal. I just want to test the kids' DNA to make sure I can trust you."
- kaksereciklira
Feeling Insulted
"I just asked my wife this, and she said, 'I will rip your nads off and feed them to you if you want that d**n test.'"
"So yeah, they care."
- exportz
Holy Insinuation, Batman
"Asking for this test either means:"
"1. You think I cheated on you but don't want to actually accuse me directly of it and deal with the fallout of being wrong which is both cowardly and insulting and also didn't work."
"2. You have been spending time on unsavory red pill internet sites and are dumber and more gullible than I thought when I married you and I've now lost all respect for your critical thinking skills."
"3. You don't want to be married or be a father to our kids anymore and are looking or an excuse to leave. Perhaps you are yourself cheating, or you are hiding some other secret or opinion from me and have been for a while."
"None of these scenarios are good. I would 100% be rethinking the whole marriage at this point. What else are you going to blindside me with and when? Probably better to just leave on my own terms than wake up one day and find you gone and all the accounts drained."
- Fantastic_Poet4800
Lack of Trust
"I wouldn't be opposed to the actual request because I have nothing to hide."
"But the fact that he felt the need to ask 100% indicates his lack of trust in the marriage and that is the bigger issue that I would be seriously concerned about."
"That would generally be my same response to any hypothetical requests for my husband to look through my phone. Like superficially, I don't care. It's just memes and pics of our kids. But the inevitable longer form conversation that gets triggered by that is why is the trust gone."
- golemsheppard2
Quiet the Haters
"I’ve offered it to my boyfriend for our one and only child to shut up all the naysayers in his family who were telling him it wasn’t his."
"And he said my offering is even more suspicious than not offering."
"Which, I don't know how the f**k that makes any sense, but whatever dude. The kid is yours. Do it or don’t. I don't care."
- linkxlink
The Terrible Mother-in-Law
"My ex-husband’s mom was really weird about our firstborn not looking like him."
"He and I are very different in looks, where he’s black hair, and tan skin, and I’m strawberry blonde, and very fair."
"The son was born with brown hair and blue eyes."
"He tans a bit but definitely doesn’t look like his dad... because he looks like a darker-haired version of MY dad."
"The crazy s**t was, my ex was cheating on ME for most of the marriage and both kids are absolutely his because I don’t play stupid games."
- Dorkadoodle
Child Support Conspiracy
"My father tried telling everyone I wasn't his kid (I was conceived maybe a week or two before he got caught cheating on my mum)."
"My nan took one look at me and laughed in his face. She eventually convinced him to acknowledge me and pay his child support. I love my nan."
- maybebabyg
Going No Contact
"When my parents’ divorce started getting nasty, my father accused my mother of cheating, and that I was the result of it."
"He asked me over and over again to get a test and sure enough, I’m his biological son. He didn’t believe the result and kept asking me to do more tests."
"Among other reasons, I don’t speak to him anymore."
- Loopnova_
Taking the Estate
"I got my revenge on my dad's family who never believed I was his (my parents were together for 30 years but never married)."
"He passed away without signing his will. At his funeral, his sisters poked at my nose and pulled on my ears, questioning whether I was really their niece."
"So I got a posthumous paternity test done. The entire estate went to me and I didn’t give them a dime."
- qiwizzle
Empathetic Testing
"I would not care. My husband found out late in life that he has a different biological father due to DNA testing and it crushed him. I would understand that the test has more to do with that circumstance than his trust in me."
"That being said, even after going through everything with his dad, he never tested our kids, but I told him multiple times to go for it and I’d be totally fine!"
- CharacterLoquat6950
Accidental Discoveries
"One of my best friend's dads bought her and her two sisters Ancestry.com tests only for her older sister to get a 'Congrats! You have a half-sister!' email after my friend’s results were submitted."
"Obviously, she called her dad like 'What the f**k is this,' and he had them retest the results twice."
"He had to be the one to break the news to my friend. He absolutely had no clue before this happened, and he broke down crying and told her that she was still his daughter regardless."
"We were 24 at the time, and I genuinely can’t imagine how it must’ve felt to be either of them receiving that news."
"Her mom even tried to deny it at first before finally coming clean."
- ElysianReverie21
Grocery Store Antics
"'Here's a picture of my kid' … 'and here is the DNA test proving it!'
"'Can I leave now, officer? He just likes to scream kidnap for fun…'"
"Sigh. I love taking them to the grocery store with me."
- drewbreeeezy
Dad Jokes Galore
"I recently discovered that none of our three children are mine biologically."
"I feel so stupid, I should have known something was up when they all existed before I met my wife."
"All kidding aside, as a stepdad, I do find it genuinely tragic when dudes completely abandon kids and withdraw all love because it's not theirs, not their problem. I understand complex emotions surrounding the marital betrayal, but I can't imagine just peacing out on a kid whose fault it categorically isn't."
- Overthinks_Questions
What's the Point?
"Our kid looks so similar to my husband that her face unlocks his phone."
"Sure, do the test."
- noopibean
Not the Mother
"As a child, I overheard my Mom say to my Dad, referring to me: 'She is nothing like me. Are you sure you didn't cheat on me?'"
"I really never had much in common with my Mom, and at that age, I didn't know anything about how babies are made, so I thought she was serious and lived with that doubt for a few years."
- MsMaggieMcGill
While some people were able to make jokes or could otherwise point out why paternity testing had been helpful in their own lives, most were concerned about the lack of trust asking for a test implied.