When it comes to food, it seems like pretty much everyone has a strong opinion. It’s difficult not to be picky about what goes in your mouth and stomach. And when it comes to other countries’ cuisines and the quality of ingredients, you’ll find that many folks are incredibly vocal about their likes and dislikes. Mainly the latter.
Redditor u/ergoegthatis asked non-Americans to share what American foods, in their opinion, are the ‘nastiest.’ We’ve collected some of their posts to show you the range of opinions others have about US food. Scroll down and be sure to voice your own thoughts in the comments, Pandas. What American food do you love the most? What do you absolutely hate? There are a lot of options to choose from.
Oh, and just to be completely open and honest with you, Pandas: we absolutely looove having a cheeky American meal… from time to time. Pretty much every country has its culinary stars and kitchen disasters—and a lot depends on personal taste and the lifestyle you enjoy leading. So take everyone’s opinion with a grain of salt. Usually, the issue isn’t with the food item or dish itself, so much as the low quality of the ingredients, the portion size, and whether you gobble everything up or eat slowly. Enjoying. Every. Single. Bite.
Bored Panda reached out to redditor u/ergoegthatis, and we had a friendly chat about the wide range of American food, what dishes they did and didn’t enjoy at home and abroad, and why they definitely recommend traveling and broadening one’s horizons.
“I was traveling outside the US and tried the cheeses there and they were a world of difference from the cheese-like substitutes we have in the US, which look and taste disgusting now compared to authentic cheeses. I look at them and think, ‘Am I the only one grossed out by these fake cheeses?’ A few days later, I came across an old news story about a famous donut company that turned its signature glazed donut into a drink, which also sounds nasty and not just because of how horribly unhealthy it is,” they explained what drove them to create the thread in the first place. (We have to agree, cheese elsewhere is far better!)
Remember: everything in moderation; even food critiques!
#1
That bright orange plastic that you call “cheese”.
Image source: The100thIdiot, wikimedia.commons
#2
Those Midwestern “fruit salads” where half of the ingredients is marshmallow fluff or mini marshmallows, Jello, whipped cream… I have a high tolerance for American food, but I cannot handle these, or even comprehend why and how they exist.
Image source: CecilPalmer, dkmadness
#3
Spray on “cheese”
Image source: axe1970, wikimedia.commons
#4
Those cakes that have large amounts of fondant on them. The time and talent it would take to make one of these cakes is unreal but fondant is just nasty tasting in my opinion. That was not meant to offend anyone.
Image source: Orphan_Sandwich-06, Katie Rosario
#5
The prevalence of high fructose corn syrup in EVERYTHING. Unfortunately, being in Canada, it’s bleeding over the border as a lot of products here are manufactured in the USA.
Image source: yugosaki, Pixabay
#6
American bread. I’m sure you can get good bread somewhere in the US, but the generally available, sugary, long-shelf-life bread is so appalling.
Now, of course, your export of fast-food restaurants has nothing to do with haute cuisine, but any burger would be so much better if at least you used acceptable bread.
Image source: UhtredTheCold, Charles Chen
#7
That Thanksgiving dish Americans love with marshmallows on top of sweet potatoes — it sounds and looks disgusting.
Image source: anonymoustrashpandas, dingdongyourmomhasa
#8
Some of the savoury Jello recipes from the 50s and 60s look grim.
Image source: TimGJ1964, root_27
#9
the chocolate out there is FOUL
Image source: lcg25, Nathana Rebouças
#10
I once had a pizza in America and it had ranch dressing on it. Ranch dressing doesn’t really exist in Europe and it’s this weird salty fatty mayo-like sauce and it certainly does not belong on a pizza. Or inside a human body for that matter.
Image source: No-Vehicle6028, Ginny
#11
Canned whole chicken
Image source: Pandasrthebest, Luna_Scaredust
#12
Boiled peanuts. My wife loves them and every time we drove through South Carolina we had to stop and buy them. The stench was so bad I would have to roll the windows down. Those peanuts and Lindsey Graham are on my top two hate list for that state.
Image source: Uglycanadianindc, assortedeats
#13
Chinese Canadian. I’m going to provoke a lot of proud Southerners with this. Sweet tea is sugar water with a hint of tea.
My first experience of sweet tea was at a Floridian McDonald’s. I ordered iced tea and I got the question of “sweet or unsweet?” I’m dying of the heat and humidity (Canadians don’t do well in hot weather) and I wanted slightly sweetened tea and I didn’t know the history of sweet tea (sugar was expensive so people showed off by mixing diabetes inducing amounts of the stuff into their tea) so I was expecting anything but a sugar syrup in a cup.
I went back and bought a bottle of water. If a 12 year old with no easy access to sugar thinks it’s too sweet to drink, it is.
Also, any mayo based salad! Ewww.
Image source: astrangeone88, bady abbas
#14
Fake smoked bacon sprinkles in a bottle
Image source: Diamonds_n_Dirt, Leonardo Luz
#15
Candy corn.
Image source: InvestmentPowerful15, wikimedia.commons
#16
I had a deep-fried Mars bar at a festival in America the first time I ever visited and I’m reasonably sure it’s going to give a few of my ancestors diabetes
Image source: Initial_School7286, Outatime_doc
#17
Twinkies. Not food though lol.
Image source: MrMorsley, Mike Mozart
#18
Twizzlers, I found some in a shop in London and decided to buy some, they were the nastiest things I’d ever tasted and for the price I paid for them, I’m disappointed
Image source: gay_idiot53, Mark Bonica
#19
When they introduce me chicago pizza something in me died, that should not be called pizza is just a devil fat pie.
Image source: 2019Loser, Manvi Mathur
#20
Their dessert. I lived there for 3 years and the amount of sugar they dump into their desserts are mindblowing. Beautiful to look at but holy s**t were they sweet as hell.
Image source: Ililea, Nicole Michalou
#21
Poptarts or whatever they’re called. And twinkies.
Image source: Living-Departure-102, CaligulasPeri
#22
The felt obsession with anything deep-fried is unnerving to me. There’s a good few things that are excellent deep-fried, don’t get me wrong, but putting literally anything in batter and frying it seems… self-destructive at best.
Image source: MonolGaming, Wine Dharma
#23
I tried a big-name American chocolate brand once but couldn’t eat it due to the vomit smell and taste.
Image source: TomomiimomoT
#24
I find biscuits and gravy to be absolutely disgusting. But I’d like to counter-balance that by adding how crazy delicious corn bread is and why on earth hasn’t it become a staple here in Europe? It’s SO yummy!
Image source: FifiLaFifi, CcaidenN
#25
I hate scrapple. There’s a reason the word ‘crap’ is in the middle of it.
Image source: mrmitchs, wikimedia.commons
#26
Pig feet.
Image source: LeRacoonRouge, /bob-the-cook
#27
American here, absolutely DESPISE pre-packaged frosting. It’s either as hard as a rock or a liquid. Don’t know what they put in that stuff but it’s just awful.
Image source: WinterPublic2776
#28
Cincinnati “chili”
Image source: dadof2as, ImmaCanuck
#29
Ghirardelli, Guittard, Dove, Scharffen Berger, and hundreds of smaller companies are fine. Pretty much just avoid anything you would find near the register at a grocery store
Image source: mostlikelynotasnail
#30
Corn dog
Image source: 6IXTY9INEhaha, Blake Guidry
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