12 American Foods That Non-Americans Find Gross

Ready for a surprise? Here are 12 American foods that folks from other countries find icky! From weird mixes to odd flavors, these dishes may seem normal to us, but to others, they are just too strange. Let's discover what makes these meals so bizarre to the rest of the world

1. Canned Foods

For some reason, there was beef with the humble tradition of canned food — more precisely, items that “probably don’t need to be canned.” Maybe this is pertinent: things lose flavor if they live in cans too long. However, fierce patriots fought back, stating how a mountain winter in the Boonies relied on canned goods.

2. Various Forms of Cheese

Wisconsin’s favorite product got a shellacking in the conversation. Comments ranged from ambivalence over mac-and-cheese to Cheese Whiz being disgusting, but particular outrage formed over cheese in a can or “cheese product,” which is only required to contain 51% cheese.

3. Sugar Content

I think most people are just surprised at how much sugar goes into the average American diet. I recall buying a peanut-butter cake recipe mix one time. Upon baking, I couldn’t eat the thing because it was so sweet, so I gave it to an American friend who demolished it.

4. Candy Corn

What’s not to love about baked cornstarch, filled with colored sugar and rolled in wax? A lot, according to some comments on the thread. Thankfully, haters just need to avoid the Halloween season if they visit. To be fair, it isn’t America’s most excellent candy offering!

5. Twizzlers

Brits are elitist about their candy being the world’s greatest (biased sidenote: it is rather good). Such a sentiment appeared in one scathing epithet, stating how their mom once visited them in the States. She was amazed that “people were chewing on plastic.” After trying a Twizzler, she confirmed it tasted as expected.

6. Blooming Onions

Australians are struggling with America’s time-honored culinary excursion: the themed restaurant. The culprit here is Outback Restaurant and its use of the Aussie vernacular.

One chap, in particular, wanted to know “what in the flying firetruck a ‘Blooming Onion’ has to do with anything,” as it has nothing to do with Australia. Fair dinkum.

7. Sweet Potato Casserole

Anyone lucky enough to experience Thanksgiving dinner will attest to having a meal of ten on the enjoyment scale. Some may have bristled when offered the sweet potato casserole with its marshmallow and brown sugar topping. I think the combination of sweetness somehow works with its savory bedfellows.

8. Hershey’s Chocolate

Even Americans agreed on this one. Somehow, the iconic 'chocolate' bar turned industrial candy bar still manages to find a market.

The theory is that Hershey’s chocolate has cheapened in production over the years, using a soured milk powder that gives it a distinctive flavor. I agree wholeheartedly with some comments that we cannot call this a chocolate bar. Come on, now.

9. Donuts

It is not news that Europeans eat less sugar than Americans. Therefore, complaints about donuts are hardly a surprise. But who could be down on this treat? Furthermore, with Dunkin’ and Krispy Kreme dueling it out for supremacy, there has never been a better time to enjoy an American donut.

10. Ambrosia Salad

I am firmly in the camp on this one and have a perimeter fence with tripwires and angry rottweilers to defend my position. Another strange number, ambrosia salad, is like a sweet coleslaw. It is a variation of coconut, canned fruit, marshmallows, and nuts with mayo or cream. Just no.

11. Grits

This Southern dish, made from ground corn, often confuses foreigners with its smooth yet granular consistency and subtle corn flavor. Some find its lack of strong flavor and unusual texture hard to enjoy.

12. Scrapple

This dish, popular in parts of the U.S., is made from pork scraps and cornmeal, formed into a loaf and sliced. The concept of using 'leftover' meat parts combined with its distinct texture can seem quite gross to many outside the U.S.

This thread inspired this post.

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