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Old 10-05-2018, 11:47 PM
 
Location: In the Redwoods
30,286 posts, read 51,837,829 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ddm2k View Post
Honestly? American food. So much of it is derived from ethnic dishes, that the very Americanization of it is a slap in the face.

No, I'm not moving to Canada, because you have access to different types of cuisine here, for those who are wondering.
Anything specifically that you think we’ve “Americanized” too much? And what would you consider to be distinctly American food? Tough call, since we are inherently a nation of immigrants... so it makes sense that our cuisine would blend all of those together. Maybe some of the southern dishes, like grits and cornbread? I can’t think of any country that’s done those before us.
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Old 10-06-2018, 12:19 AM
 
10,800 posts, read 3,574,784 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gizmo980 View Post
Yeah, I use those too... but I’m a white/American girl, so I need a little EXTRA cooling. LOL
Was that a humble brag that you are hot??
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Old 10-06-2018, 04:17 AM
 
Location: Spain
12,722 posts, read 7,535,558 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gizmo980 View Post
And what would you consider to be distinctly American food?
I would consider BBQ a distinctly American food. Sure there are other cultures that eat ribs by the rack, but the combination of flavor (be it Memphis, KC, St. Louis, Carolina, whatever) and smoking over low temperature for a long time is more commonly associated with USA. In fact sometimes one sees "American style BBQ" restaurants overseas that have the broad assortment across American sub-genres of BBQ, they'll have ribs, pulled pork, brisket, etc. along with burgers.

Could also make a case for burgers, wings, and the classic American diner type restaurants. At least those are the types of food that one sometimes sees advertised as American style in other countries.

There is an American style diner is Chiang Mai that is popular among expats and western tourists, but you also see Thais and Chinese in there getting the American diner experience. It looks like this:

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Old 10-06-2018, 04:46 AM
 
1,584 posts, read 975,921 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gizmo980 View Post
My mother was born & raised in Philly, and will say that any cheese steak outside of Philly is just a waste of your money/calories... and if they don't use Cheez Whiz, fuggedaboutit!
I wasn’t born or raised in Philadelphia, but I agree 100% with your mom. Have tried these in other cities and they never get it right for some reason. And yeah, Wit Wiz is the way to go. Wit Onions, too.

And not Geno’s or Pat’s, either — worst I’ve ever had in Philly. Jim’s, Cosmi’s Deli, and Tony Luke’s (tried at the ballpark only) all do worthy versions, as did Rick’s in Reading Terminal Market before it closed. Dolce Carini and Sonny’s were okay, but second tier. Never got to John’s, have heard they’re good.

Love me a roast pork sandwich from DiNic’s too (also reportedly a specialty at John’s), but that’s a whole other delicious animal.
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Old 10-06-2018, 06:22 AM
 
5,346 posts, read 9,829,998 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by lieqiang View Post
If you guys object to food covered in sauce so much, don't the Tex Mex places near you guys offer things like tacos, burritos, and fajitas?

I like lots of Mexican food that is covered in sauce, but usually there are other options on menus.
Right- they offer tacos that have ingredients that you would never find in authentic Mexican tacos, burritos that are covered with a layer of melted cheese or stuffed with ingredients that aren’t authentic, etc.

I understand that people like TexMex food but it is Americanized. When they are served authentic Mexican they complain because it isn’t what they have come to expect, which is TexMex.

There is a wonderful new authentic Mexican restaurant near my home, family owned. Some people have been absolutely brutal in their reviews, complaining that they don’t have crunchy shells, they don’t have free chips and salsa, etc.
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Old 10-06-2018, 06:28 AM
 
Location: Fort Lauderdale, FL
2,102 posts, read 996,967 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gizmo980 View Post
This is more a matter of personal taste, but most places that serve matzoball soup make them WAY too fluffy! There are two ways to make them, floaters or sinkers, and I happen to prefer the latter. Even the Jewish delis make them too light & airy for my taste, but I was raised eating my mother's VERY dense matzoballs. So YMMV.
In our house (German), my father, a chef, made fluffy matzo balls and dense German dumplings (Klöße).

Once my father came to visit me in college for a weekend and made matzo ball soup. Two of my roommates were Jewish from New York, and they said it was the best they even had. No leftovers, and they asked him to make it two days in a row!

Last edited by Rumann Koch; 10-06-2018 at 07:33 AM..
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Old 10-06-2018, 06:39 AM
 
Location: Spain
12,722 posts, read 7,535,558 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by missik999 View Post
Right- they offer tacos that have ingredients that you would never find in authentic Mexican tacos, burritos that are covered with a layer of melted cheese or stuffed with ingredients that aren’t authentic, etc.
What ingredients in a taco from a typical Tex Mex restaurant would you never find in authentic Mexican food? The only thing I can think of is gringo cheeses like cheddar since Mexico it's usually a white crumbly cheese. It would be hard to claim other common spices aren't authentic since Mexico is a large country with a lot of variety and everyone's grandma has a different recipe. Is there some ratio of chili powder, paprika, cumin, etc. that is unique to Tex Mex but not found in Mexico?
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Old 10-06-2018, 09:00 AM
 
Location: Elsewhere
88,300 posts, read 84,311,090 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by hertfordshire View Post
That was my first thought. I ordered some pretty disappointing pad thai a couple nights ago.
I guess I am missing something, because I've tried pad thai a few times, including at a restaurant in Arlington, VA, that's supposedly the best Thai food in the DC area, and I'm not sure what the attraction is supposed to be. It's a meh dish to me, edible, but nothing unique or special about it. I'm not a person who freaks out with joy over any type of noodles or pasta to begin with, though, so maybe that's part of it.
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Last edited by Mightyqueen801; 10-06-2018 at 09:23 AM..
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Old 10-06-2018, 09:06 AM
 
Location: Elsewhere
88,300 posts, read 84,311,090 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jlawrence01 View Post
Only if the person makes them from scratch and has some clue as to how to do it right.
I was in my fifties before I ever ate a pirogi, and last year was the first time I ever heard of anyone making their own. I hope to try homemade ones sometime.

I resisted for quite a while. Dough over potatoes just didn't sound right to be me, but I learned to like them.
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Old 10-06-2018, 09:12 AM
 
Location: On the wind
1,465 posts, read 1,075,855 times
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When I go to an ethnic restaurant, I ask the chef/owners to make the dish like they would do in their home. Very different result to what's ordered off the menu! This is especially true for Indian, Pakistani, Thai and Vietnamese establishments. This may not work for everyone's taste unless they have a penchant for really spicy stuff!
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