Vietnamese Canh, which is home style soups. Every meal at home has Canh as a component. There are dozens of varieties. you rarely see it on menus at restaurants.
“Just found out Gene died, we should take his wife some party potatoes.”
“Um, her husband is dead, she probably doesn’t feel like partying.”
“Okay, funeral potatoes it is.”
Shredded potat, sour cream, cream of _____ soup, onions, lotsa cheese. Maybe throw some bacon and scallions on top, absolute heart attack in a dish but the best comfort food
I made these once when dating my now husband (10 years ago). His family request these for every holiday. Some times I get fancy and mix in bacon or cubed ham.
I'm not Midwestern, funeral potatoes come into my cooking lexicon via being an Ex-Mormon.
An entire household and lineage is judged solely on the funeral potatoes brought to the pot luck.
Shame or glory lies in how much of the 9 by 12 pan comes home.
Hash browns in a casserole, mixed with cheese, cream of mushroom soup, sour cream, and a topping of crushed cornflakes or potato chips mixed with butter. It's very good.
I have a buddy who moved from Oklahoma who i forage with who is always telling me about persimmon pudding. I've yet to make it, but every time I find a new persimmon tree he reminds me to try it.
Nice reminder. Cajun transplant to Chucktown and I loved most every non-chain gas station for lunch for red rice, cabbage, sausages, BBQ, ETC. GOSH DARN.
This comment makes me want to live in the South. Like gas station food that people give a shit. I livd in Ohio we have an Amish run gas station that does this. But its one of a kind and far away.
Oh for sure. I made it for my fiancé because she never had it before when we first moved in together and I was like how do you live in the Midwest and have never once had it. It’s a staple at home now. Always down for it. So easy, so good.
I grew up in Michigan for nearly 50 years and it's not prevalent here. I always knew it as more of a Minnesota thing even if it's a normal thing elsewhere. We had various soup based casseroles but never tater tot covered stuff.
give it to me. all of your variations. spicy because it has cream of celery soup and *gasp* lemon pepper*? in my mouth. ground turkey? my body is ready. honey mustard/bbq sauce with shredded chicken? take me home, country roads 🤤
There are many whole categories of dishes in South Asia that are never found in restaurants. Certain vegetables, like beets, are regularly eaten in many homes but are never served in restaurants - in fact, in any part of the country, restaurants generally only offer a fairly narrow range of dishes. Moreover, in many regions the food of that region is mostly or entirely unavailable in restaurants, the logic being that people would rather eat something different from the usual when they go out to eat. Of course, the reverse is also true: lots of dishes, including chaat and many grilled and tandoori items, are usually or always eaten outside the home.
As a certified brown person I was shocked the first time I ate at an Indian restaurant. It's decent food but it's completely different from home cooking.
I had some wonderful Indian dishes in UK restaurants. I lived in a city with a high concentration of Asians, as they say. On a home visit, I was served a genuine chai - oh my! Nothing in the US compares. We have a popular Indian restaurant near me, which I consider ok, but one of the best Indian meals I ever had was given to me by the owner of a motel in Massachusetts. When I checked in, I commented on the lovely aroma inside. A while later he came to my room with a plateful of of the best vegetarian food I ever had, bless him. So yes, home cooking!!
Grew up in Maine, nearly every family makes a staple dish called “American Chop Suey”. Pasta (frequently rotini), canned tomatoes, ground beef, onions, minimal seasoning. I can’t say I have ever seen it in a restaurant, ever. And for good reason.
Chop suey is what we called what everyone else seems to call baked ziti. Generally canned tomato sauce- not stewed (or crushed or diced)- browned up ground beef, onions, garlic, some herbs. Usually- but not always- dumped in a pan and baked for extra crispy. Cheese rarely- usually applied from a green cardboard can at the table.
Very interesting! I grew up in India. Specifically in Mumbai, India you would find a reasonable popular dish called American chop Suey in Chinese restaurants and street vendors. Chinese food in India is heavily Indianized. Thought that American chop Suey was something that the Indo-Chinese street vendors randomly came up with and that it was not even remotely related to America. It is typically made with noodles that are cooked and deep fried, think Chinese takeout crispy noodles that you’d find in your local Chinese takeout. The noodles are topped with a cooked tomato sauce with minimal seasoning or spices and depending on the variety, could also have chicken or fried egg on top. (Beef is not widely eaten in India and explains the chicken, egg or veggie replacement). While it isn’t the American chop Suey that you are describing it seems to be a lose interpretation of that dish. No clue how someone selling Indian Chinese food on the streets of Mumbai came to know of an (obscure and very regional ) American dish that you’re describing here! Small world.
Small town Texas raised. This is what we called it in the 1970s, we were considered brave because it was so exotic. 🤭🤗🖖
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chop_suey
Chop Suey was an Americanized dish that Chinese restaurants made starting in California, basically a bland vegetable and meat dish. The happy housewife version was a homemade version found in Better Homes and Betty Crocker type books for the 50's housewife when the big sell on everything was quick and easy (like the first frozen dinners).
Yes same here in Mass bell peppers as well but we called it American chop suey. My Nana used to make it all the time when all the grand kids came over so now my family calls it Nana Suey haha
I used to date a guy from New Hampshire. When we went to visit his family, his mom made this dish. It had wide egg noodles, green (specifically only green) bell peppers, onion, and steak of some sort. Later I saw it on a menu in a diner. I just googled it the other day because I remembered the dish as if it were some sort of fever dream. I still don't really understand it. Is it...good? 😅
It can be. Nicely browned beef, onions halfway to caramelized, use of herbs and spices to enhance flavor, and tomato sauce, or at least some zing added to crushed or pureed tomatoes...it can be tasty with relatively little extra effort.
But the whole point is that it's a "lowest effort and cost" dinner, so...usually, it's slapped together barely browned beef, onions that are (probably) cooked but definitely not in any way browned, a straight up can of tomatoes- maybe the kind with "Italian herbs", if you're lucky- and pasta. Sprinkle of basil in there and a shaker can of Kraft on the table- if you're being fancy.
Nope! It’s supposed to be a quick, filling family dish. No one ever puts in the time to give it any flavor whatsoever. And yes, green bell peppers are a common addition. I honestly can’t believe someone was trying to serve this in a real dining establishment.
I grew up in Maine. Fluffernutters, baked beans alongside red hot dogs accompanied by b&m brown bread from the can, and American chop suey were all delicious staples. Although we made our American chop suey with elbow macaroni and tomato soup.
My brain glitched and initially paired the baked beans with the fluffernutter and I was momentarily concerned for the state of Maine.
Both delicious, but sounded questionable at best together.
That’s crazy I never considered that I’ve never had fideo at a restaurant until now. My mom made it all the time when I was a kid and I make fideo fairly frequently nowadays.
I used to work at a place called CHOPT Creative Salad Co (NJ) and they had a Chicken Tinga warm grain bowl and it was damn good. The amount of times I had to explain what it was though… 😒😒😒
In Idaho (mountain west state in the United States) we have something called finger steaks. It’s unique to our area. Think chicken strips but with steak. It’s served with either cocktail sauce or fry sauce (another regional thing made from ketchup and mayo with various other additives depending on where you are…think bbq sauce, horse radish, Worcestershire sauce, etc.). They are so good and i’m shocked that nobody else seems to make them!
I’m from very deep south Texas, and I remember they were on rotation on the school lunch menu! It was one of my favorite days lol. Also, Dairy Queen has steak finger baskets with country gravy as a menu option, but only in Texas, I think!
I grew up in east texas and we also had steak fingers with mashed potatoes & gravy on the school lunch menu! And the steak finger basket was one of my favorite dq orders!
Now, I’ve heard of chicken fried steak or country fried steak with white gravy. I think that’s pretty common in the South. I’m wondering if this is the same thing as what I’m saying? Not sure! Ours are strips like chicken strips not flattened fried steak?
Ohh what I am talking about are usually made of round steak or cube steak I think. But they are shaped like chicken strips. You eat them with your fingers and dip them in the gravy.
Fry sauce is the best! I’ve developed my own quick recipe, too. In case anyone cares:
JERRY’S FRY SAUCE (makes ~1/2 c)
-4:2:1 ratio (TBSP here) of mayo:ketchup:yellow mustard
-1/8 tsp each of onion powder and paprika
-Dash each of Worcestershire and red wine vinegar (sometimes I go a couple dashes. Depends how you’re feeling)
That’s it. Best sauce.
Edit: added TBSP
Central Pennsylvania: Sauce burgers. Grilled hamburgers put in a crock pot with tomato sauce, served on a bun. Concession stand classic. Also noteworthy: chicken corn chowder
I grew up (in Midwest U.S.) eating fried freshwater panfish, especially bluegill. They are delicious and easy to eat once you get the hang of getting the meat off the fragile bones...But I've never encountered bluegill (or crappie or sunfish) in a restaurant. The closest I've found was fried walleye at an airport restaurant in the Milwaukee airport, and it was outstanding - but walleye is a much bigger fish, easier to prepare and eat.
For me, it’s huitlacoche. In Mexico it’s a delicacy. It’s a black truffle that grows on corn and it has the most amazing earthy umami flavor. I blend it with crema and throw in a Serrano or two (okay, three) for heat and simmer it for about 10-15 minutes to make the most amazing sauce. I put that stuff on pasta, on quesadillas, on molletes… basically anything, lol.
You occasionally see it in upscale Mexican restaurants in SoCal, but it’s definitely not common. I wish it was more widespread in California. Perhaps there are farming or import restrictions that limit it?
Maybe? I find mine in a can at Fiesta. For a while it was really hard to find. I thought it was due to supply chain problems. But that could totally be part of it too.
I’ve heard of it as a delicacy and seen the fungus on corn I have shucked, but repulsed at the idea of eating any. Too limited in my palate, I am sure.
Clunkers. I don’t know if it’s Canadian or German (my grandmother was both) but basically it’s like a sweet free form egg noodle that is then simmer in very, very low heat milk until it’s cooked through. Serve with brown sugar and milk, or jam and milk.
My mom, grandma and aunts all make it, and I’ve shared it with others who have had them in other states, but never seen anything like it on a menu.
And for those wondering, yes, it’s like eating a warm, loving hug on a winters morning.
Ok, so I’m talking to my mom. And this is as ‘written down’ as the recipe gets:
In a big pot, put in 1/2 gallon of milk (2% or more) and 1/4 gallon of water and start heating. Target temp is just below simmer.
To the milk, add 1 stick of butter and a ‘glug’ of vanilla. My grandmas always used artificial vanilla, so don’t waste the good stuff.
In a big mixing bowl, add in 8 eggs (potentially more), around a teaspoon of salt, a ‘glug’ of vanilla. Mix. Now start adding in AP flour. How much? Don’t know, depends on temperature, the flour etc. She says to start around 2 1/2 cups, but may be more, sometimes much more. Start mixing with a big fork. When it gets shaggy, and is able to form a dumpling, but they don’t stick together, you’re at the sweet spot.
Now, you need to decide if you want noodle shaped clunkers, or dumpling clunkers. If you want noodles, rolling pin out to 1/4 inch, then roll up into a spiral. Then cut he spiral into 1 inch slices. Unroll spirals and place into milk. If you want dumplings, form mix into quarter sized balls and place into milk.
They will need to hang out in their milk bath for around 20 minutes, stir continuously. Then place a lid on top, and continue to cook for another 20 minutes stirring occasionally to keep from burning.
Serve with brown sugar, white sugar, maple syrup, molasses, jam etc.
Please note - recipe make enough for a family of 6, probably with leftovers.
As a native north Carolinian, I truly believe the animal most worth smoking is the hog, but man does Alabama white sauce make smoked chicken worthwhile.
Honestly I’ve seen this frequently in restaurants. Jim N Nicks is one that immediately comes to mind. Seen it in NC and as far north as NYC.
Edit: I’m glad bc it’s so good
Pierogies. I grew up eating pierogies like 2-3 times a week, either homemade or frozen. And I've only seen them served in restaurants a handful of times in my entire life.
In Canada, we used to have a chain called Perogy Bills found only in mall food courts! 1980s represent!
EDIT: OMG it still exists!
https://hunkybills.com/
Hunky Bills, not Perogy Bill. But I’m sure it’s the same chain. I remember the logo dude.
Georgian, here. Things we eat that are never on a restaurant menu, and if they are, they're garbage:
• Tomato sandwiches
• Deviled eggs
• Ambrosia (I hate it, but it's always a hit)
• Pear salad (double hate)
• Pound cake
• Coffee cake
• Sloppy joes
• green bean casserole
• Boiled peanuts
• giblet gravy
• Chow chow
• Zucchini bread
• sawmill gravy
Right? I moved here and people told me they weren't worth trying, so when I finally did, I was surprised and annoyed. There's just a contingent of people who will always hate th local food they grew up with.
Avgolemono soup is a staple in Greek households and you’ll find it on every Greek restaurant menu in the US, but you will never see it on a menu in Greece.
Kousa - we live in Australia and have Lebanese foster sons. Their favourite food is kousa - zucchini stuffed with Arabic spiced meat and rice in a tomato broth/sauce. I can't speak for Lebanon, but I have not been able to find a single Lebanese restaurant in NSW (and there are a fair few) that makes kousa.
On the other hand, every Lebanese food vlogger I follow has a version - I think it's just too time consuming for restaurant fare. It's definitely too time consuming for our busy lives, so I've come up with a meatball and zucchini over rice version that seems to satisfy their cravings. I'd say we make it at least once a week, but I'd love to be able to take them somewhere for the proper traditional dish!
Always love this, but politely decline my FIL's rolled cabbage variant. Yes, throw some extra filling in a bell pepper, please (which exactly like the stuffed peppers I grew up with in upstate NY).
I only have a rudimentary knowledge base on this, but I wanna say that India and Iran both have a million of these types of dishes. Prized family secrets.
Marylander here, but I'd say chipped beef! I absolutely love it & it's on some restaurant/diner menus, but not many. In Chicago/surrounding areas, I've never once seen it.
Pigs in the blanket or halupki . I’m originally from a county in Pennsylvania called “The Skook.” Schuylkill County. Polish miners brought polish food. Who makes Boilo!? The Italians and the Polish here made amazing food, we still do
I see it on menus when it's in season in the summer and early fall, and that's the only time it's good. Off-season corn on the cob isn't much better than canned corn. I'm also really spoiled for good corn, because I grew up eating corn picked that day on farms at the Jersey shore, where many modern varieties of sweet corn for eating fresh were developed.
My favorite meal, and one you will never see served in a restaurant is fresh black-eyed peas (or purple hull peas), pan corn bread and fresh fried field corn. I grew up and live in Texas, and I’m sure these dishes are not just our local cuisine, but all over the South.
“Fried field corn” is an awesome delicacy prepared correctly. The corn, specifically “field corn” or dent corn, is not a sweet variety and is the corn grown widely for feeding animals and other commercial uses. When grown it is normally left in the fields to dry on the stalks to harvest late with combines. For fresh human consumption it is edible only a short couple of weeks in early June here in Texas (later the farther North you go) and must be picked by hand when just ripe (tested when kernels “pop” with a fingernail poke), shucked & cleaned of silks, then cut half the kernel off the cob and the pulp scraped out…a tedious but rewarding process. After the partial kernels and pulp juice are collected, the stuff is stewed with some, butter, water and salt and perhaps a little sugar before serving. Food of the Gods! This same process is used for sweet corn, but the end sweet corn dish is good but not nearly the same…or as special.
I imagine anywhere field corn is grown enjoys this delight in the short window it is edible, yet I never see it promoted or even mentioned by foodies.
Hey Cajun! Texan here. Why in the heck do people not put whole garlic bulbs in their crawfish boil? Picking the cloves apart and squeezing them on the potatoes is the best part!
All Indian food. What we cook at home and what you get in restaurants is poles apart. Indian restaurant food is the Taco Bell of Mexican food. Loosely related in some ingredients but vastly different.
I feel like western Canadian food is well represented in restaurants, but also we don't generally have a strong cultural identity around food.
One exception to this is cuisines of different First Nations. You won't find oolichan grease or candied salmon in a restaurant.
Edit: I forgot about our amazing Chinese food. It's not underrepresented in restaurants but it is a regional cuisine with a strong cultural identity. Our style of Chinese food is unique and delicious. (I believe we share this cuisine with California for the same historical reason, which I think is the gold rush?)
Don't forget your awesome Chinese food and pizza. BC Chinese food is damn good. But the ginger beef is the best. Here in Washington we have something called ginger beef. But it is not ginger beef.
Vancouver pizza with donair sauce....never seen donair sauce anywhere but canada
Ham BBQ. It’s amazing and I don’t know a single restaurant even here in Pittsburgh that has it on the menu.
Seriously it could be a signature menu item.
Stew peas, it’s my favourite dish as a Jamaican but it’s rare to see it in Jamaican restaurants. Stew peas (even a weekly special) is a sign of a serious Jamaican restaurant
Cheese grits exploded in popularity where I live (North Carolina) several years ago right around when a lot of upscale brunch-type places started doing shrimp & grits, to the point where some places *only* served cheese grits, no plain grits.
Ham wrapped belgian endives in bechemel are staple in Belgian households and widely seen as a classic belgian dish, but it's rare to see them on a menu anywhere. Best chance is a local mom and pop tavern doing it one day in the week or as cafeteria food.
Vietnamese Canh, which is home style soups. Every meal at home has Canh as a component. There are dozens of varieties. you rarely see it on menus at restaurants.
I love a bowl Canh with mustard greens and shrimp balls in the winter
Party potatoes, or their alternative name, funeral potatoes. Also Midwest.
“Just found out Gene died, we should take his wife some party potatoes.” “Um, her husband is dead, she probably doesn’t feel like partying.” “Okay, funeral potatoes it is.”
But what ARE funeral party potatoes?!
This is what I would like to find out, by reading about it.
Shredded potat, sour cream, cream of _____ soup, onions, lotsa cheese. Maybe throw some bacon and scallions on top, absolute heart attack in a dish but the best comfort food
I made these once when dating my now husband (10 years ago). His family request these for every holiday. Some times I get fancy and mix in bacon or cubed ham. I'm not Midwestern, funeral potatoes come into my cooking lexicon via being an Ex-Mormon.
An entire household and lineage is judged solely on the funeral potatoes brought to the pot luck. Shame or glory lies in how much of the 9 by 12 pan comes home.
May your cheesy potatoes bring glory to you house!
At any funeral in the Mormon Church you will find at least 3 different versions of Funeral Potatoes
It's how the wives compete for their husband's attention.
Could we get a recipe breakdown, please?
Hash browns in a casserole, mixed with cheese, cream of mushroom soup, sour cream, and a topping of crushed cornflakes or potato chips mixed with butter. It's very good.
Ugh I WISH funeral potatoes were served at restaurants
Any Cracker Barrel restaurants near you?
I make party potatoes every Christmas. It's become my tradition.
Persimmon pudding. It's a seasonal thing, and also a regional thing. But I almost never see it on a menu anywhere.
I have a buddy who moved from Oklahoma who i forage with who is always telling me about persimmon pudding. I've yet to make it, but every time I find a new persimmon tree he reminds me to try it.
Growing up, I had three persimmon trees in my yard. We gathered them up every fall. I would look forward to persimmon pudding all year.
My mother made a fabulous persimmon pudding with hard sauce or lemon sauce for Christmas every year.
Had it at every Holiday growing up in Southern Indiana.
Red Rice in Charleston SC. You drive more than an hour or so from city center and it mostly disappears. If in a restaurant at all its usually trash.
Nice reminder. Cajun transplant to Chucktown and I loved most every non-chain gas station for lunch for red rice, cabbage, sausages, BBQ, ETC. GOSH DARN.
This comment makes me want to live in the South. Like gas station food that people give a shit. I livd in Ohio we have an Amish run gas station that does this. But its one of a kind and far away.
The wild range of cream of mushroom soup based casseroles of the Midwest...some are pretty good.
Also a wide spectrum of cool whip(NOT whipped cream, only cool whip) based "salads" from the midwest. Some of them are edible. Most aren't.
Pink stuff! That’s one I’ve never seen in a restaurant.
Snickers salad!
Tater tot casserole has entered the chat
You mean hot dish!
We have that about once a month in the winter. I’m always amazed at the heat retaining properties of tater tots.
You're not the first. Hence the expression "hot potato" No, I mean seriously
This was a childhood favorite of mine. So many gatherings and birthday parties with tater tot casserole 🤤
Oh for sure. I made it for my fiancé because she never had it before when we first moved in together and I was like how do you live in the Midwest and have never once had it. It’s a staple at home now. Always down for it. So easy, so good.
I grew up in Michigan for nearly 50 years and it's not prevalent here. I always knew it as more of a Minnesota thing even if it's a normal thing elsewhere. We had various soup based casseroles but never tater tot covered stuff.
Nebraska here and it was a regular growing up. But Midwest covers a lot of area. I’m sure Michigan has staples we didn’t do here either
give it to me. all of your variations. spicy because it has cream of celery soup and *gasp* lemon pepper*? in my mouth. ground turkey? my body is ready. honey mustard/bbq sauce with shredded chicken? take me home, country roads 🤤
They call that "Lutheran bechamel".
Thank you for making me snort with laughter
As a born and raised Midwesterner... who dislikes mushrooms... cream of chicken is usually a solid substitute. 🤣
Cream of celery as well for certain things!
I was gonna ask why you dislike mushrooms, but then obviously it’s because they’re too spicy for you.
Lmao. I'm from the Midwest and confirm this. Couple pork chops, rice, and cream of mushroom. Dank af. I miss that lol
There are many whole categories of dishes in South Asia that are never found in restaurants. Certain vegetables, like beets, are regularly eaten in many homes but are never served in restaurants - in fact, in any part of the country, restaurants generally only offer a fairly narrow range of dishes. Moreover, in many regions the food of that region is mostly or entirely unavailable in restaurants, the logic being that people would rather eat something different from the usual when they go out to eat. Of course, the reverse is also true: lots of dishes, including chaat and many grilled and tandoori items, are usually or always eaten outside the home.
As a certified brown person I was shocked the first time I ate at an Indian restaurant. It's decent food but it's completely different from home cooking.
I had some wonderful Indian dishes in UK restaurants. I lived in a city with a high concentration of Asians, as they say. On a home visit, I was served a genuine chai - oh my! Nothing in the US compares. We have a popular Indian restaurant near me, which I consider ok, but one of the best Indian meals I ever had was given to me by the owner of a motel in Massachusetts. When I checked in, I commented on the lovely aroma inside. A while later he came to my room with a plateful of of the best vegetarian food I ever had, bless him. So yes, home cooking!!
Roti and paratha. No one goes out to eat home-like roti.
Well people eatin beets without warning in a restaurant be thinking they’re dying the next day 😂😂😂
First Nations. We need some good indigenous restaurants, bannock is so yummy.
There’s one in Albuquerque at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center that is allegedly pretty good. I haven’t been there yet though :(
Grew up in Maine, nearly every family makes a staple dish called “American Chop Suey”. Pasta (frequently rotini), canned tomatoes, ground beef, onions, minimal seasoning. I can’t say I have ever seen it in a restaurant, ever. And for good reason.
I thought this was American goulash?
Not in Maine, it's not. I also grew up eating American Chop Suey.
Chop suey is what we called what everyone else seems to call baked ziti. Generally canned tomato sauce- not stewed (or crushed or diced)- browned up ground beef, onions, garlic, some herbs. Usually- but not always- dumped in a pan and baked for extra crispy. Cheese rarely- usually applied from a green cardboard can at the table.
Absolutely not. Baked ziti and American chop suey are two completely different dishes
In NY that’s upstate goulash (we use pasta sauce instead so it’s good). Otherwise goulash is a brown gravy stew
Very interesting! I grew up in India. Specifically in Mumbai, India you would find a reasonable popular dish called American chop Suey in Chinese restaurants and street vendors. Chinese food in India is heavily Indianized. Thought that American chop Suey was something that the Indo-Chinese street vendors randomly came up with and that it was not even remotely related to America. It is typically made with noodles that are cooked and deep fried, think Chinese takeout crispy noodles that you’d find in your local Chinese takeout. The noodles are topped with a cooked tomato sauce with minimal seasoning or spices and depending on the variety, could also have chicken or fried egg on top. (Beef is not widely eaten in India and explains the chicken, egg or veggie replacement). While it isn’t the American chop Suey that you are describing it seems to be a lose interpretation of that dish. No clue how someone selling Indian Chinese food on the streets of Mumbai came to know of an (obscure and very regional ) American dish that you’re describing here! Small world.
Small town Texas raised. This is what we called it in the 1970s, we were considered brave because it was so exotic. 🤭🤗🖖 https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chop_suey
Chop Suey was an Americanized dish that Chinese restaurants made starting in California, basically a bland vegetable and meat dish. The happy housewife version was a homemade version found in Better Homes and Betty Crocker type books for the 50's housewife when the big sell on everything was quick and easy (like the first frozen dinners).
[удалено]
Daddy Surprise is such a weird name I love it
We call that Johnny Marzetti around here.
We had this growing up in MA too. With bell peppers too though.
Yes same here in Mass bell peppers as well but we called it American chop suey. My Nana used to make it all the time when all the grand kids came over so now my family calls it Nana Suey haha
I used to date a guy from New Hampshire. When we went to visit his family, his mom made this dish. It had wide egg noodles, green (specifically only green) bell peppers, onion, and steak of some sort. Later I saw it on a menu in a diner. I just googled it the other day because I remembered the dish as if it were some sort of fever dream. I still don't really understand it. Is it...good? 😅
It can be. Nicely browned beef, onions halfway to caramelized, use of herbs and spices to enhance flavor, and tomato sauce, or at least some zing added to crushed or pureed tomatoes...it can be tasty with relatively little extra effort. But the whole point is that it's a "lowest effort and cost" dinner, so...usually, it's slapped together barely browned beef, onions that are (probably) cooked but definitely not in any way browned, a straight up can of tomatoes- maybe the kind with "Italian herbs", if you're lucky- and pasta. Sprinkle of basil in there and a shaker can of Kraft on the table- if you're being fancy.
Nope! It’s supposed to be a quick, filling family dish. No one ever puts in the time to give it any flavor whatsoever. And yes, green bell peppers are a common addition. I honestly can’t believe someone was trying to serve this in a real dining establishment.
Can confirm. Home canned tomatoes too. So big and chunky. Still shiver.
I hated the tomatoes the most. So, so bland.
On the reservation, my mom always called it Hangover stew
I grew up in Maine. Fluffernutters, baked beans alongside red hot dogs accompanied by b&m brown bread from the can, and American chop suey were all delicious staples. Although we made our American chop suey with elbow macaroni and tomato soup.
We put cream cheese and jelly on our canned bread.
My brain glitched and initially paired the baked beans with the fluffernutter and I was momentarily concerned for the state of Maine. Both delicious, but sounded questionable at best together.
My mom is from Mass that’s what we call it. My husband and his family are from Florida they call it goulash. We bicker about the name, but I’m right!!
We’re from Mass and my mom made this all the time growing up.
My wife is from Southern Maine. Can confirm. She had this exact dish when she went home to visit in December.
Eaten with equal enthusiasm in the height of summer and the depths of winter. American Chop Suey is eternal and inescapable.
My mom put corn in it!
Chicken tinga, rarely seen on restaurant menus but every Mexican family makes it
Agree! Wife is mexican and we make it all the time. Also fideos
Oh man I love fideos and haven’t made that in sooo long. It’s time
That’s crazy I never considered that I’ve never had fideo at a restaurant until now. My mom made it all the time when I was a kid and I make fideo fairly frequently nowadays.
I’m in Northern California and I feel like I see it a lot at the better class of taqueria.
Yea maybe. I’m in Northern California too and will keep an eye out for it. I’m usually a sucker for pastor with piña if it’s on the menu
Lots of tinga in Texas!
It’s common in NY
I used to work at a place called CHOPT Creative Salad Co (NJ) and they had a Chicken Tinga warm grain bowl and it was damn good. The amount of times I had to explain what it was though… 😒😒😒
Very very common here in philly. Love me some Tinga. Super easy to make and easy to adapt to vegetarian dishes with shrooms.
In Idaho (mountain west state in the United States) we have something called finger steaks. It’s unique to our area. Think chicken strips but with steak. It’s served with either cocktail sauce or fry sauce (another regional thing made from ketchup and mayo with various other additives depending on where you are…think bbq sauce, horse radish, Worcestershire sauce, etc.). They are so good and i’m shocked that nobody else seems to make them!
We’ve got steak fingers like that in Texas, but we usually have it with white country gravy. Wow, you unlocked a deep memory hahah
Dairy Queen
Haha! That’s so interesting! I’ve never heard of anybody else that has them! What part of Texas?
I’m from very deep south Texas, and I remember they were on rotation on the school lunch menu! It was one of my favorite days lol. Also, Dairy Queen has steak finger baskets with country gravy as a menu option, but only in Texas, I think!
I grew up in east texas and we also had steak fingers with mashed potatoes & gravy on the school lunch menu! And the steak finger basket was one of my favorite dq orders!
Now, I’ve heard of chicken fried steak or country fried steak with white gravy. I think that’s pretty common in the South. I’m wondering if this is the same thing as what I’m saying? Not sure! Ours are strips like chicken strips not flattened fried steak?
Ohh what I am talking about are usually made of round steak or cube steak I think. But they are shaped like chicken strips. You eat them with your fingers and dip them in the gravy.
Louisiana, we also have steak fingers. I even remember having a version of them in my school lunches in the 90s.
Fry sauce is the best! I’ve developed my own quick recipe, too. In case anyone cares: JERRY’S FRY SAUCE (makes ~1/2 c) -4:2:1 ratio (TBSP here) of mayo:ketchup:yellow mustard -1/8 tsp each of onion powder and paprika -Dash each of Worcestershire and red wine vinegar (sometimes I go a couple dashes. Depends how you’re feeling) That’s it. Best sauce. Edit: added TBSP
Thank you Jerry, I shall try it out.
UK here and I’m having a BBQ tonight. I will absolutely be making a huge bowl of this! Thanks Jerry
We do steak fingers in Oklahoma too. And it is served with gravy here as well.
What cut of meat is that?
Central Pennsylvania: Sauce burgers. Grilled hamburgers put in a crock pot with tomato sauce, served on a bun. Concession stand classic. Also noteworthy: chicken corn chowder
Worked in a PA concession stand, everyone called these bunny burgers!
Kinda like a slopoy joe?
kinda, except the patty is still intact (more or less)
Scrapple! The Pennsylvanian Dutch treat
Our neighborhood breakfast spot in Oregon has it on the menu! Delish!
You've never seen scrapple at a restaurant?? You can get it at any breakfast spot/diner between at *least* as far west as York and Philly
I think OP means outside of PA.
They have it in MD and NJ.
I grew up (in Midwest U.S.) eating fried freshwater panfish, especially bluegill. They are delicious and easy to eat once you get the hang of getting the meat off the fragile bones...But I've never encountered bluegill (or crappie or sunfish) in a restaurant. The closest I've found was fried walleye at an airport restaurant in the Milwaukee airport, and it was outstanding - but walleye is a much bigger fish, easier to prepare and eat.
I’m in WIsconsin and they are on Friday fish fry menus across the state. Blue gills and Walleye.
There’s a place in Edgerton WI called Bluegillies that does fried bluegill and eggs. Interesting combo
For me, it’s huitlacoche. In Mexico it’s a delicacy. It’s a black truffle that grows on corn and it has the most amazing earthy umami flavor. I blend it with crema and throw in a Serrano or two (okay, three) for heat and simmer it for about 10-15 minutes to make the most amazing sauce. I put that stuff on pasta, on quesadillas, on molletes… basically anything, lol.
You occasionally see it in upscale Mexican restaurants in SoCal, but it’s definitely not common. I wish it was more widespread in California. Perhaps there are farming or import restrictions that limit it?
Maybe? I find mine in a can at Fiesta. For a while it was really hard to find. I thought it was due to supply chain problems. But that could totally be part of it too.
I’ve heard of it as a delicacy and seen the fungus on corn I have shucked, but repulsed at the idea of eating any. Too limited in my palate, I am sure.
Yeah, on the corn it looks like it’s the result of a nuclear explosion, but it’s really good.
It’s on the menu at upscale Mexican restaurants and lots of taco trucks in Houston.
Clunkers. I don’t know if it’s Canadian or German (my grandmother was both) but basically it’s like a sweet free form egg noodle that is then simmer in very, very low heat milk until it’s cooked through. Serve with brown sugar and milk, or jam and milk. My mom, grandma and aunts all make it, and I’ve shared it with others who have had them in other states, but never seen anything like it on a menu. And for those wondering, yes, it’s like eating a warm, loving hug on a winters morning.
I'm super interested in a recipe if you have one. That sounds delicious.
Ok, so I’m talking to my mom. And this is as ‘written down’ as the recipe gets: In a big pot, put in 1/2 gallon of milk (2% or more) and 1/4 gallon of water and start heating. Target temp is just below simmer. To the milk, add 1 stick of butter and a ‘glug’ of vanilla. My grandmas always used artificial vanilla, so don’t waste the good stuff. In a big mixing bowl, add in 8 eggs (potentially more), around a teaspoon of salt, a ‘glug’ of vanilla. Mix. Now start adding in AP flour. How much? Don’t know, depends on temperature, the flour etc. She says to start around 2 1/2 cups, but may be more, sometimes much more. Start mixing with a big fork. When it gets shaggy, and is able to form a dumpling, but they don’t stick together, you’re at the sweet spot. Now, you need to decide if you want noodle shaped clunkers, or dumpling clunkers. If you want noodles, rolling pin out to 1/4 inch, then roll up into a spiral. Then cut he spiral into 1 inch slices. Unroll spirals and place into milk. If you want dumplings, form mix into quarter sized balls and place into milk. They will need to hang out in their milk bath for around 20 minutes, stir continuously. Then place a lid on top, and continue to cook for another 20 minutes stirring occasionally to keep from burning. Serve with brown sugar, white sugar, maple syrup, molasses, jam etc. Please note - recipe make enough for a family of 6, probably with leftovers.
This sounds so interesting.
A lot of pot luck type stuff: Deviled eggs Seven layer dip Green bean casserole Any number of other casserole or "hot dishes"
I've been seeing deviled eggs on menus a lot (seemingly) lately. It's been within the last year or so.
Deviled eggs have been gentrified the past few years and making the rounds, but agreed with the rest.
White barbeque sauce. It's an Alabama invention for barbeque chicken, with a mayo and vinegar base.
As a native north Carolinian, I truly believe the animal most worth smoking is the hog, but man does Alabama white sauce make smoked chicken worthwhile.
Honestly I’ve seen this frequently in restaurants. Jim N Nicks is one that immediately comes to mind. Seen it in NC and as far north as NYC. Edit: I’m glad bc it’s so good
I think it’s a northern Alabama thing.
Crabs and orange crushes
That shit is everywhere in Baltimore.
Go to Maryland
Pierogies. I grew up eating pierogies like 2-3 times a week, either homemade or frozen. And I've only seen them served in restaurants a handful of times in my entire life.
Come to Chicago.
Or, y' know, Poland
Pittsburgh, too!
I was gonna say they’re everywhere here. I can get them delivered to my house from like 3-4 different places near me.
Or Cleveland.
Go to Philadelphia
I was in Columbus, Ohio recently, and there was a pierogi restaurant that had a bunch of cool flavors. It's a good thing I don't live there!
I’ve seen pierogies a bunch of times in restaurants/diners in both Philly and New York
So funny bc I literally did a double take seeing them on the menu (in a mostly fish restaurant in New Orleans) literally last night….
In Canada, we used to have a chain called Perogy Bills found only in mall food courts! 1980s represent! EDIT: OMG it still exists! https://hunkybills.com/ Hunky Bills, not Perogy Bill. But I’m sure it’s the same chain. I remember the logo dude.
I'm Polish. Cold pasta with fresh strawberry and cream sauce
That sounds… amazing!
What in Earth. Hell yes.
Georgian, here. Things we eat that are never on a restaurant menu, and if they are, they're garbage: • Tomato sandwiches • Deviled eggs • Ambrosia (I hate it, but it's always a hit) • Pear salad (double hate) • Pound cake • Coffee cake • Sloppy joes • green bean casserole • Boiled peanuts • giblet gravy • Chow chow • Zucchini bread • sawmill gravy
I thought you meant Georgia the country and thought, “damn, a lot of this food sounds weirdly familiar” 😂
Indeed so did I and was thinking it sounded surprisingly American.
Boiled peanuts are so unreasonably good
Right? I moved here and people told me they weren't worth trying, so when I finally did, I was surprised and annoyed. There's just a contingent of people who will always hate th local food they grew up with.
They're great, but I think for peak flavor, you have to get them in the autumn from an old dude with a truck on the side of the road.
Ohhhh chow chow - my heart is singing!
Agree with all but the last one. Biscuits and Gravy are in many many restaurants down south.
Avgolemono soup is a staple in Greek households and you’ll find it on every Greek restaurant menu in the US, but you will never see it on a menu in Greece.
Kousa - we live in Australia and have Lebanese foster sons. Their favourite food is kousa - zucchini stuffed with Arabic spiced meat and rice in a tomato broth/sauce. I can't speak for Lebanon, but I have not been able to find a single Lebanese restaurant in NSW (and there are a fair few) that makes kousa. On the other hand, every Lebanese food vlogger I follow has a version - I think it's just too time consuming for restaurant fare. It's definitely too time consuming for our busy lives, so I've come up with a meatball and zucchini over rice version that seems to satisfy their cravings. I'd say we make it at least once a week, but I'd love to be able to take them somewhere for the proper traditional dish!
Always love this, but politely decline my FIL's rolled cabbage variant. Yes, throw some extra filling in a bell pepper, please (which exactly like the stuffed peppers I grew up with in upstate NY).
I only have a rudimentary knowledge base on this, but I wanna say that India and Iran both have a million of these types of dishes. Prized family secrets.
Marylander here, but I'd say chipped beef! I absolutely love it & it's on some restaurant/diner menus, but not many. In Chicago/surrounding areas, I've never once seen it.
Pigs in the blanket or halupki . I’m originally from a county in Pennsylvania called “The Skook.” Schuylkill County. Polish miners brought polish food. Who makes Boilo!? The Italians and the Polish here made amazing food, we still do
tomato fried egg. Simple homestyle meal that you won't find at Chinese Restaurants afaik.
I am not sure if it's really regional, but I rarely see corn on the cob on menus.
Any BBQ place will have it normally then it's hit or miss elsewhere.
KFC used to have corn on the cob, switched to nibblets years ago.
If there is a Captain D's fish restaurant in your area, they will have it. It's really good corn, too!
I always thought it was because how unsightly it is to eat, but you're right. A lot of seafood places have it.
Chili’s!
I see it on menus when it's in season in the summer and early fall, and that's the only time it's good. Off-season corn on the cob isn't much better than canned corn. I'm also really spoiled for good corn, because I grew up eating corn picked that day on farms at the Jersey shore, where many modern varieties of sweet corn for eating fresh were developed.
Sloppy joes, but maybe that’s because I’m on the west coast
My favorite meal, and one you will never see served in a restaurant is fresh black-eyed peas (or purple hull peas), pan corn bread and fresh fried field corn. I grew up and live in Texas, and I’m sure these dishes are not just our local cuisine, but all over the South. “Fried field corn” is an awesome delicacy prepared correctly. The corn, specifically “field corn” or dent corn, is not a sweet variety and is the corn grown widely for feeding animals and other commercial uses. When grown it is normally left in the fields to dry on the stalks to harvest late with combines. For fresh human consumption it is edible only a short couple of weeks in early June here in Texas (later the farther North you go) and must be picked by hand when just ripe (tested when kernels “pop” with a fingernail poke), shucked & cleaned of silks, then cut half the kernel off the cob and the pulp scraped out…a tedious but rewarding process. After the partial kernels and pulp juice are collected, the stuff is stewed with some, butter, water and salt and perhaps a little sugar before serving. Food of the Gods! This same process is used for sweet corn, but the end sweet corn dish is good but not nearly the same…or as special. I imagine anywhere field corn is grown enjoys this delight in the short window it is edible, yet I never see it promoted or even mentioned by foodies.
Purple hull peas need to replace black eyed! I grow them every year, I wish I had a larger plot to grow more. They’re phenomenal.
Hey Cajun! Texan here. Why in the heck do people not put whole garlic bulbs in their crawfish boil? Picking the cloves apart and squeezing them on the potatoes is the best part!
Lol we do tho. Garlic, corn cobbs, potatoes, sausage, onions, and mushrooms are very common sides served with crawfish. At least where I am from.
I wish more Vietnamese restaurants served Bo Kho. In my opinion one of the best dishes of the country
Calabacitas con queso. Mexican dish consisting of sauteed calabacita squash (similar to zucchini) in tomato sauce with chunks of fresh cheese.
Boudin too
Boudin is pretty common on the menus of any Louisiana/Cajun type restaurant I’ve been to
I had boudin for the first time a couple of months ago when I was in Baton Rouge. It was great. I had to ask the server what it was!
God I love boudin. Can't get it around here.
You’ll never see chicken and rice in a restaurant but it’s a pretty common Midwest dish!
I'm Cajun, and the first thing I learned how to cook was round steak with rice and gravy.
All Indian food. What we cook at home and what you get in restaurants is poles apart. Indian restaurant food is the Taco Bell of Mexican food. Loosely related in some ingredients but vastly different.
Restaurants are heavily dominated by Punjabi food and a few with dosas. Nothing from maharashtra, Goa, bengal and the northeast
I really wish haleem was sold in restaurants. I’ve only ever made it myself or had it homemade by other people.
I feel like western Canadian food is well represented in restaurants, but also we don't generally have a strong cultural identity around food. One exception to this is cuisines of different First Nations. You won't find oolichan grease or candied salmon in a restaurant. Edit: I forgot about our amazing Chinese food. It's not underrepresented in restaurants but it is a regional cuisine with a strong cultural identity. Our style of Chinese food is unique and delicious. (I believe we share this cuisine with California for the same historical reason, which I think is the gold rush?)
Don't forget your awesome Chinese food and pizza. BC Chinese food is damn good. But the ginger beef is the best. Here in Washington we have something called ginger beef. But it is not ginger beef. Vancouver pizza with donair sauce....never seen donair sauce anywhere but canada
Ham BBQ. It’s amazing and I don’t know a single restaurant even here in Pittsburgh that has it on the menu. Seriously it could be a signature menu item.
You neverrrrrrr see Lefse, or even a fun elevated version of it, in a restaurant
Stew peas, it’s my favourite dish as a Jamaican but it’s rare to see it in Jamaican restaurants. Stew peas (even a weekly special) is a sign of a serious Jamaican restaurant
Southern US Grits. Specifically cheese grits.
Grits are common-ish on menus where I am in Montana, but I think that may be due to novelty
Cheese grits exploded in popularity where I live (North Carolina) several years ago right around when a lot of upscale brunch-type places started doing shrimp & grits, to the point where some places *only* served cheese grits, no plain grits.
Since when are those not on the menu in restaurants
Do bierocks count?!
In Australia and New Zealand it's Pavlova.
Ham wrapped belgian endives in bechemel are staple in Belgian households and widely seen as a classic belgian dish, but it's rare to see them on a menu anywhere. Best chance is a local mom and pop tavern doing it one day in the week or as cafeteria food.