The French love meals and having fun with it’s a little bit of a nationwide pastime. From easy dishes ready nicely to distinctive Michelin chef creations and all the pieces in between, there’s no scarcity of fantastic French meals to be loved by all. However the French aren’t followers of all the pieces, nor are all of the meals you realize and love from house obtainable in France. Let’s get into 5 American consolation meals dishes the French don’t eat!
One thing that shocked me after I first got here to France is simply how various the meals are and that American consolation meals I used to be acquainted again house didn’t actually translate to French delicacies.
One other random factor that shocked me was that French folks love leeks and so they’re fairly well-liked. They’re simply as commonplace as carrots are and most younger French youngsters in case you held up a leek and requested them to call it could understand it’s a leek, known as un poireau in French, whereas within the U.S. leeks aren’t fairly as well-liked.
Additionally, you would possibly suppose the French by no means eat quick meals and that everybody takes benefit of native produce and solely cooks from scratch. That’s what I assumed earlier than really dwelling right here and seeing how the French stay!
That will have been true years in the past, however as of late, not all French folks make all their very own meals and store on the market. Imagine it or not, McDonald’s in France is the second most worthwhile market (solely after the U.S.). Instances are a-changin’!
It was additionally fascinating for me to find French consolation meals and to comprehend the American ones I knew and liked weren’t “a factor” in France in any respect.
Please be aware I’m not saying these items *ought to* exist in France. It’s a special nation and France has its personal tradition and manner of doing issues that I’ve come to respect and likewise love. I feel it’s fascinating to take a look at the variations, although, and be ready so you realize what to anticipate.
Let’s get into it….
5 Standard consolation meals we eat within the U.S. that don’t exist in France:
1. Baked macaroni & cheese. MMMMmmm, who can resist these items?? Not me — particularly the baked mac and cheese my mother used to make with broccoli. SO GOOD!
I advised you on this publish that boxed mac and cheese in U.S. supermarkets is so commonplace that it’d shock you to be taught it doesn’t exist in France. So it is smart that do-it-yourself macaroni and cheese isn’t a dish the French make both.
It’s stated that macaroni and cheese really happened within the U.S. after Thomas Jefferson went to Europe and actually loved a noodle dish he had tried there. He took notes after which requested for it to be served to him at a state dinner as “macaroni pie.” The remaining was historical past.
Whereas France doesn’t have conventional U.S.-style mac and cheese, there’s a dish that’s sort of comparable known as coquillettes au jambon which options elbow macaroni, ham, and parmesan cheese. It’s not as creamy or tacky as our beloved macaroni and cheese however it’s good and price a attempt. 😉
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2. PB&J. Ahhh sure, the nostalgia is approaching sturdy with ol’ peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Children love these items and I bear in mind my PB&J days fondly. I’ll nonetheless have one each every now and then as an grownup for outdated time’s sake.
Most of the dishes I’m writing about right here fall into the not-culturally-French class and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches prime this checklist. Any manner you slice it (sorry, I couldn’t resist the pun), French youngsters don’t have creamy peanut butter and attractive jelly slapped between two items of white bread for lunch.
The sweetness of it is perhaps complicated to French folks who usually save something candy for dessert or le goûter. The sort of sandwich would positively not be thought-about a correct lunch meal (which wants meat and veggies!).
As well as, whereas yow will discover peanut butter in common grocery shops as of late, it’s not tremendous well-liked in France and wouldn’t be used to make a sandwich for lunch.
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3. Meatloaf. The French love meat however American-style meatloaf will not be one thing you’ll discover on restaurant menus in France. In the event you’re not accustomed to it, meatloaf is mostly a mixture of floor beef and pork and seasoned with onions, breadcrumbs, and possibly some ketchup on prime. It’s the last word consolation meals however simply not one which’s served in France. My French in-laws love mine, although!
4. Pumpkin pie and different pumpkin-flavored desserts. Pumpkin and associated squash varieties are thought-about greens in France. There’s no pumpkin pie and that’s a disgrace as a result of it’s my favourite dessert (and canned pumpkin is tough to return by!).
As you would possibly anticipate, there’s no pumpkin spice craze right here both, so that you received’t discover pumpkin spice Oreos, espresso creamer (in any selection!), cream cheese and all of these seasonal fall merchandise which are oh-so-popular within the U.S.
Pumpkin pie isn’t a factor in any respect and the closest you would possibly get is a ache d’épices (spice cake). Pumpkin-flavored desserts aren’t one thing the French make or purchase. They actually don’t exist and don’t have any cultural significance.
P.S. The identical goes for key lime pie.
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5. Candy potato casserole with marshmallows. This candy and gooey dish is a Thanksgiving should! However since there’s no Thanksgiving in France, everybody’s tried-and-true favourite aspect dish stateside would get just a few stares in France. Culturally, a potato dish with marshmallows would stand out and be thought-about a bit unusual (marshmallows with dinner?!?).
But it surely’s not as a result of the French would hate it. I realized this one from expertise when my household ended up loving my candy potato casserole at our little French Thanksgiving just a few years again!
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What different well-liked American dishes are exhausting to return by in France?
Disclosure: I’m an affiliate of MyPanier.
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