American Food Habits and Traditions (tasty post!). Habits of an American woman after living in Russia (1 photo)

You can know America only by visiting it. Arriving in the USA will certainly experience a culture shock, because this country is distinguished by amazing oddities, which not everyone can understand)

1. No matter what the weather is outside, restaurants always serve water with a huge amount of ice!

2. Air conditioners work everywhere!

And they are turned on at full capacity! Outside, it's hot outside, but inside there's a "freezer"! Is it really that hard to find the middle ground?

3. The culture of tips, which to a foreigner will seem like a nightmare to reality.

Tipping is so obligatory when visiting restaurants that if you don't leave it to the waiter, it will be tantamount to spitting in the dish served to you...

4. Giant servings.

Most likely, such portions are designed to feed an entire family for a week ...

5. Waiters who come every three minutes to the table.

Here's how to earn tips!

6. A glass of water must certainly be filled, even if it is only half empty.

Isn't it easier to put a carafe of water on the table? Oh no! Why do we need waiters then?

7. Pharmacies selling sweets, cigarettes and alcohol!

This only happens in the US...

8. Huge cars.

The roads in America are proportionately wide...

9. Three-liter bottles of wine.

Some even have a volume of 6 liters!

10. Even if you are over 30, the store will ask you to show your ID.

11. Always smiling strangers...

On the street, in the store and... everywhere!!!

12. Sportswear and slates, in which Americans love to walk so much, regardless of the occasion and place.

13. Or the pajama pants you usually see in the grocery store...

It is very difficult to distinguish 1 dollar from five. Both banknotes are the same color and size.

15. Advertising on TV is longer than the series itself.

Although ... this is typical not only for America;)

16. VAT and other taxes are usually not indicated on price tags.

Therefore, do not be surprised if at the checkout the bill is billed for much a large amount than you expected.

17. Establishments that are open 7 days a week 24 hours.

Yes, there are some places that never stop working at all!

18. There are special people in stores who put your purchases in a bag!

Blimey!

19. Flags! Flags everywhere!

If you suddenly forget which country you are in)

20. People who drink coffee on the go.

21. For any dish, there is its fried version, which is abundantly poured with some kind of sauce!

Or rather the opposite: you order a sauce and some fried dish to it)

22. Very expensive cheese!

For example, one piece for $12?!

23. Use of bank cards with signature confirmation without a pin code.

A bit risky, right?

24. And the last: a shower that can not be regulated in any way!

I will try to debunk some of the myths about fast food and the scarcity of American food habits in this post by describing how vast and varied the topic is.

America is a country of emigrants and the people living here or their ancestors brought many cultural and food habits to this continent, moreover, even in each state or region of the country there are separate signature dishes characteristic of this region, based on its climatic and geographical features. Since the topic of food turned out to be too broad to fit it into one post of my modest blog, and at the same time not to seem unfounded, expressing only my personal opinion, I decided to interview a real American housewife who is passionate about cooking culinary masterpieces for her family, with which as I succeeded repeatedly on own example make sure she's doing GREAT!
Pat is a happy wife and mother of 4 children, whom she raised and taught herself at home (there is such a phenomenon in the USA when children are not taken to school, but are taught at home according to methodological manuals). Since, in this post, I decided to focus on the eating habits of the average American family, and not on gourmet or restaurant food (which I'm going to write about in a future post), Pat was the perfect informant for me.
Next, I will give my questions and her answers in my author's translation, which I hope will not spoil the reader's understanding of all the intricacies of the nutrition of a real American family:

« 1) What is considered traditional American cuisine?

Traditional American cuisine mainly focuses on baked meat (chicken, beef, pork, etc.), side dishes (often potatoes or pasta), and vegetables.
On the other hand, there are quite a lot of people living in America different people and our dishes began to include all their products. Spaghetti, meatballs, or lasagna are not considered American dishes because they are all Italian cuisine, but they are quite popular with Americans nonetheless. For example, my mother used to make typical casseroles of potatoes and other foods on Sundays for the whole week ahead, and then we ate variations of this dish on the rest of the week, usually baked on a baking sheet with meat.

2) What are the traditional dishes in New England?

Seafood dishes are the most popular in New England due to the proximity of the ocean. In the summer, in cities located on the coast, most restaurants offer their visitors baked fish and fried seafood (usually scallops, mussels, shrimp (although shrimp are not from New England) and lobsters (lobsters). Lobster can be cooked different ways, but they are usually served boiled or steamed with a small saucer of melted butter, in which pieces of lobster meat are dipped. Personally, my favorite summer dish is the Lobster roll, which consists of lobster meat mixed with mayonnaise, pickles and celery or other greens, and then all this is put into a lightly grilled bun. Real jam!

Scallops (scallops):


Shellfish (Clams):

Clam soup (clam chowder):


Lobster or lobster (lobster):


Lobster roll (lobster roll):


Other things typical of New England are: baked beans (usually small beans baked in a molasses or brown sugar and water sauce with some pork belly added), American stew or American Chop Suey , and ground beef), and Whoopie pies - small cakes with cream filling. There is also a dessert called Marshmallow Fluff, which is only found in New England. It is spread on bread like butter, but it is only made from marshmallows. Also, people here make sandwiches with "peanut fluff" (Fluffer-nutter) - this is the same marshmallow, only with peanut butter. I lived in Florida and Missouri for a while and never saw these dishes anywhere else, except from people from New England who brought them from home.
Baked beans:


American Stew (Chop Suey):


Pies "Uppie" (whoopie-pie):


"Marshmallow Fluff" (Fluff):

3) What do average Americans eat on weekdays?

It depends on your schedule.
- For breakfast I usually have either scrambled eggs and toast or cereal with cold milk. My son, for example, eats waffles cooked in a toaster (from the freezer) and special breakfast sausages (usually sweet) heated in the microwave. The husband eats ready-made protein shakes (which he freezes and then eats with a spoon, like ice cream) and bananas. My daughter usually gets up late and doesn't eat anything for breakfast! In fact, she might grab cookies and coffee and eat it all on her way to work.
- For lunch we eat sandwiches or salad (lunch or lunch is always light for Americans).
- Dinner can be anything from casseroles or crock-pot food on a slow setting to grilled sandwiches and various soups. When there is no time, we order food delivery from restaurants. Often we eat "breakfast for lunch" (eggs, bacon and toast), and sometimes even ice cream, usually in summer time when it's too hot to cook!

Multicooker Crock pot (slow cooker):


Breakfasts:

4) What are the traditional holiday foods in the US?

Various Religious holidays have their own characteristic dishes depending on one religion or another, and I do not think it is worth dwelling on the peculiarities of the diet of their adherents. I can only speak from my own cooking experience. festive dishes. For example:

For Easter, usually prepared: baked pork (such as boiled pork) or a leg of lamb;
Baked pork (baked ham):


Lamb leg (leg of lamb):

In the warm season, on such holidays as: Memorial Day, Independence Day and Labor Day, we barbecue on the street: we grill almost any kind of meat or sausages, steaks, hot dogs and hamburgers. If these are sausages, then I usually first boil them lightly (bring to a boil for a few minutes, but do not cook to the end) in beer. This adds an incomparable flavor to sausages! Typical side dishes in this case are cold salads such as potato salad (like Russian salad, but without meat and peas), pasta salad or slaw salad.

Thanksgiving: roast turkey, although many people in recent times fry it in oil. Some also pre-marinate the turkey for several days in sweet-salt water and then roast it. Sometimes a turkey is stuffed with bread and minced meat, but I have never done this. It is difficult to make sure that the filling is completely cooked through, and the meat of the turkey itself does not become too dry.

Christmas: the same turkey, or baked ham. I used to make roast beef with beef ribs, but when we lived in Florida, where it's always warm at Christmas, we used to grill the steaks.

Side dishes for holidays like Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas tend to be similar: Corn pudding (same as bread pudding but cornbread based), mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, baked yams or sweet potatoes, sweet casserole potatoes with a layer of marshmallows on top. Most of these side dishes may sound strange to you, but we find them delicious! Especially if you add butter and cream - it's very tasty!
Corn pudding:

5) What desserts are especially popular among Americans?

In fact, there are quite a few desserts that are not popular in America ;). Americans love to eat dessert in large quantities. At home, we usually make brownies or brownies and eat them with tea in the afternoon. On special occasions, we usually eat a layer cake with icing, a cheesecake, or it can be a fruit salad with ice cream.

6) Fast food or home cooking? Has the dominance of fast food in American eating habits changed in recent years? last years?

I think Americans are often too busy to cook on weekday evenings. Most women work or have to take their children to school, sport sections or to music lessons and back, and therefore they are not able to prepare elaborate meals for dinner. For example, in my family, the husband comes home around 6:30 pm and at least two evenings during the week, one of us or both of us have some business and meetings at 7:00 pm. Two of our 4 children who still live with us either work in the evenings (2-3 times a week) or play sports and go out with friends, which does not allow us to have dinner together. It would be stupid to cook a lot of food for 2 people, although I still do it on weekends :). So all that's left is fast food: ready-made meals you can get at the grocery store, frozen dinners, or, as some families do, meals prepared on the weekend a week in advance are simply reheated for a week in the microwave. However, fast food has changed a lot in the last 10 years. Food that is ready to eat from the grocery store and only needs to be reheated has become quite tasty and many times cheaper and healthier than the same pizza, sandwiches and hamburgers (the most typical fast food). If we do order takeout, it's usually a Greek salad (with feta cheese, grilled chicken, and olives) because I don't really like making salad - it's easier to order it from a restaurant! Today is Saturday and my husband Anthony ordered sushi and Chinese food from a cafe for dinner and drove himself to bring it home.”
Greek salad (Greek salad):

P.S. From myself I want to add that despite the traditions, all people still have different tastes, food allergies and hostility. For example, my father-in-law, although he grew up in New England in close proximity to the ocean, still categorically does not eat fish and other seafood (I didn’t eat until the age of 20-23 either, then I gradually began to get involved). Since we still live with my wife's parents, real Americans, it makes sense to mention a little about their diet. Peter and Luen (parents of Amy, my wife) are quite conservative and have a typical American way of thinking. They are very afraid of cholesterol and try to drink only skimmed milk and eat only foods low in fat and cholesterol. They are also obsessed with various vitamins and nutritional supplements. In the morning they eat cereal, drink orange juice and coffee, which is quite traditional for Americans, for lunch (or lunch, yes, yes, lunch is lunch, not second breakfast, as we are taught at school, and dinner is dinner. They don't use a word like "supper" for dinner here), they eat a peanut butter sandwich if they're at work, and if they're at home, a vegetable salad. And for dinner, most often they eat frozen convenience foods or order pizza, but they still cook once or twice a week. For example:
- potatoes, onions, carrots, mushrooms and smoked Polish sausage (kielbasa) cut into pieces are baked in the oven;
- make various Italian pastas, tetrazini, etc.;
- they cook meat stew from beef, goulash or something like that in a slow cooker.
And of course, all Americans are very fond of going to restaurants, cafes on weekends or ordering food at home from the same restaurants (take out).

On Reddit, people decided to discuss a topic that non-Americans find strange about Pendos' habits. Yes, some things are really weird.

Here's the best:

Absolutely everywhere to drive a car

Yes, USA big country. But these guys are ready to drive a car any amount of time. I had a friend who regularly traveled on weekends to visit family. Moreover, the road one way was 16 hours. This is amazing to say the least - B_Underscore

Wal-Mart is a store where you can buy absolutely everything.

A friend from the UK traveled to the US and said Wal-Mart was the strangest thing he had ever seen. Imagine that in one store you can buy 24 rolls of toilet paper and a 12-gauge gun. - Teaching_man

I always thought that you couldn't just walk in and buy a gun in a supermarket... But not in America. I think it's better to go to a special gun shop. I admit I was wrong. - KevinDevogel

The fact that the prices of things in stores are not their actual price, but the price without taxes and other surcharges, is very wrong - 77-97-114-99-111

Strange American version of puritanism

You Americans don't see the difference between nudity and sex. -Nionvox

And yet extreme violence and other brutality is considered normal, and is regularly shown on TV. And it is, at least, surprising that natural and beautiful partially naked female body seen as taboo and "corrupting" youth, and a guy with a cut off head or how a teenager is beaten to death is normal and quite acceptable for children. You really have some kind of imbalance in your head. - Source

I'm amazed at the amount of cheese Americans can consumption at a time. - Countsblink

I went with my cousin to Mac'n'cheese. There we were served a burger that contained 600 grams of cheese. We had a culture shock - Marcvsgrippa

Flavored with the smell of pumpkin. Pumpkin is a vegetable. And a seasonal vegetable. For me, coffee with pumpkin is at least strange - TallGrass2

Cheerleaders

Young girls in short skirts who are forced to dance in the stadium so that the audience cheers for the guys seems strange to me - preparetodobattle

I work at a summer camp, and there is nothing more funny than watching American Scouts, who seem to me just sick. They have an entire morning and evening dedicated to worshiping the American flag. 5-7 in military uniform they raise the flag, salute, 60-90 people read the oath of the scouts in unison, march, and in the evening everything is in reverse order - izzielosthermind

Take coffee everywhere

Eat / drink, but only with coffee, if an American has nothing to do and he goes somewhere, he goes with coffee. Coffee is part of the meal, part of the conversation, part of the relaxation. Nothing goes without coffee. - tallgrass2

Obsession with one's own alma mater.

I know this doesn't apply to everyone, but Americans remain attached to college after they leave. Older people come to campus because they studied there, they walk among applicants, graduates of the 2000s or 1990s. In all other countries, educated and goodbye institute - Fenrir89

I was ridiculed all the time in Russia for always talking and dreaming about college. - CK14

Magnificence and splendor High school prom

For example, we don't have any traditions, we just thump. But in America it's akin to the Miss World ceremony - Vitore

Mania for white teeth

Americans are obsessed with straight and white teeth. It is as if all your beauty depended only on your teeth. Don't get me wrong, oral hygiene is important, but America's "perfect" teeth look fake. - Flashnewb

obsession to be the best country in the world

Many Chinese don't understand how America can function so "well" since the people here are all so different. There are blacks, Asians, whites, Hispanics, Indians, it's impossible to name them all... Everyone seems to be doing something, when in fact it's just a fiction - jdavem

The way everyone says that Americans are open to the world and communication, and that we should learn from them, but they are all alone, and when no one agrees with me, I am still surrounded by a crowd of helpers - fawkesandthehound

Recently I came across an article about the habits of our people through the eyes of Americans. It was a somewhat controversial list, made up of post-Soviet people's habits that seem strange to Americans. I immediately remembered my best friend Oleg, who has been living in Los Angeles for quite some time. He graciously agreed to talk about the most iconic American habits, many of which I also encountered during my trip to California. Oleg responded promptly and literally the next day I received a letter in the mail in which he offhand listed 21 Americans.

So, in the presentation of Oleg (pictured) - 21 habits of Americans that may seem strange to many.

These Americans are strange people:

1. They can throw out the Christmas tree before the New Year. Many do, some the day after Western Christmas. Probably because the tree here is not New Year's, but Christmas (Christmas Tree).

2. But they put up the Christmas tree much earlier - often right after Thanksgiving, which falls on the last Thursday of November.

3. These barbarians don't eat olivier salad on New Year, which confirms the common stereotype about the stupidity of the local population. They don't even know what an Olivier salad is.

4. They usually do not take off their shoes when they come to visit - unless the hosts ask them to do so.

5. The hosts will be more surprised than delighted if the guests start to take off their shoes - what if they do not stop and continue to undress?

6. Don't be surprised if your guests ask permission to take off their shoes - they may be hot, but they don't want to embarrass their hosts with their socks.

7. Do not rejoice if you have no money, and you were invited to dinner at an expensive restaurant - the inviting party is by no means going to pay for you. Everyone pays for themselves, except when you are a woman and you were invited to a romantic date (dinner with colleagues does not count) or you were told in advance that you were treated.

8. If you go to a restaurant to celebrate a friend's birthday, again, do not count on a freebie - friends treat the birthday man, not he them.

9. Tips of 15-20% in restaurants with waiters are not prescribed by law, but are in fact mandatory. They don’t pay them if they were frankly rude or had a bowl of soup thrown on their heads. Eateries like McDonald's don't tip.

10. They drink but don't eat. They do not understand at all what a snack is and what it is for.

11. If they eat, they drink wine or beer. If they drink something stronger, then, as a rule, they do not eat.

12. Vodka is poured warm. Three hundred grams in a decanter is impossible to order. They don't have decanters.

13. They don't eat fat. Some might get sick of it.

14. They don't eat buckwheat. Many do not know what it is.

15. If you are a man and go to the beach in swimming trunks, and not in Bermuda shorts, then you will be considered gay or a tourist from Europe who looks or is gay.

16. They do not forbid children to drink cold juice from the refrigerator. They drink everything cold from the refrigerator (except for vodka, whiskey, gin, rum, tequila and red wine, which they do not give to children). Until they died.

17. They order soda glasses from McDonald's big size despite the fact that you can pour soda into a glass of any size for free. Probably just very lazy and do not want to go to the machine once again.

18. Therefore, they are thick. Fat people are mostly those who are poor. See item 17. The rich are mostly not fat - they do not go to McDonald's.

19.After reaching the age of 18, they can get married, elect a president, fight the Taliban in Afghanistan, decide the fate of the accused in court as a jury, but cannot buy a bottle of beer until they are 21 years old.

20. If you go to the doctor and they give you a thermometer to measure the temperature, do not rush to put it under your arm - they will look at you with great surprise. They take it in their mouth.

21. They do not know how to play the fool, neither in the throw-in, nor in the transfer. It's almost impossible to teach.

The list is not a dogma; it can and should be supplemented. Surely not all of them are here.

On Monday we will again go to the castles of Transylvania. :)

Photos Depositphotos

Each nation has its own characteristics, which often baffle foreigners. Many tourists come to another country to get to know the traditions better. local residents and leave in complete disbelief.

"Factrum" talks about very strange habits and traditions of the inhabitants of the United States that can drive anyone crazy!

Restaurants always serve ice water, no matter the weather. Cold or hot outside, it doesn't matter. But what is really strange is when there is much more ice in a glass than water itself.

Air conditioners are always and everywhere at full capacity.

Portions in restaurants are astronomically huge. One meal meant for the average American is enough for a whole family of foreigners.

Photos Depositphotos

The waiters come up every 3 minutes and ask if you are comfortable, if the food is delicious, etc. Every 3 minutes!

Stores sell 3-liter bottles of wine. And sometimes even 6-liter.

You are always asked for ID at the bar or in the store if you buy beer, even though you are clearly in your 40s.

American cars are just gigantic. Especially compared to European brands. By the way, the highways are also huge.

Photos Depositphotos

Banknotes are very similar to each other. It is difficult to distinguish, for example, $1 and $5 bills because they are all the same size and color.

You can pay with a credit card without using a pin code, but simply by putting your signature. It doesn't look too safe.

Pharmacies sell candy, soda, cigarettes and beer. Although many of our dream about it!

Strangers constantly smile at you. On the street, in supermarkets, in public toilets- everywhere.

Photos Depositphotos

Many walk around in fitness clothes, even though they are not in the gym. And in shales - not on the beach.

It is not uncommon to see people in pajamas in supermarkets. Because they don't really care, to be honest.

American flags are everywhere. Just in case you forgot what country you are in.

Photos Depositphotos

Americans drink coffee on the go all the time. To many foreigners, this seems wild, because they are used to enjoying a drink while sitting somewhere in a pleasant place, and not intercepting on the run.

The shower head cannot be adjusted in any way, everywhere it is bolted directly to the wall.

Shops and restaurants are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Of course, this is convenient, but the employees of these institutions are insanely sorry.