It’s certainly food for thought.
A recent Reddit discussion has highlighted how trips abroad are capable of permanently changing a traveller’s diet, with commenters revealing foreign dishes they had on their travels that they now can’t stop eating.
‘Coffeewalnut05’ kicked off the discussion by asking: ‘What’s a food you fell in love with on your travels and now eat regularly?’
A smorgasbord of replies followed, with users highlighting addictive dishes they sampled in the likes of New York state, Singapore, Brazil and the Balkans.
And don’t worry, France, one of your staple foods makes the cut too. Read on if you’re hungry for more…
Açai, Brazil
Acai, pronounced ‘ah-sigh-ee’, are small purple berries that grow on palm trees in South America. They’re often served in smoothie bowls and according to a couple of travellers, a taste of acai will definitely leave you ‘ah-sighing’ for more.
Coffeewalnut05’ writes: ‘For me, it’s acai from my time in Brazil. The classic acai ice-cream with granola and banana is a favourite, but I prefer acai in its more “pure” form as a pulp/puree, so I still order that sometimes to have it at home.
‘Sadly, in my country, it’s not common to find acai sold like that in shops, and acai bowls are only a thing in specific places like London and some coastal areas.’
‘Coffeewalnut05’ says they order acai pulp to enjoy at home after tasting it in Brazil
‘Lorlei’ agreed, adding: ‘So happy to see acai being mentioned! I miss it everyday living abroad to be honest.’
Baguette and butter, France
France’s baguettes are so good they earned Unesco status. And many travellers can’t baguette-enough.
‘Itsthekumar’ says they love ‘baguettes and French butter’.
User ‘Sain197’ likes the ‘baguette, cheese and cheap red wine for dinner’ combination when in Paris, and ‘Pwlife’ said that after a trip to France they’re ‘making baguettes almost every weekend’.
Cinnamon dusted orange slices, Morocco
Morocco’s cinnamon-dusted oranges are un-peel-ieveable, according to several travellers.
‘Brown_burrito’ writes: ‘Those are so good! The cinnamon sugar elevates it. And if you want to make it extra special, you can get a crème brulee torch and glaze the cinnamon sugar. That’ll make them even better!’
‘Timbomcchoi’ says: ‘Oh wow, I’d forgotten about these, thank you!’
Onigiri, Japan
‘Kikicataku’ buys onigiri every time they visit a Japanese market
Onigiri are Japanese rice balls, often stuffed with fillings such as salmon, and wrapped in seaweed.
‘Melonpan78’ says: ‘Discovered them in Japan, make them myself at least once a week. I usually put spicy chicken or salmon mayo inside.’
‘Kikicataku’ says: ‘Same! Every time I go to the Japanese market near me, I get a pickled plum onigiri and tuna mayo!’
Pasteis de nata, Portugal
Although the world is home to thousands of tasty desserts, there’s nata quite like a Portuguese custard tart.
‘Ehs5’ says: ‘After my first trip to Lisbon in 2017, I crave them all the time. Properly made ones are not easy to come by here in Norway, though.’
‘Janet–snakehole-’ says: ‘This is what I came here to say too! It’s my go-to dessert to bake at home now.’
And ‘Get-Me-Hennimore’ remarks: ‘I’ve only had the ones from Lidl in the UK. Which are really tasty, but I guess nowhere near proper ones?’
Buffalo wings, USA
One traveller ‘fell in love with buffalo wings’ on a trip to Buffalo in New York state
A taste of buffalo wings began a lifelong affair for one traveller, ‘Rude-Illustrator-884’, who says: ‘This is gonna sound crazy but buffalo wings. I grew up in the Middle East and never had them before.
‘We stopped by Buffalo, New York, during a trip from NYC to Niagara Falls and we got some wings from there because my parents wanted me to try it since we were in Buffalo. I fell in love with buffalo wings.’
‘Toomuchsauce68’ adds: ‘When my grandma came to visit us in the US from Vietnam, buffalo wings became her favourite thing too.’
Tomatoes, Europe
Sometimes it’s the simple ingredients that are tom-tally delicious.
‘Cakeit-tillyoumakeit’ says: ‘For the first 24 years of my life, I hated tomatoes, but then I went to Italy and fell in love with Caprese salads and bruschetta and now I love tomatoes. My family couldn’t believe it when I came home and started eating tomatoes.’
‘Taace1ila’ says: ‘Same! I hated tomatoes until eating a traditional Greek salad in Greece. Now I gorge myself on farmer’s markets tomatoes in the summer time.’
Pandan cake, Singapore
One user fell for the grassy flavour of tropical plant pandan while in Singapore and now makes pandan cakes (file image above)
The grassy flavour of tropical plant pandan is a winner for some commenters, with user ‘Another-story’ replying to the question posed with ‘pandan cake!’
They continue: ‘I bought four bottles of extract the last time I was in Singapore. I’m moving into a new apartment at the end of the month, and I’ve decided [pandan cake] is the first thing I’ll bake to celebrate.’
‘Marcybq’ adds: ‘Anything pandan flavoured whenever I can find it, which is rare. Had lots of it in South East Asia and can’t get enough of that mild grassy flavour.’
Haggis, UK
Haggis is made from sheep’s heart, liver, stomach and lungs, with the latter ingredient illegal to import into the U.S since 1971.
American user ‘Far-link-7533’ tried it in London and was bowled over, revealing: ‘I tried it for the first time in London and it was incredibly delicious. Not what I expected in the least and if I could find it in the States I would.’
Pan con tomate, Spain
Simple but tasty, Spain’s pan con tomate, grilled bread topped with tomatoes, is a real winner for a couple of travellers.
‘Educational-Unit3746’ say they make it using their own sourdough and tomatoes from their garden.
‘Outside-Limit-3084’ comments: ‘Second this! I add a little chilli oil and eat it twice a week.’
Ajvar, Balkans
Balkan favourite Ajvar is the ‘ultimate condiment’, according to one traveller
Ajvar is a red pepper paste that’s popular around the Balkans and ‘hits perfectly’ according to some Reddit users.
‘Schnitzalbrain’ writes: ‘Absolutely love the stuff. It’s like a roasted pepper and vegetable sauce and it just hits perfectly. I usually get a spicy one and have it with scrambled eggs.’
‘Gratusin’ says: ‘My wife is Slovenian, so half of our garden it seems goes into making ajvar. We can it and eat it year round. It’s the ultimate condiment. I make a spicy version with New Mexico chilies and it is perfection.’
Spaghetti carbonara, Italy
On the flipside, two travellers said Italy’s carbonara was so tasty they haven’t been able to eat it again outside the country.
‘Nzhawkster1’ says: ‘I had spaghetti carbonara while holidaying in Italy recently, and it was so good that I will never have it again unless I’m in Italy, because nothing else will come close.’
‘AndyVale’ adds: ‘The guanciale (salt-cured pork cheek) was the big difference for me. Pancetta or sliced bacon just doesn’t crisp on the outside and melt on the inside like it does.’
