Food Around the World

Question: The dish saganaki is from which country?

Answer: Saganaki is any of the various Greek dishes named for the small round two-handled frying pan in which they are made, the best known being a fried-cheese version. The name comes from the Turkish word sahan, meaning “copper dish.” The cheese—usually kasseri, kefalotyri, kefalograviera, or another firm Greek cheese—is typically dredged in flour, seared in butter or olive oil, and then served with lemon. It is frequently eaten as an appetizer in the pan, alongside bread, usually pita bread.

Question: What country does the word "mocha" come from?

Answer: Mocha, a port in Yemen, lends its name to a certain kind of coffee. Coffee was grown there beginning about 1500 years ago and exported to other countries.

Question: What is borscht?

Answer: Borscht is a beet soup of the Slavic countries. Its name is thought to be derived from the Slavic word for the cow parsnip or common hogweed (Heracleum sphondylium), or from a fermented beverage derived from that plant. Borschts are eaten hot or cold. Some are clear and light, others thick and substantial.

Question: Which saffron-flavored dish is associated with the region of Valencia in Spain?

Answer: Paella is a Spanish dish made of saffron-flavored rice cooked with meats, seafood, and vegetables. Originating in the rice-growing areas on Spain’s Mediterranean coast, the dish is especially associated with the region of Valencia. Paella takes its name from the paellera, the utensil in which it is cooked, a flat round pan with two handles.

Question: Which French city is known for having the most authentic form of the fish soup bouillabaisse?

Answer: Bouillabaisse, a complex fish soup originating on the Mediterranean coast of France, is one of the glories of Provençal cuisine. Recipes for bouillabaisse abound, but the Marseilles formulation is generally acknowledged as the most authentic. It contains fish and shellfish, olive oil, onions, tomatoes, garlic, parsley, saffron, fennel, thyme, bay leaf, and orange peel.

Question: Msakhan and mansaf are the most popular dishes of which country?

Answer: The two most popular dishes in Jordan are msakhan, lamb or mutton and rice with a yogurt sauce, and mansaf, chicken cooked with onions, which are both served on holidays and special family occasions.

Question: What type of food is ackee, a component of ackee and saltfish, the national dish of Jamaica?

Answer: Ackee is a tree of the soapberry family (Sapindaceae) native to West Africa, widely cultivated throughout tropical and subtropical regions for its edible fruit. Ackee and saltfish is a popular dish in the Caribbean and is the national dish of Jamaica.

Question: What food product is made by curdling fresh soy milk?

Answer: Tofu is a soft, relatively flavorless food product made from soybeans. It is made from dried soybeans that are soaked in water, crushed, and boiled. The mixture is separated into solid pulp (okara) and soy “milk.” Tofu is 6–8 percent protein and is high in calcium, potassium, and iron. It is an important source of protein in the cuisines of China, Japan, Korea, and Southeast Asia.

Question: Food items like fufu and the bammy come from which plant?

Answer: Cassava is a tuberous edible plant of the spurge family (Euphorbiaceae) from the American tropics. Food items such as the gelatinous fufu of West Africa and the bammy of Jamaica come from cassava. Cassava is a good source of dietary fiber as well as vitamin C, thiamin, folic acid, manganese, and potassium.

Question: In what country would you be most likely to find gruyere cheese in the market?

Answer: Gruyere is a cheese that is widely eaten in Switzerland. It is named after a village in the French-speaking part of the country.

Question: What is the name of the buffet-style meal that serves multiple hot and cold dishes of various foods?

Answer: Smorgasbord, in Swedish cuisine, is a buffet offering a variety of fish, cheeses, and hot and cold dishes. In Sweden, it was customary for guests to contribute to the fare at large gatherings. The foods were set out on long tables from which the diners helped themselves. By the 18th century, festive meals were preceded by appetizers from a bannvinsbord, offering aquavit, herring, and other delicacies.

Question: What is the name of the Albanian dessert made from figs and sheep’s milk?

Answer: Oshaf, a pudding made from figs and sheep’s milk, is a common Albanian dessert.

Question: Kimchi, commonly used in Korean meals, is a type of what?

Answer: Kimchi is a spicy, fermented pickle that invariably accompanies a Korean meal. The vegetables most commonly used in its preparation are celery cabbage, Chinese turnip, and cucumber. The prepared vegetables are sliced, highly seasoned with red pepper, onion, and garlic, and fermented in brine in large earthenware jars. Dried and salted shrimp, anchovy paste, and oysters are sometimes used as additional seasonings.

Question: When did the traditional British teatime treat crumpet originate?

Answer: The crumpet is a traditional British teatime treat. It is a type of griddle cake that originated in the 17th century as a thin pancake made from flour, milk, and an egg base. The spongy cakes are traditionally toasted and spread with butter.

Question: What is the traditional Guatemalan feast on All Saints’ Day?

Answer: The peoples of Guatemala celebrate All Saints’ Day on November 1 with unique traditions like flying giant kites in the cemeteries near Antigua Guatemala and feasting on traditional food known as fiambre, a salad made from cold cuts, fish, and vegetables.

Question: Which famous Middle Eastern dish contains fried, spiced ground chickpeas and/or fava beans in a pita or laffa bread?

Answer: Falafel, a staple Middle Eastern dish and popular street food around the world. It consists of fried spiced balls or patties of ground chickpeas or fava beans (or a mixture of both) stuffed into a pita or wrapped in laffa bread with hot sauce, tahini sauce, and generally some saladlike combination of tomato, lettuce, cucumber, onion, parsley, and yogurt.

Question: Which French dish is prepared with the livers of specially fattened goose or duck?

Answer: Pâté de foie gras, a pastry that is filled with the liver of specially fattened goose or duck, is a world-renowned delicacy.

Question: Matoke is a food staple of which country?

Answer: A kind of plantain called matoke, which is cooked in stews and curries, is the staple diet in most of Uganda. A Buganda legend relates that one of the first acts of the first man on earth, Kintu, was to plant a matoke tree for his descendants to enjoy.

Question: Which of the following is a staple food of the South Pacific?

Answer: Breadfruit is a tree of the mulberry family (Moraceae), and its large fruits are a staple food of the South Pacific and other tropical areas. Breadfruit contains considerable amounts of starch and is seldom eaten raw. It may be roasted, baked, boiled, fried, or dried and ground into flour.

Question: In what country might you eat haggis?

Answer: Haggis is a traditional Scottish dish, eaten on Burns Night (January 25) and Hogmanay (New Year’s Eve).

Question: What is the name of the cooking technique in which food is sealed in a plastic pouch and cooked at a low temperature?

Answer: In frozen prepared food, there is a vacuum technique known as sous-vide cooking, in which foods are cooked in their juices, thus retaining their natural flavors and moisture. Cooking time is usually increased because of the low temperatures employed. The process involves placing the food inside a laminated pouch and subjecting the packaged product to a vacuum before sealing. The sealed pouch is then cooked in boiling water. After cooking, the pouches are quickly cooled in a stream of cold water before freezing.

Question: Who is known as “the king of chefs and the chef of kings"?

Answer: French culinary artist Auguste Escoffier is known as “the king of chefs and the chef of kings.” He earned a worldwide reputation as a director of the kitchens at the Savoy Hotel (1890–99) and afterward at the Carlton Hotel, both in London. His name is synonymous with classical French cuisine.

Question: If you were eating ugali, you would most likely be in what country?

Answer: Kenyan cooking reflects British, Arab, and Indian influences. Foods common throughout Kenya include ugali, a mush made from corn (maize) and often served with such greens as spinach and kale.

Question: Bannock is a flat unleavened bread eaten primarily in which country?

Answer: Bannock is a flat, sometimes unleavened bread eaten primarily in Scotland. Although most commonly made of oats, bannocks are also made of barley, ground dried peas, and a combination of grains are sometimes encountered.

Question: What is the spicy and pungent condiment usually served with sushi and sashimi?

Answer: Wasabi paste is spicy and pungent in flavor and is most commonly served with sushi and sashimi. Fresh wasabi paste loses its pungency when exposed to air, so the rhizome is often grated immediately before serving, traditionally with sharkskin or wooden grater. It is also available as a dried powder or in a tube. True wasabi is naturally green in color, while Western wasabi, made of horseradish, usually has green colorants added.

Question: What is the Swiss dish of melted cheese traditionally served in a pot?

Answer: Fondue is a Swiss dish of melted cheeses, usually including one or more of the varieties Emmentaler, Vacherin, and Gruyère. In its preparation, white wine is heated in a heavy casserole, called a caquelon, which has been rubbed with garlic. The grated cheese is added to the hot wine along with a little cornstarch and a flavoring of nutmeg or kirsch. The fondue is eaten communally from its pot. Diners are provided with small cubes of crusty bread, which they spear on long-handled forks and dip into the hot mixture.

Question: Alambre, a dish made of chopped meats and vegetables, is popular in which country?

Answer: Alambre is a Mexican dish of chopped meats and vegetables, and served with corn or flour tortillas. The most common meats used are beef, chicken, and pork, including bacon. Other ingredients typically include onions, peppers, tomato, and cheese. Alambre is Spanish for “wire,” likely referring to a preparation method in which the components are threaded on a skewer and then grilled.

Question: Which of these is the main ingredient of guacamole?

Answer: Mashed avocado is the main ingredient of guacamole, a characteristic sauce in Mexican cuisine. Avocados are often eaten in salads, and in many parts of the world, they are eaten as a dessert.

Question: Which is a traditional pie that comes from the Netherlands?

Answer: Appeltaart, a Dutch apple pie has been a traditional dish of the Netherlands for centuries, dating back to the Middle Ages. The filling typically consists of thickly sliced apples (usually crisp and tart varieties), raisins or currants, and various other ingredients that impart flavors, such as sugar, lemon juice, cinnamon, rum, and brandy. It is cooked in a springform pan, making for a deep pie and a thick flaky crust.

Question: Which fruit is used to make grenadine syrup?

Answer: The juice of pomegranates is the source of grenadine syrup, which is used in flavourings and liqueurs. Pomegranate is high in dietary fiber, folic acid, vitamin C, and vitamin K.

Question: To what country is the mung bean native?

Answer: The mung bean (also called the green gram) and the horse gram are native to India.

Question: From which plant is the spice saffron obtained?

Answer: Saffron, the golden-colored, pungent stigma of the autumn crocus (Crocus sativus), are dried and used as a spice to flavor foods and as a dye to color foods and other products. Saffron has a strong, exotic aroma and a bitter taste and is used to color and flavor many Mediterranean and Asian dishes, particularly rice and fish and English, Scandinavian, and Balkan bread.

Question: What is caviar, a delicacy eaten as a garnish or a spread, prepared from?

Answer: Caviar is the eggs, or roe, of sturgeon preserved with salt. It is prepared by removing the egg masses from freshly caught fish and passing them carefully through a fine-mesh screen to separate the eggs and remove any extraneous bits of tissue and fat. At the same time, 4–6 percent salt is added to preserve the eggs and bring out the flavor.

Question: What country is renowned for chocolate?

Answer: Belgium, in northwestern Europe, is renowned for fine chocolates. These are used in cooking, but are also eaten as candy.

Question: If you were eating jambalaya, you would most likely be in what country?

Answer: Jambalaya, a savory dish popularly associated with the U.S. state of Louisiana, consists of meat (pork, chicken, or even rabbit), seafood (shrimp, crab, crawfish), or both (often including andouille either way) and cooked with vegetables, stock, rice, and various seasonings. While an assortment of vegetables can be used, onions, celery, and bell peppers are considered staples.

Question: Which among the following is the national dish of Brazil?

Answer: Feijoada completa, the national dish of Brazil, is cooked with black beans and fresh and smoked meats accompanied by traditional side dishes. The modern feijoada completa is an elaborated version of a simple dish of beans flavored with meat. Most commonly smoked tongue, corned (salted) spareribs, dried or jerked beef, various types of bacon, sausages, and fresh beef and pork are used.

Question: What condiment did Lea & Perrins create?

Answer: During the Middle Ages, Worcester was an important wool town, and glove making has been important since the 13th century. In 1751 John Wall founded the porcelain industry for which the town is now famous. Another famous product is Worcestershire, or Worcester, sauce, a complex fermented condiment that was introduced by Lea & Perrins in 1838.

Question: Which of these countries is not a major producer of oranges?

Answer: Brazil is the leading orange-producing country, followed by the United States, Italy, and Spain.

Question: In what country would you find shish kebab as an everyday food?

Answer: The cuisine of Turkey features shish kebab, roasted meat and vegetables cooked on a wood skewer over an open fire.

Question: What is the traditional drink of Albania?

Answer: Raki, a local brandy distilled from grapes and often imbibed before a meal, is the traditional drink of Albania.

Question: Which of the following types of nut is used in marzipan?

Answer: Marzipan is a malleable confection of crushed almonds or almond paste, sugar, and whites of eggs. Soft marzipan is used as a filling in a variety of pastries and candies. Firmer consistency is traditionally modeled into fanciful shapes, such as miniature fruits, vegetables, and sea creatures, and colored realistically

Question: Which cooking utensil is widely used in Chinese cooking?

Answer: The wok is a thin-walled cooking pan shaped like a shallow bowl with handles, widely used in Chinese-style cooking. The wok has a round bottom that concentrates heat, cooking food quickly with relatively little oil.

Question: What Canadian dish is made from french fries topped with cheese curds and gravy?

Answer: Poutine is a Canadian dish made of french fries topped with cheese curds and gravy. It first appeared in 1950s rural Québec snack bars and was widely popularized across Canada and beyond in the 1990s.

Question: If you were eating mole poblano, you would most likely be in what country?

Answer: Mole poblano is a rich red chili sauce from Mexico. It mixes chocolate with chili!

Question: Which British chef achieved worldwide fame with his television show The Naked Chef?

Answer: British chef Jamie Oliver achieved worldwide fame with his television shows The Naked Chef (1999) and Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution (2010–11) and as the author of many cookbooks with a variety of culinary themes.

Question: Which food from the Middle East is a paste made of chickpeas, olive oil, garlic, and sesame seed?

Answer: Hummus (or hummous) is made from chickpeas mashed to a paste with lemon juice, olive oil, and tahini (sesame paste). It is widely eaten in the Middle East as a sauce and dip for bread.

Question: Antipasto is typically served as which course in Italian cuisine?

Answer: Antipasto in Italian cuisine is a first course or appetizer. In the home, cured or smoked meats and sausages, olives, salted anchovies, sardines, fresh or pickled vegetables, shellfish, peppers, and cheeses are favored. Restaurant presentations add to these elaborately prepared dishes such as seafood salads, stuffed mushrooms, vitello tonnato (cold braised veal in tuna mayonnaise), and the like.

Question: What is the consumption of insects by humans called?

Answer: Entomophagy is the consumption of insects as a source of nutrition by humans. It is practiced in most parts of the world, though it is common in the tropics, where more than 2,000 different species of insects are known to be consumed.

Question: The soft-ripened cow’s-milk cheese Brie originated from which of these countries?

Answer: Brie is a soft-ripened cow’s-milk cheese named for the district in northeastern France in which it is made. It originated near Paris, where unpasteurized, farm-produced Brie de Meaux and Brie de Melun are the most highly esteemed versions. It is molded in flat, pancake-like rounds 9–15 inches (23–38 cm) in diameter and 1–1.5 inches (2.5–3.8 cm) in thickness. After the curd becomes firm, the cheese is sprayed with spores of penicillium candidum, a mold that forms a thin, downy white crust. The cheese ripens within three to four weeks.

Question: Which Polynesian food is prepared from the taro root?

Answer: Poi is a starchy Polynesian food paste is made from the taro root. In Samoa and other Pacific islands, poi is a thick paste of pounded bananas or pineapples mixed with coconut cream; the word originally denoted the action of pounding the food to a pulp.

Question: The authentic Italian version of mozzarella is prepared from the milk of which animal?

Answer: Mozzarella is a mild, smooth-textured cheese made in its authentic Italian version from the milk of the water buffalo. Mozzarella is a plastic or stretched-curd cheese; the curd is mixed with heated whey and stretched and kneaded until it attains a smooth, pliable consistency. It is then molded into spheres or ovals and stored in water to keep it moist.

Question: What is the ring-shaped pasta stuffed with cheese or meat called?

Answer: Tortellini is a ring-shaped Italian pasta stuffed with cheese or meat that is most traditionally served in broth (en brodo). Other sauces—including those made from tomato, mushroom, or meat—are also popular. Tortellini originates from the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, and it is particularly associated with Bologna.

Question: What are rigatoni, linguini, and farfels?

Answer: Pasta has various names based on its size and shape, such as macaroni (when the perforations are small), spaghetti (“little string”), and the large, fluted, elbow-shaped pieces called rigatoni. Ribbon types include the wide lasagna and the narrow linguini. Farfels are ground, granulated, or shredded.

Question: What bread is eaten by Jews during Passover?

Answer: Matzo is an unleavened bread eaten by Jews during the holiday of Passover (Pesaḥ) in commemoration of their Exodus from Egypt. Passover begins on the 15th and ends on the 21st day of the month of Nisan. On these seven (or eight) days, all leaven, whether in bread or other mixture, is prohibited, and only unleavened bread, called matzo, may be eaten.

Question: Which Hungarian stew made with meat and onions and eaten by Magyar shepherds has been traced to the 9th-century?

Answer: Goulash, the Hungarian traditional stew eaten by Magyar shepherds, has been traced to the 9th century. Before setting out with their flocks, they prepare a portable stock of food by slowly cooking cut-up meats with onions and other flavorings until the liquids are absorbed. The stew was then dried in the sun and packed into bags made of sheep’s stomachs. At mealtime, water was added to a portion of the meat to reconstitute it into a soup or stew.

Question: Where was the Ceasar salad invented?

Answer: Salad is any of a wide variety of dishes that fall into the following principal categories: green salads, vegetable salads, salads of pasta, legumes, or grains, mixed salads incorporating meat, poultry, or seafood; and fruit salads. Caesar salad, invented in Tijuana, Mexico, in the 1920s, is a green salad of romaine with a highly seasoned dressing of pounded anchovies, olive oil, lemon juice, egg, and Parmesan cheese, garnished with croutons.

Question: If you were eating tapas, you would most likely be in what country?

Answer: Tapa is a Spanish appetizer, served hot or cold and typically eaten at bars with a drink intended to complement the food. Hundreds of different tapas exist, but some of the more typical ones include shrimp in garlic sauce, marinated anchovies, Spanish omelet (tortilla española), fried spicy potatoes (patatas bravas), and octopus in paprika sauce. Tapas are historically taken with sherry, although beer and wine are now common.

Question: In which country did the dish mafé originate?

Answer: Mafé is a West African dish consisting of meat in a peanut or peanut butter sauce served over rice or couscous. It originated in Mali and spread across the region, particularly in Senegal and the Gambia, during the colonial period. Beef and lamb are most commonly used, but chicken and fish are featured in some recipes.