Why do Americans like their food sweet?

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Cheap_Coffee@reddit

What if .... and I'm just dreamin' here ... we made the food both sweet and spicy?

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Fox_Supremacist@reddit

Probably because different cultures like different things.

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QuercusSambucus@reddit

Ancient Roman food combined a lot of flavors together that nowadays we would find very strange.

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47-30-23N_122-0-22W@reddit

Add black pepper to pumpkin spice and you've basically got the flavor of 1800s American food

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QuercusSambucus@reddit

...which also sounds a lot like garam masala or other similar south asian spice mixes.

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47-30-23N_122-0-22W@reddit

Basically. Kitchen pepper is probably the best example of it

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SonofBronet@reddit

I thought we liked our food spicy! You guys really gotta get together and compare notes.

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UnfairHoneydew6690@reddit

I just knew OP was gonna end up being a racist little weirdo based on how they were acting in here but damn if you didn’t get the receipts

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I had a hunch, so I did a search for all his uses of the N word (and after seeing a few of his posts, the abbreviation “nga”), and I gotta admit, even I was surprised at how regular of an activity this is for him.

Sad thing is, he lives in the US, so he can’t even make some tenuous cultural misunderstanding claim.

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PrestigiousAd9825@reddit

I kind of have to push back a little bit on this here - a lot of these “why do Americans do X?” posts feel more like ppl are gawking at us for things that other countries do too.

Try our BBQ and you’ll get it. Or at least go to Korea and try theirs for a frame of reference as to why this flavor combo works

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thatsad_guy@reddit

Good food tastes good. Who knew.

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Curmudgy@reddit

Too many don’t believe in nuance in food. It’s either got to be habanero or HFCS, with a glass of sweet tea.

Wait till you hear about pineapple on pizza.

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Lopsided-Tadpole-821@reddit (OP)

Do people even like pineapple on their pizza? Is it very popular?

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SonofBronet@reddit

Stop saying the N word, my guy

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SonofBronet@reddit

That me a Canadian invention.

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Gladyskravitz99@reddit

And you're in India? Y'all have sweet and savory combinations, too.

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butt_honcho@reddit

It's divisive.

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Gladyskravitz99@reddit

It's a controversial topping in America. Lots of people love it but imo even more people hate it.

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No-Profession422@reddit

I like it if there's Jalapenos on the pizza.

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Individualchaotin@reddit

High-fructose corn syrup is widely used as a sweetener in the US because it is cheaper than sugar due to government subsidies on corn production. The food industry often adds sweeteners to make products more palatable and addictive, encouraging repeat purchases. This has influenced dietary patterns and food preferences.

Short answer: Capitalism.

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Vachic09@reddit

Sweet and savory is a tasty combination. Humans in general usually enjoy some level of sweetness in some dishes.

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Grunt08@reddit

What's kinda funny about this is that the slang and accent you're aping derives from the folks most likely to tell you your taste is trash.

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jane7seven@reddit

Thank you! They aren't American but are using the exact sort of American accent that comes from folks who paired chicken and waffles.

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willtag70@reddit

Chicken with honey is a minor part of the spectrum of ways we eat chicken. Picking out that one combo and pretending it represents an overall preference is just another example of a false generalization from a small fact.

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Bluemonogi@reddit

There are millions of us. Some people here like sweeter foods and some people don’t.

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Judgy-Introvert@reddit

Some Americans like their food sweet, some don’t. It’s what makes us individuals.

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Judgy-Introvert@reddit

Some Americans like their food sweet, some don’t. We’re individual people like that.

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tandmintokyo8@reddit

>asks a question that is mildly judgemental of Americans

>types in AAVE

Lol, lmao even.

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SonofBronet@reddit

Oh it gets much worse.

https://www.reddit.com/r/IndianMeyMeys/comments/1hz0drr/comment/m6ovhjd/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=mweb3x&utm_name=mweb3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button

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MrLongWalk@reddit

We also like non sweet foods, move on kid

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Dont_Wanna_Not_Gonna@reddit

Not chicken. Fried chicken. Have you ever tried it?

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bearsnchairs@reddit

This is a bit rich coming from an Indian. Have you not had jalebi? It is somehow sweeter than pure sugar.

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Scrappy_The_Crow@reddit

Americans like some food to be sweet. Citing a single example of chicken with honey isn't proof of anything, especially when most chicken dishes aren't sweet.

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OhThrowed@reddit

Ever tried it?

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Lopsided-Tadpole-821@reddit (OP)

Yes

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OhThrowed@reddit

Then you know why we like honey on fried chicken.

We've also got a live thread asking why we like spicy food, so if y'all could just get together and decide what type of food we like, that'd be great.

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LtPowers@reddit

Then you know why we like honey on fried chicken.

I'm American, I've tried it, and I don't see the appeal.

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Recent-Irish@reddit

I don’t like chocolate but I get why people eat it

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butt_honcho@reddit

Next up: why do Americans cook with salt?

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hitometootoo@reddit

"Why do Americans eat food, ya'll yanks will eat anything"

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No-Profession422@reddit

Yeah, seriously.

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WashuOtaku@reddit

Why do Non-Americans like their food bitter?

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FivebyFive@reddit

I see you've never eaten Korean food.

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WildlifePolicyChick@reddit

Just to annoy you personally.

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wooper346@reddit

It's really cute how precious so many of y'all think we're the only ones that do something.

Stop thinking about us, I'm not good with being the center of attention.

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Littleboypurple@reddit

Because sweet and savory/salty/spicy is a surprisingly delicious combination. It's not like honey is even sickeningly sweet or anything. It has alot of good applications, especially Hot Honey, that stuff is good when drizzled on pizza. Adds a slight bit of sweetness and heat.

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Rhombus_McDongle@reddit

The same reason many Asian cultures like it, balancing all the flavors is tasty.

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UnfairHoneydew6690@reddit

Sometimes I feel like the people asking these dumbass questions in here are just wholly unaware that places outside Central Europe exist.

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Rhombus_McDongle@reddit

I went to a BBQ joint with a Vietnamese coworker, he ordered orange juice with his smoked brisket. He said it was because he loves "sweet and sour". Now that would really mess my stomach up.

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WarrenMulaney@reddit

"Why do Americans like food?"

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Few-Cucumber-413@reddit

There's evidence to suggest sugar is addictive or can be. It's also in everything so it's incredibly hard to avoid. Couple that with the fact from childhood, we've had corporate propaganda (advertising) tell us to start our day consuming sugar (cereal) as well as end it with sugar (post dinner desserts) and we end up with a dietary culture that surrounds sugar.

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TsundereLoliDragon@reddit

First we like it too spicy. Now we like it too sweet.

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revengeappendage@reddit

Why do Americans like delicious food? Really. You’re asking us that? What the fuck do you eat?

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Shot-Artichoke-4106@reddit

Well, some people do. I personally don't care for honey with fried chicken and don't really see many people eating it that way around here. In other parts of the county, it is more common.

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Technical_Plum2239@reddit

Compared to who?

But it feels like the first class in cooking 101 will help.

The four parts of flavor that typically pair best with sweet and salt are: sweet, salt, sour, and a hint of umami; this combination creates a balanced and complex taste profile by playing with contrasting and complementary flavors, where sweetness balances saltiness, while a touch of sourness adds brightness and umami provides depth.

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