Can You Match These Weirdly Named Foods to Their Country?
Some dishes sound like accidents, insults or things you should report to local authorities. Fortunately, most are real comfort foods with better stories than names.
Answer 10 quick questions and see if you can match each strange dish name to the country that proudly serves it. Brave appetite recommended.
Take the Weird Food Names Quiz
Results
7–9 correct: Weird Dish Detective
Strong work. You can spot a country from a suspiciously named plate of comfort food.
10–12 correct: International Menu Menace
Excellent. You know your nun’s farts from your priest stranglers. Please use this power responsibly.
0–2 correct: Menu Mayhem Survivor
You showed up brave. The dish names showed up weirder. Recommend you explore the cuisine of other countries.
3–6 correct: Oddball Food Explorer
You know a few strange menu classics, but some of these names still ambushed you with gravy. We suggest a few new recipes to take you to the next level.
#1. Which country gave the world Toad in the Hole, a dish that sounds like amphibian misfortune but is actually sausages baked in batter?
UK.
Toad in the Hole is a traditional British dish made with sausages baked in Yorkshire pudding batter, usually served with onion gravy. No toads. No holes, really. Just dry British humor, naming dinner like it lost a bet.
#2. Which country is home to Pouding Chômeur, a dessert whose name translates roughly to “Unemployed Pudding”?
Canada.
Pouding Chômeur is a classic Québécois dessert associated with the Great Depression. The name means “unemployed pudding,” which sounds bleak until you realize it is basically cake baked in syrup. Economic hardship, but make it caramelized. Once featured on the Governor General’s website.
#3. Which country created the pastry known as Pets de Nonne, whose name translates as “nun’s farts”?
France.
Pets de Nonne, also known as “nun’s farts” or the gentler “nun’s puffs,” are light French dessert pastries. France gave the world haute cuisine, Champagne and this. Range.
#4. Which country serves Papoutsakia, a stuffed eggplant dish whose name means “little shoes”?
Greece.
Papoutsakia is a Greek dish of eggplant halves stuffed with meat sauce and often topped with béchamel. The name means “little shoes,” because apparently eggplants were not already doing enough.
#5. Which country gave us Strozzapreti, a pasta name often translated as “priest stranglers” or “priest chokers”?
Italy.
Strozzapreti is an Italian hand-rolled pasta shape. Its name has several legends, many tied to anticlerical humor and the idea of gluttonous priests choking on pasta. Italy: where even pasta can come with church drama.
#6. Which country is home to Loco Moco, a dish of rice, hamburger patty, fried egg and brown gravy?
United States.
Loco Moco comes from Hawaii and is usually made with white rice, a hamburger patty, brown gravy and a fried egg. It was reportedly created in Hilo in 1949 for hungry teenagers who wanted something cheap and filling. Teenagers: accidentally shaping cuisine since forever.
#7. Which country is known for Huevos Rotos, a dish whose name means “broken eggs”?
Spain.
Huevos Rotos or “broken eggs,” is a Spanish dish usually made with fried eggs served over potatoes, often with ham, chorizo or other toppings. The yolks get broken into the potatoes, which is less tragic than the name suggests and frankly better than most life choices.
#8. Hodge Podge is the wonderfully chaotic name for what kind of Canadian Maritime dish?
Maritime Hodge Podge
It’s a creamy stew made with fresh summer vegetables, often including new potatoes, carrots, peas and beans. The name sounds like someone gave up organizing dinner, but the dish is a cozy Atlantic Canadian classic.
#9. Which country has a dish called Ants Climbing a Tree, named for minced meat clinging to noodles?
China.
Ants Climbing a Tree is a classic Sichuan dish from China. The “ants” are bits of minced meat clinging to glass noodles, which are the “tree.” No insects required. Just one of the better food names ever committed to a menu.
#10. Which country gave the world Drunken Noodles, a spicy noodle dish that does not necessarily contain alcohol?
Thailand.
Drunken Noodles, or Pad Kee Mao, is a Thai noodle dish known for bold, spicy flavors. The name’s origin is debated, with theories ranging from late-night drinking to hangover recovery or the chaos of a very spicy plate. The noodles may not be drunk, but they have definitely seen things.
#11. Which country is famous for Ropa Vieja, a dish whose name means “old clothes”?
Cuba.
Ropa Vieja is closely associated with Cuba and is often described as one of the country’s national dishes, though its roots trace back to Spain and the Canary Islands. The name means “old clothes,” because the shredded beef looks like torn fabric. Appetizing? Weirdly, yes.
#12. Grandma’s Bangs is a traditional indigenous fried bread served at holidays and family gatherings in which country?
“Grandma’s Bangs” sounds less like bread and more like an alarming salon appointment. In practice, they’re pieces of dough cut with slits, twisted or braided into shape and fried. They’re tied to the Métis community of Batoche, Saskatchewan.
Your Weird Food Score
Whether you’re a Menu Mayhem Survivor or an International Menu Menace, your score proves one thing: food names are not always supervised by adults.
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