Russian Woman Living In The US Reveals The American Foods She Does Not Understand
She admits that Russia has its share of weird foods, too. But not like the US does.
frantic00 / Shutterstock Every country's foods seem strange to outsiders, but given how highly processed and often sugar-laden American food is, our cuisine is frequently jarring to foreigners for totally different reasons than those that make other countries' foods seem weird to us Americans.
A Russian woman named Christine finds some of the normal, everyday things we eat to be downright perplexing. She took to TikTok to share three American foods that "after six years in the United States, [she] still not cannot comprehend how you guys can eat [and drink]."
A Russian woman shared the 3 American foods she does not understand.
1. Root beer
Who doesn't love a root beer, right? I mean, I'm not going to necessarily seek it out, but in the context of a root beer float on a hot summer day? Sure, what's better than that? America, baby!
But Christine is not having it. Despite trying it several times, she said, "It tastes like somebody dropped a bubble gum into your Coca-Cola and you accidentally sipped it."
My first instinct was to roll my eyes and mount a spirited defense of A&W but the thing is… she's not wrong. That is what it tastes like. And it turns out it's because root beer shares ingredients with both bubble gum and mint-flavored chewing gum. Guess we have to concede this one, Yanks.
2. Fried pickles
Now hold on just a cotton-pickin' minute. Who doesn't like fried pickles? I don't care where you're from — a deep-fried salty sour dipped in savory ranch? What more do you want out of a snack while guzzling beer in a sports bar or whatever?
Christine is not about that life, however. "What made you fry a pickle?" she asked. "Like, why? How did it come up in your mind?"
The simplest answer is that this is America. If we do not fry things and dip them in ranch, we will die, at least spiritually if not physically.
But Christine finds it downright confounding. "First time when I saw it in a menu… honestly, I thought it was like a joke," she said. "Why would someone make it and why would someone eat it? Can you please explain me in the comments?"
People definitely did, but I'm not sure it's the answers she was looking for. "The reason why people make and eat fried pickles is because it's good," one person wrote. "No other explanation." Court adjourned!
3. Kraft Mac N Cheese
Now, fellow Americans, this is where I'm going to lose you: This ish is disgusting, and if I had one wish for my fellow countrymen it would be that they look inward and start loving themselves enough to recognize that Kraft Mac N Cheese is vile.
It's weirdly oily and the texture is awful and, worst of all, it is bizarrely sweet. Why is it sweet?! Who authorized this?! Are we Americans this addicted to sugar that we don't notice how gross this is?
And with so many wildly delicious mac and cheese recipes out there, why do we continue living like this? We need to have a national reckoning. Which candidate has this on their 2024 platform? Enough is enough!
Unsurprisingly, Kraft Mac and Cheese is legendary as one of the main American foods foreigners (correctly) think are gross, and Christine is no exception.
"The yellow powder that you have to mix in with the pasta, it has nothing to do with cheese." Thank you! "It tastes disgusting, like somebody already had it in their mouth or something." Exactly!
And while Christine conceded that Russian food is pretty downright strange itself, it's got nothing on these three weird American concoctions. "Don't get me wrong, Russians have the weirdest food probably you've ever seen or tried," she said. "But these three things? I can't."
I will die on the hill of root beer and fried pickles being delicious, but personally, the vindication on Kraft Mac and Cheese alone puts me firmly on Team Christine. You're welcome at my table any time, Christine! Just please don't bring borscht...
John Sundholm is a news and entertainment writer who covers pop culture, social justice and human interest topics.