r/AskRedditFood

For me Lemon Pie

Since starting to work from home again, I've started having time to make breakfast, but I was recently questioning the very idea of "breakfast foods". Like why are eggs, toast, cereal, pancakes, bacon, etc. considered "breakfast-y" in the West, while other foods can feel somehow wrong in the morning?

Just for context, I'm Japanese, I come from a relatively old/traditional family, so we have a very distinct breakfast culture from the West, which I experienced and noticed after moving to Canada.

I'm sure a part of it is convenience, like breakfast foods tend to be quicker to cook, (like eggs vs other proteins) instead of like stews and such (though soup can be break fast-y so definitely not a hard set rule). Another matter that's especially relevant in Japan is probably smell, so things that smell strongly like curry would mean we would leave the house to go to work/school and meet people while smelling like what we ate, which would be considered inconsiderate especially in Japan (which goes into a whole other topic of what people consider smelly because we don't consider natto and grilled fish as smelly while people of other cultures might). I could also imagine toast becoming a breakfast food from a culture of baking bread at home; you don't necessarily have time to make fresh leavened bread in the morning, so toasting bread from the day before to 'refresh' it would make sense.

But apparently there's also some interesting corporate history behind this. A lot of what we consider a “traditional breakfast foods” especially in the West, was influenced by food companies and advertising. The famous example is the promotion of bacon and eggs by Edward Bernays in the 1920s. The thing is I can't say its just completely corporate conspiracy because like take corn flakes, sure it was intentionally marketed as breakfast food, but it genuinely makes sense as a breakfast food in terms of convenience.

But it's definitely not all corporate conspiracy, like eggs being in breakfasts across cultures makes sense because households used to have chickens at home, and picking fresh eggs in the morning to use in the morning was part of the lifestyle. So there are definitely organic aspects to our breakfast food culture.

So how much of our perception of breakfast is actually cultural, how much of it is marketing that we've internalized? And is it possibly narrowing our approach cooking? I don't intend to reinvent the wheel but could we maybe reverse engineer what makes breakfast what it is, and recontextualize it into our lives today to make a new "breakfast" culture?

How about y'all, What foods do you consider breakfast foods in your culture? And do you know where it comes from?

(Also as a caveat this isn't about what "should" be a breakfast. Obviously people "should" eat whatever they want, whenever they want.)

Ignoring price, having to cook it, the limit on the amount your stomach can hold.

i made some rice in my rice cooker tonight and as i stirred it to put it away i realised there were tiny bits of like. leftover food from when my housemate used the cooker to slow-cook some meat and herbs. theres only like 4 little bits and theyre half the size of the rice grains but im just a bit concerned cus it seems like a bit of the rice cooker wasnt cleaned and the old food just kind of stayed there a bit above the rice as it cooked? and then some got in. so would it have gotten bacteria into my rice while cooking it? is it not worth the risk?

please help

Accidentally left 2 bags of el monterrey bean and beef frozen burritos out in countertop for a few hours. They were still fresh to the touch when I put them in the freezer. Are they safe to eat?

I'm going to a potluck for my friend's birthday in a couple weeks, and I need ideas for what dish to bring. What's something that's tasty but also easy to make?

Please keep in mind that I'm an average cook at best

Hi all, Last night my husband and I went to a Mexican restaurant we've gone to many times over the last few years. He usually has a burrito that has chicken, steak, chorizo, shrimp, rice with queso & quac on top.

Last night he had a different burrito, one he's never tried before, and that one had chicken, steak, shrimp, rice with queso & mole on top. He seemed fine in the restaurant, we took a while to finish our margaritas, but when we got in the car, he was beet red with splotchy redness on his neck. He said he felt like he could breathe just fine, and it eventually went away after another hour.

He's not allergic to anything, that we know of. I googled common ingredients in mole and nothing jumped out as something we've never had before. Does anyone know what other mole ingredients could have caused that? It's not a chain place, just a hard working immigrant with her own place. :)

Thanks for any help! We're not too concerned, more curious.

Do you worry about the meat in food you eat out not being cooked through? If so, how do you tell and deal with it?

I experimented today by adding tamarind paste to my salad dressing and it turned out really good.

Dressing: 1.5 tbsp plain yoghurt, 1.5 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp tamarind paste (sweet one), 1 tsp lemon juice, 1/2 tsp cumin powder, 1/2 tsp black pepper and salt as per taste.

You can put it on any salad of your choice, my salad consisted of : Cabbage, bell peppers, tomatoes, chickpeas, pomegranate seeds, cucumber, cilantro and a green chilli.

A couple years ago I asked everyone their favorite soup and got back an international smorgasbord. Now I wanna hear about your favorite sandwich.

I have a jar of linden honey. It was solid (resembled smooth peanut butter), and had a pale yellow color when I bought it. I kept it in a kitchen closet during use and recently found that it turned into a liquid with 3 layers.

A quick internet search says that honey normally crystallizes and separates over time into 2 layers with different colors. But there are 3 layers in my honey (pale layer sandwiched between 2 dark layers) and all of them are liquid. It doesn't have a particularly strange/sour smell (smells like honey).

What is happening? Is it still safe to eat?

Favourite: Wendy's

Least favourite: McDonald's

Was there a cuisine you expected to love but ended up not enjoying, or one you had low expectations for that completely surprised you? What dishes did you try and what specifically made you change your mind?

What are your thoughts?

I spent 30 hrs in a hospital due to an emergency health issue, and to tell you the truth, I was more worried about the hospital food.

I was always told it was terrible and bland!

Well, I was pleasantly surprised as to how good the food was. Loved all 3 meals I was served.

Breakfast: eggs, toast, cereal and coffee.

Lunch was salmon with rice and vegetables, and a chocolate brownie for dessert, with tea.

And last for supper was pesto chicken with mushroom sauce, potatoe puree with carrots with carrot soup and dessert was coconut pudding, with tea.

I loved every bite :D

Any thoughts from others on their experience about the hospital food?

I can't imagine this stuff tastes good. Probably because I like my cheese the way I like my milk - full fat and delicious

Bonus points if it’s easy!

Ive never posted on reddit before but I really need help, im living with my brother and for context my brother left out ground beef for a few hours. then after he left it out I put it in the fridge and he wants to throw it out, since i dont really know anything about food but I know we really cant afford to be wasteful, i dont know what to do,because I dont think its gone bad yet and im conflicted, is there a way to know if its gone bad?

I don't know much about food

Please and thank you

Always figured this was an Italian classic, but apparently it was invented in 1924 by a chef named Caesar Cardini at his restaurant in Tijuana, Mexico. Supposedly the restaurant is still open and still serves it the same way today. Anyone know more about this? Feels like one of those food facts everyone gets wrong.

There are a few more days left of this heatwave before we get some reprieve. I have a bunch of chicken thighs and I dont want to warm up the house. I know i could do BBQ, or adobo but I want something different. I have access to american, korean, mixed asian, mexican, and indian grocery stores. I dont mind buying a few things. Give me your favorite ways to make chicken thighs in the slow cooker. I need something new to spice up the regular rotation.

Dietary restrictions: gluten, oats, papaya,
I have swaps for most gluten things but not all of them