Born and raised in Canada, I’ve always been curious about the origin of chicken balls and rice — a favourite amongst many of my friends in North America. But being of Chinese descent, I’ve been told numerous times by my parents that the dish chicken balls and rice is a joke and isn’t authentic Chinese food. I still nonetheless find it very amusing that this dish ranks high amongst many friends regardless of their ethnicity. It has essentially become a North American treat.
For a very fascinating talk, do listen to Jennifer 8. Lee talk about various dishes that are considered Chinese cuisine in North America as well as in other parts of the world. I always am amused to hear about the history of various dishes — especially food that is considered ethnic but are actually native to the continent. It really demonstrates the influence of good food crossing different societies and cultures.
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I’ve always found the ethnicity of ideas about the ethnicity of food fascinating. Of course the classic for us English is ‘the curry’, and the bastard creatures of our popular understanding of ‘Indian’ food conceived and nurtured right here in the UK.
Other favourites of mine:
— ‘English food’ as a section in English Chinese food take-aways (typically containing such bizarre ‘classics’ as ‘Prawn Omelette’, ‘Chips in Curry Sauce’, etc).
— ‘Chilly’, or Chile con Carne, a dish every English household relishes and has its own inimitable recipe for.
— ‘Toast Anglais’ bought in France, which is hilarious because ‘toast’ is intrinsically English — making the ‘Anglais’ seemingly superfluous. However the actual object this refers to is a sweet dehydrated kind of bread that is completely unheard of in England.
Good food for thought. Teeheehee.
Thanks for your awesome comment Barney
Those are some fascinating dishes that I’d love to try some day — these are most likely what have and can become the true “national or continental dishes” in different regions of the world.