Midwestern food shows a lot of German and northern European influence (not surprising given the large number or German and Scandinavian immigrants in the Upper Midwest). That's why (in my opinion) it has more a "feel" of comfort food than anything else. You wonder was the development of Swanson _TV Dinner_ frozen meals influenced by how the US Midwest eats.
In my opinion better versions of “boring” American food are the Amish foods in Pennsylvania made by Amish people. It does have a similar style to the Midwest foods. The down side is that it’s hard to find and not common.
I wish it was more influenced by European food. At least when it comes to restaurants, there doesn't seem to be much other than your basic stuff like burgers and fries and pizza other than a few one-off restaurants here and there.
I feel personally attacked about Ohio lol. We have SOME cuisines darn it. Wor Sue Gai is a columbus invention. Johnny Marzetti. Cincinatti style chili (disgusting), buckeye candies, ohio valley style pizza. We are also the nation's test market for fast food items. Doritos locos tacos? You're welcome, America. Lol great video as always though!
Apparently, Americans of Scandinavian descent eat more lutefisk nowadays than modern Scandinavians because they see it as an important part of their cultural heritage as opposed to something they no longer have to eat because they aren't poor anymore. This gets into a number of interesting issues of immigrant culture and how it tends to become a snapshot of a particular historical period in the origin country which continued on its own path.
Similarly, Norwegians laugh at Norwegian Americans for making potato lefse and dressing it with butter, sugar, jam, etc. In Norway, potato lefse is used almost exclusively as a wrap for hotdogs topped with crispy onions. They use a fully wheat flour lefse for the sweet stuff -- but when Norwegians came to the US in the 1800s, wheat was both much more expensive than potatoes and also harder to come by (because they could grow potatoes directly, without paying for milling, grinding, etc.)
Corned beef and cabbage in my grandmother's family in the US was important for the opposite reason. They could now afford to eat corned beef with their cabbage and potatoes. She never let us forget that. But we've only rarely had lutefisk. LOL. Pickled herring, yes.
This is the best, most genuine and accurate food video I've seen about the Midwest. Congratulations! also, I always laugh when people mispronounces pasty. It's past-ee, not paiste-ee. That's something quite different, lol
Came here to see if anyone else felt the same. Personally, I'll take a Chicago dog almost any day, but an Italian Beef is also welcome. Also, tavern style pizza originated in Chicago but I get that it doesn't get as much acclaim as deep dish pizza.
Some notes: -Pasty is pronounced pass-tee. -Paczkis are famous everywhere in the midwest that has a Polish influence. -Kolaces are present anywhere with Czech/Slovak history. -Surprised you didn’t mention toasted ravioli for St Louis. That’s all they talk about. -Don’t knock taco pizza til you tried it. S/O Happy Joes. -Iowans like to put bacon on everything. I’ve seen some horrors. -Ohio isn’t real. I can name so many towns in the Midwest that claim their own style of pizza. Maybe a future video.
I think you need to redo missouri: The cheese for St. Louis Style Pizza is *provel*, pronounced pro-vell. It's got people who like it and people who hate it, but its definitely a unique thing (I personally like using it in mac and cheese) Additional St. Louis foods include: Toasted Ravioli (Deep fried ravioli, typically with Italian style breadcrumbs) St. Paul Sandwiches ( Egg Foo Young in between sandwich bread with pickles and optionally mayo) Pork Steaks ( Think like a good, thin, barbecue sauce covered pork chop) Gooey Butter Cake (Yellow cake made with cream Cheese and melted butter, almost like decadent yellow cake brownies) And optionally St. Louis Style Frozen Custard, which inspired the creation of the DQ blizzard I think you're sleeping on one of the most fascinating food cities in the US in terms of how unique and good the combinations are here.
Tell you what; if you ever want to come out here I can give you an itinerary for restaurants which have great versions of these things+ some touristy sights. St. Louis is cheap+fun and you'll love it here
You know, lutefisk is basically tasteless on its own, can be eaten with anything you want & in fact can be tender & flaky if cooked right (similar to that of its better known cousin bacalao/bacalhau). Also, I'm glad as a Native American that you have covered at least some of such food & the history behind them, & the Midwestern archeological history especially from precolumbian times are extremely intriguing to disprove the claim that the US Midwest is in the middle of nowhere. In fact, one could say that Cahokia is to the Mississippian Trade Network (which extends as far as southeastern Canada) what Tikal is to the Maya civilization in terms of scale & significance, & many more sites could be found along such an extensive civilization (to the point that Cahokia could be said to have been a city-state more than a lone site not unlike Greek ones)
I can't speak for all of missouri but st. louis also has toasted ravioli, gooeybutter cake, pork steaks, slingers, st paul sandwich, and concrete ice cream as local specialties. Not to mention the waffle cone, cotton candy and pink lemonade were invented here. Also, you are welcome for sliced bread, we made the machine for that.
I used to live on Beaver Island (island in northern lake michigan, between the uppper and lower peninsula). The island used to have a native resident who would fish and smoke it and sell it in the warehouse behind his shop in the northern part of the island. Most places in northern michigan have small smoked fish shops on the side of the road
Chili & cinnamon rolls are from Nebraska & a lessor extent Kansas. In Nebraska I believe it started in Miller & Paine department store cafes in the 70s & was in the public schools in the early 80s & is still served in schools today & at all Runza restaurants(where runzas were invented) . It was one of my favorite school lunches. It was sweet, salty & slightly spicy. The RUEBEN was created in a hotel restaurant in Omaha Nebraska. It is a staple in most restaurants. You also missed the tastee or loose meat sandwich from Nebraska & Iowa. It was so basic, yet so good! Ground beef with seasonings, including horseradish. It is served on a bun with mustard & pickle. This was a great video! Have fun learning about more food in this great country. I'm sure I won't be the only input given to you more!
I'm from Indiana and as for those from Chicago & Indiana.... the food cultures here are amazing. Amazing. Between the food and culture here... You will be amazed! Please give it a try!
Lutefisk is more like a state fair food. You won't find it much in the wild. I've never eaten it and don't plan to. Juicy Lucy is delicious, btw. Hotdish is great and I will die on that hill. One of my favorite restaurants back home is Que Viet Village House. Giant eggrolls (about the size of 16oz water bottle) which are a meal by themselves. The original restaurant in Minneapolis was started by a Vietnamese family in 1980. Every time I'm home, I have to go there.
Go Wisconsin, the best of the Midwest. Glad to hear it is you favorite Midwestern state, I was born and raised there and don't mean to be biased but yeah it truly is the best. I hope to see a full on Wisconsin video in the future. I stumbled upon your channel via your Japanese videos, I live in Japan now. Someday you should do a video on how Hokkaido in Japan and Wisconsin are virtually the same. Both big agricultural, both famous for beer, similar climates since they are basically located around the same latitudes, same take it easy approach to life and home to really good kind friendly people. You maybe already did, I didn't get a chance to fully check all your videos, but if you didn't you should also to a video on the food in Hokkaido. It is truly the best food capitol of Japan, because if you ask any Nihonjin that doesn't live in Hokkaido about Hokkaido I can almost guarantee 95%+ the first thing they will say about Hokkaido is something about the food. I got spoiled having been to Hokkaido only my first 6 times to Japan, when I finally went to Tokyo at the end of my 6th time my food experience was kind of like meh it's ok...lol haha now I am going down a different topic rabbit hole I should reserve for one of you Japanese videos but back to Wisconsin, seriously Wisconsin cheese there is no comparison overall. For one state to make as many global award winning cheeses is ridiculous. We are talking one state competing against full countries and taking home more awards than you can shake a stick at. A lot of the absolutely amazing small cheese factory stuff you can only get in Wisconsin, there are so many amazing small cheese factories that simply don't mass produce cheese. If you love cheddar you need to get on board with some cheddar that has been aged like 7-20 years, your taste buds will literally explode..lol
Interesting description of Midwestern Food. Iʻm not familiar with most of them, but I can see the cultural roots of where they came from. Did you not know "Chicago" is pronounced like "Shikago"? And "Michigan" is not pronounced like "Mishiken."
You missed several important aspects of Minnesota food. First off our Native American foods, particularly wild rice, fresh water fish, cranberries and blueberries, and maple syrup and sugar. We used to be the largest producers of turkey as well. In addition to our excellent Hmong and Vietnamese cuisine we also have a thriving Latino and Somali and Ethiopian food scene. In addition to our German and Scandinavian immigrant influence we also have a thriving history of Eastern European immigrants and as a result excellent sausage. And of course the Midwest is the American bread basket.
You are still missing some real gems, even in the places you went over. For example, Indiana has a large Burmese refugee population, which means you can get great Burmese food in Indianapolis or Bloomington. Given that I’ve never seen Burmese food anywhere else in the US, that strikes me as significant. Chicago actually has the second largest Mexican/Mexican American population of any city in the country. Correspondingly, it is not hard to find great Mexican food.
This begs the question of what is meant by Mid Western. And American. The best food generally tends to be food of relatively recent immigrants. And things like Italo-American, briefly mentioned in relation to Chicago, just awful renditions of the original
I think he was going further back than Mexican. Like late 19th early 20th century. That being said we also have a lot of great Mexican/central American food in Nebraska.
How can you mention Chicago without mentioning the Chicago Italian Beef sandwich? Literally an Iconic dish. I will give you credit on the Maxwell Street Polish though it is quite delicious.
Ohio has Cincinnati chili and it has Tony Packo's hotdogs (and other great food) in Toledo. And the candy called Buckeyes. Be nice or you will be forced to eat a BIG plate of hot dish!
I still don’t understand the hate on Ohio here. Ohio has the second largest population in the Midwest and, where each other state has a clear dominant city, all three of Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati are about the same size. This has allowed for different migration patterns, and with it, different culinary histories. Cleveland and Cincinnati in particular have significantly different cuisines. Let’s start with Columbus. Columbus does not have quite as distinct a culinary history as the other major cities as it became a major city much more recently than the other two. However, it is significant on a national level because several fast food companies trial new potential products there. On a smaller note, Columbus has a significant Somali community due to refugees settled in the area. It is not as big as the one in Minnesota, but it does provide a significant alternative in the city. Eastern Ohio does not have a major city of its own and its food history is shared with much of Appalachia. However, I wanted to call attention to the pawpaw. Pawpaws are the largest fruit indigenous to the US. When ripe, they look a bit like a yellow-green mango, with a sweet custardy flesh that tastes like a cross between a mango, banana, and/or a pineapple. It is utterly unique, especially so because it is currently not fit for mass production and is not shelf stable. Pawpaws grow across most of the Eastern US, North of Georgia and east of the Mississippi. However, it is particularly of note in Ohio (and Kentucky). Athens Ohio actually holds a huge festival celebrating the pawpaw every year. This brings us to Cleveland. Cleveland is noted for immigration from Poland and Hungary, represented by pierogis and paprikash, respectively. Finally, the canned pasta company, Chef Boyarde, originated in Cleveland where the chef Boiarde opened a restaurant and began selling take-home pastas. He would eventually Americanize his name to Boyarde and open a factory across the border in Pennsylvania, but the start came from Cleveland. In fact, Time magazine named Cleveland the city with the best food scene in 2015 (no, I’m not going to try to defend that). Cincinnati has its own history of immigration, with particular waves from Germany and Italy, and internal waves of Appalachians and African Americans. The German history stands out in particular, with Cincinnati hosting the largest Oktoberfest outside Germany. Cincinnati has an extensive craft beer scene, along with a myriad of different styles of sausages, with goetta standing out as noteworthy and significant. Graeter’s is a local ice cream producer, recognized as one of the best nationally, that was founded over 150 years ago by German immigrants. But there’s also cuisine history with ties other than Germany. The much-maligned Cincinnati Chili, made with cinnamon-spiced ground meat, pasta, and cheese, has origins from Greece/Macedonia. Historically, Cincinnati also was a strong player in fine dining. In the mid 20th century, Cincinnati had 3 of the top ten nationally recognized fine dining restaurants in the country, topping New York City’s 2. Fine dining eventually declined (along with the rest of the city), but that is part of the area’s culinary history.
Cleveland is not just Polish and Hungary immigrants it honestly is mostly black from my experience this is why you have to actually go to these places instead of just looking at data what others say yeah we do like fried pierogis but fried fish like catfish and waffles, perch, and walleye is huge here. Chilli and cornbread, Corn beef, Parmamgeddon, Packzis, Pretzel crunch bars, popcorn specifically cheese and carmel, Romanburgers, and most of all the friggen POLISH BOY
I just found your channel and was excited to see a video that was about the Midwest! You even had the Columbus (my hometown) skyline in the opening. I had to rewind your video because I didn’t understand why you skipped over a state you clearly outlined in the thumbnail. Just came to say I thought that was mean-spirited and not in line with the open-mindedness and curiosity I was expecting having watched your other videos. I know it’s a meme to dunk on Ohio, but I only expect that from comedy channels and meme-makers. If you really didn’t have any content to add for Ohio you could have just left it out of the thumbnail. You made a conscious decision to highlight thumbing your nose at Ohio. Because it’s popular to do so? Because you actually hate Ohio? Not gonna lie, it actually hurt my feelings. I got excited to show my fiancée and then…that.
Mustard is the best and most basic condiment for a hot dog. If you can only put one thing on a hot dog, it should be mustard. Now I grew up in a country where ketchup on hot dogs was extremely common, but for an American to say that it is the ‘best’ topping is dumbfounding. Mustard, relish, and diced onions are all ahead of ketchup in any list of toppings. Arguably so are cheese sauce and chili. Maybe even sriracha.
Also, Hosier(vinegar) pies and Sugar Cream pies are not the same thing. You also missed Persimmon pudding. Indiana has also been credited with Maple Syurp(and sugar) and Succotash, by Native American tribes that lived/settled and spread their traditions here.
It's actually insane how much maple syrup was produced here, somewhere around 5.6 million gallons(around), I think that was a year as well. A long ways from the 20-30k we manage nowadays, it's a strange history.
dude youngstown ohio has the most incredible italian american food because listen - it's halfway between chicago and nyc and the mob deadass fought a turfwar over it. exploding cars and amazing pizza - no interesting food? your joke did not land ooph
Now you’re going to have to make a video about ketchup and defend your belief that “it’s the best condiment for a hot dog” 🤣🤣🤣 I don’t care but I know some people are going to have a field day with that one 🤦🏼♂️🤦🏼♂️🤦🏼♂️
everyone woke up and chose cope, his initial review was to highlight the uniquely American but also delicious dishes from each part of the states and because of the strong similarity of a lot of Northern European cuisine he chose to disregard the area as a whole, gives a chance on marshmallow salad land and finds some really unique dishes and still gets hate?? Valid Take Matthew 🤝
Putting ketchup (catsup) on a hot dog in a public place can generate a lot of negative vibes. If necessary, it should probably be done only in the privacy of your own home, automobile, or Ohio hotel room.
Summary: Wisconsin is great, mmm cheese. 😋 Missouri is great, mmm BBQ. 😋 Minnesota is interesting. 🤔 SD & Sioux is cool. 🧐 Ohio. Too scared to know about Ohio. 🤷♂️ The other states are weird AF. 🤮
"Didn't think people were going to defend Ohio" *Leaves out Ohio. As a native Cincinnatian, I have to stand up for it. Cincinnati Chili is strange but great. Even if you don't like the chili with spaghetti, it is great on its own, on a coney or with cream cheese as dip. It was invented by Greek immigrants and is pretty similar to Greek Kima which also influenced Qeema in India and Pakistan. Goetta is also an amazing sausage that comes from German immigrants who historically came to Cincinnati in large numbers in the 19th century. It is a sausage made from ground meat with steel cut oats mixed in to strech out the meat in hard times. These oats then soak in the rendering fat while the sausage is fried and become very crisp and flavorful. Mock Duck soup is also an old Cincinnati staple again originating from German immigrants. It is made from Calf's Head in a way meant to replicate the taste and texture of turtle meat. Andy Warhol once described it as one of his favorites. Franks Red Hot sauce, though associated with Buffalo, also originates from Cincinnati. Cincinnati is also known for its many Breweries and it's french pot style Ice Cream Graeters. Jewish Immigrants also manufactured Matzo in Cincinnati for several years under the brand Manischewitz. You could honestly just do a video about the food there and how it originates from a mix of European immigrants, people who escaped slavery in the south and Appalachian communities.
ketchup is not banned it just doesn't belong on a Chicago dog, it already has sweetness from the relish and acidity from the tomatoes and pickle. if you don't get it you don't get it, but it's literally delicious and you need to be more open minded.
Ketchup is not banned, but a lot people go nuts around here when people request Ketchup on hots dogs. Whatever, none of my business, eat it how you like it. Unless you go to Gene and Jude's, which doesn't offer ketchup as a condiments, prompting some of the customers to go next door to McDonald's to try sneak off with some ketchup.
I’m not midwestern but I like your other videos and not this one. It feels like unserious snark slapped together by your ego. Based on your other work, I would like to see you dig in and find some real value and talk to real experts with an open mind instead of finding twenty ways to roll your eyes.
Instead of making guessed judgements about how these foods are - take a road trip out there and try them out yourself to see how they really are. I mean, if you really want to more subscribers, you're going to have to try things in real life instead of just presenting internet research on them
Really? You created a new video just to rag on the mid-west states that have a history of immigrant cuisine when your beloved New York is FULL of immigrant cuisine??? Maybe you should have stopped before you started.
Lol! Not even going to try to pronounce Paczki, huh? It's pronounced POON-CH-KEY. Also, they are overrated. Their fine. Like a really good donut, but richer.
Still haven’t talked about Milwaukee. Wisconsin is on Top Chef this B season. I have heard of Booya but never had it so it is not iconic. You are a snob.
You said Ohio then you skipped it. I’m unsubscribing. Dude go back to New York. If you’re supposed to be a foodie you miss out. I like Taco pizza. Try it don’t criticize it because it doesn’t sound good.
@@ianjames8140NYC certainly has snobs that prop everything in NYC up like its better than the rest of the world, I'm sure their food is good but everywhere has uniquely good food in my experience
Midwestern food shows a lot of German and northern European influence (not surprising given the large number or German and Scandinavian immigrants in the Upper Midwest). That's why (in my opinion) it has more a "feel" of comfort food than anything else. You wonder was the development of Swanson _TV Dinner_ frozen meals influenced by how the US Midwest eats.
Much admired culinary traditions. lol
In my opinion better versions of “boring” American food are the Amish foods in Pennsylvania made by Amish people. It does have a similar style to the Midwest foods. The down side is that it’s hard to find and not common.
I wish it was more influenced by European food. At least when it comes to restaurants, there doesn't seem to be much other than your basic stuff like burgers and fries and pizza other than a few one-off restaurants here and there.
"Im gonna give proper respect to the Midwest" proceeds to still take jabs at the midwest 😂
I’m learning to be better lol
On the contrary, he was being overly complimentary about some pretty shit food.
Can't blame him.
When they say American food is bad.
They're talking about Midwestern Food
@@janniewallace5588 Midwestern food is good though
I feel personally attacked about Ohio lol. We have SOME cuisines darn it. Wor Sue Gai is a columbus invention. Johnny Marzetti. Cincinatti style chili (disgusting), buckeye candies, ohio valley style pizza. We are also the nation's test market for fast food items. Doritos locos tacos? You're welcome, America. Lol great video as always though!
Not to mention Cleveland Polish Boys
Apparently, Americans of Scandinavian descent eat more lutefisk nowadays than modern Scandinavians because they see it as an important part of their cultural heritage as opposed to something they no longer have to eat because they aren't poor anymore. This gets into a number of interesting issues of immigrant culture and how it tends to become a snapshot of a particular historical period in the origin country which continued on its own path.
Similarly, Norwegians laugh at Norwegian Americans for making potato lefse and dressing it with butter, sugar, jam, etc. In Norway, potato lefse is used almost exclusively as a wrap for hotdogs topped with crispy onions. They use a fully wheat flour lefse for the sweet stuff -- but when Norwegians came to the US in the 1800s, wheat was both much more expensive than potatoes and also harder to come by (because they could grow potatoes directly, without paying for milling, grinding, etc.)
Corned beef and cabbage in my grandmother's family in the US was important for the opposite reason. They could now afford to eat corned beef with their cabbage and potatoes. She never let us forget that.
But we've only rarely had lutefisk. LOL. Pickled herring, yes.
This is the best, most genuine and accurate food video I've seen about the Midwest. Congratulations!
also, I always laugh when people mispronounces pasty. It's past-ee, not paiste-ee. That's something quite different, lol
YOOOOOOOOOOO. My man just did Ohio dirty and made it look like he was doing them a favor. LMAO
Ohio and I have a history…
One thing you missed is that Chicago has the Italian Beef sandwich. It's amazing
Came here to see if anyone else felt the same. Personally, I'll take a Chicago dog almost any day, but an Italian Beef is also welcome. Also, tavern style pizza originated in Chicago but I get that it doesn't get as much acclaim as deep dish pizza.
Especially hot, mozz, and dipped 😋
Some of the most delicious food is served at church gatherings. Nothing beats big homegrown tomatoes just sliced and served with salt and pepper .
Some notes:
-Pasty is pronounced pass-tee.
-Paczkis are famous everywhere in the midwest that has a Polish influence.
-Kolaces are present anywhere with Czech/Slovak history.
-Surprised you didn’t mention toasted ravioli for St Louis. That’s all they talk about.
-Don’t knock taco pizza til you tried it. S/O Happy Joes.
-Iowans like to put bacon on everything. I’ve seen some horrors.
-Ohio isn’t real.
I can name so many towns in the Midwest that claim their own style of pizza. Maybe a future video.
The pizza thing is definitely something that stood out to me!
Look up “map of pigs in us” on google and you’ll understand why we put bacon on everything
As an Iowan here, we don't put bacon on every thing its only a few things we put bacon on (yea we don't have lots of state dishes.)
I feel bad when people dunk on Ohio, because well, it already is Ohio.
I don’t think people dunk on it. It’s usually ignored or “invisible “ like western Pennsylvania
I think you need to redo missouri:
The cheese for St. Louis Style Pizza is *provel*, pronounced pro-vell. It's got people who like it and people who hate it, but its definitely a unique thing (I personally like using it in mac and cheese)
Additional St. Louis foods include:
Toasted Ravioli (Deep fried ravioli, typically with Italian style breadcrumbs)
St. Paul Sandwiches ( Egg Foo Young in between sandwich bread with pickles and optionally mayo)
Pork Steaks ( Think like a good, thin, barbecue sauce covered pork chop)
Gooey Butter Cake (Yellow cake made with cream Cheese and melted butter, almost like decadent yellow cake brownies)
And optionally St. Louis Style Frozen Custard, which inspired the creation of the DQ blizzard
I think you're sleeping on one of the most fascinating food cities in the US in terms of how unique and good the combinations are here.
Tell you what; if you ever want to come out here I can give you an itinerary for restaurants which have great versions of these things+ some touristy sights. St. Louis is cheap+fun and you'll love it here
You know, lutefisk is basically tasteless on its own, can be eaten with anything you want & in fact can be tender & flaky if cooked right (similar to that of its better known cousin bacalao/bacalhau). Also, I'm glad as a Native American that you have covered at least some of such food & the history behind them, & the Midwestern archeological history especially from precolumbian times are extremely intriguing to disprove the claim that the US Midwest is in the middle of nowhere. In fact, one could say that Cahokia is to the Mississippian Trade Network (which extends as far as southeastern Canada) what Tikal is to the Maya civilization in terms of scale & significance, & many more sites could be found along such an extensive civilization (to the point that Cahokia could be said to have been a city-state more than a lone site not unlike Greek ones)
Respect homie. From Louisiana, but now in Minnesota for a decade, I appreciate you coming around on what is offered here.
puppy chow is pretty good too! it's chex cereal with peanut butter and powdered sugar. tailgate food!
And chocolate. The peanut butter & chocolate are what holds it together. Being from Nebraska, I didn't know puppy chow was a Midwest thing!
I can't speak for all of missouri but st. louis also has toasted ravioli, gooeybutter cake, pork steaks, slingers, st paul sandwich, and concrete ice cream as local specialties. Not to mention the waffle cone, cotton candy and pink lemonade were invented here. Also, you are welcome for sliced bread, we made the machine for that.
Detroit style pizza is the superior pizza form.
the smoked fish in michigan is ridiculously good and you can get it in most places in northern michigan
I used to live on Beaver Island (island in northern lake michigan, between the uppper and lower peninsula). The island used to have a native resident who would fish and smoke it and sell it in the warehouse behind his shop in the northern part of the island. Most places in northern michigan have small smoked fish shops on the side of the road
Chili & cinnamon rolls are from Nebraska & a lessor extent Kansas. In Nebraska I believe it started in Miller & Paine department store cafes in the 70s & was in the public schools in the early 80s & is still served in schools today & at all Runza restaurants(where runzas were invented) . It was one of my favorite school lunches. It was sweet, salty & slightly spicy. The RUEBEN was created in a hotel restaurant in Omaha Nebraska. It is a staple in most restaurants. You also missed the tastee or loose meat sandwich from Nebraska & Iowa. It was so basic, yet so good! Ground beef with seasonings, including horseradish. It is served on a bun with mustard & pickle. This was a great video! Have fun learning about more food in this great country. I'm sure I won't be the only input given to you more!
I'm from Indiana and as for those from Chicago & Indiana.... the food cultures here are amazing. Amazing. Between the food and culture here... You will be amazed! Please give it a try!
You should cover the PNW!! It doesn’t get enough love and it gets glossed over so much in my opinion
Lutefisk is more like a state fair food. You won't find it much in the wild. I've never eaten it and don't plan to. Juicy Lucy is delicious, btw. Hotdish is great and I will die on that hill.
One of my favorite restaurants back home is Que Viet Village House. Giant eggrolls (about the size of 16oz water bottle) which are a meal by themselves. The original restaurant in Minneapolis was started by a Vietnamese family in 1980. Every time I'm home, I have to go there.
Go Wisconsin, the best of the Midwest. Glad to hear it is you favorite Midwestern state, I was born and raised there and don't mean to be biased but yeah it truly is the best. I hope to see a full on Wisconsin video in the future. I stumbled upon your channel via your Japanese videos, I live in Japan now. Someday you should do a video on how Hokkaido in Japan and Wisconsin are virtually the same. Both big agricultural, both famous for beer, similar climates since they are basically located around the same latitudes, same take it easy approach to life and home to really good kind friendly people.
You maybe already did, I didn't get a chance to fully check all your videos, but if you didn't you should also to a video on the food in Hokkaido. It is truly the best food capitol of Japan, because if you ask any Nihonjin that doesn't live in Hokkaido about Hokkaido I can almost guarantee 95%+ the first thing they will say about Hokkaido is something about the food. I got spoiled having been to Hokkaido only my first 6 times to Japan, when I finally went to Tokyo at the end of my 6th time my food experience was kind of like meh it's ok...lol
haha now I am going down a different topic rabbit hole I should reserve for one of you Japanese videos
but back to Wisconsin, seriously Wisconsin cheese there is no comparison overall. For one state to make as many global award winning cheeses is ridiculous. We are talking one state competing against full countries and taking home more awards than you can shake a stick at. A lot of the absolutely amazing small cheese factory stuff you can only get in Wisconsin, there are so many amazing small cheese factories that simply don't mass produce cheese. If you love cheddar you need to get on board with some cheddar that has been aged like 7-20 years, your taste buds will literally explode..lol
About time Maxwell Polish got some love from someone. Defo better than chicago dog.
"cinnamon roles with chili"
You can't bash it until you try it.
I always look forward to your videos yayyyy love your content :)
Interesting description of Midwestern Food. Iʻm not familiar with most of them, but I can see the cultural roots of where they came from. Did you not know "Chicago" is pronounced like "Shikago"? And "Michigan" is not pronounced like "Mishiken."
Chislic ? Mmmm, maybe something related to Shashlik, the central asian meat skewers...
You missed several important aspects of Minnesota food. First off our Native American foods, particularly wild rice, fresh water fish, cranberries and blueberries, and maple syrup and sugar. We used to be the largest producers of turkey as well. In addition to our excellent Hmong and Vietnamese cuisine we also have a thriving Latino and Somali and Ethiopian food scene. In addition to our German and Scandinavian immigrant influence we also have a thriving history of Eastern European immigrants and as a result excellent sausage. And of course the Midwest is the American bread basket.
You are still missing some real gems, even in the places you went over. For example, Indiana has a large Burmese refugee population, which means you can get great Burmese food in Indianapolis or Bloomington. Given that I’ve never seen Burmese food anywhere else in the US, that strikes me as significant.
Chicago actually has the second largest Mexican/Mexican American population of any city in the country. Correspondingly, it is not hard to find great Mexican food.
This begs the question of what is meant by Mid Western. And American. The best food generally tends to be food of relatively recent immigrants. And things like Italo-American, briefly mentioned in relation to Chicago, just awful renditions of the original
I think he was going further back than Mexican. Like late 19th early 20th century. That being said we also have a lot of great Mexican/central American food in Nebraska.
There's a lot of Greek and Arab/middle eastern food in the Detroit area.
I just had Hot Dish for the 1st time last week. I loved it.
what happened to ohio LMAO😂😂
How can you mention Chicago without mentioning the Chicago Italian Beef sandwich? Literally an Iconic dish. I will give you credit on the Maxwell Street Polish though it is quite delicious.
Also Cincinnati style chili and Cincinnati style hogs w/5 way Cincinnati chili is good actually!!
Cincinnati chili is just canned chili on noodles. The only cooking happening there is boiling noodles and microwaving canned chili.
If you ever come back to Belgium allow me to treat you to the ancestors of that one dish.
>who-zi-err
My fucking ears.
This Buckeye is grudgingly hitting the subscribe button.
Ohio has Cincinnati chili and it has Tony Packo's hotdogs (and other great food) in Toledo. And the candy called Buckeyes. Be nice or you will be forced to eat a BIG plate of hot dish!
I still don’t understand the hate on Ohio here. Ohio has the second largest population in the Midwest and, where each other state has a clear dominant city, all three of Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati are about the same size. This has allowed for different migration patterns, and with it, different culinary histories. Cleveland and Cincinnati in particular have significantly different cuisines.
Let’s start with Columbus. Columbus does not have quite as distinct a culinary history as the other major cities as it became a major city much more recently than the other two. However, it is significant on a national level because several fast food companies trial new potential products there. On a smaller note, Columbus has a significant Somali community due to refugees settled in the area. It is not as big as the one in Minnesota, but it does provide a significant alternative in the city.
Eastern Ohio does not have a major city of its own and its food history is shared with much of Appalachia. However, I wanted to call attention to the pawpaw. Pawpaws are the largest fruit indigenous to the US. When ripe, they look a bit like a yellow-green mango, with a sweet custardy flesh that tastes like a cross between a mango, banana, and/or a pineapple. It is utterly unique, especially so because it is currently not fit for mass production and is not shelf stable. Pawpaws grow across most of the Eastern US, North of Georgia and east of the Mississippi. However, it is particularly of note in Ohio (and Kentucky). Athens Ohio actually holds a huge festival celebrating the pawpaw every year.
This brings us to Cleveland. Cleveland is noted for immigration from Poland and Hungary, represented by pierogis and paprikash, respectively. Finally, the canned pasta company, Chef Boyarde, originated in Cleveland where the chef Boiarde opened a restaurant and began selling take-home pastas. He would eventually Americanize his name to Boyarde and open a factory across the border in Pennsylvania, but the start came from Cleveland. In fact, Time magazine named Cleveland the city with the best food scene in 2015 (no, I’m not going to try to defend that).
Cincinnati has its own history of immigration, with particular waves from Germany and Italy, and internal waves of Appalachians and African Americans. The German history stands out in particular, with Cincinnati hosting the largest Oktoberfest outside Germany. Cincinnati has an extensive craft beer scene, along with a myriad of different styles of sausages, with goetta standing out as noteworthy and significant. Graeter’s is a local ice cream producer, recognized as one of the best nationally, that was founded over 150 years ago by German immigrants. But there’s also cuisine history with ties other than Germany. The much-maligned Cincinnati Chili, made with cinnamon-spiced ground meat, pasta, and cheese, has origins from Greece/Macedonia. Historically, Cincinnati also was a strong player in fine dining. In the mid 20th century, Cincinnati had 3 of the top ten nationally recognized fine dining restaurants in the country, topping New York City’s 2. Fine dining eventually declined (along with the rest of the city), but that is part of the area’s culinary history.
Ohio ruined my life
Biggest Oktoberfest in the Americas is in Blumenau, SC, Brazil
@@offthemenuytit saved mine. Just moved back after three years in KC. Saved me when I moved here from Utah/Arizona the first time.
Cleveland is not just Polish and Hungary immigrants it honestly is mostly black from my experience this is why you have to actually go to these places instead of just looking at data what others say yeah we do like fried pierogis but fried fish like catfish and waffles, perch, and walleye is huge here. Chilli and cornbread, Corn beef, Parmamgeddon, Packzis, Pretzel crunch bars, popcorn specifically cheese and carmel, Romanburgers, and most of all the friggen POLISH BOY
And Cleveland's Polish Boy!! seriously, I've lived all over three states now and the Akron-Cleveland corridor is where i chose to settle!
I just found your channel and was excited to see a video that was about the Midwest! You even had the Columbus (my hometown) skyline in the opening. I had to rewind your video because I didn’t understand why you skipped over a state you clearly outlined in the thumbnail.
Just came to say I thought that was mean-spirited and not in line with the open-mindedness and curiosity I was expecting having watched your other videos. I know it’s a meme to dunk on Ohio, but I only expect that from comedy channels and meme-makers. If you really didn’t have any content to add for Ohio you could have just left it out of the thumbnail. You made a conscious decision to highlight thumbing your nose at Ohio. Because it’s popular to do so? Because you actually hate Ohio? Not gonna lie, it actually hurt my feelings. I got excited to show my fiancée and then…that.
Yea me too.. I feel personally attacked.. I was really expecting more professionalism from this channel.
for real
Limburger cheese was created in Europe in the Duchy of Limburg which gets its name from a town in Belgium!
Mustard is the best and most basic condiment for a hot dog. If you can only put one thing on a hot dog, it should be mustard. Now I grew up in a country where ketchup on hot dogs was extremely common, but for an American to say that it is the ‘best’ topping is dumbfounding. Mustard, relish, and diced onions are all ahead of ketchup in any list of toppings. Arguably so are cheese sauce and chili. Maybe even sriracha.
FOOD IS CULTURE, it's not nice to mock peoples culture.
A whole lotta fried fat on fat on fat! 😂
Great video! Wait, have I been saying Chicago wrong this whole time (shee-ka-go) ??
Noo^^ different accents have different inflections. You’re fine as is!
the emphasis is usually on the ca in Chicago! you're pronouncing it right, he's saying it kinda wrong bc the CH isn't a hard sound in Chicago
shuh-KAH-goh
Ohio is strange. The food there is surprisingly above average. As someone in Indiana who lives near Ohio.
Also, Hosier(vinegar) pies and Sugar Cream pies are not the same thing. You also missed Persimmon pudding. Indiana has also been credited with Maple Syurp(and sugar) and Succotash, by Native American tribes that lived/settled and spread their traditions here.
It's actually insane how much maple syrup was produced here, somewhere around 5.6 million gallons(around), I think that was a year as well. A long ways from the 20-30k we manage nowadays, it's a strange history.
Why’d you skip over Ohio?
because "haha funny joke" 💢
You forgot that the Reuben actually has its origins in Nebraska, not New York.
Ketchup I the worst topping for a hotdogs
you're 30?? i thought you were a college student 😭
I’m 28 😭
Ketchup on hotdogs is revolting, its a kiddie condiment unfit for adults.
PAS-TY not paste-y. Great video though 😊
Beer cheese Dip
Beer brats
Beer cheese soup
I’m trying to think of other things we use beer for in Wisconsin
Beer nuts? But I don’t think that’s Wisconsin. But I’ve seen them here. Beer nuts make me think of meat raffles.
Beer works great in chili. Stew. Marinades..
I make beer bread because it’s so easy….
Beer can chicken is wild
I'm a little hurt by you comparing KC BBQ with the far inferior STL BBQ, but good video overall!
11:49 blame the Germans 😂made me laugh
Ketchup goes on burgers 🍔 and fries 🍟, not hot dogs
Cinnamon rolls with Chilli, like seriously 😱
Brother 9:50
Iranian shesh kebab not Turkish
Not only Kebab but the name of it is Iranian derived not Turkish
So Midwestern food is German and Scandinavian slop. 😂😂😂
I knew
dude youngstown ohio has the most incredible italian american food because listen - it's halfway between chicago and nyc and the mob deadass fought a turfwar over it. exploding cars and amazing pizza - no interesting food? your joke did not land ooph
you should do a whole new video on just ohio food hahaha
Now you’re going to have to make a video about ketchup and defend your belief that “it’s the best condiment for a hot dog” 🤣🤣🤣 I don’t care but I know some people are going to have a field day with that one 🤦🏼♂️🤦🏼♂️🤦🏼♂️
Coney Island is in Brooklyn, New York & the is where Nathan's Famous Hot Dogs originated.
holy shit persian cat (i think)
everyone woke up and chose cope, his initial review was to highlight the uniquely American but also delicious dishes from each part of the states and because of the strong similarity of a lot of Northern European cuisine he chose to disregard the area as a whole, gives a chance on marshmallow salad land and finds some really unique dishes and still gets hate?? Valid Take Matthew 🤝
Putting ketchup (catsup) on a hot dog in a public place can generate a lot of negative vibes. If necessary, it should probably be done only in the privacy of your own home, automobile, or Ohio hotel room.
Actually yhe pork tenderloin sandwich is an Iowa dish.
Limburger originates from Limburg.
Lol!!! What's wrong with Ohio? I feel bad for them!
So few vegetables:,)
Summary:
Wisconsin is great, mmm cheese. 😋
Missouri is great, mmm BBQ. 😋
Minnesota is interesting. 🤔
SD & Sioux is cool. 🧐
Ohio. Too scared to know about Ohio. 🤷♂️
The other states are weird AF. 🤮
Wisconsin number 1 🙏🏼
"Didn't think people were going to defend Ohio"
*Leaves out Ohio.
As a native Cincinnatian, I have to stand up for it. Cincinnati Chili is strange but great. Even if you don't like the chili with spaghetti, it is great on its own, on a coney or with cream cheese as dip. It was invented by Greek immigrants and is pretty similar to Greek Kima which also influenced Qeema in India and Pakistan. Goetta is also an amazing sausage that comes from German immigrants who historically came to Cincinnati in large numbers in the 19th century. It is a sausage made from ground meat with steel cut oats mixed in to strech out the meat in hard times. These oats then soak in the rendering fat while the sausage is fried and become very crisp and flavorful. Mock Duck soup is also an old Cincinnati staple again originating from German immigrants. It is made from Calf's Head in a way meant to replicate the taste and texture of turtle meat. Andy Warhol once described it as one of his favorites. Franks Red Hot sauce, though associated with Buffalo, also originates from Cincinnati. Cincinnati is also known for its many Breweries and it's french pot style Ice Cream Graeters. Jewish Immigrants also manufactured Matzo in Cincinnati for several years under the brand Manischewitz.
You could honestly just do a video about the food there and how it originates from a mix of European immigrants, people who escaped slavery in the south and Appalachian communities.
ketchup is not banned it just doesn't belong on a Chicago dog, it already has sweetness from the relish and acidity from the tomatoes and pickle. if you don't get it you don't get it, but it's literally delicious and you need to be more open minded.
There's already so many condiments on a Chicago hot dog that putting on ketchup would be ridiculous overkill.
@@Sacto1654 exactly
Ketchup is not banned, but a lot people go nuts around here when people request Ketchup on hots dogs. Whatever, none of my business, eat it how you like it. Unless you go to Gene and Jude's, which doesn't offer ketchup as a condiments, prompting some of the customers to go next door to McDonald's to try sneak off with some ketchup.
@@jeffreymanson2539 It's just obstinate tradition by certain influential people in New York City and Chicago.
Missouri shouldn't even be consider Midwestern.
I’m not midwestern but I like your other videos and not this one. It feels like unserious snark slapped together by your ego. Based on your other work, I would like to see you dig in and find some real value and talk to real experts with an open mind instead of finding twenty ways to roll your eyes.
It's pronounced "shi-kago", not "chi"
Iowa's food looks disgusting. The others look alright.
Instead of making guessed judgements about how these foods are - take a road trip out there and try them out yourself to see how they really are. I mean, if you really want to more subscribers, you're going to have to try things in real life instead of just presenting internet research on them
Proovel lol its Provel
Even when I look it up, I end up pronouncing something wrong. That’s just who I am I guess
Really? You created a new video just to rag on the mid-west states that have a history of immigrant cuisine when your beloved New York is FULL of immigrant cuisine??? Maybe you should have stopped before you started.
The Ohio slander is not cool 😠
Lol! Not even going to try to pronounce Paczki, huh? It's pronounced POON-CH-KEY.
Also, they are overrated. Their fine. Like a really good donut, but richer.
They are all pretty basic.
Don't humble yourself to those guys. They're eating unsalted broccoli and alfalfa out there in the wilderness.
Still haven’t talked about Milwaukee. Wisconsin is on Top Chef this B season. I have heard of Booya but never had it so it is not iconic. You are a snob.
You said Ohio then you skipped it. I’m unsubscribing. Dude go back to New York. If you’re supposed to be a foodie you miss out. I like Taco pizza. Try it don’t criticize it because it doesn’t sound good.
Lol cry harder mate
Why everyone saying go back to New York like it’s an insult nyc has clearly better food than Ohio
@@ianjames8140NYC certainly has snobs that prop everything in NYC up like its better than the rest of the world, I'm sure their food is good but everywhere has uniquely good food in my experience