AIBU to find these traditional Thanksgiving dishes a bit much?

[longwayoff]

I spotted a recipe on Sunday for a 'modernised' green bean casserole. The original is green beans, can of mushroom soup poured over them, into oven for 30 mins, top with crispy onion rings. This is served with the Thanksgiving turkey alongside sweet potato pie topped with toasted marshmallows and other less weird things like stuffing and potatoes. How on earth can these have become traditional family favourites? Convince me someone.

Great British Baking Show (so-called in the US because Bake-Off was already in use by another longstanding baking competition) is on PBS, which is not an obscure cable show; it's the network that broadcasts Downton Abbey, Poldark, etc. I think some earlier episodes may be on at least one other channel and Netflix as well.

Ah yes seneca, it is on Netflix. Had forgotten

Yes, I was introduced to Bake Off by American friends who'd seen it on PBS as Great British Baking Show.

We also used to have Chili/Chowder Cook-offs at work, which was new to me. That was the first time I discovered Chicken Chilli with White Beans (mmmmm) or had really good Lobster Stew (with stock made by boiling the lobster shells - yet more mmmm).

Thinking about other food I first had in the US before anywhere else. Pulled pork, chicken wings, all sorts of smoked and barbecued meats, poutine, sourdough bread, home made jerky, fajitas, cornbread and cornbread stuffing, biscuits and gravy, bacon-wrapped cheese-stuffed meatloaf, crabcakes, cioppino, proper baked beans, proper popcorn, really good fried chicken, lobster rolls, some of the most incredible BLTs, Po'boys, Italians, green chili stews, blueberry pies and cobblers, peach cobblers, Lou Malnati's pizzas, Philly cheese steaks, and Reubens.

Oddly I still weigh the same as I did when I arrived many many years ago.

For a country that apparently doesn't have any good food it's been quite... good.

all sorts of smoked and barbecued meats

And by this, you no doubt mean meat cooked low and slow with mostly indirect heat over a wood fire. I'm from the South. Barbecue is not throwing a steak or burgers on an outdoor grill. That's a cookout; that is most definitely not barbecue.

Yes Seneca - I'm loving discovering all that low and slow cooked meat. It's amazing how fast you can swerve into a BBQ place just from seeing a smoker parked outside!

I also have noticed that in the US a lot more recipes in magazines include a cake box mix or a tin of soup than the UK did. There is a lot of space given over to tinned icing in our supermarkets.
I have also watched the food channel and seen the cookery and baking shows both give their contestants a lot more prepared food than they would get in the UK.
That doesn't mean there isn't really good food here as well, with plenty of opportunities to eat scratch cooked food ranging from super casual to michelin star rated.

Having lived in the UK and the US, I have seen that in both countries, there are many who cook from scratch, many who rely on takeaway, fast food and ready meals, and the majority are somewhere in the middle. And yes, in both places this was highly influenced by income, class and education.

I don't feel guilty if I buy ready grated cheese, fresh pico de gallo and quacamole from Trader Joe when I make quesadillas. It's high quality prepared food. There are other prepared foods that I feel are lower quality than I can make myself, so I don't use them and make from scratch. This is pretty much how everyone I know operated in both the UK and US.

Little bump for anyone looking for supper inspo today 😀