List of American foods facts for kids

A yummy apple pie, a classic American dessert!

American food is a mix of many different cultures and traditions. Before Europeans came, Native Americans had their own unique foods. Later, people from Europe and other parts of the world brought new ingredients and cooking styles. This made American food very diverse, and it kept changing as more people moved to the United States over time.

This list shows some common foods and dishes you can find in the U.S. It also includes foods that were first created there. It's not a complete list, but it gives you a good idea of the tasty variety of American cuisine!

Popular American Foods
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Popular American Foods

Breads and Baked Treats

Many delicious breads and baked goods are popular across America. Some are simple, while others are sweet treats.

Cornbread: A savory bread made from cornmeal, often served with Southern meals.
Cuban bread: A long, crusty bread, especially popular in Florida.
Frybread: A flat dough, fried until golden, often eaten by Native Americans.
Texas toast: Thick slices of bread, usually buttered and toasted.
Biscuit (bread): A small, soft, often flaky bread, great with gravy or jam.
Muffin: A small, sweet or savory quick bread, baked in a cup-shaped mold.
Banana bread: A sweet, moist bread made with mashed bananas.

Cheeses and Dairy Products

Gouda and Swiss cheeses are enjoyed in America.

America has many kinds of cheese, from soft and creamy to firm and flavorful.

Muenster cheese: A mild, soft cheese with an orange rind.
American cheese: A very popular processed cheese, known for melting smoothly.
Colby: A semi-hard cheese, often mixed with Monterey Jack to make Colby-Jack.
Sour cream: A creamy dairy product, often used as a topping or in dips.
Cream cheese: A soft, mild, fresh cheese, great on bagels or in desserts.
Monterey Jack: A mild, semi-hard cheese, also found in pepper jack cheese with added spice.
String cheese: A mozzarella-like cheese that can be pulled into strings.
Velveeta: A brand of processed cheese product that melts very easily.

Breakfast Favorites

Start your day the American way with these popular breakfast dishes!

Cold cereal: A quick and easy breakfast, eaten with milk.
Eggs Benedict: A fancy breakfast with poached eggs, ham, and hollandaise sauce on an English muffin.
Bagels: Chewy, ring-shaped bread, often topped with cream cheese.
Bacon: Crispy strips of fried pork.
American pancakes: Fluffy, flat cakes, usually served with syrup.
Grits: A dish made from boiled cornmeal, popular in the Southern U.S.
Breakfast burrito: A tortilla wrapped around eggs, meat, and other fillings.
Atole: A warm, thick drink made from corn masa, popular in some regions.
Chicken Fried Steak: A piece of steak breaded and fried like chicken, often served with gravy.
Hashbrowns: Shredded potatoes, fried until crispy.
French Toast: Slices of bread dipped in egg batter and fried, often served with syrup.

Vegetables and Salads

Vegetables are a key part of American meals, often prepared in unique ways.

Collard Greens: Leafy green vegetables, often cooked with meat in Southern cuisine.
Coleslaw: Shredded cabbage salad, usually mixed with a creamy dressing.
Sweet potato casserole: A baked dish with sweet potatoes, often topped with marshmallows or pecans.
Corn on the cob: Whole ears of corn, boiled or grilled.
Fried green tomatoes: Slices of unripe tomatoes, breaded and fried.
fried okra: Okra pods, often breaded and fried until crispy.
Green salad: A mix of leafy greens and other vegetables, including popular types like Caesar salad, Cobb salad, Green Goddess salad, and Waldorf salad.

Main Dishes

These are some of the main courses that are well-loved across the United States.

Roasted turkey: A large bird, often roasted whole, especially for holidays like Thanksgiving.
Southern Fried Chicken: Chicken pieces coated in seasoned flour and deep-fried until crispy. Sometimes served with chicken and waffles.
Barbecue: Slow-cooked meat, often smoked, with different styles across the U.S., like Pork ribs, Texas smoked brisket, and pulled pork.
Crab cake: A patty made from crab meat, breadcrumbs, and seasonings, then fried or baked.
Crayfish as food: Small freshwater crustaceans, often boiled with spices.
Lobster: A large shellfish, often steamed or boiled and served with butter.
Maryland Blue Crab: A type of crab popular in Maryland, often steamed and seasoned.
Club Sandwich: A layered sandwich with sliced turkey or chicken, bacon, lettuce, and tomato.

Soups and Stews

Warm and comforting, these soups and stews are American favorites.

Chili con carne: A spicy stew made with meat, chili peppers, and often beans.
Clam chowder: A creamy soup with clams, potatoes, and often bacon. New England style is very popular.
Corn chowder: A thick, creamy soup made with corn.
Pozole: A traditional Mexican soup or stew, popular in the American Southwest, made with hominy and meat.

Sweet Desserts

America is famous for its wide variety of sweet treats and desserts.

Apple pie: A classic American dessert with a pastry crust and apple filling.
Banana pudding: Layers of vanilla wafers, sliced bananas, and creamy pudding.
Bean pie: A sweet custard pie made with mashed beans, popular in some communities.
Chocolate brownie: A rich, fudgy chocolate baked good.
Chocolate chip cookies: Soft, chewy cookies with chocolate chips.
Cobbler: A baked fruit dessert with a biscuit-like topping.
Fudge: A soft, rich candy, often made with chocolate.
Jell-O: A popular brand of gelatin dessert.
Key lime pie: A tart and sweet pie made with Key lime juice, popular in Florida.
Peanut butter cookie: Cookies made with peanut butter.
Pecan pie: A sweet pie with a filling of pecans and a custard-like base.
Pumpkin pie: A spiced custard pie made with pumpkin, especially popular around Thanksgiving.
Red velvet cake: A distinctively red or reddish-brown chocolate layer cake with cream cheese frosting.
S'more: A campfire treat with toasted marshmallow and chocolate between graham crackers.
Sundae: A dessert made with ice cream, syrup, and toppings.
Ice cream: A frozen dessert, very popular in many flavors.
Pineapple upside-down cake: A cake baked with pineapple slices and cherries at the bottom, then inverted.
Doughnut: A sweet, fried dough pastry, often glazed or filled.
Beignet: A square piece of fried dough, often dusted with powdered sugar, popular in New Orleans.
Chiffon cake: A very light and airy cake made with vegetable oil.

Rice Dishes

Rice is a versatile ingredient used in many American dishes, especially in Southern and Creole cooking.

Gumbo is a flavorful stew that started in southern Louisiana in the 1700s.

Calas: Fried rice fritters, often served for breakfast in New Orleans.
Charleston red rice: A flavorful rice dish cooked with tomatoes and spices, from Charleston, South Carolina.
Chicken bog: A South Carolina dish with chicken, sausage, and rice.
Dirty rice: A Louisiana Creole dish with white rice cooked with small pieces of meat and spices.
Glorified rice: A sweet dessert salad with rice, pineapple, and whipped cream.
Gumbo: A hearty stew from Louisiana, often with seafood or meat, and served over rice.
Hawaiian haystack: A layered dish with rice, chicken, gravy, and various toppings.
Hoppin' John: A traditional Southern dish of black-eyed peas and rice, often eaten on New Year's Day.
Jambalaya: A flavorful Louisiana dish with rice, meat (like sausage or chicken), and vegetables.
Rice and gravy: A simple Southern dish where rice is served with a rich gravy.
Red beans and rice: A classic Louisiana dish, often eaten on Mondays.
Shrimp creole: A tomato-based stew with shrimp, served over rice.
Spanish rice: Rice cooked with tomatoes, onions, and bell peppers, popular in Tex-Mex cuisine.

Sandwiches Galore

Sandwiches are a huge part of American food, with endless combinations and regional specialties.

BLT: A simple but popular sandwich with bacon, lettuce, and tomato.
Cheesesteak: A long roll filled with thinly sliced steak and melted cheese, from Philadelphia.
Chopped cheese: A sandwich from New York City with chopped ground beef and melted cheese on a roll.
Club sandwich: A layered sandwich with turkey or chicken, bacon, lettuce, and tomato.
Fluffernutter: A sweet sandwich with peanut butter and marshmallow fluff.
Italian beef: A sandwich with thin slices of seasoned roast beef, often dipped in its cooking juices.
Pastrami on rye: A deli sandwich with sliced pastrami on rye bread.
Corned Beef Special: A sandwich with corned beef, Swiss cheese, coleslaw, and Russian dressing.
Peanut butter and jelly sandwich: A very popular sandwich, especially for kids.
Reuben sandwich: A grilled sandwich with corned beef, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, and Russian dressing.
Sloppy joe: Ground meat in a savory tomato sauce, served on a bun.
Barbecue sandwich: Pulled pork or other barbecue meat served on a bun.
Hoagie: A long roll filled with various meats, cheeses, and vegetables.
Egg salad sandwich: A sandwich filled with chopped hard-boiled eggs mixed with mayonnaise.
Philadelphia Roast Pork Sandwich: A sandwich with roasted pork, often with provolone cheese and broccoli rabe.
Fried Chicken Sandwich: A crispy fried chicken patty served on a bun.
Chicken Caesar Wrap: Grilled chicken, Caesar salad, and dressing wrapped in a tortilla.
Cuban sandwich: A pressed sandwich with ham, roasted pork, Swiss cheese, pickles, and mustard.
Hot dog: A cooked sausage served in a sliced bun.
Muffuletta: A large, round sandwich from New Orleans, with layers of meats, cheeses, and olive salad.
Po' boy: A traditional Louisiana sandwich, usually with fried seafood or roast beef.
lobster roll: A sandwich with lobster meat mixed with mayonnaise or butter, served in a hot dog bun.
Melt sandwich: A type of grilled sandwich with melted cheese and other fillings.
grilled cheese: A simple sandwich with melted cheese between slices of bread, grilled until golden.
french dip: A hot sandwich with thinly sliced roast beef on a roll, served with beef broth for dipping.
Ham and Cheese: A classic sandwich with sliced ham and cheese.
Hamburger: A patty of ground beef served in a bun, often with toppings.

Sausages

Sausages are a common food in America, used in many different dishes.

Hot dogs with different toppings.

Bologna sausage: A processed sausage, often sliced for sandwiches.
Breakfast sausage: Small sausage patties or links, popular with breakfast.
Chaudin: A Cajun sausage made from pork stomach stuffed with seasoned pork.
Goetta: A breakfast sausage and grain loaf, popular in Cincinnati.
Half-smoke: A type of sausage popular in Washington, D.C., often spicier than a regular hot dog.
Hot link (sausage): A spicy sausage, often served grilled.
Italian hot dog: A hot dog served on a roll with peppers, onions, and potatoes.
Lebanon bologna: A smoked, fermented beef sausage with a tangy taste, from Pennsylvania.
Maxwell Street Polish: A grilled Polish sausage served on a bun with grilled onions and mustard, from Chicago.
Polish Boy: A sandwich from Cleveland with kielbasa sausage, fries, coleslaw, and barbecue sauce.

Snacks and Side Dishes

These are popular smaller bites and dishes that often go along with a main meal.

Jalapeño popper: Jalapeño peppers filled with cheese, breaded, and deep-fried.
Buffalo Wings: Chicken wings, deep-fried and coated in a spicy sauce, often served with blue cheese dressing.
Hushpuppy: Small, savory fried cornmeal balls, popular in the South.
Macaroni and cheese: Cooked macaroni pasta mixed with a cheese sauce.
Artichoke dip: A creamy dip made with artichoke hearts, often served with chips or bread.
Boston baked beans: Navy beans baked slowly with molasses or maple syrup and salt pork.
Curly fries: French fries cut in a spiral shape.

Condiments and Sauces

These add flavor and moisture to many American dishes.

Tomato Ketchup: A sweet and tangy sauce made from tomatoes, very popular with fries and burgers.
Yellow Mustard: A mild mustard, often used on hot dogs and sandwiches.
Pickle Relish: A condiment made from chopped pickled cucumbers, often sweet or dill.
Tabasco sauce: A famous hot sauce made from tabasco peppers.
Special sauce: A general term for a unique sauce, often used on burgers.
Barbecue sauce: A tangy or sweet sauce used on grilled or smoked meats.
cranberry sauce: A sauce made from cranberries, often served with turkey at Thanksgiving.
Cocktail sauce: A cold sauce for seafood, usually with ketchup, horseradish, and lemon juice.
Fry sauce: A mix of ketchup and mayonnaise, popular in some Western states.
Mayonnaise: A thick, creamy sauce made from oil, egg yolk, and vinegar.
Old Bay Seasoning: A blend of herbs and spices, popular for seafood, especially in Maryland.
Maple syrup: A sweet syrup made from the sap of maple trees, often served with pancakes.
Ranch dressing: A creamy salad dressing, also popular as a dip.
Thousand Island dressing: A creamy salad dressing, often used on Reuben sandwiches.
Green goddess dressing: A creamy, herb-filled salad dressing.
Honey mustard: A sweet and tangy sauce made from honey and mustard.