I recently saw a headline on an MSN article that tickled my fancy. The piece read “21 Strange American Foods You Won’t Find Anywhere Else In The World.”

I expected it to contain like you know, chocolate-covered grasshoppers or deep-fried earthworms or the like.

Yet, it was actually a real eye-opener for yours truly!

It went on to say:

“We know America is home to some pretty strange foods. But these 21 odd creations make the rest of the world look at us in wonder. Who invented these weird foods and why do people keep eating them? We know our culinary quirks certainly set us apart from the norm! But these foods do make us question our sanity.”

OK, that last line might have gone a little bit far, but still.

Either way, allow me to introduce some of the top contenders for bizarre eats and treats from the good old US of A.

• Chicken and waffles.

Why are we combining fried chicken and sweet waffles? One is a classic breakfast food while the other is a heart-stopping dinner. The two should really be kept separate. Plus, eating fried chicken on top of a waffle is kind of hard. You can’t use your hands to eat a waffle the way you do with fried chicken. This American dish is just so confusing.

I have to agree with that logic right there, to be fair.

• Spam.

It is a very strange processed meat that comes in a can. You can find in it multiple flavors like bacon spam or teriyaki spam. A few states in the US, like Hawaii, are obsessed with this very unique processed meat. However, foreigners are not impressed with the tinned meat. It is a strange concept to crack open a can and slice some room-temperature meat but here in America, we are all for it!

As for me, me feeling on that one is “Blech.”

• Cool Whip.

There is nothing worse than fake whipped cream and that is exactly what Cool Whip is. Cool Whip has almost no real ingredients at all. It is made from tons of chemicals that you can taste with every single bite. Americans love to use Cool Whip to make desserts, put on top of ice cream, and eat by the spoonful with berries. “No one else in the world would ever buy this super fake food.”

Yikes. We’re not that weird, are we? Hmm.

• Ramen.

I must agree that those freeze-dried packets of ramen noodles are pretty gross. Most of the instant ramen packs come with a satchel of spices that are essentially pure salt and MSG. There is nothing real about this so-called “meal” and it’s something no one else in the world would eat. There is a reason why instant ramen is so inexpensive – it’s completely fake food!

• Spray cheese.

Spray cheese is essentially chemicals in a can that have a cheesy taste. It is not actually cheese at all but just flavored, artificial ingredients. The can is tipped upside down and the “cheese” is sprayed onto crackers to make a uniquely American appetizer. Foreigners do not understand the appeal of spray cheese and honestly find it pretty repulsive. Maybe we should just all say no to fake, aerosol cheese, no?

Let’s just leave it there before anyone gets nauseous, a’ight?

Kimerer is a columnist who’s a little freaked out by weird food. Contact her with your odd food fetishes at pkimerer@zoominter net.net.