Uniquely American foods/products to give as presents

[preCRT]

Jars of Fluff, must be the genuine Fluff, not garbage marshmallow creme.
Jars of peanut butter

 

[madoka]

maybe you should be more specific about which country/countries you'll be visiting

The problem is that we haven't nailed down where yet and there's going to be a mixed group from different countries. Definitely people from Sweden, France, and China so far. I do know that they'll be foreigners who will appreciate the bounty of goodness from Murica.

I came in here to say Twinkies and sure enough the first responder already beat me to it.

Normally I would think that. But Hostess products have sucked ever since their bankruptcy.

 

[madoka]

Buffalo Wings, Omaha Steaks?

I'm already toying with the idea of smuggling in frozen tamales because someone in the group likes them. I'd probably be imprisoned if I try any more non-canned meat than that.

 

[1sikbITCH]

Rapa Scrapple, peanut butter is a good one, jar of illicit moonshine,

 

[Stopsignhank]

Ice for your drink. For some reason that seems to be a uniquely American thing. At least in the countries I have traveled in.

 

[madoka]

beef jerky and Kentucky bourbon.

I tried the jerky thing before and discovered that most people thought it was way too salty. Apparently foreigners aren't used to our high sodium diet.

I also promised someone that I'd bring them a bottle of Dan Aykroyd's vodka, so I think my alcohol limit has been reached.

Good ideas though.

 

[tynopik]

clapper, salad shooter, chia pet

 

[glenn1]

Turducken topped with cheese in a can. And Dr. Pepper to wash it down.

 

[tynopik]

football / football jersey

 

[Kaido]

I may be traveling out of the country. What I wanted to bring some uniquely American foods or products as presents to friends. What can I take them without getting busted at the airport for contraband?

Uh, Moon Pies?

 

[VirtualLarry]

I grew up eating Spam in Korea. Same goes for Japan too.

Didn't the U.S. Gov't "invent" S.P.A.M. to feed our troops in WWII?

 

[Kaido]

Probably no end to the unique crap you can find packaged that could be found few other places on Earth. Twinkies, different candies, other mostly unremarkable junk.

Nah man. South Korea has us beat:

https://www.worldofsnacks.com/store/c38/Korean_Snacks.html

Or Japan, if you're into Kit-Kats:

https://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/worlds-weirdest-kit-kat-candy-bars/

 

[Kaido]

Didn't the U.S. Gov't "invent" S.P.A.M. to feed our troops in WWII?

Quick history: Hormel invented it in 1937. The government ended up purchasing 150 million pounds of it for the war effort. It spread to the Pacific Islands after that (Hawaii, the Philippines, etc.) & then got marketed to Asia. Pretty interesting reading:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spam_(food)

There's also a short 30-minute documentary on Hormel from the 60's available on Youtube:

tbh I always thought of Spam as a novelty food growing up; I didn't know anyone actually ate it. I didn't try it until fairly recently & it turned out to be awesome (especially fried up in thin strips). Makes a great meat mix-in for breakfast burritos too. I always have a couple cans in my pantry these days.

 

[madoka]

Uh, Moon Pies?

Yes, you may have guessed our Moon Pie exchanged caused me to start thinking about what to bring them way in advance.

 

[Carson Dyle]

i heard that in england, you can't even get breakfast that hasn't got spam in it

Where'd you hear that?

 

[lxskllr]

Necco wafers. They suck, but they're cheap, and old school Americana. You could get a bunch of old school candies from the dollar store.

 

[BurnItDwn]

Get some quality smoked cheeses and bring them over? We love our Reynards smoked string cheese & smoked gouda. Smoked Ghost Pepper Monterey Jack is intensely delightful.

 

[shortylickens]

Normally I would think that. But Hostess products have sucked ever since their bankruptcy.

Shit, thats a good point actually.

 

[bfun_x1]

For China I'd say get some Candy. Licorice, toffee, nougats. Chips are good but hard to carry. For everyone else I'd say crazy colorful breakfast cereal like Lucky Charms or Captain Crunch.

 

[madoka]

Shit, thats a good point actually.

The new Hostess company actually admitted that they changed the recipe. Bastards!

https://sacramentopress.com/2013/10/26/those-arent-twinkies/

It only took one bite to tell me something has gone seriously wrong at the new Hostess. They call it sponge cake for a reason. It’s supposed to be moist and spongey. The new Twinkie is not moist and spongey. It’s more dry and cakey. The creamy filling is not as creamy, it sort of melts in your mouth before you even know its there, as if the Polysorbate 60 has been cut with solvent. Twinkies, CupCakes and Zingers have been my go-to comfort snacks my entire life. I’ve eaten so many of them, I’ve grown receptor cells near the base of my brain stem that vigorously tingle whenever I eat a Hostess snack cake.

But after finishing my first new Twinkie? No tingle.

Sadly, the case has been the same for the dozen or so Twinkies and CupCakes I’ve sampled since the “sweetest comeback ever” began. All cake, no sponge. Less creamy creamy filling. No sugar-rush tingle.

The new Hostess admits that it has changed the Twinkie by, among other things, extending its shelf life and slightly reducing it in size. But the changes I sense are more fundamental. The formula is off. Perhaps a bitter baker, distraught at losing his job, altered the recipe before his exit. All I can really tell you is that I know Twinkies, and the things I’ve been eating lately are most definitely not Twinkies.

 

[angminas]

Chow chow, though it comes in glass jars. Lipton, with instructions to make sweet iced tea. Movies that were released here first. Sports team merchandise. Mallomars or Girl Scout cookies. Newspapers, magazines, humorous greeting cards. Or some of the $19.99 "as seen on TV" stuff. A singing fish would be just the thing.

 

[skull]

Ice for your drink. For some reason that seems to be a uniquely American thing. At least in the countries I have traveled in.

For good reason you mean, I always ask for my drinks no ice at restaurants, even if I get weird looks. Ice in drinks is a terrible thing, it waters them down, makes them too cold to chug down and decreases the volume of actual drink in your cup. Its a stupid thing all around and I can't figure out why anyone actually likes it.

 

[Mayne]

I love this stuff.

 

[skull]

Straws are equally stupid I'm not going to suck on some stupid pencil sized cock to get a sip. I drink that shit down the way its meant to be drank and thats another reason to hate ice. You can't drink out of cup the way its meant to be drank out of when ice is in it.

 

[Mayne]

Straws are equally stupid I'm not going to suck on some stupid pencil sized cock to get a sip. I drink that shit down the way its meant to be drank and thats another reason to hate ice. You can't drink out of cup the way its meant to be drank out of when ice is in it.

you never worked in the heat/construction and thanked god there was still some ice cubes left to suck on or try to suck up for any kinda relief.