Have you ever thought a food was real, then tried the authentic version?

[worldscolide]

It happened to me this weekend. I love Italian food. I make it a lot, I'm really good at it. My entire childhood and most of my adulthood I've eaten what looks like parmesan cheese with these dishes.

Recently my wife bought a wedge of parmigiano reggiano cheese (aged 10 years), because they were out of the stuff we normally use. It was quite a bit more expensive, but hey why not try it. Let me tell you the difference in flavor was VAST. richer, creamer, sharper, more flavorful. It's nuts

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[midnightmoon05]

Stop buying cheese, dairy made from Wisconsin.
we go to markets where they import foods from other countries… non GMO stuff…

we go to Europe (France, Italy… even the hot chocolate at a gas station in Norway was real!!!… non of that Swiss packaging’s from the supermarket) for real food.
I get hot chocolate from French or Italian sweet shops in NYC.
my French brother in law hated the cheeses made in regular supermarkets… a few specialty European markets sell foreign dairy products… Otherwise… the US made a rule a few years back that anything come into the US. Can allow a US label… 😕 so it’s harder to get the real stuff… but we still manage.. just eat less 😂
we are in Asia now and why we are here 3 months… real food.
the meat is not even frozen.
we went to the wet market and saw how meat, fruit, veggies are processed… all fresh daily… we can tell that the meat from the restaurant are so fresh.
now in Japan… for the fresh seafoods. Our systems are so much healthier … not blowed after eating certain kindyof foods in the US.

In the states, we get our eggs and meat, milk, dairy from local farmers …

[worldscolide]

I get the vast majority of my produce and meat from local farmers. It's better that way. I avoid dairy as much as I can cause it kills my stomach.

[midnightmoon05]

If you like cheeses, go to specialty European shops and make sure to check the label that says Made in France. Or Italy.

Now we get our ice cream or yugrut from Hokkaido
Or When in China, we got them from inner mogolia. Or in the US… from Canada.
Through our travels, we see Their cows graze in the hills and drink the water from the mountains.

[Masie]

Yes. Chinese food is one. There is the typical type that you would carry out that Americans are used to. Just because the people there are Chinese and technically they are making Chinese food, it is much catered to us.

I went to Chicago with my family and we went to a very high end, sit down Chinese restaurant. The difference was incredible. I had no idea and don't look at the carryout Chinese the same anymore.

[midnightmoon05]

Hope you get to go to Asia soon… eye opening!!
We were in Yunnan china, two weeks ago… we found a nice Muslim Chinese restaurant… their roasted duck was to die for.
My hubby never liked eating duck (too fatty) he enjoyed with me.
Small, lean, crispy !! So good… poor ducky… sacrificed for us.

[Telekinetic-Potato]

Whisky. I was in shock the first time I tried a genuinely good one because I tried expensive wines and yes there's a difference but I've had 2k bottles of wine and said "eh, I know a bottle that's $20 I'd rather have"

That's not the experience I had with whisky. That was more like "ohhh, I've never had whisky before... This is my first time."

[OlderAndWiser]

For years, I ate the American version of Chinese food, and I liked it. Then I started dating the woman who later became my wife. She is an excellent cook and I finally had real Chinese food. It was not similar to the American version!

[DishLady]

I remember my boss once told me never to have food from one take out place bc it wasn’t authentic and also NEVER to order fried rice bc it was at least a week (if not a month) old. He said he could taste when it’s not fresh, but folks here just taste the extra sauce and don’t care.


Or when I go out to eat I only go to certain places where the food is authentic (or as close as possible to what I had back home).

[Pterodon]

Nothing beats FRESH steamed till just crisp and lemon juice squeezed on it there’s no comparison between it and canned. Tastes nothing like canned

[Pterodon]

I’m talking about asparagus

[worldscolide]

I felt the same about Brussels sprouts, Back when i was a kid they were canned, and freaking nasty. I had fresh steamed ones with some garlic, and some other seasonings and they are very good.

[TrueConfection]

Gnocchi! After learning a recipe from a cooking class in Italy, I will never eat the packaged or restaurant stuff again.

[exitseven]

I really try hard not to eat anything that I do not know what it is.

[LiamS95]

I only use Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino Romano in my Italian dishes.