Common American Food Combos That Might Shock the French

You won’t find these popular American food pairings in France.

Compared to the French, Americans aren’t exactly well known for their culinary prowess. I have a feeling that this list of somewhat questionable food combos isn’t working in our favor…

Here are some American food pairings that the French may find weird, appalling, or just plain unexpected.

The Sweet and Salty

Americans have a special love for a sweet and savory pairing. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack… we can make it work at any meal. In France, sweet and salty combos do exist (hello, caramel beurre salé 🤤), but it’s more common to keep these taste profiles separate.

Peanut butter and jelly: What American child hasn’t grown up enjoying a peanut butter and jelly sandwich from time to time? Sampling peanut butter is already a big ask for a French person, so I’m not sure they’ll accept it with a glob of jelly on top. Most French people have heard of this famous sandwich from movies, though! Dare we mention the delightful cousin combo of peanut butter and banana?

Chicken and waffles: My mouth is watering picturing a big plate of crusty fried chicken on a fresh waffle, all smothered in maple syrup. The French are only just coming around to the idea of brunch, but they might get a heart attack looking at this mountain of food dripping in liquid sugar.

Apple pie with cheddar cheese: To be honest, this combo is mythical to me, but I hear y’all do that out in the midwest. In France, cheese is firmly established as a separate course from the dessert.

French fries and milkshakes: Boy, was I excited to bring Jonathan to Wendy’s. Without any hesitation, he dipped a fry right into that Frosty and loved it. He’s always been a good sport about trying American foods. You can find milkshakes in France, even at some fast food restaurants but it’s unlikely you’ll see anyone voluntarily dipping their french fries in.

The Ultra Sweet

Nothing says America like adding more sugar to the mix, amiright? There are plenty of sweet treats in France. However, on the sugary scale, France tends to be a bit more moderate.

Sweet potato casserole: Yes, let’s top that sweet potato puree with cute little marshmallows! It may be a classic Thanksgiving dish for Americans, but a French person is unlikely to consider marshmallows a reasonable topping for a dish served at a savory meal. In France, marshmallows are found in the candy aisle.

S’mores: If you went camping and didn’t have s’mores, did you even go camping? The French definitely don’t have anything against a good chocolate and marshmallow pairing if the petit oursons in the candy aisle are any indication. We’d need to find a replacement for the graham crackers since those can’t be found in France (aside from imports), but I think this one could be a success.

Root beer float: A scoop of vanilla ice cream in soda (my preference is for Coke) brings me right back to an afternoon in my childhood bestie’s kitchen. Root beer is the usual go-to for this concoction in the U.S. Although it can be found in France these days, it’s far from mainstream. Putting ice cream in soda? Unheard of.

The Classics

Grilled cheese with tomato soup: This one is a comfort meal for me. With a similar cheese sandwich in existence in France (croque monsieur) and a plethora of creamy vegetable soups on the market, this is certainly not a shocking food combo. And it’s one I think the French could get behind. (Yes, of course, it has Jonathan’s seal of approval.)

Milk with dinner: Especially in families with young children, a glass of milk is often served with dinner in the States. This is not the case in France, where water (or wine!) is the beverage of choice.

The Pizza With Ranch Dressing

I think we can all agree that pizza with ranch dressing is in a category of its own. An elusive import, ranch is not easily found in French grocery stores. The French are certainly not alone in scratching their heads at why we are drizzling this sauce on our pizza. They probably don’t find it as offensive as Italians, though. (It is good though, right? 🤭)