Things you do that are "un-American."

sac said:

So, what does it make me that I like that green bean casserole?

American, one would presume.

SAC, I didn't say NO ONE should eat it... Only that it doesn't appeal to me personally. Making it from scratch sounds wonderful, though.

Now I want to try the green bean dish...

Scully said:

Now I want to try the green bean dish...

It involves cooking. Just saying. 

the only cooking part is warming it in the oven and opening 3 cans:

* string beans

* mushroom soup

Mix together

* fried onions

Thrown on top.

Pop in the oven and take out when heated.   

The undisputed king of all bean recipes.

http://www.seriouseats.com/2015/03/20150304-sichuan-green-bean-food-lab-recipe.html

oneofthegirls said:

the only cooking part is warming it in the oven and opening 3 cans:

* string beans

* mushroom soup

Mix together

* fried onions

Thrown on top.

Pop in the oven and take out when heated.  "> 

You said "oven."  Like I said, cooking.  

I use frozen rather than canned green beans.  But, as  mrincredible implied, it's the fried onions that make the dish, at least for me.

Well I was going from my mom's recipe circa 1950. She assimilated somewhat but would never season her food. Not even salt and pepper. That was on the table though. Her idea of a roasted chicken was to throw it in the oven and let it cook. I certainly love all of the seasonings brought to this country. My first taste of Mexican food was by an engineer's wife who we could order from the night before. It was at a construction site in Shoreham, LI, NY. When he would bring our orders at lunch time we were all in heaven! 

I did love her Mickie's that we would throw into a pile of burning leaves. The potato was charred black and all it needed was a sprinkling of salt to enjoy the fluffiness of the pillow of white  potato. I guess this was un-American. We don't burn leaves in the yard any more.

I've never had the green bean thing.  But I was going to make the Trader Joe version this year so I could try it.

I still celebrate 3 Kings Day (Jan 5th to the 6th) and I still place a toy on my son's bedroom window sill, just like it was done when I was a kid. Yes we still celebrate "Christmas" by getting all gifts under the tree, except for one. Old habits die hard. 

And I still have issues having a cold lunch. 

mrincredible said:

sac said:

So, what does it make me that I like that green bean casserole?

The more of those fried onions on top the better. I'll eat it on occasion if I can have about a 35% fried onion content.

A very American trait is showing disdain for others' tastes for things which we personally don't prefer. I try to be open-minded about things I don't like.

I guess the most unAmerican thing about this whole thing (and I really didn't expect this thread to become ABOUT green bean casserole) is that if someone makes it and it's there on the Thanksgiving table, I'll still eat it, because deep down I'm so terribly British.

Last year we ate Thanksgiving with friends who are transplants from the mid-west. They served green bean casserole and some sort of green jello with cream in it that her kids devoured with the turkey dinner. It was something I'd never seen before. It was quite frightening to me. We had a great laugh about it because my Italian born husband and I just couldn't make sense of the dish. 

Is that also an American food tradition?

oneofthegirls said:

the only cooking part is warming it in the oven and opening 3 cans:

* string beans

* mushroom soup

Mix together

* fried onions

Thrown on top.

Pop in the oven and take out when heated.  "> 

Anybody who doesn't like strings beans with these ingredients is un-French's-can.

Hahaha said:

Last year we ate Thanksgiving with friends who are transplants from the mid-west. They served green bean casserole and some sort of green jello with cream in it that her kids devoured with the turkey dinner. It was something I'd never seen before. It was quite frightening to me. We had a great laugh about it because my Italian born husband and I just couldn't make sense of the dish. 

Is that also an American food tradition?

This?

http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/pineapple-cream-cheese-jell-o-salad-148473.aspx

That looks like something that could have beaten a Scot at Wimbledon.  

Hahaha said:

Last year we ate Thanksgiving with friends who are transplants from the mid-west. They served green bean casserole and some sort of green jello with cream in it that her kids devoured with the turkey dinner. It was something I'd never seen before. It was quite frightening to me. We had a great laugh about it because my Italian born husband and I just couldn't make sense of the dish. 

Is that also an American food tradition?

Definitely American-style comfort food from the 50's.  

I'm  reminded of dip made from heated/melted Velveeta and a can of Ro'Tel tomatoes & green chilies. We used to call it "addicto-dip".

ridski said:

Hahaha said:

Last year we ate Thanksgiving with friends who are transplants from the mid-west. They served green bean casserole and some sort of green jello with cream in it that her kids devoured with the turkey dinner. It was something I'd never seen before. It was quite frightening to me. We had a great laugh about it because my Italian born husband and I just couldn't make sense of the dish. 

Is that also an American food tradition?

This?

http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/pineapple-cream-cheese-jell-o-salad-148473.aspx

No, I think it was more like this. Perhaps the cream was marshmallows? In any event, I didn't try it - which is very rare for me as I will try most foods. But this...I just couldn't.

mjh said:

Hahaha said:

Last year we ate Thanksgiving with friends who are transplants from the mid-west. They served green bean casserole and some sort of green jello with cream in it that her kids devoured with the turkey dinner. It was something I'd never seen before. It was quite frightening to me. We had a great laugh about it because my Italian born husband and I just couldn't make sense of the dish. 

Is that also an American food tradition?

Definitely American-style comfort food from the 50's.  

Yes, reminds me of the tradition of eating mint jelly with lamb or applesauce with pork chops. I guess the Thanksgiving tradition of cranberry with turkey is in the same vein. 

Celebrate thanksgiving.

Robert_Casotto said:

Celebrate thanksgiving.

Commie.

My mother-in-law makes a green jello "salad" that has cottage cheese in it.  The cottage cheese may be a long-ago substitute for yogurt or sour cream that was adopted into the recipe shared in the family. 

I make one with raspberry jello, cranberry sauce and sour cream that's pretty yummy.

I'm not sure why these jello concoctions are called "salad", though.

sac said:

I make one with raspberry jello, cranberry sauce and sour cream that's pretty yummy.

I'm not sure why these jello concoctions are called "salad", though.

OMG! I make one with raspberry jello, cranberry sauce, and sour cream too! For years my dad's girlfriend would make it for Christmas and I wouldn't even touch it. When I finally worked up the nerve to taste the "pink stuff" I had to have the recipe. Shortly after getting the recipe she passed away, so now I bring to to Christmas dinner in her memory. Her version has whole berry sauce in it. It also has chopped walnuts.

spontaneous said:

ridski said:

I have some disdain for that "green beans cooked in canned cream of mushroom soup" thing. Other than that, I'm unAmerican, though I do a lot of American things.

I will admit that I have never once in my life even tried green bean casserole. 

see, and to me, this was an "exotic" dish when I first came across it in my 20's.

As for un-american, I'll be picking up my TG Lasagna from ShopRite tomorrow.

As I mentioned before, we're not even having turkey for Turkey Day.

Having grown up around the world, I don't consider myself an American, but rather a citizen of the world that happens to have an American Birth Certificate and Passport. I suppose that's un-American.

I equate the very word "American" with "provincial." I suppose that's un-American. Although the questioning of the word is, in a way, quintessentially American.

How did I forget cooking??? Very little of what we like to cook is all-American. And my spice cabinet is completely international.

noo2wood said:

Having grown up around the world, I don't consider myself an American, but rather a citizen of the world that happens to have an American Birth Certificate and Passport. I suppose that's un-American.

Nearly every day there's something that makes me feel un-American.  Yesterday it was when they had military fly-overs over the stadium when I was watching football.  I was thinking -- why do we need a show of military force before we watch a sporting event?

I'm sure that to 99% of Americans, that was a really un-American thought.