14 “American” foods that aren’t actually American

French fries are not American: they’re Belgian and French.

Neither of these is American.

Reuters

The true origins of French fries may be disputed, but they are definitely not American.

As one story goes, according to National Geographic, Belgian fishermen during the turn of the 20th century used to fry potatoes when it was too cold to fish. American soldiers came across them during World War I and dubbed the food invention “French fries,” since Belgians spoke French in that region. 

Other food historians claim that French street vendors were selling French fries as early as the 1780s, known as “pommes frites.” In this case, Thomas Jefferson is often credited with introducing French fries to America by serving “pommes de terre frites à cru en petites tranches” (potatoes deep-fried while raw, in small cuttings) to guests during his presidency. 

“Few people took potatoes seriously on the continent until the end of the 18th century,” food historian Ken Albala at the University of the Pacific told INSIDER. “Probably at some point in the early 19th century the French and Belgians started frying them in fat. Arguably the Belgians are better at it, hence the claim.”