23 Canadian Foods Americans Are Totally Missing Out On
Americans and Canadians have a lot in common, but when it comes to food, they take different paths. Many snacks, meals, and beverages are popular in Canada but completely unavailable to their southern neighbors.
That’s too bad because Americans would probably like many of these classic Canadian menu items (except, perhaps, for macaroni and cheese in our deli meat).
Why You Need To Try Canadian Foods
Like the U.S., Canada is a massive country stretching from one ocean to another, and its range of food choices is as unique and varied as its landscape. From French-inspired pastries to exquisite seafood dishes, Canada’s cuisine is full of delicacies that will leave many Americans wishing they lived there.
1: Timbits
Tim Horton’s is Canada’s largest restaurant chain, with over 4,000 stores. One of the most popular menu items is Timbits, the Canadian take on donut holes. Timbits come in flavors ranging from chocolate glaze to birthday cake.
2: Caesar
We’re not talking about a salad. In Canada, a Caesar is a drink similar to a Bloody Mary but arguably better. It contains vodka, Clamato, Worcestershire, hot sauce, and celery salt.
3: Nanaimo Bars
Nanaimo bars are named for the city of Nanaimo in British Columbia. These no-bake treats feature coconut, nuts, creamy custard, and rich chocolate ganache.
4: Real Deal Maple Syrup
Of course, you can purchase pure maple syrup in the U.S., typically in Vermont. But ask any Canadian, and they’ll tell you Canadian maple syrup is different. Rich and sticky sweet, it’s a real treat if you can find it on American soil.
5: Poutine
It’s thought that poutine came from Quebec sometime in the 1950s. This classic dish of french fries topped with cheese curds and gravy is uniquely Canadian and undeniably delicious.
6: Tire d’érable
Tire d’érable is maple taffy. Made by boiling maple sap past the point of syrup, this traditional Quebec treat is worth trying if you ever get the chance.
7: Grandpères
Grandpères are basically maple syrup dumplings. To make them, you create a basic dumpling dough and deep-fry it in maple syrup. The result is as delicious as it sounds.
8: Coffee Crisp
Americans have access to a range of Nestle chocolates but not Nestle Coffee Crisps. Coffee-flavored wafers wrapped in Nestle chocolate seem like an easy sell in the U.S., so we can only hope Nestle decides to bring them south one day.
9: Canadian Smarties
Smarties in the U.S. are pastel-colored candies, but in Canada, they’re brightly colored chocolate bites. Smarties are like M&M’s, but with a slightly thicker candy shell that offers a bit of graham cracker flavor.
10: Lay’s Ketchup Chips
Ketchup chips might sound strange to the typical American, but there’s a reason they’re so popular with our neighbors to the north. Lay’s Ketchup Chips offers the addictive crunch of fried potatoes with a tangy tomato seasoning that many adore.
11: Butter Tarts
Rich, gooey, and laced with sweet maple syrup, butter tarts are an iconic Canadian dessert. The filling is literally just butter and sugar. Who doesn’t like that?
12: Macaroni-and-Cheese Deli Loaf
Yes, you read that correctly. In Canada, you can get macaroni and cheese deli loaves. It’s a bologna-based loaf studded with cheesy macaroni, and as strange as it sounds, it’s worth trying.
13: Maynard’s Wine Gums
There’s no alcohol in Maynard’s gummy candies, and they don’t taste like wine, either. However, it’s said the flavors are so good that you can appreciate them just like you would the finest vintages.
14: Back Bacon
In the U.S., we call back bacon Canadian bacon. However, more often than not, what you find in U.S. stores is just ham cut to a round shape. Real back bacon, or Canadian bacon, is made of thinly sliced smoked pork loin, and it’s far better than watery ham.
15: Hawkins Cheezies
Imagine if Cheetos didn’t melt in your mouth after a few seconds and instead retained a distinctive crunch. That’s Hawkins Cheezies in a nutshell. A favorite of Canadian kids everywhere, this snack is something Americans need to experience.
16: Passion Flakies
Vachon, the maker of Passion Flakies, describes the breakfast pastry as a “passionate marriage” of sweet and creamy fillings. These treats contain sweet cream cheese and fruit jelly sandwiched between flaky puff pastry.
17: Montreal Bagels
New York bagel lovers may not agree, but many believe Montreal Bagels are the best you can get. Slightly smaller, denser, and sweeter than their New York counterparts, Montreal Bagels are always finished in a wood-fired oven for a slightly smoky flavor.
18: Bannock
Bannock is a traditional Scottish bread that is also very popular in Canada. It’s a flatbread that comes in a variety of flavors, including cinnamon, sugar, and cream cheese.
19: Donairs
The Donair comes from Halifax, a city in Nova Scotia. It’s similar to a gyro but made with shaved beef instead of lamb and a sweet, signature “Donair’s” sauce instead of tzatziki.
20: Saskatoon Berry Pie
Apple pie is to America as Saskatoon berry pie is to Canada. Sweet Saskatoon berries look similar to blueberries but have a slightly different flavor. They’re a little nutty and more closely related to apples than other berries.
21: Fried Cod Tongues
Before you get squeamish, fried cod tongues aren’t fish tongues at all. Instead, they’re deep-fried bites of tender cod meat taken from the fish’s neck. You’ll find them in Newfoundland, Canada.
22: Blueberry Grunt
Sweet Canadian blueberries baked beneath dollops of biscuit dough are the perfect summer dessert. It’s said the Blueberry Grunt got its name from the sound of the berries bubbling as they cooked, which sounds something like an animal’s soft grunt.
23: BeaverTails
If you see BeaverTails on the menu in Canada, they’re probably not selling the tails of large semiaquatic rodents. A BeaverTail is a wide, flat piece of fried dough made to look like a beaver’s tail and topped with a variety of sweet confections.
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