‘What exotic foreign food were you introduced to as a kid that’s commonplace nowadays?’ – 22 dishes that went from marvellous to mundane

If you grew up in a time when the most foreign your food got was a Chicken Kiev from the freezer aisle at Tesco, you’ll be aware of how much the cuisine available in Britain has changed for the better.

They’ve been chatting about how gastronomically lucky we are nowadays on the AskUK subreddit after GabberZZ posted this:

What wonderous and exotic foreign food were you introduced to as a kid thats just commonplace nowadays?
I remember the young and enthusiastic teacher (that everyone fancied) talking about these wonderful Indian crisps back in the 80s.

Being suspicious of foreign food we were skeptical until she bought a pack of uncooked poppadoms and proceeded to fry a batch before our very eyes in the kitchen area at the back of the classroom. Our little minds were blown at these crispy wonders that we take for granted nowadays.

And lots of people chipped in with the fare that wowed them as kids…

1.

‘I thought Reese’s peanut butter cups were a gift from the gods, I got them once a year when my grandad visited from Texas. Couldn’t care less now, would never be my go to sweet treat.’
–longboytheeternal

2.

‘There was this exciting new American burger place that had opened in a nearby city. I was told I could go for my birthday in a few months. Looked forward to it for ages. McDonald’s.’
–zephyrthewonderdog

3.

‘Being an 80’s kid, I can remember fruit being very basic British seasonal fare. Then my mum started bringing pineapples, kiwi fruit and various other exotic fruits back. Usually with my dad saying what the fuck do we do with this as he bites into a pomegranate.’
–Wolf-Dagger

4.

‘Ramen. I was used to Pot Noodles so it blew my mind.’
–Forsaken1741

5.

‘Lotus biscuits, I remember when you basically just got them in hotels and cafés.’
–Gold-Collection2636

6.

‘One of the leaders turned up at the scouts when I was 11 in the mid 80’s in rural Cumbria with a doner kebab (just finished his shift and dashed down). Brought some extra meat for the lads to taste. It was sensational from day one.’
–MonsieurGump

7.

‘I remember in the 80s when my Dad bought home this strange thing called an ‘Avocado Pear’.’
–sonicated

8.

‘Butternut squash! My sister (in the late 90s) was at uni in a city three hours drive away and they were only available there on random days, certainly not in my home town. There was some sort of Soviet Union bread line that formed whenever word got around the shop had some butternut squash in.’
–Deep_Top8433

9.

‘Pizza. Was foreign muck for most of my parents’ life and they had one a few years ago (they are in their 70s). I didn’t have one till my 20s.’
–alltorque1982

10.

‘I remember thinking pizza was a mystical American thing only eaten by Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles. A boy in my class came in one day and said “I had pizza last night” and we were all ‘Wow! How?!”
–trish1400

11.

‘Courgettes and peppers (1960s-70s). My Mum actually made quite a lot of Italian-style food but even spag bol and risotto were a bit out there in those days. Then she found out how easy they are to grow so we would eat them A LOT. Her ratatouille was a thing of beauty.’
–Lady_of_Lomond

12.

‘Japanese rice crackers. My older brother had an exchange student come stay with us for a week and he brought that with him. It tasted so unique. Now you can buy it in most supermarkets but back then it wasn’t possible.’
–redcloudxxviii