Ask a foreigner

[No More]

UK here and the American boxed Mac n cheese both terrifies me and fascinates me at the same time

We call the uber processed cheese ‘plastic cheese’. Absolutely I do not eat it

 

[Friday]

We call the uber processed cheese ‘plastic cheese’. Absolutely I do not eat it

LMFAO… It’s actually cheese flavored gelatin / cheese flavored jell-o. The best version, universally agreed upon, is Velveeta. Kraft slices? LOL. Melt about a tablespoon of cheese into a quart of gelatin. Cool in a loaf pan. Slice. Voila. (Velveeta is more like 2 cups of cheese melted into a quart of gelatin.) Velveeta is denser & more cheese-like, but it’s still cheese flavored jell-o. Just denser.

They’re all products of The Great Depression. That they’ve stayed on the market? Is pure capitalism in action.

 

[OliveJewel]

products of The Great Depression. That they’ve stayed on the market? Is pure capitalism in action

Capitalists swoon for Depression-era mythos, I’m realizing. I learned today that Michael Moore’s movie where he showed how great health care was in Cuba was a huge lie. It’s awful. Imagine when you go to the hospital having to first wait for months then when you get a room having to bring your own sheets, toilet paper, wash basin, food, and chair for visitors, among other things. Again, the idea of a communist utopia is easily and literally sold to capitalists, because it’s so appealing and foreign. This is not a rant but a new awareness of mine, and I welcome anyone living in a communist country or formerly living in one to correct me or share about life there. I would like to hear about the pros and cons, and the realities versus the fictions sold to capitalists.

 

[Friday]

I learned today that Michael Moore’s movie where he showed how great health care was in Cuba was a huge lie. It’s awful. I

Yep.

I’ve been to Cuba. A lot, actually. We based out of there during hurricane season.

AMAZING schooling for their docs, but SHIT for tech? Doesn’t let them use any of it. It’s worse than having craptastic American Insurance, where the treatments exist, in spades, but you can’t afford it. Because even if you could afford it? You can’t get the treatments. Unless you can get the f*ck out of Cuba.

House MD had an episode highlighting that.

It’s very much like the USSR having amaaaazing schooling, but no money for actually labs/supplies/etc. So one had all of these brilliant, and cultivated minds… jury rigging with duct tape and spit.

The USSR was NOT wrong, that in the capitalist west? Most of those brilliant minds (science, art, sport, etc.) are wasting away in blue collar jobs, unsupported/unrecognized. Just ground through the mill of mediocrity, poverty, want.

It’s an incrediably vexing series of extremes; capitalist & communist countries.

Socialist counties are at least attempting the middle ground.

I don’t happen to live in a socialist country, so the best of none & worst of every? Has an uncommon appeal.

 

[No More]

Melt about a tablespoon of cheese into a quart of gelatin. Cool in a loaf pan. Slice. Voila.

Oh.my.god

Crimes against cheese


Also, when you guys say ‘sharp cheese’, what exactly do you mean. Because my brain is like, maybe it’s cheese that’s being used as a knife block but I’m sure it ain’t that

 

[Teasel]

I quite like plastic cheese on beanburgers. I've never seen a block of it.

Also quite like dairylea triangles at least once a year. Do you have those in the US?

Also, my friend grew up in Poland under communism, she had no time for it at all.

 

[OliveJewel]

sharp cheese’

Supposedly sharp is cheddar that’s been aged longer but for the standard generic cheeses, I think they are chemically aged? Not sure. Not talking about the fancy cheeses, talking about Walmart brand sharp cheddar. Kind of like how grocery store bread is chemically risen versus fancy artisanal bread.

Do you have those

Yes. I think they are called laughing cow. But I might be confused because there’s these mini processed cheese rounds in wax called laughing cow but I think they make them in the foil wedges too? The foil wedges are very soft, almost like a spread.

 

[Teasel]

Laughing cow are similar to dairylea yes, think dairylea are a tad more tangy. Love em.

 

[Freddyt]

I think they are chemically aged?

Some are some are not. I usually go to the smaller manufactures that do age their cheese naturally. Apart from that - Paddy's International Cheese has plenty of the real thing, except its hard to find Ontario Cheddar (somewhat similar to Tillamook that we don't get here) delicious on burgers.

Here though we have lots of ethnic food markets and if you know where to go for the good ones - we have an Italian store with an amazing deli and fresh cheese (mozza etc.) and the other one I visit somewhat regularly is a German market. It's grandmas fault - rouladen, beet borscht, and liverwurst sandwiches. The butcher wil fresh cut rouladen beef for you while you wait and they have the right pickles and mustard....

 

[OliveJewel]

smaller manufactures

Even Walmart sells artisanal cheeses, but Trader Joe’s and sprouts also have great selections. But there’s a kind of generic supermarket cheese in the big chain supermarkets that’s not processed cheese but I think it’s chemically aged. My daughter likes that kind.

German market. It's grandmas fault - rouladen, beet borscht, and liverwurst sandwiches. The butcher wil fresh cut rouladen beef for you while you wait and they have the right pickles and mustard....

Sounds divine!!

 

[Freddyt]

Sounds divine!!

I think that may be universal - stores with good butchers are better than generic supermarkets.

 

[Freida]

People outside of U.S. do you have American cheese (aka processed cheese) and if so do you eat it?

My french friends were totally undone by American versions of "cheese"
The sliced kraft stuff was bad, Velveeta was worse, but what really astonished them was our famous spray cheese - y'know, the stuff you spray into celery at thanksgiving?

Ya - finally got them to taste it just to say they did. It was pretty hilarious

They did have to admit that velveeta makes the best chili cheese dip tho!

Their plan was to get us back by making us eat snails when we visited them - luckily I have a shellfish allergy so I "just couldn't risk it."