Food trivia
Dishes from around the world, what they're made of and where they come from.
Food questions are about what dishes are made of and where they come from. Expect national dishes (paella, pho, kimchi, borscht), core ingredients (chickpeas in hummus, sesame in tahini, basil and pine nuts in pesto), cheeses and their origins, spices, sauces and a few questions about how foods are made.
The "main ingredient" format
The most common question shape here is "what is the main ingredient of". These have firm answers when you stick to the classic version of a dish. Hummus is chickpeas. Tahini is sesame. Guacamole is avocado. Gazpacho is tomatoes. Borscht gets its color from beetroot. Modern restaurant versions vary, but the questions always mean the traditional recipe.
What we leave out
We don't ask questions where several countries claim a dish and the argument is still running. Food origins can be touchy, so if the history is disputed, the question isn't in the bank. We also skip brand names and anything about prices or "most popular" rankings.
How to get better at it
Learn the families. Mother sauces (béchamel, velouté, espagnole, hollandaise) are a common distractor group. Pasta shapes often have literal Italian names: farfalle are butterflies, orecchiette little ears. Fermented foods (kimchi, sauerkraut, miso) are another frequent set, and knowing the base ingredient of each will win you most of those questions.
Five sample food questions
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Saffron comes from which part of the crocus flower?
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The stigmas. Each flower has three, picked by hand, which is why saffron costs so much
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Which pasta's name means "little ears"?
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Orecchiette. It is a specialty of Puglia in southern Italy
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Which sauce is made from butter, egg yolks and lemon juice?
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Hollandaise. It is one of the French mother sauces and the base of eggs Benedict
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Real wasabi is made from which part of the plant?
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The rhizome (stem). Much of the wasabi served outside Japan is colored horseradish
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Mozzarella di bufala is made from which animal's milk?
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Water buffalo. The protected Campania version must use water buffalo milk