We get to watch all sorts of “list” shows on TV, but the one we caught recently on the best fast food items was particularly interesting. What made it unusually pertinent was the fact that it didn’t simply tick off the hot items, but also occasionally went into their social, cultural or historical significance.
For instance, No. 9, barbecue, was cited not just for being yummy but also as a landmark human achievement, because the discovery of fire and cooking enabled cavemen to make a quantum leap in development that much more quickly put them at the top of early creation’s food chain!
The Top 30 list in detail:
- Dates
- The Japanese’s culinary invention of sushi made nutrition more portable, thus speeding up movement and commerce.
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Instant baby formula effectively liberated millions of mothers, enabling them to work in offices, have a career and increase their family’s income.
- Raisins made it possible for military commanders to sustain their troops through long sieges, resulting in victories that would never have happened otherwise.
- Popcorn. Surprisingly, in prosperous, pre-Depression days, moviegoers didn’t eat popcorn in theaters, because it was considered “poor” fare! But, during the Depression, it came into vogue and moviegoers ate it with no embarrassment at all—because everybody was doing the very same “cheap” thing!
- Chili—revealing the Mexican influence on American tastes.
- Spaghetti—this time, the Italian immigrant influence.
- Cornflakes, which made possible the breakfasts that assured a new generation of tall and healthy American kids.
- Peanut butter-and-jelly sandwich, the favorite snack for school because it was nutritious, inexpensive and easy to prepare.
- Sausage
- Instant noodles—the second Asian contribution to the list, most recently credited for the feeding and survival of many victims of tsunamis, earthquakes and other disasters.
- Dumpling
- Burrito (andale! andale!)
- Canned tuna. It became popular because it “tasted like chicken.”
- Olives
- Corn on the cob—with butter!
- Falafel
- Yoghurt
- Bagel
- Ham
- French fries—what would burgers do without them?
- Barbecue, cited earlier.
- Beef jerky—a favorite portable snack or meal of cowboys.
- Pizza (molto grazie, Italia!)
- Honey—aside from being nutritious, it heals.
- Fried chicken
- Pickle
- Banana—the perfect picker-upper, it comes in its own pluperfect packaging!
- Hotdog
- Hamburger
Thanks to all these fast and eminently portable food items, human civilization has evolved into the brisk, brash and productive megasystem it is today, with literally billions of people fed and “fueled” in an efficiently short time, so that they can use the many remaining hours of the day for more profitable pursuits!