Moving to America taught me that some of our favourite British foods are considered completely bizarre by Americans.
Whether it’s putting beans on toast for dinner, spreading Marmite on toast, or eating chips with vinegar, there are certain British foods that leave Americans scratching their heads.
The funny thing is that most Brits don’t think twice about them.
🇬🇧 Missing Your Favourite British Foods?
I’ve put together a collection of the British foods, tea, chocolate, biscuits, and pantry staples I regularly buy in America.
1. Beans on Toast
Ask an American what they think about beans on toast and you’ll probably get a confused look.
For Brits, it’s a quick, comforting, and perfectly acceptable meal.
It’s one of those foods that doesn’t sound particularly exciting when you describe it — baked beans on a couple of slices of toast — but somehow it just works. It’s cheap, filling, easy to make and, most importantly, tastes like home.
I never really thought of beans on toast as something I would miss. When I lived in the UK, it was just one of those meals you could throw together when you didn’t know what else to eat. Suddenly, living in America, I found myself craving it.
And while you can absolutely buy baked beans in the US, British baked beans are different. They’re usually less sweet than the American versions, and finding the familiar Heinz-style beans I grew up with isn’t always as straightforward as popping into the supermarket back home.
There’s also something about the whole combination — proper British baked beans, toast and plenty of butter — that brings back memories of quick lunches, lazy weekends and those “I can’t be bothered to cook” evenings.
It’s not fancy. It isn’t something you’d necessarily serve to impress anyone.
But sometimes the simplest foods are the ones you miss the most when you’re far from home.
And yes, I’ve definitely brought British baked beans home from a trip to the UK. 😂🇬🇧
Beans on toast: 10/10 comfort food. Americans may not understand it, but Brits absolutely do.
2. Marmite
Marmite is one of those foods that is almost impossible to explain to someone who hasn’t grown up with it.
You tell an American it’s a dark, salty yeast spread and they immediately look at you as though you’ve just suggested putting motor oil on your toast.
And honestly, I understand the reaction.
Marmite has a very strong flavour, and you definitely don’t need much of it. A tiny scrape across hot, buttery toast is enough.
It’s also one of those quintessentially British things that you don’t necessarily appreciate until you’re away from it. At home, it was just there in the cupboard. Something you could reach for when you fancied it.
Then you move thousands of miles away and suddenly that little jar becomes a taste of home.
And yes, the famous slogan really does get it right:
You either love it or hate it.
I’m firmly in the love-it camp. 🇬🇧
3. Mushy Peas
Trying to explain mushy peas to an American is surprisingly difficult.
You can describe them perfectly clearly — dried peas that have been cooked until soft and mushy — and you still tend to get a slightly horrified expression.
“Wait… they’re supposed to look like that?”
Yes. 😂
For Brits, mushy peas are especially associated with fish and chips, and they’re one of those foods that just belong together.
They aren’t glamorous. They aren’t particularly Instagram-worthy. But put a plate of proper fish and chips in front of me with mushy peas on the side and suddenly I’m transported straight back to the UK.
It’s funny how food works like that.
You can go years without thinking about something, but when you’re living abroad, a familiar taste or smell can bring back an entire collection of memories.
And sometimes you just want that slightly strange-looking green pile of peas on the side of your dinner.
4. Black Pudding
Black pudding is another one where the conversation can change very quickly once an American finds out what it’s made from.
Before they know, it sounds harmless enough.
“It’s a type of sausage.”
Then comes the explanation.
And suddenly they aren’t quite as enthusiastic. 😂
For Brits, though, black pudding is a perfectly normal part of a full English breakfast. It’s rich, savoury and has a distinctive flavour that is difficult to replace.
It’s also one of those foods that feels particularly British because it’s tied so closely to a traditional breakfast.
When you’re living in America, you can recreate a pretty good English breakfast, but finding all the individual ingredients can take some effort.
And sometimes you don’t realise how much you enjoy something until you can’t casually pick it up at your local supermarket anymore.
5. Branston Pickle
Branston Pickle might be one of the hardest British foods to explain to an American.
First there’s the name.
Then there’s the appearance.
Then you have to explain that it’s something you put in a cheese sandwich.
And somehow, despite all of that, it works brilliantly.
For many Brits, a simple cheese and Branston sandwich is a classic. Sharp cheese, crunchy pickle and bread — nothing fancy, but absolutely delicious.
It’s another example of something I completely took for granted in the UK.
You don’t think, “I should really appreciate this jar of pickle because one day I might move to America.”
You just keep it in the cupboard.
Until suddenly you’re hundreds or thousands of miles away and craving a cheese and pickle sandwich.
That’s when you realise just how many of your favourite foods were quietly tied to home.
6. Digestive Biscuits
The first time you tell an American about Digestive biscuits, you can almost guarantee the same question:
“Are they actually supposed to help you digest your food?”
No. 😂
They’re biscuits.
And very good ones at that.
Plain Digestives are perfect with a cup of tea, but they also make their way into cheesecakes, biscuit bases and countless British cupboards.
Then there are chocolate Digestives.
Now we’re talking.
There’s something incredibly comforting about opening the biscuit cupboard and seeing that familiar packet waiting for you.
It sounds ridiculous until you’ve lived abroad and discovered that the little everyday things you never thought twice about are suddenly the things you miss.
A cup of tea and a couple of chocolate Digestives can feel like a tiny holiday back home.
7. Jaffa Cakes
Jaffa Cakes are responsible for one of Britain’s most unnecessarily entertaining food debates:
Are they a cake or a biscuit?
Brits have been arguing about this for years.
Americans, meanwhile, tend to hear the entire conversation and wonder why anyone cares. 😂
For me, it’s not really about the legal or technical classification.
It’s about that combination of chocolate, orange and soft sponge that is so distinctly familiar.
You can find plenty of chocolate biscuits and cookies in American supermarkets, but sometimes you don’t want something similar.
You want a Jaffa Cake.
That’s one of the strange things about homesickness.
It’s rarely the big things you expect.
Sometimes it’s standing in your American kitchen thinking, I would really like a packet of Jaffa Cakes right now.
8. 🇬🇧 A Full English Breakfast
There are plenty of American breakfasts I love, but sometimes nothing compares to a proper Full English.
Bacon, sausages, eggs, baked beans, mushrooms, tomatoes, toast and, if you’re lucky, black pudding — all piled onto one plate.
It’s the kind of breakfast that feels like a weekend treat, a lazy Sunday morning or something you’d order after a night out.
You can recreate one in America, but finding all the familiar ingredients can take a bit of effort. And when you’re living thousands of miles from home, that plate of food becomes about much more than breakfast — it’s a little taste of Britain. 🇬🇧🍳
9. Scotch Eggs
A Scotch egg is one of those British foods that sounds slightly strange when you describe it out loud.
“It’s a boiled egg… wrapped in sausage meat… covered in breadcrumbs.”
Pause.
Wait for the reaction.
😂
But if you’ve grown up eating them, it doesn’t sound strange at all.
They’re perfect for picnics, packed lunches, road trips or a quick snack, and they’re another food that I never really considered particularly British until I moved away.
There are plenty of American foods that I love, but every now and then you want something that tastes exactly like the food you remember from home.
And a Scotch egg definitely falls into that category.
10. Crumpets
Crumpets are another food that I never imagined I’d miss.
They’re difficult to describe to someone who hasn’t had one.
They’re not quite bread.
They’re not quite a pancake.
They’re not an English muffin.
They’re just… a crumpet.
And the little holes are the whole point.
Toast one until it’s warm, add a ridiculous amount of butter and watch it melt down through all those little holes.
That’s the good stuff.
I think that’s what makes crumpets so nostalgic for me. They’re not something you necessarily make a big deal about.
They’re an ordinary breakfast or afternoon snack.
But when you’re living in America, you suddenly realise how comforting those ordinary little routines from home actually were.
11. 🇬🇧 Bread Sauce
Bread sauce is probably one of those things you don’t realise is particularly British until you try explaining it to an American. “It’s basically bread… cooked with milk and onions… and served with your roast dinner.”
It doesn’t sound especially exciting when you describe it like that, but alongside a Christmas dinner or Sunday roast, it just belongs there.
It’s creamy, comforting and wonderfully nostalgic — and it’s another one of those traditional foods that I never thought I’d miss until I couldn’t simply pick up a packet or make it without thinking about where to find the right ingredients. Sometimes it’s the strangest little things that remind you most of home. 🎄🇬🇧
12. Jelly Babies
Jelly Babies are one of those sweets that instantly take me back to being a kid.
They’re soft, chewy, covered in sugar and shaped like tiny little people.
And if you didn’t grow up with them, you might reasonably wonder why British children were so enthusiastic about eating little jelly people.
But we were.
They’re another classic example of a British sweet that feels completely ordinary when you’re growing up and strangely nostalgic once you’re living somewhere else.
There are plenty of American sweets that I love, but sometimes nothing quite hits the spot like a bag of the sweets you remember from childhood.
And Jelly Babies definitely fall into that category.
13. Wine Gums
The name Wine Gums creates an expectation that is immediately disappointed.
Because despite the name…
there’s no wine.
They’re chewy British sweets, and that’s about as complicated as it gets.
I think they’re one of those sweets that Americans might find particularly confusing simply because the name suggests something completely different.
For Brits, though, Wine Gums are just Wine Gums.
No explanation required.
And that’s something I’ve noticed since moving to America — I’ve had to explain so many completely ordinary British foods that I never previously thought needed explaining.
You grow up assuming everyone knows what you’re talking about.
Then you say “Wine Gums” in America and realise just how British some of your everyday vocabulary really is.
14. Proper British Sausages
This one might sound like a small thing, but British sausages are something I genuinely miss.
American sausages are delicious in their own right, but they’re not always the same as the sausages I grew up eating in Britain.
The texture, seasoning and style can be different, and sometimes you don’t want a sausage that is similar.
You want the familiar British one.
And sausages are such a big part of British comfort food — whether they’re served with mash and gravy, alongside a full English breakfast, in a sausage sandwich or with some good old-fashioned vegetables.
It’s another example of something that was completely ordinary back home.
You could walk into a supermarket and have plenty of different British sausages to choose from without giving it a second thought.
Living in America made me realise how many of those everyday choices I simply assumed would always be there.
15. Cadbury Chocolate
This is one of those subjects where British expats can become surprisingly passionate.
British Cadbury chocolate just tastes like home.
Now, whether it actually tastes different from the Cadbury chocolate available in America is a conversation for another day — but many Brits will tell you they notice a difference.
And even if you can’t agree on the science of it, there’s no arguing with the nostalgia.
A Dairy Milk bar, a Curly Wurly, a Crunchie or a bag of Mini Eggs can instantly bring back memories.
That’s what I think I’ve learned most about food since moving to America.
It’s not always about whether one country has “better” food than the other.
It’s about familiarity.
It’s about the taste you remember from childhood, the chocolate bar you bought after school, the biscuits in your grandmother’s cupboard or the treats you picked up on a Saturday afternoon.
You can discover hundreds of new American foods and love them all.
But sometimes…
you just want a Cadbury Dairy Milk from home. 🇬🇧❤️
Why Brits Miss These Foods So Much
Food is one of the quickest ways to feel connected to home.
Even after years in America, many Brits still find themselves craving proper tea, digestives, and British essentials you’ll want to reorder in the USA.
Final Thoughts
Moving to America introduces you to countless new foods, but it also makes you appreciate the ones you grew up with.
What Americans consider strange often feels completely normal to Brits.
And if you’re craving a taste of home, many of these British favourites are still available across the pond.
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👉 British Essentials I Reorder in the USA
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