19 Interesting Food Facts

Bet you didn’t know some of these strange things about food

Have you ever wondered what the most poisonous food in the world is? Did you know that people have used certain food items as currency instead of money? Here are 19 intriguing food facts for anybody who enjoys learning more about the things they eat or simply collecting trivia tidbits.

  1. The name “pound cake” comes from the original recipe, which asked for a pound of each of the required ingredients: eggs, sugar, flour, and butter.
  2. The invention of the tea bag happened by chance. The practice began when a merchant stitched little bags to give out samples of his tea to consumers, and it quickly caught on and was marketed.
  3. Peanuts are not a nut. They belong to the legume family.
  4. Cranberries may bounce like rubber balls when they’re ripe.
  5. Chocolate was used as a form of currency at one point.
  6. Your eyes will not water if you cut onions under cool running water or put them in the freezer for a few minutes.
  7. Despite the fact that they are commonly confused, yams and sweet potatoes are not the same things. Yams are cylindrical in form with a rough, brown, bark-like skin and are less sweet than sweet potatoes. They\’re also more difficult to come by in the United States.
  8. Ketchup was regarded as a medication in the 1800s and was used to treat a variety of ailments, including diarrhea.
  9. If you don’t cook puffer fish correctly, it can kill you. A poison found in puffer fish is 1,200 times more lethal than cyanide and is considered the most poisonous food.
  10. SPAM is short for spiced ham.
  11. Cucumbers are 96% water, making them one of the most hydrating fruits.
  12. The majority of wasabi on the market is fake. It’s essentially horseradish that has been dyed and flavored with various ingredients.
  13. Margherita pizza is named after Queen Margherita of Savoy. When Queen Margherita visited Naples, Italy, she was so taken with the pizza that it was named after her.
  14. In the early 1900s, an 11-year-old child invented popsicles.
  15. Nutmeg may make you hallucinate if you eat it in high enough amounts.
  16. Lobsters and oysters were historically considered “working class” foods and were either thrown back to sea or given to slaves to eat, despite the fact that they are today regarded as haute cuisine.
  17. Because of an ingredient called quinine, tonic water glows in the dark.
  18. In the Middle Ages, black pepper was so valuable that it was occasionally used to pay rent and taxes.
  19. The most stolen food on the planet is cheese. Approximately 4% of all cheese produced in the world is stolen.

Serve Up Something Interesting

The next time you’re in the kitchen whipping up something interesting, maybe you’ll think about these interesting food facts. Maybe you’ll think of Southwest Restaurant Equipment for your kitchen needs!

By Leslie Radford
Skip to content