One of the most iconic trends of the 21st century is the creation and explosion of fusion foods. Fusion foods though aren’t necessarily new. They’ve been around for thousands of years and are growing even more common as cultures cross and blend.
Before we list a few of the most popular fusion foods, let’s understand what this food concept is. Food fusion foods are dishes where two or more cultures come together. This can be Chinese-Indian food or Korean-Mexican food.
Likely the most common fusion foods are Tex-Mex plates. These are dishes and delicious foods that mix Mexican and Texan culture. Think of things like fajitas and burritos. While burritos do exist in Mexico, they rarely use more than a few simple ingredients.
To develop this list of the 14 popular fusion foods to try 24/7 Tempo consulted many food and culture websites including Gastro Obscura. We also reviewed popular fusion food restaurant menus. (If you love food fads, check out this list of the 25 biggest food fads of the 21st century.)
Follow along to discover 14 popular fusion foods to try and their general history.
Wonton Tacos
Wonton tacos aren’t new, although the history of these delicious bite-sized foods is hard to track. For years though, they were offered at hundreds of Applebee’s in the United States.
Wontons are Chinese dumplings. The appearance of this yummy regional dish varies depending on the area. Generally, wontons are filled with green onions and seasonings mixed with meat like pork, shrimp, or chicken.
Wonton tacos combine Chinese dumplings with savory Mexican-American tacos. Wonton wrappers are fried, but left open like a taco, and are stuffed with many ingredients. You can get creative with the stuffing, although chicken teriyaki is common.
Taco Rice
Mexican food is easy to mix with other dishes and cultures. You’ll notice from our list that many of these fusion foods take influence and inspiration from Mexican food, including taco rice.
Taco rice originates from Okinawa. Matsuzo Gibo created this dish in 1984 and it grew quickly in popularity.
This dish is simple. It’s a bowl or plate of rice with taco-seasoned ground beef, cheese, lettuce, salsa, and tomato. It may also include green onions, soy sauce, and sake.
Birria Ramen
If there are Mexican or Tex-Mex restaurants around you, you may have seen something called birria ramen. This stunning dish uses birria, slow-cooked meat with savory broth, and combines it with instant ramen.
Technically, birria ramen was first introduced in Mexico City, but it’s popular throughout the United States. Countless food trucks sell birria ramen.
Mexican Pizza
Pizza, which is an Italian food, is also often made using ingredients from other countries. A common and favorite food fusion of pizza is Mexican pizza.
There are a few versions of this dish. One type of Mexican pizza uses pizza dough as a base. Others use tortillas, fried and crispy. You can even find Mexican pizza in fast food chains like Taco Bell.
So, what goes on a Mexican pizza? Often, people use ground beef, refried beans, sour cream, hot sauce, lettuce, guacamole, and pico de gallo.
Poutine Pizza
Another pizza dish makes our list, in this case, poutine pizza. Pizza has an Italian origin, but what about poutine? Poutine is a Canadian dish invented during the 1950s.
Poutine is a dish made with thick and scrumptious gravy, cheese curds, and french fries. Now imagine the listed ingredients on a pizza base!
Kimchi Mac and Cheese
Another top fusion food is kimchi mac and cheese. This delicious and mouthwatering Asian fusion food combines American mac and cheese and Korean kimchi.
You can find hundreds of recipes for this delicious Asian fusion food on the internet. It can take less than 20 minutes to make! The dish is creamy, spicy, cheesy, and also a little gooey.
Sushi Burger
Have you ever wanted to try a sushi burger or burrito? The sticky rice used to make sushi, a popular Japanese dish, is perfect to use as ‘bread’
Sushi burgers are thick. The burger is wrapped around with sticky white rice. Within the sticky buns are either spicy salmon, shredded crab meat, steak, or fried chicken cutlets.
If you want it to taste more like a burger, you can also cook burger patties to stuff in the center.
Chicken Teriyaki Tacos
One of the best fusion foods to try on our list is chicken teriyaki tacos. Tacos are a Mexican food. They are bite-sized, easy to eat, and packed with flavor.
The easiness of tacos is likely why so many people love this dish! You don’t have to just cook Mexican-style meats though, you can fill your tacos with Asian-fusion fillings like chicken teriyaki.
Interestingly, teriyaki itself is a fusion food. It’s a Japanese-American style of cooking meat. Teriyaki though can also refer to the sauce the meat is dipped in.
Puerto Rican Fried Rice
Fun fact, one of the most popular food dishes in Puerto Rico, isn’t Puerto Rican food alone, but Puerto Rican fried rice. This delicious, sweet, savory, and iconic rice is served in authentic Chinese Puerto Rican restaurants throughout the island.
This style of cooking is so popular that Chinese Puerto Rican restaurants are found in the mainland U.S. So, what makes this rice so special?
Puerto Rican fried rice uses ham, shrimp, scrambled eggs, white rice, soy sauce, ginger, and more. Some restaurants even fry sweet plantains into the rice!
Kimchi Quesadilla
Combining Korean and Mexican flavors is the best. A great and popular fusion food in the U.S. is kimchi quesadillas, and they are easy to make! Kimchi quesadillas use kimchi, Korean fermented vegetables, and quesadillas, which are warmed tortillas with cheese.
What makes this dish so flavorful is the addition of sugar, soy sauce, butter, and sesame seeds.
Kung Pao Chicken Wings
Who doesn’t love chicken wings? Chicken wings are crispy and easy to eat. Although chicken wings are often cooked using American sauces and flavors, you aren’t limited to BBQ or buffalo sauces.
One of the best fusion foods is Kung Pao chicken wings. These chicken wings are cooked in hot and sweet Kung Pao sauce, a Chinese dish. You can purchase these in restaurants or make them at home with honey, soy sauce, baking powder, and peppers.
For an extra crunch, you can also use finely chopped peanuts with flour as a base.
Korean Corn Dogs
Korean corn dogs are a fusion food that is hard to resist. Interestingly, while many people assume they originated in the United States, the history of Korean corn dogs began in South Korea as a popular street food.
These corn dogs on a stick were popular street foods as far back as the 1980s. Now, they are served in restaurants and food trucks.
Korean corn dogs are creative. The sausage in the center of the fried flour is different than the ones seen in the United States. Generally, around the corn dog are delicious sauces, flavors, and toppings.
Spam Musubi
Originating from Hawaii, Spam musubi mashes Japanese and American ingredients and ideas. Spam musubi can be served either cold or hot.
This treat is easy to make and even easier to eat. While the exact creation date is debated, they’ve been around since World War 2.
So, how is Spam musubi made? Spam musubi is made up of cooked spam, white sticky rice, and nori. Spam is cooked in a sweet teriyaki glaze and combined with a slab of rice. Nori is wrapped around this creation, holding the spam and rice together.
Phoritto
Last but not least is a Mexican fusion food with Vietnamese influences, the phoritto. The phoritto is a burrito that is stuffed with traditional pho ingredients.
Phorittos are made using warm tortillas. Within the warm tortillas are flat noodles, beef steaks, bean sprouts, basil, green onions, cilantro, and more.
Did you love our list of the 14 most popular food fusions to try? Check out our article of the 50 signature dishes that define American cuisine.