Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Language/2019 December 15

= December 15 =

"American Salad"
I was watching a Korean television show (The Good Doctor--what the American show is based on) and the main character says that he often eats for lunch an "American salad sandwich". I was just curious what that might be!--100.2.221.47 (talk) 22:25, 15 December 2019 (UTC)
 * For example, chicken, tuna or seafood salad served sandwich style between two slices of bread or toast. "American" refers to "salad sandwich". The phrase is not used in the U.S. (rather the type of salad, e.g. "chicken salad sandwich") but is likely used here for translation reasons. Jmar67 (talk) 04:30, 16 December 2019 (UTC)
 * What makes it American? HiLo48 (talk) 04:47, 16 December 2019 (UTC)
 * Possibly as served in an American environment. Don't know the context. Jmar67 (talk) 04:56, 16 December 2019 (UTC)
 * As someone from a country where a sandwich is ALWAYS something in between two slices of bread, my experiences in the US have told me that a sandwich there can be just a single slice of bread with something sitting on top, or big lumps of bread roll with something in between. Hence my question. HiLo48 (talk) 05:10, 16 December 2019 (UTC)
 * I picture the character thinking "a salad sandwich like you normally find in America", which would be as I described it. There are variations of course, as you noted. I also assume that the character is speaking Korean and that "American salad sandwich" is an accurate translation. Jmar67 (talk) 05:25, 16 December 2019 (UTC)


 * As an American who is approaching his third year in east Asia, the only conclusions I can reach (from most likely to least) are:
 * - The writer didn't know anything about American cuisine and was just trying to come up with dialogue he thought sounded cosmopolitan (and therefore high-class).
 * - Translation error (American potato salad, or American tuna salad, or whatever).
 * - The writer wanted a character to come across as someone who doesn't know anything about American cuisine but wants to sound sound cosmopolitan.
 * - Korea has invented some sort of sandwich they think is American, because most countries usually have some sort of "foreign" food that's actually completely local (e.g. Naporitan, Chop suey), but somehow there's nothing about it on the English speaking web yet.
 * Because honestly, if we were eating salads in our sandwiches, would our obesity epidemic be so massive? Ian.thomson (talk) 05:51, 16 December 2019 (UTC)


 * Perhaps he means a club sandwich which "may have originated at the Union Club of New York City" according to our article. In the UK, the home of Lord Sandwich, if I recall correctly, sandwiches were a much more modest affair until the arrival of the American-style "club sandwich" at the end of the 1970s. Ham and mustard, cheese and pickle, and egg and cress were the British staples back in the day; I remember that I had to ask what a BLT was, proper British bacon sandwiches contain only hot bacon and perhaps some HP sauce (the inclusion or not of butter is a debating point) . Alansplodge (talk) 13:51, 16 December 2019 (UTC)
 * Backing up my story, this forum thread discussing British Rail catering in the 1960s and 1970s, says that "The most exotic [sandwiches] were Ham and Tomato or Egg and Cress. I believe Cheese and Onion may have been another but I don't actually remember seeing one in the flesh! It was far more common to see Ham, Bacon, Cheese or Egg. Chicken was rare, and prawns unheard of. I can remember the great excitement in 1987 when BLT (with mayonnaise) appeared for the very first time!". Alansplodge (talk) 17:35, 16 December 2019 (UTC)
 * Nobody has ever called a club sandwich a salad sandwich. And I can't follow the reasoning at all.  British sandwiches used to be very simple, therefore an American sandwich with lettuce and tomato (in addition to a lot of other meat and cheese) can have the word salad thrown at it? Ian.thomson (talk) 22:19, 16 December 2019 (UTC)
 * Well, a club sandwich has salad in it doesn't it? Alansplodge (talk) 17:50, 19 December 2019 (UTC)
 * It has some lettuce and a few slices of tomato in it. By that reasoning, Burger King's Whopper (which has lettuce, tomato, and onion) is a salad and supreme pizzas are vegetable soups. Ian.thomson (talk) 22:09, 19 December 2019 (UTC)
 * Hah! another American innovation. British hamburgers used to be served with fried onions before the arrival of McDonalds to these shores. (Okay, I can see I am losing this argument and hereby concede defeat). Alansplodge (talk) 16:28, 20 December 2019 (UTC)
 * Mayonnaise, anyone? Either with egg, tuna, potato, cheese ... or even peanut butter. Southern Living says it's all about mayonnaise. Wakari07 (talk) 03:23, 17 December 2019 (UTC)
 * Just to clarify, a "XXXX salad sandwich" in American cuisine is whatever XXXX is, mixed with mayonnaise and seasonings to make a flavorful paste, between two slices of bread. Thus, "tuna salad sandwich" is tuna fish and mayo mixed into a paste, placed between two slices of bread.  Egg salad sandwich is boiled egg and mayonnaise mixed into a paste, placed between two slices of bread.  American salad sandwich thus parses as an American and mayonnaise, mixed into a paste, placed between two slices of bread.  Not really a standard menu item over here.  -- Jayron 32 16:16, 17 December 2019 (UTC)
 * Why, visit my country and taste a sandwich with Américain . To avoid any misunderstanding: that's a bound salad spread of ground raw meat (in Korea, that would be similar to yukhoe), and, yes, mayonnaise. Wakari07 (talk) 16:27, 17 December 2019 (UTC)
 * A government source here claims that Americans don't like to eat raw meat. Wakari07 (talk) 17:31, 17 December 2019 (UTC)
 * Sashimi is reasonably mainstream in at least parts of the US, and some sausages are cured rather than cooked, but other than that, I'd say your source is generally correct that (most) Americans avoid raw meat. --Trovatore (talk) 22:12, 17 December 2019 (UTC)


 * A blogpost has that the doctor's favourite food is 전주 비빔 삼각 김밥 - jeonju bibim samgag gimbab - Jeonju bibim (mixed as in mixed rice, bibimbap?) triangular kimbab. This post talks of triangle kimbap. A Korean food journal, Zenkimchi calls triangle kimbap "junk food" but also "the most basic of basic convenience store snacks", "not unhealthy" and "economical". Wakari07 (talk) 20:48, 17 December 2019 (UTC)