List of misleadingly-named foods

The names of various foods can sometimes be ambiguous as the name contains nothing concerning its origins or the food's ingredients. Some dishes are named after an important place, even if it has no connection to the actual dish, or after an important person. Some dishes are named as the result of misunderstandings and still others have unknown reasons for their names.
General
* Nasi goreng pattaya —- A Malaysian dish, not Phatthaya's local dish.
* Ants Climbing a Tree —- A Chinese dish that consists of noodles with pork on it, seeming as if the ants are climbing onto a tree.
* Bika Ambon —- An Indonesian snack. Although "Ambon" is a place in Indonesia, the food never really came from Ambon. It is originated from Medan, another city in Indonesia. The name "ambon" cam from "Pisang Ambon", a type of banana used in the making process.
* Bombay Duck —- A dish consisting of dried Bummalo fish, but containing nothing in connection with a duck. The name dates back to the period where British armies were stationed in Bombay, India, and they could not stand the smell of the dried fish as it was identical to the smell of a mail container in London. In Hindi, the term "mail" is "dak"; causing the dish to be called "Bombay Dak", which later became "Bombay Duck".
* Chicken Maryland —- A fried chicken in butter served with fried banana in butter and sliced pineapples. Sometimes the chicken is wrapped with ham. The dish is not from Maryland, and might have been introduced to Europe from Southern Asia by English people.
* Gunpowder Tea —- Chinese tea found in Guangdong.
* Hawaiian Pizza —- Never came from Hawaii. The name is from the Hawaiian pineapples which are put on the dish.
* Lion's head —- A Chinese dish made from pork.
* Norwegian Omelette —- Not a Norwegian dish, but rather a French dessert. The name results from the dish's use of egg whites and it's cold ice cream center.
* Patat Kapsalon —- A Dutch dish of French fries topped with shoarma or Doner kebab meat, lettuce, cheese, hot sauce, and garlic sauce, which is briefly baked in an oven before serving. "Kapsalon" means "hair salon" and comes from the inventor of the dish, a Rotterdam salon owner.
* Singapore Mai Fun —- Noodles fried in curry which can be found in various places within Asia and America, but can never be found in Singapore.
* Bistek a caballo —- Meaning 'horse-style' steak, is made of beef, not horsemeat. Cuisine of Colombia.
* Welsh Rabbit -- An open-faced sandwich of melted cheese sauce on wheat bread. Contains no rabbit meat.
* Head Cheese -- A cold cut, not a cheese, made with flesh from the head of a calf or pig.
Thai Food
* —- Not an American dish. Furthermore, American people do not usually have rice as a main dish.
* Kai Sam Yang (Three-Kind Chicken) —- Made of peanuts, dried salted shrimps and lemon grasses, but not any chicken.
* Suea Rong Hai (Crying Tiger) —- Made from beef, not any tiger meat.
* Lot Chong Singkhapo (Singapore Rice Noodle) —- A Thai dessert consisting of noodles made of rice eaten with coconut cream and ice. It is not from Singapore and has nothing to do with the country. The name of the dish comes from the Singapore Theatre in Bangkok where the dessert was first made.
American Food
* Boston Cream Pie — A cake, not a pie.
* Buffalo Wings — Made of chicken wings, not buffalo meat. The name is from Buffalo, New York where the dish was first cooked.
* Caesar Salad — Does not pertain to Julius Caesar, as is commonly believed. The name was in commemoration of Cesar Cardini, the menu originator.
* Chinese Chicken Salad — Not from China, instead it is an American dish.
* City Chicken — Does not consist of cities or chicken, but cubes of fried meat.
* Dirt cake — Made with crumbled cookies supposedly resembling dirt.
* French fried potatoes — The origin of which is suggested to be Belgium, not France. They are called French fries because of the way the potatoes are sliced, which is known as "frenched"
* French Dressing — A dressing which is unknown to French people.
* German Chocolate Cake — Not from Germany, it is instead an American dessert. The name is derived from Englishman named Sam German, who created the chocolate originally used in the cake.
* Hamburger — Does not contain any ham. The name is from Hamburg City in Germany where it was first produced.
* Hot Dog — Contains no dog meat, but Barry Popik established that the term "hot dog" was current at Yale in the fall of 1894, when "dog wagons" sold hot dogs at the dorms.
* — Not the children's pretend food which is literally made from mud.
* Rocky Mountain Oysters — Not a seafood, but rather a local culinary name for bull testicles.
 
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