Welcome to Canada!
As part of our homeschool curriculum, we'll be studying a new country every week and trying their iconic foods! This week, we packed our virtual bags and journeyed to Canada. We talked about hockey, moose, Tim Horton's, Banff, indigenous people, and their 3 million lakes. Of course, no trip to Canada would be complete without exploring its iconic foods! Here’s a taste of what we tried and learned along the way.
Iconic Dishes We Tried
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1. Poutine
About the Dish:
Poutine is Canada's national dish and originated in Quebec. It consists of: crispy french fries, cheese curds, and gravy.
Our Experience:
We threw together a quick and easy version to go with dinner one night. Frozen fries, a packet of gravy, and a bag of cheese curds made quick work of it. Super simple and easy for kids to help with. Nate enjoyed the cheese curds by themselves (he's never met a cheese he doesn't like), gave the gravy a surprising rating of 6.3, and didn’t like the fries (he doesn’t like any fries). I enjoyed the fries and gravy, but as a non-cheese lover, the curds didn’t win me over. Overall, we probably won’t make it again, but it was fun to try something new together!
Fun Facts:
We don't have any local restaurants that serve it, but Megg's Cafe has a Southern Style version with sausage gravy, eggs, and cheddar. Galaxy B&G has a Mexican version with carne guisada/asada/chicken, queso, tomato, onion and jalapenos.
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2. Butter Tarts
About the Dish:
Butter tarts are a Canadian dessert that originated in Ontario. These bite-sized pastries consist of a flaky, buttery crust filled with a sweet, gooey filling made from butter, sugar, and eggs. Some versions include raisins or nuts, but the ones we made just had maple syrup.
Our Experience:
We did the Canada Kiwi Co box for some fun extra activities, and it included a recipe for Maple Butter Tarts. Nate was able to easily follow the recipe to make them. After taking one bite, he rated them a 3.4 (pie just isn’t his thing, so no surprise there!). As for me, I thoroughly enjoyed them and have been treating myself to one after dinner every day since. The gooey filling was just the right amount of sweet without being overwhelming, and the crust was perfectly flaky. Definitely a win in my book!
Fun Facts:
Butter tarts are so iconic in Canada that they have their own Best Butter Tart Festival held annually in Ontario, where bakers compete for the title of the best butter tart.
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3. Ginger Beef
About the Dish:
Ginger Beef is a popular Canadian-Chinese dish, especially in western Canada. Originally from Calgary, this dish features crispy strips of beef coated in a sweet and tangy sauce with a spicy ginger kick. While it takes inspiration from traditional Chinese cooking, it's become a uniquely Canadian comfort food, often found in Chinese restaurants across the country.
Our Experience:
This was definitely the most labor-intensive dish of the week, but it was so worth it in my opinion! The beef came out perfectly crispy, and the sauce had that sweet, tangy balance with just enough ginger to pack a punch. Nate, our beef-and-sauce-averse kiddo, rated it a 2.8 after one lick of the sauce (surprise, surprise), but he still had a blast helping me make it. Noticing a bit of a trend here? 😅 I served it with rice and happily enjoyed the leftovers for three days straight. I’ll definitely be making this one again!
Fun Facts:
It’s so iconic in Calgary that it’s considered one of the city’s signature dishes.
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Honorable Mentions:
- Maple Candies (Like biting a sugar cube. 2/10)
- Canadian Bacon (Surprisingly Nate enjoyed it. 6/10)
- Coffee Crisp (Like a coffee flavored KitKat. Quite sweet. 6/10)
- Dam Tasty Beaver Chocolates (Beaver shaped, comes in different flavors. Quite sweet. 5/10)
- Bannocks
- Ketchup Chips
- Beaver Tails
What We Learned About Canada Through Its Food
Exploring Canadian cuisine felt familiar. Canadian culture mirrors a lot of our own, with a touch of extra French influence thrown in. We weren't particularly surprised by any of the ingredients we encountered—maple syrup and comfort foods like beef and butter tarts all felt right at home. While we didn't experience any major culinary surprises, it was fun to see how these dishes are uniquely Canadian. And of course, maple syrup and beavers will always be the go-to symbols for us when we think of Canada! Trying these dishes gave us a small taste of Canada’s traditions, and we definitely have a new appreciation for how comfort food plays a big role in bringing people together up north.
Recipe Links & Resources
If you’re feeling inspired to try some of these dishes at home, here are the recipes we used:
- Poutine Recipe: Make French fries of your choice, make brown gravy (we used a packet), put cheese curds on top of the fries and pour the gravy over everything.
- Butter Tarts Recipe (We used frozen tart shells)
- Ginger Beef Recipe
Additional Resources:
- A Canadian Year: Twelve Months in the Life of Canada's Kids by Tania McCartney
- Weird But True Canada: 300 Outrageous Facts About the True North by Chelsea Lin
- Canada: The Ultimate Travel Guide
- Canada Facts for Kids
Bringing the World to Your Kitchen
Exploring the world through food is a delicious way to learn, and we’re excited to see where our Tasty Geography study will take us next! Stay tuned for next week’s adventure as we dive into the flavors of Ireland!
