Off the top of my head:
India:
Sugar
Pepper
Basil
Mangoes
Bananas
Ginger
(Ceylon) Cinnamon
SEA:
(Cassia) Cinnamon
Mace
Nutmeg
Oranges
Lemons
Limes
Central Asia:
Apples
Carrots (Afghanistan, could be considered MENA or India but the MENA category is too OP)
East Asia:
Peaches
Soy Sauce
Ketchup
Soy sauce
Sesame oil
Africa:
Coffee
Coca-Cola
Palm oil
Americas:
Chocolate
Vanilla
Blueberries
Potatoes
Tomatoes
Corn
Pineapple
Strawberries
Good post.
Thank you. Ive taught a bunch of friends how to cook, (just the basics) and this mindset is one of many I have had to help alleviate them of.
You should cook food you like, and the primary indicator of when you've cooked "good food" is wether you like your food or not. This idea that certain things are taboo or wrong or that you have to enjoy certain dishes in certain ways, certain combinations or on certain occasions, only makes cooking more inapproachable. On top of that it is just weird ethno-nationalism when people insist only certain ethnicities are allowed to cook certain dishes, or that certain ethnicities are inherently bad at doing something or enjoying something.
Weirdly I only ever really see this from americans. They all like to point fingers at Italians, but all the Italians I've met have been chill as fuck about food - They understand that food is meant to bring people together, not tear them apart.
Americans are weird about food
Still very much present in the EU as well, especially when it comes to French and Italian cooking (not necessarily from the French and Italians mind you)
You definitely need "there are no rules" at first, but when your protege starts belting out Wonderwall in his best Bob Dylan impression, you have to switch to "there are some rules."
Where I live, if you order a random taco off of a delivery service (I know, I know, I've pretty much stopped), you have a decent chance of your "taco" being on a fajita shell and containing iceberg lettuce, with a packet of mass-produced hot sauce on the side if you're feeling adventurous. I think the weird absolutist positions well-meaning americans take is in response to this sort of disrespect for the history, the person making the food, the person delivering the food and the person eating the food.
Yeah I'm talking about people learning to cook for themselves. If I invite you over for pizza, you're gonna be bewildered if I give you butter chicken with naan. If I order pad thai, I'm gonna be mad if I get served a burger. Give me tea and call it coffee? No.
But say I was served tacos al pastor and I wanted to make some myself because they were soooo good? But the store only has hard shell tortillas? And Im not actually a big fan of cilantro, and I like my salsa mild? I'm still challenging myself, exploring other ways of cooking exploring other cultures, showing my appreciation for them and learning to respect them.