Ever wondered why cutting onions makes you cry or if a tomato is actually a fruit or vegetable? With countless ingredients, cooking techniques that vary across cultures, and food science that sometimes defies common sense, understanding the culinary world can be more challenging than perfecting a soufflé on your first attempt! Our food trivia collection serves up a feast of knowledge with questions covering everything from ancient food origins to modern cooking techniques. Perfect for settling dinner table debates or discovering why certain flavor combinations work so magically together.
Also, check out the Biology Trivia Questions.
Food Trivia Questions and Answers
- What fruit is known for keeping the doctor away?
Answer: Apple - What food do pandas mainly eat?
Answer: Bamboo - What vegetable is Popeye known for eating?
Answer: Spinach - What nut is used to make peanut butter?
Answer: Peanuts - What food is made from fermented milk?
Answer: Yogurt - What fruit is dried to make a raisin?
Answer: Grape - What vegetable makes you cry when you cut it?
Answer: Onion - What is the main ingredient in guacamole?
Answer: Avocado - What food is traditionally eaten on Thanksgiving?
Answer: Turkey - What food group does cheese belong to?
Answer: Dairy - Where does chocolate come from?
Answer: Cacao beans - Which fruit has its seeds on the outside?
Answer: Strawberry - What grain is most commonly used to make bread?
Answer: Wheat - What is the most consumed fruit in the world?
Answer: Banana - What popular food is made by fermenting cabbage?
Answer: Sauerkraut - What herb is commonly used in Italian food that begins with the letter “B”?
Answer: Basil - What color is the outside of a kiwi fruit?
Answer: Brown - What ingredient makes bread rise?
Answer: Yeast - What spice is known as “red gold”?
Answer: Saffron - What vegetable is traditionally carved for Halloween?
Answer: Pumpkin - What is the main ingredient in hummus?
Answer: Chickpeas - What is the world’s most expensive spice by weight?
Answer: Saffron - What essential cooking ingredient is obtained from saltwater or mines?
Answer: Salt - What is the term for a person who doesn’t eat meat?
Answer: Vegetarian - What fruit contains the most protein?
Answer: Guava - What culinary term means to cook in a small amount of fat?
Answer: SautĂ© - What food is traditionally served on New Year’s Day for good luck in the Southern United States?
Answer: Black-eyed peas - What is the only food that never spoils?
Answer: Honey - What fast-growing plant is technically a grass, not a vegetable, and is used in many Asian dishes?
Answer: Bamboo - What is the most widely consumed meat in the world?
Answer: Pork - What cocktail is made with vodka, tomato juice, and seasonings?
Answer: Bloody Mary - What is the term for a meal where diners cook their food on a heated surface at the table?
Answer: Korean barbecue or hibachi - What is the white substance on chocolate that sometimes appears when it’s stored improperly?
Answer: Bloom (fat bloom or sugar bloom) - What fruit will ripen faster when placed in a paper bag with a banana?
Answer: Avocado - What vitamin is produced by the skin when exposed to sunlight?
Answer: Vitamin D - What food is botanically a berry, although we don’t usually think of it as one?
Answer: Banana - What is the only fruit that has its seeds on the outside?
Answer: Strawberry - What fruit was previously known as a “Chinese gooseberry”?
Answer: Kiwi - What is the name of the bacteria culture added to milk to make yogurt?
Answer: Lactobacillus - What is the main ingredient in traditional wasabi?
Answer: Japanese horseradish (wasabi root) - What is the primary spice in chai tea?
Answer: Cardamom - What is the process called where raw fish is cured with salt and sugar?
Answer: Gravlax - From which flower do we get saffron?
Answer: Crocus flower - What is the name of the Japanese rice wine used in cooking?
Answer: Sake - What is the main ingredient in falafel?
Answer: Chickpeas - What is the chemical that makes chili peppers hot?
Answer: Capsaicin - What is the main ingredient in traditional Italian pesto sauce?
Answer: Basil - What is the world’s largest food crop by production volume?
Answer: Sugar cane - What is the hardest natural food in the world?
Answer: Coconut (specifically the endocarp or shell) - What food is Humboldt County, California known for producing?
Answer: Marijuana (though not a traditional food) - What is the only fruit that grows its seeds on the outside?
Answer: Strawberry - What is the national dish of Spain?
Answer: Paella - What is the name for partially evaporated grape juice used in Italian cooking?
Answer: Saba - What is the source of the food coloring carmine?
Answer: Cochineal insects - What part of the saffron plant is harvested for the spice?
Answer: Stigma - Which country invented ice cream?
Answer: China - What is the most expensive coffee in the world?
Answer: Kopi Luwak (civet coffee) - What is the only essential vitamin not found in eggs?
Answer: Vitamin C - What fermented tea is known for containing a colony of bacteria and yeast?
Answer: Kombucha - What is the main ingredient in the Middle Eastern dessert halva?
Answer: Sesame seed paste (tahini) - What is the name of the toxic part of a pufferfish that some chefs in Japan are licensed to prepare?
Answer: Fugu - What fruit can ripen after being picked but a watermelon cannot?
Answer: Banana - What is the hottest chili pepper in the world?
Answer: Pepper X