Trivia › General Knowledge › Food and Drink Trivia Questions
Food and Drink Trivia Questions
Where dishes come from, what is actually in them, and why cooking changes food the way it does. Play the round, then read every question and answer below.
Keys 1-4 pick an answer, Enter moves on. Nothing is saved to an account.
Food trivia rewards two very different kinds of player: the one who has eaten widely and the one who understands what happens in a pan. This set deliberately serves both. The easy band deals in dishes and ingredients almost everyone can name, the medium band moves into regional cooking and technique, and the hard band goes into the chemistry that explains why a seared steak tastes nothing like a boiled one.
Origin questions are the ones that start arguments, so they are worded carefully here. Dishes travel, get borrowed and get claimed, and "where is it from" can have several honest answers. Each question in this round asks about a widely accepted origin rather than a contested one, and the notes explain the reasoning wherever a dish has more than one plausible home.
Dishes and their countries: food and drink trivia questions
Pizza in its modern form comes from which country?
Answer: Italy EasyNaples is the city usually credited with the flatbread that became pizza.
Sushi is a traditional dish of which country?
Answer: Japan EasyIts name refers to the seasoned rice, not the fish on top.
Feta is the best known cheese of which country?
Answer: Greece EasyIt is a protected name and must be made largely from sheep's milk there.
Paella is the signature rice dish of which country?
Answer: Spain MediumIt began as a field lunch in the Valencia region.
Goulash, a paprika-heavy stew, comes from which country?
Answer: Hungary MediumIts name comes from the word for herdsmen, who cooked it over open fires.
Ceviche, raw fish cured in citrus juice, is most associated with which country?
Answer: Peru MediumThe acid firms the flesh in much the same way heat would.
Dim sum is a tradition of which country's cuisine?
Answer: China MediumThe small steamed and fried plates are Cantonese in origin.
Moussaka, layered with aubergine and minced meat, is a classic dish of which country?
Answer: Greece MediumA thick bechamel top is the version most restaurants serve.
Which Mexican sauce family is known for combining dried chillies with chocolate?
Answer: Mole HardA poblano version can carry twenty or more ingredients.
Fruit, veg and grains: food and drink trivia questions
Which fruit is the base of guacamole?
Answer: Avocado EasyMashed avocado with lime and salt is the whole foundation of the dish.
Which root vegetable gives borscht its deep red colour?
Answer: Beetroot EasyThe soup is an Eastern European staple served hot or chilled.
A tarte Tatin is an upside-down tart made with which fruit?
Answer: Apples EasyThe fruit caramelises under the pastry and the tart is flipped after baking.
Which grain is milled to make ordinary white bread flour?
Answer: Wheat EasyWheat has the protein needed to trap gas and hold a risen shape.
Arborio is a well known variety of what?
Answer: Rice MediumIts high starch content is what makes risotto creamy without cream.
Which leafy green is the base of the Indian dish saag?
Answer: Spinach MediumMustard greens are used just as often in northern versions.
Broccoli, cauliflower and kale are all cultivated forms of which single wild species?
Answer: Wild cabbage MediumCenturies of selective breeding turned one plant into a whole vegetable aisle.
Traditional couscous is made from which milled grain?
Answer: Semolina wheat HardThe tiny granules are rolled by hand and then steamed.
Vanilla pods grow on a plant belonging to which family?
Answer: Orchids HardOutside its native range the flowers have to be pollinated by hand.
Spices, seeds and cheese: food and drink trivia questions
Which spice gives a curry powder its yellow colour?
Answer: Turmeric EasyTurmeric root is so strongly pigmented that it also works as a dye.
Which nuts are stirred into a classic Genoese pesto?
Answer: Pine nuts EasyBasil, pine nuts, garlic, hard cheese and olive oil make the traditional five.
Hummus is made mainly from which pulse?
Answer: Chickpeas EasyBlended chickpeas and sesame paste give it the thick texture.
Tofu is made by curdling the liquid pressed from which bean?
Answer: Soybean EasySoy milk is set with a coagulant, much as milk is set to make cheese.
Tahini is a paste ground from which seeds?
Answer: Sesame MediumIt is the bitter, nutty backbone of both hummus and halva.
Kimchi is most often made by fermenting which vegetable?
Answer: Napa cabbage MediumSalt draws out water, then lactic acid bacteria do the souring.
Which cheese belongs on a traditional pizza Margherita?
Answer: Mozzarella MediumIts tomato, mozzarella and basil are said to echo the Italian flag.
Saffron threads are which part of the crocus flower?
Answer: Stigmas HardEach flower yields three, which is why it is harvested by hand.
Roquefort cheese is made from the milk of which animal?
Answer: Sheep HardIt is ripened in limestone caves in southern France.
Kitchen technique and terms: food and drink trivia questions
Espresso is produced by forcing hot water through what?
Answer: Finely ground coffee EasyPressure pulls out oils that a drip filter leaves behind.
Which dairy product is made by churning cream?
Answer: Butter EasyChurning breaks the fat globules so they clump and separate from buttermilk.
Which pastry is used to make profiteroles?
Answer: Choux EasyChoux is cooked on the hob first, then puffs up with steam in the oven.
What is the French name for the diced onion, carrot and celery base of many dishes?
Answer: Mirepoix MediumRoughly two parts onion to one each of carrot and celery is the usual ratio.
Pasta cooked 'al dente' is described as what?
Answer: Still firm to the bite MediumThe phrase translates literally as 'to the tooth'.
Dashi, the Japanese stock, is traditionally made from kombu seaweed and which dried fish flakes?
Answer: Bonito HardThe flakes are shaved from a fillet that has been smoked and dried until rock hard.
What is the term for cooking food slowly submerged in its own fat?
Answer: Confit HardIt began as a preservation method long before it was a restaurant technique.
Sous vide cooking involves what?
Answer: Sealing food and cooking it in precisely controlled warm water HardHolding a low temperature means the centre can never overshoot.
Food science: food and drink trivia questions
Which gas produced by yeast makes bread dough rise?
Answer: Carbon dioxide MediumThe gluten network traps the bubbles, and the heat of the oven sets them.
What is the browning reaction between amino acids and sugars in cooked food called?
Answer: The Maillard reaction HardIt is what makes a seared crust taste different from boiled meat.
Which acid gives lemons and limes their sourness?
Answer: Citric acid HardMalic acid does the same job in apples, which taste sour in a different way.
What is the fifth basic taste, named from a Japanese word?
Answer: Umami HardIt is the savoury depth of glutamates in stock, cheese and ripe tomato.
Which compound makes chilli peppers taste hot?
Answer: Capsaicin HardIt binds to a receptor that normally reports heat, so the brain reads burning.
Which enzyme in fresh pineapple stops gelatin from setting?
Answer: Bromelain HardIt digests the protein that would otherwise form the gel; cooking destroys it.
Gluten is formed when water is mixed with which components of flour?
Answer: Proteins HardKneading lines up glutenin and gliadin into an elastic network.
Answer key
- Avocado
- Italy
- Japan
- Turmeric
- Pine nuts
- Chickpeas
- Soybean
- Finely ground coffee
- Butter
- Greece
- Beetroot
- Apples
- Choux
- Wheat
- Spain
- Hungary
- Sesame
- Rice
- Peru
- Mirepoix
- Carbon dioxide
- Napa cabbage
- Mozzarella
- China
- Still firm to the bite
- Greece
- Spinach
- Wild cabbage
- The Maillard reaction
- Citric acid
- Umami
- Capsaicin
- Bromelain
- Stigmas
- Sheep
- Bonito
- Confit
- Semolina wheat
- Mole
- Orchids
- Sealing food and cooking it in precisely controlled warm water
- Proteins
How to play
- Pick a mode: multiple choice, true or false, a 60-second sprint, or the daily quiz.
- Answer with a tap, or press 1 to 4 on a keyboard. The right answer appears straight away with a line explaining it.
- Finish the round to see your score, copy the result grid, and step up a difficulty.
- Hosting a night? The full food and drink list and a separate answer key are printed below, and the print layout drops the game and keeps the paper.
Tiebreaker questions
Closest guess wins. Read one out when two tables finish level.
In what year was the first Michelin Guide published?
Answer: 1900 It began as a free motoring handbook given away to encourage French drivers to wear out their tyres.
In what year did Kikunae Ikeda identify umami as a distinct taste?
Answer: 1908 He isolated glutamate from kombu seaweed stock and named the savoury taste the following year in print.
In what year did Peter Durand receive the British patent for preserving food in tin cans?
Answer: 1810 The practical can opener did not arrive for another half century; early cans were opened with a chisel.
Common mistakes in food and drink trivia
- Searing meat seals in the juices.
Seared meat actually loses slightly more moisture than unseared meat. Searing is worth doing for the browned flavour of the Maillard reaction, not for juiciness.
- Adding oil to the pasta water stops it sticking.
Oil floats on the surface and never touches the pasta in the pot. Stirring in the first minute and using plenty of water is what prevents sticking.
- Fortune cookies are a Chinese tradition.
They were developed by Japanese immigrants in California and spread through Chinese-American restaurants. They are almost unknown in China.
- Brown eggs are healthier than white eggs.
Shell colour depends on the breed of hen. The nutrition inside comes from the bird's diet and is the same for both colours.
- Spicy food is hot because it burns the tongue.
Capsaicin binds to the same nerve receptor that senses real heat, so the brain reports burning even though no tissue is damaged.
- Tomatoes are vegetables, not fruit.
Botanically a tomato is a fruit because it develops from the flower and contains seeds. Cooks classify it as a vegetable, and both uses are correct in context.
Running this round at a quiz night
Food is the round where every team has an expert, so questions about dishes and their home countries go quickly and the science questions separate the field. Mix two country questions with two ingredients, one technique and one bit of chemistry per set of six. Read ingredient lists slowly and repeat unfamiliar words like tahini or bromelain. The main disputes are origin claims: many dishes have several national parents, so ask "most associated with" and stick to the wording on your sheet. Spelling arguments are common with French terms, so accept any recognisable spelling. For a tiebreaker use a fixed date such as the first Michelin Guide; guesses land all over the century and the winner is obvious.
Frequently asked questions
Are the origin questions settled facts?
They are as settled as food history gets. Several dishes are claimed by more than one country, so this round only asks about origins with broad agreement, such as paella in Spain or ceviche in Peru. Anything genuinely disputed was left out.
Do you need to cook to do well on this round?
Not for the easy and medium bands, which reward eating out and reading menus as much as cooking. The hard band leans on kitchen science, so cooks and keen bakers tend to pull ahead there.
How should this round be used at a quiz night?
Food works well as a mid-evening round because everyone has an opinion and the answers spark conversation. Fourteen easy questions make a warm-up, and the hard fourteen make a solid tiebreak set.
Not in a quiz mood?
The question games are a different kind of round: no right answers, just prompts you read out and argue about. Would You RatherNever Have I EverTruth or DareThis or That