If you have to soak a fish in lye for an entire week, you probably shouldn’t eat it afterward. That’s just like a basic rule in life that you should know if you want to survive. Apparently, nobody let people in North Dakota know this. The consistency in this dish is essentially jelly, except there’s no jelly, it’s just fish.
The gelatinous end product of whitefish was introduced to the Midwest thanks to the same immigrant population that gave us high-SPF sunscreen which as of late has been declining. Go home, North Dakota, you’re sick.
New York -- Rochester Garbage Plate
Although you might think that New York encompasses only Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens, you'll be surprised (and probably disappointed) to know that there exists a whole very dead world up in the tip of New York. There is some weird stuff happening up there like the Rochester Garbage plate. This is basically a pile of meat, baked beans, fries, and potentially raccoon butt mushed together in a big, heaving mess of glomp.
Apparently, it started when a college student showed up at Nick Tahou Hots and asked for a plate with "all the garbage on it." So, he got exactly what he asked for: hamburgers, cheeseburgers, grilled cheese, eggs, home fries, black beans, and the list goes on but I won't take up more of your time. The point here is that it's about as trashy as it gets.
North Carolina -- Livermush
If you are going to create a gross dish, then you better be sure to give it at least an appealing name. But calling something that already looks disgusting "livermush"? Why in the world would you do something like that? You take any hope of the livermush actually being something great.
That's literally the same thing as calling your regional dish "vomitslorp," but there's nothing tasty about a combination of brain pieces, liver, and cornmeal. Don't be deceived by this Pop-Tarts look alike, they are not on the same level in the slightest.
Ohio -- Cincinnati Chili
The name doesn't sound deterring but that's because it's a ploy to get you to eat it. Stay strong, resist the temptation. The Cincinnati chili is basically cinnamon-soaked half-liquid meat thrown over noodles that even Top Ramen would reject because of concerns with its quality. It's then topped with enough shredded cheese to choke even a moose.
You know it's extra bad when Cincinnatians get all defensive about it. Those Cincinnatians are not to be trusted!
Oklahoma -- Fried Okra
I hate to break it to you, Oklahoma, but there's not much you can do to Okra to make it edible. Not even deep-frying it. Okra looks like the consequence of a bet that God made with an angel that he could make humans eat anything he wanted.
The only good thing you can say about Okra (as we're trying to stay positive here) is that it's slightly better than the state from which it originates. But, there are definitely some pretty low standards there.