Portugal Fourth, Indonesia Sixth: The Taste Atlas Ranking That Stings

Portugal Fourth, Indonesia Sixth: The Taste Atlas Ranking That Stings

Portugal fourth, Indonesia sixth, Japan second, Brazil twelfth, and Poland thirteenth. This is part of the distribution cited in the thread about the Taste Atlas ranking, reopening the eternal war over which country eats best. The first reaction in the forum was suspicion: the list is attributed to an Anglo-Saxon criterion —"an Anglo commenting on cuisine," it repeats— and many dismiss it. The second, much more uncomfortable, pointed to what the ranking says about Spanish cuisine itself.

And that's where everything got complicated. Because Portugal ranking above Spain bothered less for being unfair than for being suspiciously aligned with what, according to some criticisms in the thread, the rest of the world perceives.

What Positions Each Cuisine Holds in the Taste Atlas Ranking

The distribution mentioned on the table: Japan second, Portugal fourth, Indonesia sixth, Brazil twelfth, and Poland thirteenth; Portugal is also placed above China and Spain. Read at a glance, the order has its logic and its absurdity in equal measure. Part of the public attributes it to an Anglo-Saxon criterion —"an Anglo commenting on cuisine," it repeats— and dismisses the whole thing in a flash.

It's not just national pride. That Indonesian cuisine appears sixth or that Brazil stays in twelfth place with little more than feijoada and picanha as a banner is, at best, debatable, according to the thread's reproaches. But it is important to separate the anger over the position from the analysis of why the position exists.

Why Some Defend Italian Cuisine

The argument presented by simenthal in favor of Italy is not about tomatoes or basil: it is about transformation. According to simenthal, Italian cuisine converts basic, low-flavor ingredients into succulent dishes, and that, on a global scale, is worth gold. Volume also plays a role: pasta, pizza, and calzones are three formats with the same base —flour— repeated infinitely in any city in the world.

Avulense64's criticism comes from within the enthusiasm itself: «90% of Italian food is pasta». A country that is a peninsula and that, according to this reproach, does not stand out for its fish or meats. And the detail that breaks the consensus: processed sausages —mortadella, cooked ham— are defended as superior to Spanish ones, while others label them ultra-processed products made with animal by-products.

Criticisms of Spanish Cuisine: Salt, Digestion, and International Presence

Here lies the crux of the matter. For one participant, Spanish cuisine is indigestible and very salty, with a first-bite problem: it does not seduce at first glance, it requires getting used to. It is an acquired taste. And as an argument, she points to international presence: few Spanish restaurants worldwide compared to Italian, Japanese, or American ones.

Does that miccionan people eat worse here? Not exactly. According to simenthal, excellent product —ham, meat, fish— does not need processing, and precisely for that reason it does not generate an exportable cuisine. Virtue becomes a limit.

Why Pizza and Sushi Triumph, Not Fabada?

Because the global market rewards what is replicable. The thesis held by Klaus María is simple: any industrializable dish prevails, that is, base carbohydrates, protein on top, and various seasonings, easy to produce with low-skilled labor. Pizza, pasta, hamburgers, and sushi fit the pattern. Paella has tried, and the result, in Klaus María's judgment, is a devalued version of the original.

Hence, the ranking is read less as a culinary verdict and more as a map of what the world has adopted. In that map, Spanish cuisine is marked by its lower international presence, according to these criticisms.

Galicia, Stew, and Octopus: The Local Counterattack

The Spanish defense is organized by territory. Galician cuisine is claimed as the best without dispute, and octopus à la gallega as proof: cooking it well is an art, and a good hand turns an excellent dish into something out of this category. The uncomfortable nuance is that the merit lies in the product, not the technique.

The rest of the arsenal is homemade: Galician broth, stew with chickpea soup, liver with onions. Dishes that, according to chameleon, a gourmet jury would rate zero and that sustain the diet of half the country. There are also those who remember that rarity is relative: there are cuisines that serve chopped and live octopus, fish fermented for months, or sausages we would not touch here with a stick.

The thread discusses a Taste Atlas ranking citing Portugal fourth and Indonesia sixth; Galician cuisine is claimed regardless of these lists. And the gap remains: for the thread's reproach, 90% pasta; at home, Sunday stew.