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Indian-American Padma Lakshmi faces backlash saying apple pie is “not truly American”
She said many dishes considered quintessentially American trace their origins to immigrant traditions and imported ingredients.
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Pranavi Sharma - Thu, 13, Nov 2025
- 01:16 EST
- 51
Padma Lakshmi / Wikipedia
Padma Lakshmi, the Indian American television host and author, is facing sharp criticism after saying in a recent interview that apple pie is not an American dish. Speaking to The New York Times ahead of the premiere of her CBS cooking show, set to air before Thanksgiving, Lakshmi said the dessert’s ingredients and customs come from other parts of the world.
“Apple pie isn’t American: not the crust, not the filling, not the spices,” she told the newspaper while discussing the show.
Lakshmi restated a position she has shared before. In a 2020 interview with Variety, she argued that the dessert has no indigenous American components. “We throw around a lot of platitudes like, ‘nothing’s as American as apple pie.’ Well, apple pie is not American,” she said. She added in the same interview, “Not one ingredient in apple pie is indigenous to North America. Not even the apple. So what are we talking about here?”
She said many dishes considered quintessentially American trace their origins to immigrant traditions and imported ingredients. To illustrate the point, she noted that a diet limited to foods native to the United States “would consist mainly of desert packrat and ramps,” referring to a desert rodent and a wild vegetable.
Lakshmi, who moved to the United States from India as a child, also said she was grateful for the opportunities she and her family found in the country. At the same time, she argued that immigrants have been central to the nation’s success.
Backlash
The remarks drew swift responses on X, where several users criticized her comments. One wrote, “She seems to be an import as well.” Another noted that the dessert has roots in Western Europe but said Americans had perfected it.
A third user said, “Do we really have to listen to her? My lifetime it’s been Apple Pie. We may have added a spoonful of Vanilla Ice Cream but yes All American.” Another remarked, “Oh please give Americans a break.” A fifth user added, “Well, based on her name, it certainly sounds like she’s an American.”
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