When you think iconic Illinois food, Chicago cuisine is first. But, if thoughts of hot dogs and deep dish pizza entered your mind, you would be wrong.

I really can't see past all that deep dish cheese, those onions and mustard on that Chicago dog. Now, I'm sitting at Wrigley Field with both and I have some Garrett's popcorn on the ground between my feet. Those are the things that come to MY mind when I'm thinking about Illinois' Most Iconic Foods.

When I clicked, The Most Iconic Food From Every State from TheDailyMeal.com, I couldn't believe that they said the most iconic food in Illinois was...

A pumpkin

Illinois' Most Iconic Food Is Not What You'd Think, But So Fall
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Really?

Does everything that comes out between late August and Halloween have to be 'pumpkin'?

Daily Meal had this to say about how they made their choices:

To determine the most iconic food in every state, we looked at regional specialties and official state foods. When a state had neither, we considered the output and culture of that state.

A quick look at Illinois' state edibles, I found this:

  • State Snack Food - Popcorn
  • State Fruit - GoldRush Apple
  • State Vegetable - Sweet Corn
  • State Grain - Corn
  • State Pie - Pumpkin Pie

Popcorn comes up long before the big orange gourd. And, when someone from outside Illinois comes for a visit, what do you always hear?

"Let's go get some Chicago dogs!"

or

"Where's the closest Lou Malnati's Pizza?"

Pumpkins?!?! What the...

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