Up next in 10
What to Eat in Iowa (it's more than just corn)
Aug 25, 2025
Traditional foods of Iowa. What you should eat when you visit Iowa. Some of the tastiest treats to have when you visit the Hawkeye State. From breaded pork tenderloins to Dutch Letters Iowa has quite a few foods for you to enjoy. Filmed in Pella, Iowa Copyright Mark Wolters 2021 #iowa #foodie #iowafood Follow Jocelyn on Instagram - http://www.instagram.com/jocelynwoltersworld Follow Simply Jocelyn on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/Simply-Jocelyn-A-Globally-Inspired-Life-100312851709273/ Grab Some of Jocelyn's Favorite Kitchen Gear Ninja Blender/Food Processor - https://amzn.to/30F4vXZ Calphalon Tri-Ply Stainless Steel Cookware - https://amzn.to/30sZ91O GreenPan Lima Ceramic Non-Stick Griddle - https://amzn.to/2BNCa77 PriorityChef Mortar and Pestle - https://amzn.to/3ff4rCd Silicone Stretch Lids for Keeping Things Fresh - https://amzn.to/2UvX6pL Le Creuset Stoneware Butter Crock - https://amzn.to/2UwIxSV
View Video Transcript
0:00
Hey there fellow travelers, Mark here with Walters World and today we're here in Pella, Iowa for what you should eat when you come to the state of Iowa
0:07
And the biggest, bestest thing you need to have when you do come here is a Midwest tradition and that is a breaded pork tenderloin
0:14
And I'm not talking a small one, I'm talking a pork tenderloin that's beaten down and battered and fried that's as big as your plate
0:21
Or at least if you have a bun, the tenderloin should be this size, the bun should be about this size
0:25
But that is the go-to number one thing you got to eat when you are here, when you do come to Iowa, because it is a thing when you are here
0:33
And I think, though, for me, what's always been interesting for me when I come to Iowa is the pizza in Iowa
0:39
Yes, come to Iowa to have a pizza. But listen to me
0:44
One thing is they really like taco pizza here. So you'll get that lots of places
0:47
But you have different styles of pizza you might not be used to. I know my cousins live in the Quad City
0:53
So we have Quad City style pizza, which is in strips, which is kind of funny when you eat it
0:58
You're like, oh, that actually kind of works. And yes, you can get the taco one there. But for me, there's actually a sauerkraut pizza you can get in the Quad Cities
1:06
That is actually something you should try. Doesn't sound like it's going to be good, but it really is
1:11
But just know the Quad City pizza, it's cut in these strips. Sauce a little bit, got a little kick to it, but well worth ordering if you're in the Quad Cities
1:18
Or if you can get it around the state, it's totally fine. But I think the most important pizza actually here in Iowa is breakfast pizza
1:28
Look, if you're going to be traveling around the state, you're probably going to get gas in the morning when you're driving around to see the bridges of Madison County
1:33
We're coming here to Pellar or wherever, and you're going to hit the Casey's General Store, and you're going to see pizza by the slice ready at like 7 a.m
1:42
You're like, who's eating pizza at this time? Well, it's not any normal pizza
1:47
It is breakfast pizza. and instead of like tomato sauce as the base
1:51
it got like that nacho cheese stuff on the bottom I heard there places that actually do sausage gravy I haven seen it but I have had the nacho cheese bottom and then they put scrambled eggs and
2:02
bacon or sausage in there, and then cheese, and oh my god, it sounds crazy, but it is so dang good
2:08
So that's like your go-to breakfast pizza. So that's why I thought it was important to get pizza
2:13
out of the way and make sure you have when you come to Iowa. Now another kind of meaty dish you
2:18
might have when you're here is a sandwich. It's called a made right. Okay, I know if you look online that the technical
2:23
definition is loose meat sandwich. Basically, you take hamburger, you chop it all up and let it cook and throw in some
2:30
onions and other stuff in there, cook it up. And then you just dish it on to your dish it on to a bun, eat it that way. Some
2:36
people like a little cheese on it. Some people Jocelyn goes for the mustard all the time. But it is a mess of a sandwich. But a
2:42
made right is made right here in Iowa. I know I came from I'm from Illinois originally, we have made rights there too. And
2:47
It's just, it's one of those Midwest things that you gotta have when you're here
2:52
And it wouldn't be a Midwest Iowa food list if I didn't talk about the corn
2:56
I mean, yes, when you think of Iowa, you think corn, corn, as far as the eye can see
3:00
And yes, corn is a popular thing here. So if you're in season, you see that sweet corn, go get yourself some
3:06
Some corn on the cob, you can't go wrong. Also, fun fact, the red delicious apple used to be called the Hawkeye from right here in Iowa
3:16
Yeah, so the apples, not too bad either. But you know me, I don't like to go for the healthy food
3:21
We've got to go back to something that's not so healthy when you are here. And since you realize that I was actually bordered by the Missouri River on one side
3:28
the Mississippi River on the other side, I'm a Mississippi River boy myself, and you got to have fried catfish, okay
3:34
And the thing is, it's the breading on the fried catfish that really makes it work
3:38
Not everyone likes catfish. My wife is not a fan. However, spending my childhoods fishing on the Mississippi and eating catfish for years
3:46
That is one of my favorite things to do when I come back home is to go get some fried catfish So when you here in Iowa grab some of that especially near the river Though probably the catfish you going eat is not gonna come from the river It gonna come from a farm because you don really want to eat the fish from the
4:00
river so much. But just just know the fried catfish is well worth having when you're here in Iowa. Now another thing that's
4:06
actually interesting is actually morel mushrooms grow here quite a bit. So you can go get those and have those in a
4:11
variety of dishes. I'm actually here in Pella, Iowa, which is a
4:14
huge Dutch place. Like I'm here during tulip time. You see the tulips back there. Yeah, that's going on. They've got windmills all over the place here, Dutch
4:22
architecture, and the best part is the Dutch bakeries that are here. And if you are in Pella
4:27
you're around, you want to get what are called Dutch letters. It's just an S. It's like kind of
4:32
like pastry and in the shape of an S, but inside it's got like an almond paste in the middle. It is
4:38
super good. So make sure you pick some of those up. Actually, you can get those in the grocery store
4:43
or sometimes you get the, you know, Casey's. Casey's is going to be your friend when you're here. getting gas, getting their donuts, getting their breakfast pizza. I know it sounds silly, but you're
4:50
gonna be trying a lot when you're here in Iowa. So Casey will be your friend. Now another thing is
4:55
when you're driving around the state, if you're getting up toward the north kind of northeast part, you have the Amana colonies and there you'll see people like horse and buggy going by
5:03
And if you can go into the kind of traditional restaurants there, you will have such good like
5:07
natural food like down like, oh, I'm gonna go work on the farm. Now this really fills me up kind of
5:13
stuff. Go eat their food. That is really, really good. Also, if
5:16
you're in that area, which is funny, is actually there's a rhubarb wine that's kind of popular from there that you can
5:21
grab. I've had it a couple times. It's actually not bad, but it's worth try when you are here. And speaking of rhubarb, if you can
5:28
get some of the pies in the summer, rhubarb pie, that's my
5:32
go to. That's my go to and I'm here in Iowa. But I realized we can't always go to some like pie spot or have Yarsma Bakery
5:39
right there that we can go to here in Pella. Sometimes you're driving around and you want some of the sweets that are here
5:44
Yes you see Puppy Chow which is like Chex Mix with peanut butter in it coated in chocolate and powdered sugar It is a total mess Do not get it for your kids because it will be all over your car Take my word for it Or as Joss
5:57
would say, don't get it for your husband because he'll get it all over himself. It really does. But
6:01
Puppy Chow is a nice snack when you're on the road, just throwing it, throwing them down because they're so good. There's also Scotch-a-roos, which is funny because I don't know why they call it
6:08
Scotch-a-roos because basically what it is, it's a Rice Krispie Treat that's got peanut butter mixed
6:13
in with it and then has a layer of chocolate on top. It's really good but I don't really get the
6:18
scotch or the ruse part of it. I don't see any scotch or or Australian kangaroo stuff but that's
6:23
what they call it. So you can grab that as well. It'll sometimes be in bars, big or small. Again
6:28
you can get them at Casey's as well or at different restaurants when you are here and so that's a nice
6:33
thing. There is one candy that you will see that's from Iowa that is also something you can get and
6:39
it very much is, it's something you either really, really like it or you're not a fan
6:45
And that's Twin Bing. And so what Twin Bing is, I guess this is simply Jocelyn, I don't have to be as nice
6:52
and kind and polite, but it really looks like Chef's Chocolate Salty Balls from South Park
6:57
from 10, 20 years ago, okay? It's these two chocolate balls kind of put together, and it's like the chocolate's got
7:03
nuts, crunched up nuts in there, and then in the center of each of the balls is like
7:08
a cherry filling. almost like a cherry nougat inside. It is an acquired taste. It's something you should try
7:14
when you're here. Just grab one, try it and see how it is. But it is something that is very much
7:18
an Iowa staple. Anyway, I hope this gets you ready to come to Iowa. If you're going to be visiting
7:23
whether you're going to Des Moines, or you're coming here to Pella for, you know, tulip time
7:27
there's a lot of things to see and enjoy when you are here. Maybe you're going to go see the Bridges of Madison County, but you will definitely eat well when you are here. I know I'm excited for
7:35
my super huge you know what size tenderloin tonight in Des Moines
7:39
So I'm looking forward to that. But I wish you all the best and have a great time no matter where you're traveling, in the US or the world
7:44
We got videos to help you out. And I'll say bye from here in Pella, Iowa
#food
#Restaurants
#Tourist Destinations