China Brazenly Claims it Invented the Hamburger

Chinese media claims that it invented what is arguably the most quintessential American food — the hamburger. According to the Korea Herald, it all started when the Huffington Post published an article about a Chinese street food known as rou jia mo, which translates to "meat burger" or "meat sandwich." It's a dish that consists of chopped meat inside a pita-like bun, and the Huffington Post writes that it has been around since 221 BC (many iterations of the dish are served in American cities like New York today).

The article goes on to note that there are large differences between the Chinese street food and what is known as an American-style burger, which was apparently first written about in newspapers in 1896. However, that was all the fodder Chinese media needed to lay claims to the sandwich. The Beijinger writes that many Chinese outlets posted translations of the Huffington Post's article and "went to town" proclaiming that China invented the hamburger. The articles also garnered thousands of comments but one commenter put it best, writing: "People like eating meat by sandwiching it between buns, whether they are in the East or the West."

But can Americans really be upset over the possible usurpation of the burger? After all, America has a habit of inventing dishes like the fortune cookie and orange chicken and claiming they are Chinese.