Have you heard of Darlington savoury or pease pudding? You most probably have.
With that in mind, we asked Northern Echo readers on Facebook to tell us what foods you can only find in the North East (100 comments were left in total).
There were many suggestions among the popular choices for locals, so here's a breakdown of some of the most recommended, according to you.
Foods you can only find in the North East
Pease pudding
One of the most commented-on foods you can only find in the North East by readers was pease pudding - for example, this person posted: “Decent peas pudding.”
Alan Hamilton is the man who founded Durham Foods, a firm which is best known for the pease pudding it makes from a recipe he developed more than 40 years ago.
The famous North East dish is made with Canadian split yellow peas and salt and white pepper.
But the end product is vegetarian as it omits the traditional ham stock.
Mr Hamilton previously told The Northern Echo: “There’s a way of mixing it that’s a closely guarded family secret.
“Pease pudding was made with yellow split peas and ham stock. All I did was take the ham stock out and added salt and pepper."
Stotties
Stotties are another local food that had an overwhelming amount of recommendations on social media.
“Stotties with ham and pease pudding,” wrote this Facebook account.
“Pease pudding and ham in a stotty,” replied one user.
The iconic stottie is a bakery staple and type of bread that originated in the region many years ago.
@northeastnostalgic How do you like your stotties? @greggsofficial #sunderland #stottie #sunderlandhistory #mackem #greggs ♬ original sound - North East Nostalgic
In case there are some who aren’t familiar with what it is, a stottie is a flat and round loaf, usually about 30 centimetres in diameter and four centimetres deep, with an indent in the middle.
Geordie Bakers explained: “The history of the stottie can be traced back to the working-class communities of the North East in the late 19th century.
“Miners and shipbuilders needed a hearty and portable meal that could withstand their demanding workdays.
“Thus, the stottie was born – a round, flat, and dense bread that could be easily packed with fillings and eaten on the go.”
Darlington savoury
The Darlington savoury was also among the most popular choices from locals when it came to finding out foods you can only find in the North East.
@teawiththethompsons Saveloy Dip #northerndelicacy #saveloy #saveloysandwich #tiktokfood #tiktokfoodies ♬ original sound - Nigel Thompson
The sausage meat and onion sandwich has been made using the same secret recipe since 1934 and the original is sold by the Savoury Café in the town.
Nigel Thompson from Darlingon who has an online cooking channel tried to recreate the famous dish on TikTok a few years ago – see how it went here.
Chicken parmo
Only a “proper” chicken parmo can be found in the North East, according to our readers.
This resident said: “Parmo. Yes you can occasionally find them outside of the area but they're usually horrendous and nothing like what it should be.”
“A propper parmo,” added another.
The Pinch of Mint website said the chicken parmo or “Teesside parmesan” is a dish that originated in Middlesbrough.
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“It is made up of breaded chicken covered with white béchamel sauce and topped with cheddar cheese,” it added.
The website continued: “I grew up in a small town very close to Teesside and have tried many variations of the chicken parmo.
“You can buy parmos in takeaways and pubs all across the North-East of England but in my experience, the best ones come from Teesside.”
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