There's a big reason why you might be hearing people talk about having massive cravings during the pandemic. Kent Berridge, Ph.D., a professor of Psychology and Neuroscience at the University of Michigan Department of Psychology, told Men's Health that stressful situations trigger corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF), a master stress neurotransmitter that's found in parts of your brain: the hypothalamus, amygdala, and nucleus accumbens all areas that can set off cravings.

What's more, CRF can also make some stressors even more unpleasant by acting in other parts of the brain, which leads to food consumption done more as an act of "hedonic self-medication," Dr. Berridge said. The exact factors behind what we crave have yet to be fully determined by neuroscience, but he assured that they are not random. Cravings are very specific to the individual, his or her history with foods, and preferences.

And life in quarantine and financial hardships during the pandemic are certainly stressful enough to trigger and magnify cravings, Dr. Berridge said. When people are particularly strained, they tend to desire foods that are highly palatable and high in calories. It can be assumed that many Americans are aching to chow down on Mexican food in restaurants again because the cuisine is something familiar that offers delicious flavors and a relatively high amount of calories.

Whatever the reason may be, though, we all can't wait to dine out at our favorite Mexican spot.

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This is the food Americans craved during quarantine - Mashed