Kaitlyn Slayton DTC 258 Final Exam Essay 27 April 2022 The first chapter that we started out with this semester was just an introduction to the whole food culture and cuisine topic as a whole. This introduced us to the different stages of regional settlement that lead to the development of cuisine culture that we saw in all of the chapters going forward. These stages were Indigenous people, First settlers, and Second settlers. We also found out about hybrid cuisines which were also very prominent through the rest of the textbook. The other most important topics that we were introduced to in this chapter were ingredients, cooking methods, food attitudes, foundation foods, food cultures, culinary liberals, and conservatives, and the five factors in the development of a regional cuisine. The second chapter was about the Plantation South. I think that we start with this chapter because of how perfect the land is for agricultural growth. This area has flat land, deep and rich soil, and is the idea region for farming. They also have a great amount of rainfall. The native Americans in this area used the farmland the best way they knew how which was a cycle of using a piece of land for one season then abandoning it then using it again the next. This was the first time we were introduced to the three sisters crops: corn, beans, and squash. When the English colonist arrived they thrived by eating the indigenous foods, and the cast iron cooking was introduced to the plantation south. Slave cooking was also a crucial part to the development of the plantation south cuisine. A recipe I would love to try from this region is fried okra. The third chapter was about the New England region. One of the most interesting things I learned from this section was that the native Americans in this region were so creative because they used sap from the trees for sweetness and just the way that they got crops to grow in this harsher region was amazing. Corn was a foundation food and was used here more here than probably in any other region because they had a method for making corn grow that never failed. Thanksgiving was originated in this region too which makes the turkey extra special in this region. Later they started really taking advantage off the food from the sea right next to them, and lobster became prominent here. I would love to make and try a Vermont cheddar cheese soup because I am obsessed with cheese and appetizers like this are always a favorite. The fourth chapter is about the Mid Atlantic region. The Europeans mainly the Dutch and swedes really impacted this area as we know it today the most. One of the more iconic cultures that emerged from this area is the Pennsylvania Dutch. There are also minimal seasonings in this region which when you think of a Pennsylvania Dutch that’s exactly what it is. I want to try a Hershey Brownie Sunday recipe from this section because it seems pretty easy to make and it looks like it takes delicious. The fifth section is the Chesapeake Bay Shore chapter. The thing I remember most from this chapter was the regions use of blue crabs. This region had a cuisine inspired by the plantation south, the mid-Atlantic, and bay seafoods. This region would prepare blue crabs in many different ways and they would all taste different depending on how old the crab was. This region also ate lots of oysters and striped bass. I would love to try an imperial stuffed flounder, because I love fish and the stuffed part sounds amazing. The sixth section of this textbook was Louisiana. I think it is interesting that this state has its own food culture of its own. New Orleans is imminently what I think of when I think of Louisiana food culture. Louisiana is primarily French food with a twist of plantation south style. Louisiana has Creole and Cajun cuisines. I would love to try the Cajun popcorn because I feel like the Cajun flavors would be really pushed forward by the popcorn. Chapter 8 we went over the Appalachian south. The thing I remember most about this region was how horrible the land was for agriculture, and how the people had to be creative to make the crops grow anyway. The Socts-Irish were the Europeans that came to this region first bringing mutton, potatoes, and cabbage. Wild onions are widely used here as well as wild fruits grown in the region like pawpaws and scuppernong grapes. One of the dishes I would love to try from this chapter was the Cherokee Venison stew because I never really have venison and I would love to try an authentic Native dish. In section 9 we went over the central farmlands and cities cuisines. The Farmlands had very fertile soil due to the mineral in the soil from the ocean floor. Wild rice is unique to this region and is loved by the locals there. In the midwestern farmlands there were three cheeses that originated here, they were: brick, Colby, and maytag blue cheese. I remember that farmland desserts are always the nations favorites because of how rich they are. I actually have never had pineapple upside down cake, and I would love to try this staple Desert of the central farmlands. In chapter 10 we looked at the western and central ranchlands. The American bison were a important to the aera because they depended on them for their tools, it was their food source, and they got cooking fuel from it. This region was also the birthplace of ranching because of the U.S. Desert Land Act of 1877. I would love to try the barbeque beef brisket. In chapter 7 we learned about the Mexican border region. In this region they would make hominy boiled with calcium hyoxide to make masa, a staple of the region. The region also relied heavily on corn and beans for their protein because hunting was scarce. Until they brought sheep to the region and they used that animal in their cooking a lot. I would love to try pickled jalapenos, because I love spicy food. In chapter 12 we looked at Anglo-Asian California’s food culture. California’s cheese industry is because of the Spanish missionaries who got it all started. Alice Waters was the restraunteur that is deemed the founder of California cuisine. The three pillars of contemporary Californian cuisine are adventurous affluent diners, superior regional ingredients, and innovative cooks and chefs. I would like to try a blood orange tart with chocolate drizzle. In chapter 11 we looked at the rocky mountain and the great basin region. This region had to get creative with their eating because agriculture and hunting never went well. So they ended up eating a lot of what the animals of the region ate. Casino cuisine came out of this region. I would like to try this regions take on a shepherd’s pie with pine nut and romesco sauce. In chapter 13 we looked at the pacific northwest region and their food culture. An interesting thing that they discovered in this region was eating salmon cheeks, which are just behind a salmon’s gills. This region also started the planking cooking method where you put a plank over a fire and flavors from the wood seep into the food. The tribes that were in the lower coastal areas of this region relied heavily on the ocean as their source for protein. I would love to try a Gitksan planked salmon. In chapter 14 we looked at Hawaii’s cuisine. Obviously, this region relies heavily on sea food. The Chinese had a heavy influence on this region by introducing the stir-fry technique, soy sauce, oyster sauce, and scallions. However, the local food in Hawaii is constantly changing. For example, the Filipino immigrants introduced chicken and pork en adobo which is very popular there. I would like to try the Fire and Ice Haupia Custard. In chapter 15 we looked at the south Florida and Puerto Rico region. In south Florida Jamacian and American jerk cooking has become more popular. A Puerto Rican food is Sofrito. I would love to try a Tres Leches cake because I have seen them a lot but I never had one yet. Finally, in chapter 16 we learned about New York’s cuisine. The New York area was first settled by the Dutch. They also had the first exclusive women’s dining room in America. The first seafood houses in New York were just oyster bars, and New York quickly developed drive-ins as the need for a quick lunch grew. Italians also had a large impact of the cooking of the region. I would love to try stuffed savory cabbage in sweet ‘n’ sour sauce.
