Taste Of America
Native American Cuisine
• Traditional foods
included: Corn,
Beans, potatoes,
squash, and
pumpkins.
• Corn or maize is the
focal point of Native
American Culture.
– There are over 30
different corn
dishes.
Fry bread is
considered a
traditional food by
over half of the North
Native American
Tribes.
Native American, cont.
• Wild greens and fruits served as the
major sources of vitamins A and C plus
potassium.
• They were skilled farmers and hunters.
• Buffalo and other wild animals also
common.
• It has been estimated that over 65% of
our contemporary diet can be traced
directly to the contributions of the
American Indians.
Native American Diets
• Traditional foods very healthy
being vegetable, fruit, lean meat,
and grain based
• Very high rate of diabetes
• With the addition of settlers, high
fat/sugar foods introduced
• Native American Foods
Fry Bread
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2 cups flour
1 tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup shortening
1/2 cup warm water
• Mix flour, baking powder and salt. Gradually add in the shortening
and water. Add only enough water to make dough stick together.
Knead dough until smooth, make into fist-sized balls. Cover them
with a towel for 10 minutes then pat them out into circles about the
size of a pancake. Fry in hot cooking oil in cast iron skillet until
brown on both sides. Drain on paper towels, serve with jam.
Reasons people
left their homelands:
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Escape from debtors prison.
Religious freedom.
Flee from famine & disease.
Brought to work in America (Slavery)
Search of fame & fortune.
Settling in the New World
• Settled in common groups
• Examples: French, Scandinavian
• Sought out similar geography
and climates from where they
came from
Settlers Brought
• Foods native to their homeland
• Food customs
• Adapted recipe to foods that were
available
The American Regions
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North West (Pacific Coast) – Oregon, Washington, Alaska
Hawaiian Islands
West – California, Nevada, Utah, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming
Southwest – New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, Arizona, and
Colorado
• Midwest – Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota,
Missouri, Ohio, Nebraska, the Dakotas and Wisconsin
• New England – Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont,
Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut and MidAtlantic
• South – Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, the
Carolinas, Tennessee, Virginia, Louisiana
New England Region
• New England Boiled Dinner: Corned Beef,
potatoes, onions, beets, carrots, cabbage.
• Clam Chowder: CREAMY potato soup
with clam meat.
• Maple Syrup: is the sap from sugar maple
trees
– Many times this was a source of sugar
CONT.
Red-Flannel Hash: Leftovers fried with beets
Color looks like red flannel underwear.
• Succotash: Corn & Lima beans mixture
often served with COD
Mid-Atlantic Region
• Chicken Corn Soup: Common- soup with
chicken corn and noodles
• Shoofly Pie: SWEET – molasses and
sugar
• Scrapple: Pork and cornmeal
• 7 Sweets & 7 Sour: table
setting format of side
dishes or relishes that
had 7 sweets and 7 sours
(pickled beet eggs one
sour example)
CONT.
“Dutch” Influence
• PA. Dutch: a group of
German immigrants that
settled in the SW corner of
PA.
• Settled in “Germantown”
NW Philadelphia
– Plain Dutch – simple
people (Anabaptists)
– Fancy Dutch –
Americanized (Lutheran)
• Baked Items from PA.
Dutch: Cookies, doughnuts,
waffles, griddlecakes,
coffee cakes, sticky buns,
angel food cakes
• Funnel Cakes: spiral
shaped, eaten for breakfast
with sausages
• Pie is a priority!
• Others: root beer, borscht,
gingerbread
• Garlic NOT normally used
• Dutch Food
Mid West Region
• Potlucks: Shared meal- everyone brings a
dish to complete the meal.
• Buffets: food lines up on large table.
**hearty helpings for farmers.
• Midwestern cooking is hearty and
uncomplicated.
• Often involves dairy, beef, soybeans, corn,
and wheat products.
Mid West Region
• Beef – pot roast, steak, prime rib, meatballs
and meatloaf
• Cheese EVERYTHING – Wisconsin cheese
soup, cheese curds, etc.
• Hotdishes and Salads – goulash, apple salad
• Jello desserts
• Freshwater fish
• Potatoes in ANY form
• Sour cream and cream cheese
Southern Region
• Corn: STAPLE of SW cooking – just like
native Americans
• Cornbread: Bread made from cornmeal.
Standard to make with a meal
• Grits: CORN PRODUCT cooked to
thickened consistency (like oatmeal) and
served for breakfast.
3 Types Of Food
• Soul Food
– Chitterlings: Hog
intestines that are fried
boiled or deep fried.
– Okra: Green pod shaped
vegetable; from Africa
– Yams: “SWEET
POTATO”- moist orange
flesh
– Sweet Potato Pie: pie
made with yams
• Creole Cuisine:
– File’: Flavoring/Thickening agent made from
sassafrass leaves.
– Gumbo: Soup, meat, potatoes, poultry,
shellfish, seafood
– Jambalaya: RICE DISH, poultry, shellfish,
seafood.
– Beignets: Bread dough squares – Deep Fried
– Coffees: Flavored coffee STRONG=chickory
– Praline: Candy made with sugar, pecans, milk
or buttermilk
• Cajun Cuisine:
– Peppers: Red; HOT;
cayenne
– Seafood/Wild Game: any
locally grown – alligator and
possum
– In Cajun cuisine, most dishes
center around locally
available GAME and
SEAFOOD.
West Southwest Region
• Beef plays a major part in western cooking.
• Barbecues continue to be an important part
of Southwestern Cooking.
– Basting is done while grilling
Son-of-a-gun Stew: Made from tongue, liver,
heart, and sweetbreads of a freshly
slaughtered steer.
Barbecue: Cooking food over OPEN FIRE.
Pacific Coast Region
• Sourdough: dough containing ACTIVE yeast
plants that give a sour taste.
• Chop suey: Chinese cook everything
(leftovers) and chopped up.
• Caribou Sausage and Reindeer SteakAlaskan Specialties
Cooking techniques of all pacific states are
simple. They take advantages of the natural
flavors and colors of the food.
Hawaiian Islands
• 3 largest industries: Pineapple, sugarcane,
and tourism.
• Fish is the main source of protein.
Luaus: an OUTDOOR feast
Imu: Underground oven
Lomi-lomi: salted salmon served with
tomatoes & green onions.
• Poi: Paste made from taro root (very
starchy)
• Haupie: Pudding made of milk, sugar,
cornstarch and grated coconut.
• Macadamia Nuts:
– Hardest shelled in the world