What American Cuisine Really Is

[Kittykisses73 1]

I WOULD HAVE TO AGREE WITH YOU 100%. THE OP COULD ALWAYS TAKE A FLIGHT BACK HOME AND STAY THERE. I THANK GOD EVERYDAY THAT MY HUSBAND IS NOT IGNORANT LIKE THIS AT ALL.

yes I agree if my spouses biggest problem was the food . . . :wacko: FIRST FLIGHT BACK cracked me up LMAO

[Ladylethal 12]

I think there is such a thing as american food, just like Feijoada (black bean soup) is very brazilian, but was created by african slaves, we have the southern foods that were also created by the slaves in the south. Every country has food that's inherent to their culture but has roots somewhere else, or at least borrowed some aspects of another culture. That is truer to the "new world" as in all the Americas the local food became a mix of what was originally there (as far as types of fruit, veggies and game available) and flavor profiles and ingredients brought by whichever culture colonized each of the countries in America.

So in US you have all the different flavor profiles of the South, that are uniquely american, you have seafood typical of the US in the way it's prepared, such as cod, catfish, crabs, lobster, etc. that have unique flavors depending on the seafood region in US it comes from (i.e Maine Lobster bisque or New England Clam Chowder), you have BBQ which has a unique style compared to the BBQ we have in South America.

You have very specific local foods that to me are quintessential american, such as Philly Cheesesteak (steak sandwiches in Brasil are definitely very different), Chicago Deep Dish, the thanksgiving tradition of Turkey, mashed potatos, gravy and cranberry sauce I've never seen elsewhere, yes, we have turkey, and yes, we have mashed potatoes but the combination with the gravy and cranberry sauce and stuffing I've only seen in US, Cajun, creole, soul food, etc all of those southern goodies that are so typically american, hawaian food, etc.

So yes, american food is there. In regards to a lot of comments on burgers and hot dogs, well, let's face it, although it may not be considered the typical american food as in it's all US has to offer, they are creations of the US, the idea of fast food was born here and thus should also be credited as american food.

[Muhammad n Maryam 1]

Nicely said Mike

In my forty sum years of life. I've always lived in the south-east.

And now I'm currently living in South Dakota , and will say their is a difference. And also

what they call their meals. Here they call what I call dinner supper and I call lunch and they call it dinner. But ... Their is no changing breakfast

[Nik+Heather 121]

Their is no changing breakfast

I wonder if that is true. Aside from Grits, I haven't seen much input about breakfast foods.

I don't really like breakfast myself - prefer to have leftovers from dinner over the usual.

*goes to look up the history of waffles*

(YUM! but not American -- alas!: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stroopwafels)

Edited January 29, 2010 by Nik+Heather

[LA80 3]

Interesting topic

This is my experience considering food here. People unfortunately rarely cook from scratch (at least those I have met so far). Everything is fast, it is more convenient to run to McDonald's, Taco Bell, Subway, Applebee's...you name it. What other people do and how they eat does not really bother me, as long as I have a chance to make my own food. However, I cannot say that fast food is American food, although many Americans I have met eat fast food every day. In my opinion, fast food is only food of a certain, "modern", lifestyle, and that lifestyle is spreading everywhere these days.

When I think of "traditional" American food, the following come to my mind:

-Potatoes in all shapes and forms, but especially baked whole potatoes (add sour cream and bacon bits on top) and mashed potatoes

-Sweet potatoes

-Corn, corn bread, dinner rolls

-Pumpkin and pumpkin pie

-BBQ goodies

-Turkey

-Green beans casserole

-Cranberries and all the nice thingies that can be made from them

-Pancakes and maple syrup + those huge fresh blueberries

-Eggs and bacon

-And now I am hungry

Of course, all this has to be homemade, or it does not count.

[Krikit 1,165]

This is my experience considering food here. People unfortunately rarely cook from scratch (at least those I have met so far).

I've noticed that too. Around here, all the restaurant parking lots are full.... every single night. It's excruciating trying to find the staples I need for cooking..... I literally travel hours to find them. I bring more food items back from Canada and the Uk than you can shake a stick at. Even the fruit and veg section of the grocery store has tons and tons of prepared items. Chopped onions, carrot/celery sticks, peppers, fruit, etc, etc. It's unreal. I mean, it's great if you're a senior or have a disability or something, so it's not a bad thing. It's just different to me.

[Cortr 3]

Breakfast?

Breakfast cereal is very American.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breakfast_cereal

[skidivawannabe 2]

American food - - rather regional, but when I hear the term, the following immediately come to mind:

Country Fried Steak

Mashed Potatoes

Hamburgers

Steak

Biscuits

Turkey

Basically good stuff that if eaten too much, will kill you unless you take Lipitor.

I would say go to your nearest diner for some American food.

[Darnell 8,479]

grits n hashbrowns - very U-S-A-ish, yes?

[K and L 27]

I wouldn't say I've travelled terribly extensively throughout the globes, as my travels have been limited to the Americas (Canada, Mexico, throughout the US, the Caribbean, throughout eastern Brazil) and Europe, I like to think I'm fairly well travelled for the average graduate student.

When I'm abroad for extended amounts of time (including my most recent month-long trip to Brazil), there are foods I miss cooking/cooking with, and foods I miss seeing regularly on the menus.

First off: props to those who have talked about how ethnic foods take on some characteristics of their "new" country. Chinese food in France is divine, but bears little resemblance to the food I've had in Chinatown or the food I can get at the local Chinese joints -- and is incredibly different from the Chinese I have found in Brazil. Crabrangoon is a unique offering to the US.

Anyway, foods I miss: peanut butter (an American invention), cream cheese, rice krispies treats, chex mix, meatloaf (with tomato-y sauce or with gravy), chicken fried steak, clam chowder, seafood bisque, creole/cajun (gumbo, jambalaya, etouffee), southwest/Tex-Mex (tacos, burritos, enchiladas, flautas, sopaipillas, churros, chilli, guacamole nachos, fish tacos, fajitas), chicory coffee, quality American produce (tomatoes, potatoes, avocados, blueberries, pineapple, certain squashes, corn, hominy, cranberries, ramps, wild rice) and game (buffalo/bison, elk, Salmon), grits, chocolate chip cookies, American-style BBQ & soul food (collards, black eyed peas, mmmmm)

Foods I don't miss when I'm gone: jello, jello salads, cool whip "salads", marshmallow salads, cream of mushroom/cream of chicken/velveeta/cream of fill in the blank "casseroles" (which may or may not have fried onions, noodles, bread crumbs, or multiple combinations thereof), pasta salads, buffalo wings, most things that show up at potlucks and picnics, chess pie, squash pies.

Edited January 31, 2010 by K and L

[Ladylethal 12]

I've noticed that too. Around here, all the restaurant parking lots are full.... every single night. It's excruciating trying to find the staples I need for cooking..... I literally travel hours to find them. I bring more food items back from Canada and the Uk than you can shake a stick at. Even the fruit and veg section of the grocery store has tons and tons of prepared items. Chopped onions, carrot/celery sticks, peppers, fruit, etc, etc. It's unreal. I mean, it's great if you're a senior or have a disability or something, so it's not a bad thing. It's just different to me.

Yes, I find it strange that the fruit and veggie part of the market has all veggies and fruits pre-packed, like bags of salad, chopped fruits, etc. One of the things I miss the most are the fresh raw ingredients I can find in Brasil, especially here in PR what I mostly find fresh is roots, all types of potatoes, yams, etc, but not a lot of the rest.

[jundp 191]

For that reason people outside the US might want to experience Italian, French, Vietnamese, Chinese, Armenian, or Libanese cuisine, but not American. America is, and will ever be, a fast food, cheap, throw away society. Those with a taste for the eclectic and the financial means to enjoy life will look elsewhere.

Wow. Amazing attitude about America.

grits n hashbrowns - very U-S-A-ish, yes?

Yum!

[K and L 27]

Yes, I find it strange that the fruit and veggie part of the market has all veggies and fruits pre-packed, like bags of salad, chopped fruits, etc. One of the things I miss the most are the fresh raw ingredients I can find in Brasil, especially here in PR what I mostly find fresh is roots, all types of potatoes, yams, etc, but not a lot of the rest.

It's funny you said that, because when I was in Brazil last, I noticed the exact opposite problem (at least at the stores we shopped at): there were hardly any fresh vegetables beyond root vegetables & tomatoes, and those that were, were prepackaged and not really good quality. The fresh greens tended to be wilted or slimy, the corn was old and underripe (and had a weird slime on it), I never found peppers, celery, parsnips/turnips/beets, fresh mushrooms, freshish olives, zucchini, cucumber, radish/daikon...blah, blah, blah. Even when I live in the desert (where the produce sucks compared to here), the veggies were better.

(Oh, but it's not to say there aren't pre-packed fruits and veggies here [or in the desert], I just ignore them. You never know how long ago they were cut or how fresh they were when they were cut. Just can't trust it.)

Edited January 31, 2010 by K and L

[Ladylethal 12]

Wow, you must have gone to a really bad market then, where I lived and all the places I visited around Brasil the markets always had really fresh veggies and fruits, unless you went to some bad tiny places, then yes, you might find bad ones but that's the same everywhere.

[Marilyn. 340]

hmmm, around here there are all sorts of unpackaged fresh fruits and vegies..