Uniqueness of American Food

January 28, 2003 6:31 AM

As American As Apple Pie What Exactly? What food is truly American? Professor Louis Grivetti, of the University of California at Davis, provides a set of excellent, discussion-settling answers, packed with reliable and curious facts. (Be sure to click on the fascinating "Did You Know?" links at the bottom of each of the 10 classic American food groups.) How many Europeans know, for instance, that tomatoes, potatoes, corn, peppers, artichokes and lima beans all came from America? Not much supposedly ancestral Mediterranean cooking could get by without tomatoes, potatoes and peppers...
posted by MiguelCardoso (44 comments total)

Mmm, squash!
posted by wobh at 6:47 AM on January 28, 2003

In exchange for your artichokes, avocados, lima beans, cacao (chocolate), chili (peppers), cranberries, maize, peanuts, pineapples, potatoes, pumpkins, sunflower, tomatoes and turkey, we Europeans introduced y'all to the delights of almonds, apples, apricots, asparagus, cabbage, cattle (beef, cheese, milk), cucumbers, garlic, goat, lemons, lettuce, limes, mustard, oats, olives, onions, oranges, pigs, rice, sheep, sugar cane, and wheat.

All in all, a fair exchange, I'd say.
posted by MiguelCardoso at 6:47 AM on January 28, 2003

odd site - seems to use "american" to mean "north american" in general (as normal usage), yet the "american" origin of many of those foods is south america.

i wonder how many from miguel's list of european foods came from asia?
posted by andrew cooke at 6:53 AM on January 28, 2003

Delicious, a food fight !
posted by elpapacito at 6:55 AM on January 28, 2003

I've always thought that pizza was considered quintessentially American.
posted by mischief at 7:00 AM on January 28, 2003

I've always thought that pizza was considered quintessentially American

Of course, and spaghetti too

*cries*

Apicius, the famous Roman gourmet and food columnist, is crying too (Apicius was a first century author of De Re Coquinaria, On Cookery).
posted by matteo at 7:19 AM on January 28, 2003

The History of Pizza

Our knowledge of Roman cookery derives mainly from the excavations at Pompeii and from the great cookery book of Marcus Gavius Apicius called "De Re Coquinaria." Apicius was a culinary expert and from his writings, he provided us with information on ancient Roman cuisine. Apicius' book also contains recipes which involve putting a variety of ingredients on a base of bread (a hollowed-out loaf). The recipe uses chicken meat, pine kernels, cheese, garlic, mint, pepper, and oil (all ingredients of the contemporary pizza).
79 A.D. - In the ashes after Mount Versuvius erupted and smothered Pompeii on August 24, 79 A.D., evidence was found of a flat flour cake that was baked and widely eaten at that time in Pompeii and nearby Neopolis, The Greek colony that became Naples. Evidence was also found in Pompeii of shops, complete with marble slabs and other tools of the trade, which resemble the conventional pizzeria. The Museo Nazionale at Naples exhibits a statue from Pompeii which because of its stance is called "I pizzaiolo."
posted by matteo at 7:22 AM on January 28, 2003

and spaghetti too

Nah, pasta came from China (supposedly).
posted by mischief at 7:24 AM on January 28, 2003

Just like pancakes!
posted by sebas at 7:32 AM on January 28, 2003

Uh, Miguel I think peanuts are from Africa, I could be wrong, but...

I often wonder, what did Europeans eat before Asians and Africans taught them agriculture and animal husbandry? I mean, its pretty friggin' cold out there up in the north, what edible, gatherable plants grow wild that they could have eaten? Berries? I guess they ate a lot of game. Must have been like the Americas, oh, yeah, they learned agriculture and animal husbandry on their own in the Americas and showed what they knew to the white folks and kept them from starving, if they'd only known...
posted by Pollomacho at 7:32 AM on January 28, 2003

> goat

Mmmm, goat.


> sheep

There once was a goucho named Bruno
Who said ******* is one thing I do know.
Now women are fine,
And men are divine,
But the LLAMA is NUMERO UNO.
posted by jfuller at 7:38 AM on January 28, 2003

Not that I'm a food anthropoligst, but she is...
posted by fijiwriter at 7:40 AM on January 28, 2003

A lot "chinese" american dishes are entirely american,
Like "Chop Suey" invented and eaten almost entirely in the US... for what it's worth..
posted by Elim at 7:58 AM on January 28, 2003

As far as I know, the only thing to eat here in Europe before the Arabs brought us all the goodies from India, China and Africa was...chestnuts and cabbage. No garlic, no onions, no oranges; no rice, nothing but wild boar and chestnuts. I'm exaggerating but I kid you not in essence.
posted by MiguelCardoso at 8:05 AM on January 28, 2003

The Great English Muffin Mystery
posted by blue_beetle at 8:11 AM on January 28, 2003

I think the blueberry is native to North America too. Meet some former Blueberry Queens.
posted by madamjujujive at 8:14 AM on January 28, 2003

...scroll down past dry academic stuff, to "At a party last November...", for juicy anecdote...

MiguelCardoso - I'm sure you're aware of "Guns, Germs and Steel", but more dead on topic piece is "The Columbian Exchange: Biological and Cultural Consequences of 1492" by Alfred W. Crosby (Greenwood Press, Westport Ct., 1972). -- This is a great piece of work, groundbreaking, really, and I'm sure it had a major influence on J. Diamond (and many others)...

"In this lively little book, Alfred Crosby surveys the transatlantic migrations of peoples, plants, animals, and germs, with emphasis on tropical America in the sixteenth century . . . . The author has a pleasing style, and his book will serve as a source of anecdotes to enliven the undergraduate lecture." - William and Mary Quarterly

"The most important consequences of the voyages [of Columbus] were, Crosby argues, biological. He discusses the role of Smallpox in the Conquistadors' exploitation of the New World Indians, Old World plants and animals in the Americas, the biohistory of Syphilis, the influence of New World foods such as Maize and Manioc on Old World demography, and the consequences of the continuing Columbian exchange. Recommended . . ." -Choice

This topic reminded me of the 'New World meets Old World' saga, which in turn reminded me of this OFF TOPIC but INCREDIBLY JUICY tidbit:

At a party last November, I met a guy who had done his doctoral work on recently uncovered Catholic Church archival material, priestly accounts from the 15th or 16th century of the "deviant" sexual practices of the Maya who (the prof. was sure that they were bullshitting the priests and having a great laugh afterwards) recounted their sexual escapes to (most certainly) bug-eyed, lecherous, and all too credulous priests: including tales of weird religious rituals involving bestiality including sex with tapirs!
posted by troutfishing at 8:18 AM on January 28, 2003

Miguel - "In exchange for your artichokes, avocados, lima beans, cacao (chocolate), chili (peppers), cranberries, maize, peanuts, pineapples, potatoes, pumpkins, sunflower, tomatoes and turkey, we Europeans introduced y'all to the delights of almonds, apples, apricots, asparagus, cabbage, cattle (beef, cheese, milk), cucumbers, garlic, goat, lemons, lettuce, limes, mustard, oats, olives, onions, oranges, pigs, rice, sheep, sugar cane, and wheat.
"

Indeed, and the Europeans and Indians also exchanged Syphilis and Smallpox
posted by troutfishing at 8:24 AM on January 28, 2003

My three reasons why America is beautiful: The U.S. Constitution, jazz, and Southern Style barbecue.

Here in Seattle, I get my 'cue on at Jones'.
posted by Ty Webb at 8:52 AM on January 28, 2003

From this (semi-) related article:

Worldwide, more than half the crops grown today were initially developed in the Americas.
posted by arielmeadow at 8:57 AM on January 28, 2003

This place has saved my life! I grew up in the DEEP south and was beginning to wither away without good bbq, collards and field peas! None of which, however are american foods in origin exactly, but damn if you are going to find any done southern style over seas!
posted by Pollomacho at 9:01 AM on January 28, 2003

This article provides a list of what the ancient Greeks ate.
Heck, you can taste it yourselves in certain (pricey) restaurants today...
posted by talos at 9:05 AM on January 28, 2003

blueberries have been a staple food in northern europe, so i don't think it'd be necessarily indigineous to north america, unless it's specific to a certain species.

all i can think of for north america that wasn't mentioned already is bison.
posted by myopicman at 9:12 AM on January 28, 2003

Pollomacho- YES! I used to live four blocks from Kenny's, but a couple months after I was introduced to it it fucking burned down. When I was back in DC a few months ago, I happened to be driving down Maryland Ave. and saw that it was open again. I slammed on the brakes, almost causing a five car pile-up, and ran in to get my rips, greens, and candied yams. God Bless Kenny's.
posted by Ty Webb at 9:15 AM on January 28, 2003

rips? Ribs.
posted by Ty Webb at 9:16 AM on January 28, 2003

so i don't think it'd be necessarily indigenous to north america, unless it's specific to a certain species

There are some plants and animals that live in both the old and new worlds. Oak trees come to mind. How about people, they lived on both the North American and European continents?

There's tons of cultivated plants from the Americas that weren't mentioned. Certain cottons, herbs, Chihuahua dogs (first for food now for commercials), the list goes on...
posted by Pollomacho at 9:22 AM on January 28, 2003

Potatoes are high in vitamin C? Early Spanish sailors noticed that shipmates who ate potatoes did not suffer from scurvy. [8: 15]

Interesting, as I always heard in school, citrus fruits.
posted by thomcatspike at 9:53 AM on January 28, 2003

"...including sex with tapirs!"

Sure, it looks funny on paper
To say Mayans had sex with a tapir
But it's not amusing,
In fact, it's confusing.
Would one sit, stand or kneel for this caper?
posted by mr_crash_davis at 10:50 AM on January 28, 2003

Oh come now. Is there a culture that doesn't have a flattish piece of bread w/ some kind of tasty topping hanging around it? I think the urge toward tortilla/nan/chappati/pita/pancake/crepe/injira/pizza/toast urge is the urge that makes us human.
posted by DenOfSizer at 10:59 AM on January 28, 2003

Potato chips? Twizzlers? Peanut butter and banana sandwiches?
posted by adampsyche at 11:10 AM on January 28, 2003

I've always thought that one of the greatest endorsments of the USA as melting pot is that pizza, burgers, and tacos are considered quite American. America is a mutt, and better off for it.
posted by owillis at 11:12 AM on January 28, 2003

A tasty post, Miguel. I devoured that whole link and really relished it. There is some delicious irony in what people, even physicians, thought healthy in the past, as opposed to what whets our appetites today!
posted by Lynsey at 11:26 AM on January 28, 2003

this woman is a genius.
posted by sgt.serenity at 11:36 AM on January 28, 2003

I thought that current thinking was that spaghetti and noodles in fact developed independently, with evidence of spaghetti's presence in Italy before the date when Marco Polo was alleged to have brought noodles back? I can't find a suitable link for this but remember a report on some research in the press some time back.
posted by kerplunk at 12:22 PM on January 28, 2003

I've always thought that one of the greatest endorsements of the USA as melting pot is that pizza, burgers, and tacos are considered quite American. America is a mutt, and better off for it.

I once heard a great quote once,

"They say America is a melting pot of cultures, but uniformity is bland, we should aim to become a stir-fry instead"

I've always thought of Cajun cooking as a uniquely American style. Overtones of French sure, but distinctly colored by the culture.

American's might not have their own original recipes, but we sure as hell know how to eat it all better than any other culture :\
posted by KnitWit at 1:21 PM on January 28, 2003

The Mystery of General Tso's Chicken.
posted by Stan Chin at 1:29 PM on January 28, 2003

American's might not have their own original recipes, but we sure as hell know how to eat it all better than any other culture

Or at least MORE of it!
posted by Pollomacho at 2:10 PM on January 28, 2003

Previous thread on American food.
posted by languagehat at 2:12 PM on January 28, 2003

I have three words to say, and my words are exactly three:

"Irish Potato Famine"
posted by troutfishing at 2:39 PM on January 28, 2003

"Irish Potato Famine"
There's a weird irony. The discovery of the Americas introduced the potato to Europe, which was then used as a major food source and allowed for a population boom. Then the potato harvests were ruined by consecutive years of disease and causes the Irish immigration to America. Hmmm.
posted by elwoodwiles at 5:32 PM on January 28, 2003

The food timeline is always interesting as well.
posted by bluejoh at 5:33 PM on January 28, 2003

Pollomacho: I often wonder, what did Europeans eat before Asians and Africans taught them agriculture and animal husbandry?

According to Clifford Wright's scholarly cookbook "A Mediterranean Feast," the now much-esteemed (and heavily marketed & high-priced) cuisines of the Mediterranean region were surprisingly monotonous, unhealthy, and awful until fairly recently. (Recipe #1: Cabbage Soup.) They were saved in part by the introduction of plants from the Americas.
posted by Hieronymous Coward at 12:02 AM on January 29, 2003

much-esteemed (and heavily marketed & high-priced) cuisines of the Mediterranean region

You're joking aren't you? Italian, Spanish and Greek are some of the cheapest foods out there.

(Recipe #1: Cabbage Soup.) They were saved in part by the introduction of plants from the Americas.

Breads, olives, oil, wine, meat, cheeses and fruit were around for quite a long time before the new world was explored.

Anyway, what's wrong with cabbage soup?
posted by Summer at 2:25 AM on January 29, 2003

thomcatspike: Don't know about the Spanish navy, but the British navy did use citrus fruit. That's why they're called limeys.

Maybe the British navy kicked Spanish butt because the Spaniards were busy sucking potatoes.
posted by wrench at 5:31 PM on January 29, 2003