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What is American Food?
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Big_Bird



Joined: 31 Jan 2003
Location: Sometimes here sometimes there...

PostPosted: Sat Sep 08, 2007 9:14 am    Post subject: Re: What is American Food? Reply with quote

Treefarmer wrote:
I was trying to explain to some students on Friday that americans don't just eat junk food all day,


That used to do my head in. My students all seemed to think Americans ate hamburgers, pizza, fried chicken and donuts all day, every day. The look of disbelief when I explained that there are plenty of Americans who only eat this crap occasionally.
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MarionG



Joined: 14 Sep 2006

PostPosted: Sat Sep 08, 2007 3:06 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Southern Fried Chicken (no, it's not junk food, and it's not like any other fried chicken, because it has gravy)

steak - very few countries do steak as well as in the US. Yes, beef is almost universal, but the method of graining the beef animal, and then cooking the steak, is definitely American.

I'm a big fan of French food, but don't ever waste your money on a French steak!
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jaderedux2



Joined: 09 Jul 2007
Location: lurking just lurking

PostPosted: Sat Sep 08, 2007 4:00 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

jlb wrote:
American food? From my experience it's:

1. Anything greasy and/or meaty

plus:

2. Anything served in gigantic, oversize portions.


oooh so clever. Rolling Eyes

Eating turkey seems uniquely American. Some southern cooking. Okra, turnip greens. Barbecue (southern style is American while Texas is more Mexican)

Actually eating tomatoes started in the U.S. Up to the mid to late 19th century they were considered poisonous.

Mashed potatoes are really British as is Shepherds pie.

Pumpkin pie seems to be somewhat of an American concoction.

Most of our food is adapted from other countries as the population of America is from other countries.

It is quite funny as I was teaching a lesson this year with my 3rd year students and I told them to think of American customs or food. After 5 minutes of yelling pizza, hamburgers, hot dogs etc. All of which have their roots in other countries they were quite gobsmacked (love that British term) to find most things they think are American are really just adopted from other countries.

Baseball -- Rounders from the U.K.
American Football -- Rugby
Basketball -- Canadian guy (who would a thunk it!)
Jazz -- Depends on the kind
Blues -- definitely African flavor

Maybe Rock and Roll (think Elvis). Blue Grass.

What is funny is that I think that is great. I grew up eating food that was from all kinds of countries. Never stuck my nose up and said this isn't "American". I did a food lesson with pudding one time and some of my more nationalistic students were "Oh, it's terrible it's not Korean" Whereas the younger ones gobbled it down with gusto and then ate what their friends wouldn't. (made with skim milk by the way.) I did an entire camp with food from "America" and we had a ball. They were a bit unsure of pumpkin pie but ate it. (thank you costco!)

Surprisingly when I went to China the food there can be found in America. Some Chinese food is modified but you can find very good Chinese and Japanese food in America because of large amounts of immigrant populations.

You can find good Indian, Thai and every other imaginable food from just about any country in the world in America. Some of it modified some not. Something I do love about the states.

Jade
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The Bobster



Joined: 15 Jan 2003

PostPosted: Sat Sep 08, 2007 6:38 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Sandwiches. Nobody else seems to ever get the concept right ... goddess what I would give for a corned beef on rye at this very moment.
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SPINOZA



Joined: 10 Jun 2005
Location: $eoul

PostPosted: Sat Sep 08, 2007 7:42 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Treefarmer,

I would definitely use Eamo's line of thinking. The US is made of people from all over the world. It embodies and promotes diversity in all respects, including food.

** And because of a superior attitude to service and lower prices, I make the US ahead of Britain in terms of food service generally, even though a British Sunday roast is unquestionably the best food on Earth followed in second place by curry. Be sure to point out also that the Hamburger is influenced strongly by the Sandwich.
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Fresh Prince



Joined: 05 Dec 2006
Location: The glorious nation of Korea

PostPosted: Sat Sep 08, 2007 7:46 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Chocolate Chip cookies
Cotton candy
popsicles
potato chips
Peanut butter
spam
cranberry sauce
pumpkin pie
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eamo



Joined: 08 Mar 2003
Location: Shepherd's Bush, 1964.

PostPosted: Sat Sep 08, 2007 8:00 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
Eating turkey seems uniquely American


I think all the ex-colonies of Britain eat turkey at Christmas. So I'm guessing that eating turkey on feast days started in Britain.
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Gatsby



Joined: 09 Feb 2007

PostPosted: Sat Sep 08, 2007 8:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The tradition in old Britain was to eat a large bird, one capable of serving many people, on the holidays. Chickens were eaten as daily fare, but these big birds, such as a goose, were a special treat.

The British colonists continued this tradition using the native wild turkey, a bird native to North America. Benjamin Franklin wanted to make the uniquely American turkey the national bird, rather than the eagle. In addition to eating turkey, the colonists had plenty of lobster available for their first Thanksgiving dinner. But there was so much lobster that it was considered junk, to be fed to servants and chidlren. It should be added that all their butter was seized before departing England by creditors to pay off debts.

If other former British colonies eat turkeys on the holidays, they got the tradition from the United States, not England. I'm surprised they don't eat geese. But turkeys are bigger. On the other hand, emus and ostriches are bigger, still -- nice if you have a big enough oven.

BTW, Homer Simpson would have been proud of the first pilgrims. The reason the Mayflower landed at Plymouth Rock, rather than the warmer climes of already settled Virginia they were headed to, was that they ran out of beer.
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Sleepy in Seoul



Joined: 15 May 2004
Location: Going in ever decreasing circles until I eventually disappear up my own fundament - in NZ

PostPosted: Sat Sep 08, 2007 8:49 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

eamo wrote:
I think all the ex-colonies of Britain eat turkey at Christmas. So I'm guessing that eating turkey on feast days started in Britain.

I don't know of anyone in either Australia or New Zealand who eats turkey at Christmas - or, for that matter, anyone who would want to.

Distinctlively American food? Cheese of a startling chemically-induced colour that is not known in nature and chocolate with drastically reduced concentrations of cocoa-butter, so that it tastes like brown-coloured sugar.
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eamo



Joined: 08 Mar 2003
Location: Shepherd's Bush, 1964.

PostPosted: Sat Sep 08, 2007 8:51 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Gatsby wrote:
The tradition in old Britain was to eat a large bird, one capable of serving many people, on the holidays. Chickens were eaten as daily fare, but these big birds, such as a goose, were a special treat.

The British colonists continued this tradition using the native wild turkey, a bird native to North America. Benjamin Franklin wanted to make the uniquely American turkey the national bird, rather than the eagle. In addition to eating turkey, the colonists had plenty of lobster available for their first Thanksgiving dinner. But there was so much lobster that it was considered junk, to be fed to servants and chidlren. It should be added that all their butter was seized before departing England by creditors to pay off debts.

If other former British colonies eat turkeys on the holidays, they got the tradition from the United States, not England. I'm surprised they don't eat geese. But turkeys are bigger. On the other hand, emus and ostriches are bigger, still -- nice if you have a big enough oven.

BTW, Homer Simpson would have been proud of the first pilgrims. The reason the Mayflower landed at Plymouth Rock, rather than the warmer climes of already settled Virginia they were headed to, was that they ran out of beer.


My assumption was incorrect. Thanks for the information.

I didn't know the turkey was native to North America alone. I assumed they ran around in a lot of countries.
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flakfizer



Joined: 12 Nov 2004
Location: scaling the Cliffs of Insanity with a frayed rope.

PostPosted: Sat Sep 08, 2007 10:22 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

applesandshanana wrote:
Kellog's Corn Flakes

Yeah, I'm a Michigan kid. That and cars are the only thing we have to be proud of.

You forgot baby food.
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Tiger Beer



Joined: 07 Feb 2003

PostPosted: Sat Sep 08, 2007 11:23 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Depends on where you are from and your ethnic background.

In rural Michigan, we eat a lot of beef and potatoes...which we'd call 'meat and potatoes'. Vegetables could be green peas or green beans, etc.
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Dancing Bear



Joined: 14 Jan 2007

PostPosted: Sun Sep 09, 2007 12:21 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Denny's Grand Slam Breakfast!
3 eggs your way, sausage, bacon, hashbrowns
and toast!!!
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Privateer



Joined: 31 Aug 2005
Location: Easy Street.

PostPosted: Sun Sep 09, 2007 12:52 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Meat, potatoes, and veg.

That's the basic traditional formula for American, and British, and Irish, food. Meat also includes pies, stews, casseroles, meatloaf, etc, etc, all meat dishes. Nowadays potatoes can be replaced with rice or another staple.

Korean kids, I think, don't know this, and I think they want to know what authentic American food is rather than be told all about the marvelous variety of international cuisine available in the modern English speaking world, even though it's true.
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wo buxihuan hanguoren



Joined: 18 Apr 2007
Location: Suyuskis

PostPosted: Sun Sep 09, 2007 12:57 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

My grandmother in South Africa always cooks up turkey for X-Mas, but it is not common, for sure.

As for American food, stuff like meatloaf, microwave dinners and bad cheese is all I can think of that is uniquely American (don't get me wrong - I love America), the rest is just a copy/adaptation of European food, same as S.A, Oz and New Zealand I guess.
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