Apple pie has the support of timeworn sayings (“As American as apple pie”), even though the first known ones were in medieval England.
The hot dog as a generic wiener or frankfurter, put in a bun and often topped with condiments.
The casserole, as a deep dish of baked food consisting of (a) protein and (b) vegetables topped with (c) starch [potato, pasta] and/or something cheesy/crunchy.
The mozzarella stick, the modern version of which appeared in the US in the 1970s.
Probably a food associated with an American holiday like Thanksgiving: turkey?
I would like to nominate that one as the US national dish, just because if you can take something healthy like cheese and deep fry it, that’s pretty American.
Cuisine is often changed by contact with other cultures, access to ingredients, and movement of people who tend to cook a certain way over time. In the United States, I think the “most American” foods originated from immigrants who were trying to replicate the things they made back home, but had access to different ingredients, or opened a restaurant and catered to many different tastes. This is the story of NY style pizza, Chinese food, and Italian food, and many others. On one hand, I think of the American variety of these cuisines as uniquely American. On the other hand, aren’t these cuisines more “American-style” than anything, and not truly “of America”? I’m not English, nor have I ever been to the UK, but maybe there is a similar dialectic happening over there wrt curry and kebabs and all that.
there’s a fair amount of Southern and Northeastern cooking that’s rooted in the local flora and fauna that’s probably closer to what could be called American than like a hot dog
yeah, i guess the question in my mind is are those foods “American” or are they “Southern” etc.
maybe it sounds like a silly distinction to make, but when i think of “american” as an adjective, i’m also thinking about the american melting pot which is able to synthesize so many different cultures into a single country with debatable results. i think a burger is distinctly modern (post wwii) america, too, esp when considering mcdonalds, the rise of factory farming, changing tastes, cultural exports, etc etc.
That’s exactly what happened in England. Curry goes back almost 300 years in England so after all this time it’s become part of the culture. Same as the intergration of so many different cultures over the years and with them, they bring the food which at one point is exotic and new, then becomes the norm for a lot of people. I’ve never been to a small town in England without a curry house. That says a lot about the culture around it.
That’s one factor in the UK - it’s not that different from top to bottom. The US is pretty big from what I remember and what grows on one side can’t grow on another, but in the UK you’ll get most of the same things everywhere. Probably why when hundreds of a years ago pepper turned up they were so shocked.
I was thinking about this this morning when I noticed the gas station near my house sells butter chicken poutine, and that donair (AKA doner kebab… ish) and green onion cakes are two of the regional specialties Edmonton is known for.
(This probably sounds like I’m making fun of Edmonton’s cuisine, but I really appreciate how multicultural the food scene is here, especially compared to where I used to live where a now closed world-renowned Thai food restaurant was run by white guys.)
I did not know that Takis were available for purchase here. I might have to join in on the discussion. My expectations have been greatly reduced since they didn’t turn Tom into an American but I’m curious nonetheless.
I was on the way home from the supermarket but next time I’ll keep an eye out.
