The History of American Food

If for no other reason, listen this week to hear me say "Worcestershire" while looking at the word. This week it's ketchup - and what it was before tomatoes got involved. You'll learn about the history, and find out about all sorts of sauces that can reasonably stand in for the 18th century no sugar versions. A link so you can make your own: Towndends - How to Make Mushroom Ketchup - https://www.y...

This week it's fruit's turn, and time to learn which fruits are locals, which are imports and how they got to North America, and into the colonial pantry. We glance briefly at fruits we've covered, mention familiar imports and look at the known locals - cranberries & blueberries and the surprise - strawberries! Then we examine the famous imports - tomatoes, melons and chilies and see where the...

All the "normal" colonial vegetables were foreign. Or they were imports anyway. Except for the famous ones - pumpkins (which are a fruit) and corn (which is a grain - mostly). But what is up with potatoes? All about potatoes - both kinds - and the general inability for English people to come up with useful descriptive clearly definative names for new stuff. Alsp how the Incan potato and the sweet...

Turns out colonists were making mixed drinks in America... before there was America, or cocktails (officially). Some were elborate and required prep-work (syllabub, cherry bounce), some were super familliar (whiskey Tod?), and some were just a shot and a beer - but together - probobly. If you want to know what the equivalent of rolling up to the bar and asking for a Jack and Coke in the days befor...

THe 17th century was the age of Rum. The 18th century has a new fighter, Whisky or Whiskey - choose your spelling. How is happened, and where it was most important are all explored. There's some brandy and such, but these other things aren't as important, and don't shape the economic futiure the way whiskey and rum do. This week follow their adventures - you'll have to wait for next week to learn...

Was there wine in the North American British Colonies? No, but yes. There was pricey imported wine, and there were also other fruit wines - including stuff made from some of the American grapes. But no one was selling wine, and definitely no one was exporting any. All the reasons why, and the most maddening bug in the wine world all get described. Music Credit: Fingerlympics by Doctor Turtle Show...

Horses - it's an issue we've basically used the whole country and most of history to run away from. Find out how the American horse problem started - and far we have not come in 300 years. Also - does your town have a Race St? FInd out why today! I'm not going to solve the American Horse problem, but I hope you can be more thoughtful about it - and maybe then you can solve it? Music Credit: Finger...

Eggs & Chickens In the 18th century eggs made practical and fancy food (cake!). Chickens made fancy food. Or at least special occasion food. If you wanted bird meat, you usually ate it wild. Chickens on the other hand were always underfoot. They were just there. Until it was time to develop the fancy chicken. Hear all about how the rising demand for more art, and the changing economics of pain...

Hey! Hey, Guess what? Did you know that pigs have many names... and many fats. No, please. Wait. Don't run away from me. I'm really here to talk about dental health and delcious sausages. Does this sound like a strange pairing. You migh be correct. Anyway. I just got back from a Boucherie. For the 5th time, so maybe that's a lame excuse. Really, what I'm trying to say is there is no modern America...

This week we are about to lose an original member off the leader board. But before the pumpkin slips away for a few seasons, I'll share with you why American food pumpkin dishes are so boring, despite this country being the home of the pumpkin, plus another slightly terrifying but very surprising fact. So enjoy! Music Credit: Fingerlympics by Doctor Turtle Show Notes: https://thehistoryofamericanf...

Well, well, well. Still not eating whale are we? Why in the heck are you talking about whale in a food podcast then? Turns out the global trade that lead to the pelagic (open ocean) whaling trade is a follow on of the "food for sea" in development. The same thinking about food in action (travel food) will become essential to soon-future-America's expansionist and war dreams (not always different)....

This week one of my cats makes his debut in sound design. His playing about in the closet makes me it seem as if I have Very Strong Feelings about trends in rich people food. But mostly this is a look into the past of large-whale eating on a global scale up until about the 18th century. There are also surprises around how long it took Europeans to agree that whales are not fish. The pre-modern rel...

OK - No regular episode, just a bonus one. But the season of Misrule is just going to do that to us here in the 18th Century. It's kindof a chemistry class - but worry not - no tests and no homework. This feels like a timely episode for those of us in the snow belt, since it helps you understand why salting the sidewalk prevents ice. But mainly I take the long way - through fire and dynamite - to...

Deer are really cute. Well baby deer are cute. We've been making pictures of them for ages. We've been making pants and shoes and stuff of deer generally for even longer though. And while people generally agree that deer are darn tasty, Americans continue to regard them as either exotic meat or food for the fancy rich or the rustic poor - but never everyday food for normal people. Not for regular...

Wood continues to do it all! But this time, mainly as charcoal. It makes iron, it ages booze, it's necessary for barbecue, it makes gunpowder. Charcoal - where did it come from, how does it happen, and a whole list of things it can do. Music Credit: Fingerlympics by Doctor Turtle Show Notes: https://thehistoryofamericanfood.blogspot.com/ Email: TheHistoryofAmericanFood@gmail.com Twitter: @THoAFood...

Wood! It is back, and now it's worth money. You get to hear about how the iron industry wrecked English wood stocks, the King's Broad Arrow, crusty New Hampshire-ians & the Pine Tree Riot, fancy woodworking and just how there were so many MANY barrels rolling around the New World. Oh and how you can date pictures approximately by looking at the hoops on barrels. This week the blog will also have r...

I was almost done with this super cool look at wood and charcoal - and then my computer went down. I have to completely rewrite the 6 pages I already had - AHHHHH! Even the outline I wrote for myself went POOF! But enough doom and gloom. Instead of killing myself, I'm hitting the kitchen to make béchamel and lots of delicious other stuff. And you can revisit my Tour de Turkey. Plus a blast from th...

Biscuit Biscuit Biscuit There are few baking words that can elicit so much general consternation. Cupcake - maybe? But mostly not since most of the world can agree on cupcake, but biscuit is a word that means so many and yet also some deadly specific things to some people. How did this mess get stared? I don't claim to have all the answers - but I do have some. Rock hard - to middle stage to fluff...

By the end of the 18th century - we are SO CLOSE to ice cream - but we are not there yet. But I want to set the scene that dessert is becoming a thing, and that all the pieces are there. Sitting there, just waiting to be ice cream. I mean Jefferson has a recipe in his own hand - likely told to him by his enslaved, Paris trained, French speaking, Black cook, James Hemmings. And George Washington ha...

Enter the Dairy Maid - or Milk Maid, I'll accept either answer. They were one of the these groups of women who used to be a skilled worker, but that pesky no being able to sign contracts or own stuff really stifled the ability to do any business beyond work for wages. Funny that. But in the 18th century and the rise of Dairies as stand alone businesses because there was A) land to have them and B)...

This week the ox stops being fancy food for fancy people and becomes workaday food for city people and sailors alike. But it also became manly party food all at the same time. I explain why its ox, not cow - but will be cow again. Here's Bugs Bunny in the Bull Fighting Ring - nostalgia or new? Just watch it. It's all fun. https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x7yzp40 Not up on yourColonial History of...

So many Links this week! But great places to visit - a blog, a rice foundation, a shop for all things (many things?) Carib - I admit I'm excited about that one. There's not much Caribbean representation on my Global Shopping Street. But most exciting of all - the exposure of fakes and the possibility of breaking news! Rice pretends like its a background player - but it's a drama grain. A savory ca...

American Rice - Voyage the First Some of the rice might have started from Asia, but all of it came directly from Africa. But which side - the West, or from Madagascar? How from Madagascar - isn't that all the way over on the east side? Yes to all of this. The who and the when - kindof - are all covered. And learn what a monocot is. You'll have to look up the spelling of cotyledon on your own. Oh w...

For more of Me & Jess talking about Spice Visit: https://theflakyfoodie.com/ Watch: https://youtu.be/K_2pZ3VhbwQ Listen: https://theflakyfoodie.com/2022/09/447/ For Juneteenth - https://theflakyfoodie.com/2022/08/19-juneteenth-365-with-nicole-a-taylor-watermelon-redbirds/ Grilled Cheese: https://theflakyfoodie.com/2022/09/21-grilled-cheese-restaurant-impossible-with-tim-of-the-melting-truck/ And F...

Beer! It's as American as apple pie. Or maybe its English? Or German? OK - Colonial Beer has a bit of an identity crisis. Can you call it beer if it doesn't even contain malted grain? Anyway spruce is the trendy thing - or hop tea? Anyway, there's not much dry hopping because the little buggers are expensive, the best way to get the most power out of them is to boil the dickens out of them... righ...