I think I neglected to mention that I finally got my hands on a copy of Michael Pollan’s Omnivore’s Dilemma. Although I am now half way through it, I was only a few pages into the intro when I knew I would love it. This was all due to the comment below:
As a relatively new nation drawn from many different immigrant populations,
each with its own food, Americans have never had a single, strong, stable
culinary tradition to guide us.
The moment I read it I wanted to exclaim, “Yes, that is exactly what I had been thinking!”
If you are from the US (or even if you aren’t) have you ever thought about this issue? It is one of those things that really came to the forefront for me when I moved abroad. The US doesn’t have a traditional claim-to-fame food. We try to say foods such as hamburgers and fries or apple pie, but the truth is most of those things can be traced back to European countries.
There are some things here and there, but none of them really stand out and say US. You know, like Brazil and feijoada, Ireland and shepherd’s pie, Germany and sausages, France and bouillabaisse, Japan and sushi. The list could go on and on, and the truth is many of these countries have multiple dishes that hold some portion of their identity.
The main reason this issue comes to mind as a traveler and ex-pat is that many of us go to other countries to experience the food. Then we have conversations with those of that country about coming to the US. If you’ve ever had a discussion like this you know where the food conversation goes.
Yep, you guessed it – fast food.
Around here, people go on and on about all the fast food places we have in the US. This always makes me cringe. It is downright embarrassing. Is this really what we are known for in the world of food? Unfortunately, to many people, yes.
I live in a smaller city in Brazil and every year they have a world food fair. At this event there are booths that serve foods typical to other parts of Brazil and other countries of the world. Want to know what they have in the US booth?
Hotdogs.
And people are lined up for these every night. It is a foot long hot dog bar. You get to choose the toppings of your choice.
At first sight of this I was pretty disgusted. I mean, I love a good hot dog at a cookout or better yet a Chicago style dog, but, once more I ask, is this really what we are known for?
Then again, when I tried to think of a substitute nothing came to mind. It was when I read that statement by Michael Pollan that I realized that we really don’t have a food.
That isn’t too say we don’t have great food. Our melting pot is brimming over with delicious eats, but when you get to the core of things nothing stands out as ours.
As the book somewhat suggestions this is what might lead to our unrealistic accusations that come out about once every few years identifying a certain food as an enemy – white rice, pasta, potatoes. I can only imagine what other cultures think of our damning these real foods they see as staples. Not to mention the fact that we feel these foods are killing us and the countries who regularly consume them seem to be happy and healthy without problem.
So what do you think of this issue? Is there a food out there I am missing?
Does our lack of a food of our own make us who we are as a melting pot or is it hurting our ideals regarding healthy eating?
OH, I don’t know. I think that while we don’t have a food that speaks to the whole country, we do have regional foods that are very American. Louisiana comes to mind (having lived there for a short while). Gumbo, jambalaya, etouffee all strike me as uniquely American.
I think that you have to look to regional foods to find what is truly American. If you look at the nation as a whole, you’re right, all you’ll come up is fast food type things!
Interesting as always, Lori!
Yes, we definitely have some regional dishes. I guess I contribute a lot of New Orleans culture to its African and French roots.
I also thought of soul food in the south, but again, only regional. Where as a dish like feijoada and shepherd’s pie is known throughout the country. It’s definitely got me thinking. Can’t wait to see more comments.
There is so much tied up in this, I wouldn’t know where to begin!
I’ll admit that the first thing that springs to mind when I think of food in the US not the food per se but the often out-sized portions. I do also tend to think of McDonalds et al as intrinsically American, as well as the whole diner style of eating (Dennys and the like).
I used to live in California so I know that there is also a fantastic range of ethnic foods to be had, but I guess I don’t think of it as intrinsically American (even though some “ethnic” dishes are really more American than they appear – corned-beef and cabbage is not so much Irish as Irish-American).
Does all of this contribute to an unhealthy approach to healthy eating? Hmmm. Maybe it’s that tendency to excess – the view that everything is bigger/better/faster Stateside – and that relentless push for “progress” that, at least in part, lead to things like the development of fast food. Would the existence of a strong culinary
tradition have made things any different? Hard to say… Maybe. I can’t decide. I’m going to have to get the Omnivore’s Dilemma and read some of that for myself!
This is a tough, thought-provoking question! I also can’t bring to mind a specific dish that most everyone would agree is representative of America (unlike the examples you mention). Does this, perhaps, reflect, our fierce sense of individuality? After all, how many other nations’ citizens refer to themselves in hyphens? Asian-American, African-American, Latino-American, etc. (and I’m not mentioning specific nationalities i.e. Filipina-American). For all that we tout a melting pot, we still seem intent on differentiating ourselves from our neighbors. Surely that has an effect on identifying a national food if we can’t always accept a national identity.
that’s definitely an interesting quote. being from such a traditional italian family, i have always associated american food with the new foods italians have developed since immigrating here. but you’re right – so many of our foods are burgers and hotdogs. i think there are some great local sustainable foods trying to rework the image of american food, and using some delicious flavors to do something a little better than homer food 😉
Three easy things explain why the US doesn’t have its own food: 1) its young age, 2) it’s extraordinarily high percentage of immigrants, and 3) it’s vast size.
A country only a couple hundred years old, with 95% of its population from other countries, and spread out over 3.7 million square miles is going to have an extremely difficult time coming up with a single, representative dish. Sure, Germany has sausages. But they’ve had a lot longer to work on that and it’s only about 1/30th the size of the US.
I think our regional dishes may just have to fit the bill, as each US region itself is the size of a large country. And while most of them can trace their roots back to other countries, you can probably trace every “native” dish back somewhere else. Italians are known for pasta. But didn’t the Chinese come up with that a thousand years earlier? 🙂
That said, about the only thing that springs to mind as a uniquely American dish (and that isn’t fast food) is BBQ.
Daily Spud – Very interesting to bring up our Americanized version of ethnic foods. We tend to do that a lot! 🙂 Definitely get the book. It has opened my eyes to a lot of things about the food chain in the US. Not sure how much of it would translate to Ireland, but a great read.
TN – Great point about us not being able to accept a national identity. This is probably part of it. We do try hard to be different.
Heather – You’re right. Maybe it is just going to take more time.
Charlie – We certainly are babies compared to other countries. Hmmm…I hadn’t thought of our version of BBQ. While they have it in South American countries it is of course nothing like ours. That’s a good one. Regional, but not as much as something like New Orleans cajun.
And if it is regional, it’s a big region: from the Carolinas to Texas to Kansas City and Memphis in between. That’s at least a good third of the country. And many more cities offer it still.
And it’s true that every culture has smoked and cooked animals at one point or another, there’s something unique about the American approach.
Americans are (except Native Americans), by their very nature, from somewhere else…so I guess it makes sense that the lineage of our foods comes from somewhere else.
Many countries “export” their food as an extension of their culture…almost like a marketing tactic. Pizza – synonymous with Italy actually comes from Napoli and 150, even 100 years ago was not widely eaten outside of that region.
With a country so huge as America, spanning multiple time zones, between two huge oceans, and geography from glacial Alaskan mountains to Death Valley it’s hard to find something that isn’t regional – but these regions are huge and bigger than many countries. Traditional foods stem from what can be grown in a certain region – salmon something or other could be “Alaskan” and peach something or other could be from “the South” but it could never be the other way around.
Great post – getting us all thinking!
gastroanthro – I definitely think our size has a big influence. We almost stand out more because we don’t have a staple food. I’m not sure how it influences our health. I just hate to see it when other countries always associate us with fast food. 🙁 Interesting point about exporting food as a marketing tactic. I think that is true as well.
Well, the thing with the fast food is it’s everywhere. It’s easier, from the outside, to point to the food found every four hundred yards than something regional or ‘native’. It just naturally rises to the top due to its ubiquity. We may not like it, but that’s the reality.
The Americans may have “invented” fast food, but if you eat it you can’t knock it. I see hundreds of people near my local McDonalds in London and they are often Brits and often the first to complain about America-this or America-that. There are also healthy and cheap options right next door to this McD’s so its not like its the only option.
Lori – I totally agree. America is a lot more than just fast food. We also led in many other aspects like organics and CSAs and many other good things. Also, I’ve also realized that nearly all (not just food and sustainability) innovation comes from America.
gastro – It is the same here where we are in Brazil. They may complain about us, but the line to McDonald’s wraps around the block almost every night.
You are so right about innovation. I think it takes living out of the country or traveling abroad a lot to appreciate how truly cutting edge we are. It has it’s positives and negatives depending on the topic, but it is something to be appreciated for sure.