American Cuisine

Seafood in the United States originated with the Native Americans, who often ate cod, lemon sole, flounder, herring, halibut, sturgeon, smelt, drum on the East Coast, and olachen and salmon on the West Coast. 

Early Native Americans utilized a number of cooking methods in early American Cuisine that have been blended with early European cooking methods to form the basis of American Cuisine.Grilling meats was common. Spit roasting over a pit fire was common as well. Vegetables, especially root vegetables were often cooked directly in the ashes of the fire.

The colonists were able to establish themselves in the American colonies with a cuisine similar to their previous British cuisine. There were some exceptions to the diet, such as local vegetation and animals, but the colonists attempted to use these items in the same fashion as they had their equivalents or ignore them entirely if they could. The American colonial diet varied depending on the settled region in which someone lived.  Much of the northern colonists depended upon the ability either of themselves to hunt, or for others from which they could purchase game. This was the preferred method for protein consumption over animal husbandry, as it required much more work to defend the kept animals against Native Americans or the French.

In comparison to the northern colonies, the southern colonies were quite diverse in their agricultural diet. The uplands and the lowlands made up the two main parts of the southern colonies. The diet of the uplands often included cabbage, string beans, white potatoes, while most avoided sweet potatoes and peanuts. The lowlands included a varied diet heavily influenced by Africans and Caribbeans As such, rice played a large part of the diet while the grain for the rest of the souther was cornmeal used in breads and porridges. In addition, unlike the uplands, the lowlands subsistence of protein came mostly from coastal seafood and game meats.

Some dishes that are typically considered American have their origins in other countries. American cooks and chefs have substantially altered these dishes over the years, to the degree that the dishes now enjoyed around the world are considered to be American. Hot dogs and hamburgers are both based on traditional German dishes, but in their modern popular form they can be reasonably considered American dishes.

During the 18th and 19th centuries, Americans developed many new foods. Some spread throughout the nation but with little international appeal, such as peanut butter and some spread throughout the world, such as the cookie, popcorn, Coca-Cola and its competitors, fried chicken, cornbread, muffins, and brownies.