#food-history

#food-history

They can often be the backbone of food culture and cuisines, but as culture evolves, so too do our condiments. Some condiments are made with new techniques or recipes, or incorporate new ingredients, while others disappear completely. Either way, a look back at some of the condiments we don't see everywhere anymore, including the ones we grew up with or that our parents remember, can offer a fascinating glimpse into this evolution.

While both spaghetti and meatballs are quintessential Italian dishes, they aren't traditionally served together in Italy. The combination of meatballs, called polpette, with tomato sauce and spaghetti stems from an influx of Italians immigrating to the United States in the late 1800s and early 1900s, where they found meat to be much more affordable and began to use it more liberally in their cooking.

On a cold fall or winter's day, nothing warms up your insides like a hot bowl of soup or stew, served with lots of crusty bread and plenty of butter. For some, only chicken noodle soup will do, while others prefer minestrone, Italian sausage, or French onion. But it would be very unlikely that today, anyone would reach for, say, a steaming-hot bowl of turtle soup or a dish of Hoover stew.

How vitamin C and oranges became synonymous is part biology, part history, and part marketing. Sailors in the age of exploration carried citrus to ward off scurvy, vitamin C deficiency often decimated crews on board. Centuries later, American orange growers in the early 20th century faced mountains of surplus fruit and turned to advertising, positioning orange juice as the modern breakfast drink. That campaign, paired with the discovery of vitamins, cemented oranges as the cultural symbol for staying well.

Maple syrup is a sweetener made from the sap of maple trees, primarily sugar maples, by boiling the sap to concentrate the sugar. According to the Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America, Native Americans are generally thought to have been the first to tap maple trees and to turn the sap into syrup. The sap is less than 3% sugar; 32 to 40 gallons of sap boil down to just one gallon of syrup.

When Americans think of British food, they may think of fish and chips, shepherd's pie, or the full English breakfast. These are indeed classics, but the depth of British cuisine goes much further. As a Brit, I've grown up with these foods being a part of everyday life. It's easy to forget that dishes commonly known to you can be barely known anywhere else. This is why I wanted to create a list of U.K. dishes that fly under the radar.

My 18-month-old grandson doesn't have the biggest vocabulary, but like most toddlers, he makes what he wants known pretty clearly. That's especially true when it comes to his favorite foods, which these days is pretty much anything he can stuff into his mouth unassisted. His most practiced phrase is "Eat, eat!" followed by a gesture he learned at daycare - tapping his thumbs and fingers together in a flat "O" to make the American Sign Language sign for "more."

When you think of treats from Japan, you may think of a few different snacks, such as matcha, dango, and mochi ice cream. Surprisingly, however, the latter does not trace its roots back to Japan. While mochi is from Japan and can be traced back to ancient times, mochi ice cream is a different treat with a much more recent date of origin, only being introduced to the American public in the 1990s.

Stracciatella gelato, invented by Enrico Panattoni in 1961, features fine strips of hardened chocolate and is loved for its crunchy yet smooth texture.

In 1937, Kraft boxed macaroni and cheese was born, marketed as an affordable meal option during the Great Depression. Each box cost nineteen cents.

Tomato aspic, a savory Jell-O mold made from tomato juice and gelatin, was a popular mid-century dish served as a salad or side at various gatherings.

Fig Newtons are soft-baked cookies with a filling of fig jam, providing a less sweet but satisfying snack. While divisive in opinion, they have been enjoyed for over a century.

Dr. John Cook Bennett changed public perception of tomatoes in the 1830s by promoting them as medicine and selling 'tomato pills' that contained little actual tomato.

Egg wine and diseased animals were part of the Victorian diet, often due to necessity, but dishes like treacle tart and cucumber sandwiches remain popular today.

Order a cod double-header at this date-night Portuguese spot, dunking the former (fritters) into saffron mayonnaise before diving into the main course, plated with a crispy potato cake in a flavorful chouriço-studded caldo verde.

The middle of the century was not kind to American cooking, or at least, we haven't been kind looking back on these old-school dishes. The popular dishes of the '50s and '60s now mostly have a bad reputation, usually for embracing modern canned, powdered, and frozen ingredients that forewent freshness and flavor for affordability and convenience.

"A sardine fork is used to neatly remove tinned fish from the can and put it on the plate. No more shredding the fragile fish before it makes it out of the packaging."

The Philly cheesesteak started as a pile of chopped steak, salt, pepper and onions on a roll until Cocky Joe added cheese, starting a distinct sandwich culture.

Croquettes were a way of saving money, as the main ingredient could be stretched with bread crumbs, onion, celery, or other items.

Caribe is more than a recipe book; it is a tribute to family, history, and migration, revealing the connections between Caribbean dishes and their origins.

Elvis Presley's affinity for comfort food, particularly his favorite sandwiches, revealed his deep connection to home and indulgence, highlighting his love for hearty, flavorful dishes.

To determine the list of frozen burgers we'd test, we combed through Reddit threads, YouTube reviews, and other tastings to determine which brands should be on our list.

In 1901, New York Journal cartoonist Tad Dorgan heard vendors selling 'red hot' dachshund sausages at a polo match, which may have led to the term 'hot dog'.

Wendy's Frosty, created by Fred Kappus in 1969, is neither ice cream nor milkshake, but a beloved frozen treat selling 300 million annually.

The exact blend of cheeses can be subjective and sometimes mysterious, which is why expert input is valuable for crafting the perfect queso dip.

The grilled cheese sandwich has no single birthplace; its history spans across centuries and continents, evolving from ancient Roman cheese sandwiches to American favorites.

Carnation Breakfast Bars, launched in 1975, became a nostalgic favorite for foodies, offering a convenient and delicious meal replacement reminiscent of childhood.