The History of American Food

This week we bust open the most United States of America food of all.
Cold Cereal
My research has lead me to this - Cold Cereal is the first thing that can be claimed as the first Original Food of the USA.
Pumpkin Pie... maybe?
Bacon Cheese Burger - I'll consider it.
Fried Chicken sandwich - my favorite contender.... but late.

Let's talk about how the conditions of colonial America lead to Tony the Tiger and Frosted Flakes.

But we aren't there yet.  Instead it is bad... but fast cereal.   

An important element essential to modern American food didn't happen until the end of the 19th century.  But as with so many of the other elements that are underpinnings of American food - it is not a food at all. Instead it is paper made of trees rather than paper made of cloth that has reached the end of it's life.

And once wood pulp paper becomes part of the scene - how food is transported, labeled and sold will never be the same.

Think about a world before you put could wrap meat in Butcher's P...

Hang in there ... and I'll be back.

Hopefully - some interesting posts on the Socials Media

Music Credit: Fingerlympics by Doctor Turtle

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Email: TheHistoryofAmericanFood at gmail dot com
Threads: @THoAFood
Instagram: @THoAFood
Show Notes: https://thehistoryofamericanfood.blogspot.com/
& some other socials... @THoAFood

This week we go back in time to learn about how we got paper.

It's been with us for a long time, but until the end of the 19th century it was mostly old clothes.

To find out what paper used to be and how we got to paper from trees - tune in.

Also - as promised... the links to the 
W.E.B. Du Bois self tour:

https://www.duboisnhs.org/great-barrington-walking-tour/


Music Credit: Fingerlympics by Doctor Turtle

Substack: https://t...

Wanna see bears?  goto Explore.org
See how many Alaskan canneries there where? Or see more about the Diamond NN Cannery?

Follow the links

And then listen in to the rise of canned fish in the late 19th century.  Instant protein you can take with you anywhere.  The cottage cheese of the 19th century - but no refrigeration needed.

But - being able to can every last oyster and slamon we could get our hands on had a cost - as well as a payoff.

Listen in to find out more 

Today's corn episode I am reminded that my intial question of do I include corn in my logo or not?  I made the correct decision.  Corn is there - but it's invisible - it helped feed the beef.  

Because this is the episode where corn changes from an obvious food to one that can be present anywhere.  With the advent of industrial milled corn starch we have entered the age when corn is as much chemical ingredient as it is food.

So iron your pinafore with starch and sit down to a miander through the past and l...

Sugar can reasonably be called "The White Stuff"

It makes us happy - and yet people are willing to abuse it, and commit crimes to make it happen.

The late 19th century is when America goes from eating a similar amount of sugar as the rest of the up and coming mechanical world - to becoming the greediest of all.
The combination of extending sugar plantations out into Cuba, Puerto Rico and now Hawai'i along with the rise of maufactured foods - expecially sweet treats is going to place America at the front of the...

This week is the start of a few shows on the bad mic.  And it is all my fault.
But "A" mic is still better than no show at all.
Let’s talk salt in late 19th century America.  It used to be all about food but isn’t any longer.  Listen along as we look out how the Industrial Revolution - especially around food - runs on salt.  And how the living away from the farm and shopping in the stores needs salt to happen at all.

Music Credit: Fingerlympics by Doctor Turtle

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This week I talk to 

Designers, Authors and Storytellers Paul van Ravestein and Monique Mulder about their book 
The Pickled CIty   Availible in Bookstores now!

We dive into the history, culture and importance of place of pickles.  I also learn a few things about why pickles are that way.  So listen in to this extra long bonus episode on Pickles, Salt and History

Music Credit: Fingerlympics by Doctor Turtle

Substack: https://thoafood.substack.com/
Email: TheHistoryofAmericanFood at gmail dot com
Threads: @THoAFood
Instagram: @THoAFood
Show Notes: https://thehist...

How did America become the land of Meat & Potatoes


I don't have all the answers yet - but I think I've found the well spring of the "& potatoes" portion.  I'm about to sneak up on the big answer to the meat.
But in the meantime, we look at whether you can have factory culture at the same time you pushing out a wild frontier - and what the potato has to do with it.

Side quests - the origin on the French Fry, the Potato Chip and Breakfast Hash - not to mention why d...

Po-tay-toes

Where are they from?  Why do we call them Irish?  Are they poisonous?  And what was the blight?  I answer all these questions and more - as well as providing you with a link to a really cool paper published about the origins of potatoes 9 Million Year Ago!

Cell September 2025 Full Text Article on the Origin of Potatoes

Cell Press Release on Potato Origins (less technical)

Music Credit: Fingerlympics by Doctor Turtle

Substack: https://thoafood.substack.com/
Email: TheHistoryofAmericanFood at gmail dot com
Threads: @THoAFood
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Iron is back and it has a bunch of new tricks up it sleeves.  Sure we still cook on it - but it's doing lots of other new things it has never done before.

And that is going to change the way we eat - because what food we get, and how much we have to work to prepare it, and how fast we - and the food can travel is going to upset everything.

So much of how long we think things should take is about to change in a big way.

Hop o...

Let's Go Season 6

(last season was way more dreary than I had thought)

All I can say is Ice Cream for Everyone - and let's road trip... Rail Trip?

The end of the 19th Century is exciting, colorful and yeah full of mistakes.  But we are Doing Things, Building Things and Going Places.

Let's Go.

Music Credit: Fingerlympics by Doctor Turtle

Substack: https://thoafood.substack.com/
Email: TheHistoryofAmericanFood at gmail dot com
Threads: @THoAFood
Instagram: @THoAFood
Show Notes: https://thehistoryofamericanfood.blogspot.com/
& some ot...

The LAST Civil War Episode becasue I'm writing this - and have decided that is ENOUGH Civil War.

And, yes I'm not happy about writing about war while there is a "we are pretending it's not a war" going on.  My poor brain has said enough.

That said - it's an interesting topic.  And despite how dire it is - things are actually better now than they used to be.  
Eat your veggies, brush your teeth, wash your hands.

The American Battle Field Trust article on Andersonville: Hell Hath a New Name

Every seasone needs a salt episode!  And here it is.  It's mainly about why the South was without salt - and how that meant they couldn't keep food around.  That is - if they had been making enough.  Which they were not.

This is also the last time I will blather on about the difference in railroad plans and how it helped back the Confeds into a corner they built themselves.


Don't invest in your people and pay attention to technology and you will be left behind.  Especially if you are attempting to run your littl...

How long has America been dealing with Opiod Epidemics?  If you said - since the 1860's you get a piece of Hardtack!

Yes - just as war came up with more destructive weapons, the medical profession came up with the hypodermic syringe.  While the ability to inject and extract things with this tool have been largely amazing, it also brought in the addictive rush of injected drugs.  And one of the first injected drugs was opium.
Even crazier than that was the fact the the US Government contracted with Chinese Immigrant farmers in Mexico to grow a lar...

Yeah yeah - why a Thanksgiving Episode in April?  Is this worse than Christmas in July?   
No, really, it makes sense.  Especially becasue during the Civil War, when everything was an Agrairain Society, Thanksgiving planning was on the mind in April (well prboobly earlier)

But follow along as to why Thanksgivng really came to National Attention during the Civil War either as something to get behind - or something to hate.
And - look you have to start raising your Turkey in the Spring if you want one in Novenber (April is actually probobly too late - ma...

In the Last Big War we threw in America we still had "Camp Followers" to do the laundry, the nursing and a good amount of the cooking (not to mention helping with loading guns).  And George Washington hated having these women around so much that Army practice - and new war philosophies got rid of most of them.  

But then, the American Civil War started producing injured guys in the 1000's.

Suddenly having women around to do nursing and laundry was important.  And they had to call the women back.  To be fair - they did it mo...

I am a producer on an Emmy Nominated Documentary.  
Check it out here:
Women's Work - The Untold Story of America's Female Farmers
The Emmy Nomination!!!!!

Why are military staffs so bad at predicting war length?  And when they do boy-oh-boy does that mean things are going to go poorly for the people in charge of planning food.  It goes even worse, when nobody on staff has cooked Gumbo for 80.

Come listen to all the pitfalls facing the people planning for war food in the middle of the the 1800's.

But also...

This week we get to look back at more of why War is Awful - and it's not JUST becasue of the food.  We also talk about why war food was predictably awful for everyone everywhere for approximately 5000 years.

Biology - and mainly the stupid microfauna of the Earth.

Understanding what war food was before the Civil War helps inform how such crazy supply errors and choices were made during the Civil War - and you can start to see how this is going to change war planning - and food system planning going forward.

This week canned food is the main character.  And it has the power to change the world, becaseu just like barrels of salted meat and ships biscuit - it's going to change how the fighting man (and the women along side) are fed.

Wild to think that Civil War logistical problems were key to sweetened condensed milk becoming part of the whole world.

Oh - and if you don't know what Vienetta was - or just want to relive the splendor, check this out.
Vienetta Advertisement

Music Credit: Fingerlympics by Doctor Turtle

Sure people complain about mashed potatoes made from potato flakes now - but dehydrated vegetables in their first iteration were far, far worse.

In fact some of the first mass quantities of dried vegetables prepared using forced hot air drying - and hydraulic pressing for more compact storage were produced for the civil war.  And boy were they nasty.  All the same - they were still better than what happed to you if you didn't eat any vegetables at all.
(And no - at this point there were no vitmin or fiber supplaments - you had to ge...

I'm Back and it's bread.

The American Civil War (the War of Rebellion is where suddenly we start really naming American Bread.

Sure yeah, hard bread is nothing new, but the Fast Bread of fast moving America starts to become a thing.  So in order to talk about the bread of the American Army... we have to do a roll call of American Bread.

So come find out how Civil War Bread is the most American Bread so far.

Music Credit: Fingerlympics by Doctor Turtle

Substack: https://thoafood.substack.com/

Welcome back to American Food!

Sorry about the big break, and even more sorry to be talking about war food ... during war.  Blech

But it is interesting, and my ever growing fascination with American Food and how it keeps embracing emerging technology is not let down.

So here we go.

Music Credit: Fingerlympics by Doctor Turtle

Substack: https://thoafood.substack.com/
Email: TheHistoryofAmericanFood at gmail dot com
Threads: @THoAFood
Instagram: @THoAFood
Show Notes: https://thehistoryofamericanfood.blogspot.com/
& some other socials... @THoAFood

I'm back and it's been so long.

Find out why!

Music Credit: Fingerlympics by Doctor Turtle

Substack: https://thoafood.substack.com/
Email: TheHistoryofAmericanFood at gmail dot com
Threads: @THoAFood
Instagram: @THoAFood
Show Notes: https://thehistoryofamericanfood.blogspot.com/
& some other socials... @THoAFood

It's been a little while since I put up this Tukey History Episode!

Since Thanksgiving Week is also Episode Week - why not throw this one in for fun?

Learn about the wild history of an American bird with a huge travel resume and names that all think it came from somewhere else.
Enjoy the name Chaos!


Music Credit: Fingerlympics by Doctor Turtle

Substack: https://thoafood.substack.com/
Email: TheHistoryofAmericanFood at gmail dot com
Threads: @THoAFood
Instagram: @THoAFood
Show Notes: https://thehistoryofamericanfood.blogspot.com/
& some o...

It's the last Episode of Season 4!

And I think I've finally answered one of my opening questions - why did America make our grocery stores the way we did? 
As soon as Americans could, we ignored the food on the ground (unless it was familiar like deer or duck or pigeon) and instead brought our own provisions.  

But when you do that, and don't develop local talent - the selection end up terribly limited.
So now in modern America - we seem to be attempting to make up for lost time... by making our gro...

So far America is pretty hostile to everyday hunting - but for some reason we keep adding categories.

And lets face it, for a country that keeps talking about how we don't need roaylty, we do seem to keep mimicking aritocrats.

the early 19th century loves some fox hunting - so much so that we imported foxes (even though there are plenty already here).  Hunting keeps happening everyday - but we like to say it's not cool.

Unless you are doing it for leisure... or to earn money.

Yes - the early 19t...

After years of no plates, not enough plates and just enough plates - you suddenly have access to many plates and pretty plates.  What's a hostess of fashion to do?

Obviously - upend the way food is served.  Obviously if you have access to more artificial light - you can make meals longer.  Especially on dark, chilly, wet nights when no one wants to be outside anyway.

Luckily - cookbooks are up to the challenge.  With all sorts of ideas of how to roll out this new style of multi-course dining.

So come check out...

Every wondered how we got into this fix of needing so many plates - or more specifically why you’re supposed to put a set of plates on a registry for a wedding that you are never gonna use?  Or at least why did people do that on the regular ,even just 20 years ago?
 
And now it means you have relatives that are trying to push off plates on to you that you never got to eat off as a kid - and now why in the world would you want to lug them around now?
 
For w...

As a child reader, I always thought it was so quaint that "dinner" was this old-timey word for lunch.  It was a "Dinner Pail"  - which was a crude Indian Tiffin - only 1 chamber - vs. a Lunch Box.

But I had never spent any tme thinking about why and how Dinner was the big meal of the day, and supper was toast dipped in cooling stew.

Until I thought about it in terms of cooking in the dark.  When the sun goes down at 4:25 pm, why was anyone making all manner of food they can't see...