Research Essay

Louisiana: The Melting Pot of Cuisine

As Hill and Barclay has stated in their article “Acadian to Cajun,” Most people associate blackened, heavily seasoned, and a seafood predominant dish with Louisiana cuisine and this is because somewhere in the search for new dishes to serve overzealous tourist, the translation for traditional Cajun or Creole cuisine was lost.  Louisiana is one of the most diverse areas in America, in more ways than its unique history.  Many would argue that Louisiana’s cuisine is the way it is today because of its complex history, but this isn’t the only thing that contributed to this diverse ingredient cabinet.  It is true that Louisiana has had many occupants over the years and each occupant has had something different to offer to the table, building to the cuisine that is used today, but because of the near tropical climate, many vegetables and spices grow with ease.  Louisiana is very different from the rest of America in a sense that the tradition and scenery are different and the differences are even shown in the cuisine.  Many dishes that are made and spices that are used serve a purpose, such as, preserving the food to last longer in the warm and humid climate.  The climate and location has had just as much to offer to the table as the history does.  From the beginning Louisiana was bound to be a different and amazing place.

Many cultures influence the cuisine of Louisiana, such as, French, Spanish, African, Irish, German, Acadian, Italian, and Caribbean.  Each of these nationalities brought a new ingredient to the table and each came to Louisiana by boat, arriving in the Gulf of Mexico to the shores of Louisiana.  Before the seventeenth century, the Native Americans would hunt and harvest the land, reaping the benefits and various ingredients and game from the woods, bayou, and the sky.  3,500 years later, in 1682, Rene- Robert Cavelier, Sieur de la Salle, sails down the Mississippi River and claims the territory and named it Louisiana after Louis the XIV of France.  During the seventeenth century the French settlers learned to improvise their cooking from home based off of the ingredients that were available.  Roux, which is slowly cooked fat and flour, is a classical French technique that is still used today.   In the early years of the eighteenth century, slaves were introduced to land to work on plantations.  The slaves brought hot peppers, coffee, yams, melons, and okra with them.  The French settlers, at first tried to eradicate all African influence from the cuisine, but were then captives to the flavors of these ingredients and the quality it brought to the dishes.  In the 1720’s German, Italian, and Irish settlers came to Louisiana, bringing black pepper, sausage, tomato based sauces, garlic, delicately crafted cream based sauces, and potatoes with them.  In 1762, after the Treaty of Paris was signed the French gave Louisiana to the Spaniards.  The influences that they brought with them were seafood and rice predominant dishes.  By this time period the cabinet of most settlers housed more exotic ingredients than ever before.  As Hill and Barclay state in their article “From Acadian to Cajun,” The average household kitchen was stocked with bell peppers, celery, garlic, mushrooms, onions (especially green onions, often called shallots), cane syrup, honey, arugula, bay leaves, horseradish, oregano, garlic, parsley, collard greens, mustard greens, turnips, basil, rosemary, thyme, Andouille sausage, black pepper, potatoes, yams, okra, rice, fish, cinnamon, cloves, paprika, nutmeg, and a variety of other fresh spices.  Many of the inhabitants of Louisiana found that they never needed to use dried spices because many of the spices could be easily grown in a small herb garden and fresh spices gave a more fragrant and flavorful aspect to the dish.  Most recipes call for something called the “holy trinity,” which is a little bundle of bell peppers, celery, and green onions.  These vegetables give off an amazing smell and a harmony of subtle flavors in many soups, boils, and roast.

When it comes to Louisiana’s cuisine, there two very important terms that appear quite often, Creole and Cajun, these are two similar, yet still different styles of cooking.  Marcelle Bienvenu, Carl A. Brasseaux, and Ryan A. Brasseaux’s article “Stir the Pot: The History of Cajun Cuisine” and Connie Eble’s article titled “Creole in Louisiana” separates the difference between the two terms.  Cajun is term used to describe settlers of Acadian descent.  In1765, Acadians were chased out of Nova Scotia by the British and they fled to Louisiana in hopes finding a safe place with the French settlers.  Unfortunately, the Spanish rule had taken over Louisiana, but the welcomed the Acadians with open arms and the Acadians settled to the country side.  Cajun cooking is considered to be more homey and country style cooking.  Meals are made with fresh game and easily attainable ingredients and they are easily prepared and are made to last longer in the warm and humid climate.  On the other hand, Creole is a term used to describe dignified settlers of European descent and the name is also bared to their servants and slaves.  Many slaves found the term incredibly insulting, until they were told that the term means “to be born in the New World.”  Many settlers who considered themselves as Creole lived in the cities and have a more refined taste.  Their ingredient cabinet housed more exotic ingredients, such as, tomatoes and they loved their delicately seasoned sauces. An easy way to tell the difference between Creole and Cajun dishes is to check for exotic ingredients and to see how long and difficult it is to prepare the meal.  For instance both styles of cooking have a recipe for Jambalaya.  My family makes Jambalaya and we always uses tomatoes, lemons, and an extensive list of ingredients and it takes a few hours to prepare this dish, therefore the recipe is a Creole recipe. 

Louisiana’s cuisine has always been well seasoned, but today most people think of blackened meat, heavily seasoned with black pepper, cayenne pepper, and Tabasco sauce or many rely on the fast food chain named “Popeye’s” be an accurate representation of Cajun food.  It would be absolutely ludicrous to rely on a fast food chain to accurately represent Cajun food because Cajun food takes a while to prepare and could not be accurately displayed as fast food.  Traditional food of Louisiana has changed to meet the needs of busy tourist and to become a franchise.  Even though the cuisine has changed through the years, many traditions remain the same, as proven by Kevin McCaffrey in his documentary of the traditions that are still used today.  Many of those who live in Louisiana still hunt for dinner, whether they catch a catfish or a squirrel, more times than not, they are going to incorporate their catch into dinner.  Many dishes are one pot dishes, such as, Jambalaya and Gumbo, where all of the ingredients are tossed into one pot and that is all that’s used.  It is considered family tradition to use cast iron pots and pans that are passed from one generation to the next.  Families still believe in catching dinner that day and making dinner happen with the ingredients they have on hand, while still being a part of the community and celebrating the culture. 

Louisiana’s music, dialect, and cuisine can be easily considered a microcosm of the United States of America because the music, dialect, and cuisine are a blending of many cultures.  The music is such a unique mixture of culture that it has its own genre and the dialect is very different from that of the rest of America.  This is what makes Louisiana different from any other state. Even though America is seen as a melting pot, Louisiana is impressive more so, simply because the is much more culture in a much smaller space.  In this small place, there are many different landscapes, such as, the bayou. The bayou is unlike any other place on earth.  The climate is even different than many other places. It is very hot and humid, but there are still subtle weather changes in the different seasons.  Louisiana is a prime example of the benefit of combining cultures.  The history and the cultures played a big part in shaping the cuisine, but Louisiana was going to always be a great place from the beginning, simply because it is in an optimal location and provides many habitats for a various number of plants and animals.  Louisiana is the birthing place of Creole and Cajun cooking styles and these styles of cooking are unique and versatile, like the settlers that came before us and the state itself. There is no other place like Louisiana and there are no other dishes like the ones served there.

Works Cited

Barclay, Gwen, and Hill, Madalene. "From Acadian To Cajun." The Herbarist 74 (2008): 68-73. Academic Search Complete. JSTOR Web. 23 Sept. 2014.

Bienvenu, Marcelle, Carl A. Brasseaux, and Ryan A. Brasseaux. Stir the Pot: The History of Cajun Cuisine. New York: Hippocrene, 2005. Google Scholar Web. 27 Octo. 2014

Eble, Connie “Creole in Louisiana.” 73.2 pp. 39-53 South Atlantic Modern Language Association (Spring, 2008) JSTOR Web. 29 Octo. 2014

Leistner, Colette Guidry. French and Acadian Influences upon the Cajun Cuisine of Southwest Louisiana. 1986. Google Scholar Web. 29 Octo. 2014

McCaffrey, Kevin.  No One Went Hungry: Cajun Food Traditions Today. Vimeo. 2009. Web. 1 Nov. 2014.