The Global Kitchen

The Western cuisine and The North America cooking influences

What is Western Cuisine? this is for sure a hard question to answer, since food is always cross with culture and that means diversity. We can give different answers to our main question, on one hand we can say that is related with the strong influence of French Cuisine that made rules about cooking with the Auguste Escoffier’s modernization of classical French cooking techniques. On the other hand, we also can say that is related with main ingredient, flavors and spices this part of the world uses (pasta, mother sauces, meats, plating, salt and pepper, etc). At the same time, many countries in the Western have some of this influences but other are stronger, like the case of Latin American countries cuisines that are mixed with local tradition, like the Mexican mole or the Japanese influences in Peru that blend with local ingredients and are far from French tradition, the corn as main ingredient in many dishes (something no so common in Europe). So everything depends from which point we are starting from. If we look at Europe, yes, French cuisine is dominant, Italy and Spain following. In America the thing is more mixed, there are European influences blended with local traditions so it is hardest to talk about a Western cuisine from the European aspect in a full meaning.

A particular case in the Western, is how North America cooking ways evolved. It is common to hear that North American does not own a cuisine, that there is not such a thing. However, that statement is not fair. Yes, it is clear that North America adopted eagerly cuisines from other parts of the world since the immigration was an element that shaped this region. It is easy to get food of Asian, Latin American, European, African style, etc. and this reflects the history of this part of the world, a region shaped for the mix of many other cultures; an event that is not common in other countries. So it is unjust to say that North America cuisine does nor exist at all. Exist, but in their own way, and we have to remember that food is culture, and where there is a society it will be an identity that make any element, like food, different from others; even if they adopted foreign cuisines, they will make that their own.

Another thing that is unique about North America food is how they industrialize it. Fast food chains originated in this part of the world and it is undeniable that is a complete success in almost every country nowadays. This phenomenon is the result of the fast industrialization that United States went through, and food was not bypassed. Society also changed their ways, "A new urban class clamored for convenient, modern meals and the freshness of regional cuisine disappeared, replaced by packaged and standardized products—such as canned peas, baloney, sliced white bread, and jarred baby food (Freedman, P. 2019)"

A little about French cuisine history

During the Middle Ages, French cuisine did not have any distinction over other European traditions. Mainly, they followed the Moorish style, famous in that time, this means that dishes "were availed in a manner called service en confusion, meaning that meals were served at the same time. Meals comprised of spiced meats, for example, pork, poultry, beef, and fish. (Brown, L.,2020). Also, dishes were related and tied to the season and the preserving of the meats with salt or smoked, and even vegetables, like

cabbage, were salted and stored in jugs for months. We have to consider, as well, that farming in Middle Ages were not productive and the availability of food were limited for different reasons, like bad crops, hard winters and the constant plagues and wars. 

Everything changed in the Renaissance, when Catherine de' Medici married the future King of France, Henry duc d'Orleans and brought with her a entire staff of Italian cooks that changed for ever the French cuisine. Nowadays, "the culinary cultures of these two nations have taken distinctive ways, however, the French owe a lot of their culinary advancement to the Italians and their intervention in the 1500s. (Brown, L.,2020)". Then, during the Ancien Regime  French cuisine organize according to guilds, "individuals who provided the raw materials to make food, and the general population who sold already prepared food. The restriction set up by societies hampered the advancement of culinary arts during this time, by limiting certain gourmet experts to allotted territories (Brown, L.,2020)"

During the 17th and 18th centuries French cuisine evolved to a more professional activity with La Varenne and his book "Le cuisinier françois" focused in less extravagant dishes, and concentrated more on ingredients and techniques. In the next century, Auguste Escoffier brought renewal to the French cuisine, with new techniques and formulas inspired in another cooking pioneer, Marine-Antonie Carême. The popular mise en place that any new culinary student learn nowadays, came from that renewal. After that, French cuisine left a mark and tradition that continues until our days and that are consider basic and fundamental for any chef, at least, mainly in the Western. 

The two aspects of globalization in cooking 

What is globalization?  In few words, "globalization is the spread of products, technology, information, and jobs across national borders and cultures. In economic terms, it describes an interdependence of nations around the globe fostered through free trade (Jason, F. 2022, January 1)". Cooking is not immune to this phenomenon and through this, ethnic cuisines are not well-known around the world. Among the most popular we have:

This way to know other types and styles of cuisines is positive because enrich our way to know food, through new flavors, aromas and ingredients, broadening our horizons. However, globalization related with food also have a dark face. This phenomenon also brought an industrialization of food, that not only contaminates and pollute soils in negative farming practices, also has created an unfair competence for local farmers and producer that cannot compete against big corporations. The demand of certain local products, "like the increasing demand for quinoa, avocado and many other so-called super-foods largely attributed to increased consumer health consciousness in Europe and North America has made these foods too expensive for locals (New Food. 2017, November 6)". Large extensions that decades before grew food for locals, now it is the property of  companies that farm GMO that harm local ecosystems and rise the food prices, making hard for locals to have their food at a fair price.

The industrialization of food, cheap meals for microwave, instant soups, fast food chains, and to much sugar and sodium in processed foods had created bad habits among the population, and now issues like obesity, hypertension and diabetes is a common thing. It is incredible that for our grandparents generation whole foods were normal, and now it is a new "trend" that also has been taken for large food companies to sell "natural"products (they are not) and remain in the market, scamming people. 

In conclusion, globalization is a reality today, and something that  is here to stay. It is undeniable that all this process has many positive things, however the negative aspects are something to be worried about and must be faced and changed to create fairness in how we eat, and how we get food, how we grow it, and in that process do not destroy our environment. Food is not a privilege, is a right for everybody.

 

Sources

Brown, T. (2021, November 23). United States Food Culture: 9 Dishes to Try in America. Journeying The Globe. https://www.jtgtravel.com/north-america/usa/united-states-food-culture/

 

Brown, L. (2020). A Brief History of French Cuisine. ECPI. https://www.ecpi.edu/blog/a-brief-history-of-french-cuisine

 

 Freedman, P. (2019). American Cuisine And How It Got That Way | Department of History. Yale University. https://history.yale.edu/publications/american-cuisine-and-how-it-got-way

 

Jason, F. (2022, January 1). Understanding Globalization. Investopedia. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/g/globalization.asp

 

 Hodge, C. (2020, November 27). A short history of American food (whatever that is). CNN. https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/what-is-american-food-history/index.html

 

International Cuisine. (2020). [Illustration]. Dreams Time. https://www.dreamstime.com/world-cuisines-dish-collection-set-isolated-images-served-fastfood-gourmet-dishes-editable-text-captions-vector-image240451572

 

Li, Z. (2021, May 15). Which country has the best food? CNN. https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/world-best-food-cultures/index.html 

 

New Food. (2017, November 6). Is globalisation good for food? New Food Magazine. https://www.newfoodmagazine.com/article/40883/globalisation-food/

 

Timetoast. (1921, September 13). Fast food history timeline. Timetoast Timelines. https://www.timetoast.com/timelines/fast-food-history

 

Writter, S. (2020, March 28). What Is Western Cuisine? Reference.Com. https://www.reference.com/world-view/western-cuisine-a941f700572fea94