The History of American Food

Margaret Hardin

Starting with the first English settlements in the 17th Century, this podcasts traces how we went from barrels of salted meat & peas to Korean bbq tacos and the largest grocery store selections ever seen anywhere in the world. We'll go everywhere - and it is full of surprises.

Show Notes: https://thehistoryofamericanfood.blogspot.com/
Email: TheHistoryofAmericanFood@gmail.com
Internets: @THoAFood

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221 episodes
Updated July 24

Episodes221

Newest first

Aug 17, 2021 · 19 min
018 Milk - New, Clabber, Sour & Cream
Did you know milk fresh from the cow is 101F/38C ? That's right, a "cold glass of milk" wasn't really a thing in 17th Century Colonial America. But people still drank or supped on liquid dairy. Find out how - and learn about the most cow to table...
Aug 3, 2021 · 29 min
017 Beef - It's Almost Never for Dinner
I finally did it - I've covered all the thingies in my logo! Beef, Sugar and Iron (though that cowboy coffee pot will remain empty until the 18th Century). 17th Century beef did not come in steaks - rather gobbets and slices, or reconstituted from...
Jul 21, 2021 · 26 min
016 The American Cow - Origin Story
Another reason for America at all... Cows. Arable England was all out of room - and there were lots of casks of salt beef the Navy needed to buy. So, go grow cows in the New World! This episode looks at just what a cow is, and how they got to...
Jul 7, 2021 · 23 min
015 Pickles, Pie, Pottage & Stew - Meet the Rest of the Vegetable Crew
Digging out the rest of the vegetables our 17th Century pre-Americans were eating. But really showing how vegetables are involved in the North-South rift, and just how early that started. While it was partly the weather, it turns out religion,...
Jun 23, 2021 · 21 min
014 Pumpkins and Squash - What's the Difference?
How and why the 17th century colonists made a distinction between pumpkin and squash. One was good and the other bad. Spoiler alert - those Puritan Pilgrims had some ideas about bright colors and what made a loose woman. Music Credit: Fingerlympics...
Jun 9, 2021 · 23 min
013 Legumes - Old World & New
Pease/Peas and Beans and the other ones. Unglamorous, but dependable, legumes have been with humans for a long time. Untangling Old World & New World beans, and why you never eat New World Beans raw. Music Credit: Fingerlympics by Doctor Turtle...
May 26, 2021 · 25 min
012 Herbs, Flowers & Berries - Not Worth a Thing
We love our perishables now, but they were both welcome and considered worthless in the 17th Century. Is that dandelion food or medicine? What about that mulberry? Music Credit: Fingerlympics by Doctor Turtle Show Notes:...
May 19, 2021 · 28 min
011 Mercantilism - Do You Want Pirates?
There are other things that cause pirates, but restrictive shipping rules, navigation acts and tariffs - enforced from over 8 weeks away definitely causes pirates. Music Credit: Fingerlympics by Doctor Turtle Show Notes:...
May 17, 2021 · 26 min
010.5 Bonus - Extra Salt
A chemistry tangent on salt - 17th Century Style Music Credit: Fingerlympics by Doctor Turtle Show Notes: https://thehistoryofamericanfood.blogspot.com/ Email: TheHistoryofAmericanFood@gmail.com Twitter: @THOAFood
May 12, 2021 · 23 min
010 Salt - Saving Food for Later
How salty was 17th Century American food? Very, very salty. The fridge of the age. I'll talk about how the salt was made and used and why salt went industrial in the 17th century. Show Notes: https://thehistoryofamericanfood.blogspot.com/ Email:...
May 5, 2021 · 23 min
009 Salt - A Solid Foundation
Can't live without it... wouldn't want to live without it. So the development of industry, tax, and cuisine are all tied up here with salt. Listen up for history, more trivia, and one way global silver and salt are BFF's. Show Notes:...
Apr 28, 2021 · 25 min
008 Fish - Cod and Some Other Things
How important was 17th Century fish? And how did people keep and prepare fish when there was no refrigeration? Show Notes: https://thehistoryofamericanfood.blogspot.com/ Email: TheHistoryofAmericanFood@gmail.com Twitter: @THOAFood Podcast Music:...
Apr 21, 2021 · 25 min
007 Corn - Is Life
Corn really is how 17th Century colonists either just didn't die - or made fortunes. There are 3 different versions depending on if you were in New England, the Mid-Atlantic or the South. For all three groups Corn was Life. Show Notes:...
Apr 14, 2021 · 24 min
006 Corn - The Journey of Maize
Corn has come a long way from that little grass, teosinte, near Oaxaca State, Mexico. Where did it go on its travels, and how the heck did it get, not just to the east coast, but all over the world? Show Notes:...
Apr 7, 2021 · 25 min
005 $ugar - Let's Make Some Money. Oh, And a Little Dessert
Sugar changed the world in the 17th Century. It became a way to make lots of money - and changed the map of North America. The changes to food will take a little while, but the seeds are planted in kitchen and in trade. Show Notes:...
Apr 2, 2021 · 11 min
004.5 Bonus - Humorism & Solidism
Here's where I didn't go in the Sugar History episode. This shows the bones of how medical thinking worked until germ theory got off the ground in the 19th Century. These ideas will return in each century. I don't go deep down the hole, just show...
Mar 31, 2021 · 20 min
004 Sugar - A History
Where is sugar even from? When did it make it to Europe? How did it get to the West Indies? I have questions. Show Notes: https://thehistoryofamericanfood.blogspot.com/ Email: TheHistoryofAmericanFood@gmail.com Twitter: @THOAFood Podcast Music:...
Mar 24, 2021 · 24 min
003 Iron - Chains
When everything – including making food – is done by muscle power – how did Colonial America decide to get more for less? In many cases – by using iron to make chains to enslave Native Americans and Africans. How did the colonists talk themselves...
Mar 17, 2021 · 23 min
002 Iron - Sharp Things and Blunderbusses
Tools and Weapons – this is what lots of the iron was used for. How were they connected to colonial food? Music Credit: Fingerlympics by Doctor Turtle Show Notes: https://thehistoryofamericanfood.blogspot.com/ Email:...
Mar 10, 2021 · 22 min
001 Iron - Out of the Ground and Onto the Table
Sure, Iron's not a food - but it is an essential part of how America does food. We'll go back to the beginning and look at how the very 1st settlements' dependance on iron shaped how they saw food. Music Credit: Fingerlympics by Doctor Turtle...

The History of American Food

018 Milk - New, Clabber, Sour & Cream

017 Beef - It's Almost Never for Dinner

016 The American Cow - Origin Story

015 Pickles, Pie, Pottage & Stew - Meet the Rest of the Vegetable Crew

014 Pumpkins and Squash - What's the Difference?

013 Legumes - Old World & New

012 Herbs, Flowers & Berries - Not Worth a Thing

011 Mercantilism - Do You Want Pirates?

010.5 Bonus - Extra Salt

010 Salt - Saving Food for Later

009 Salt - A Solid Foundation

008 Fish - Cod and Some Other Things

007 Corn - Is Life

006 Corn - The Journey of Maize

005 $ugar - Let's Make Some Money. Oh, And a Little Dessert

004.5 Bonus - Humorism & Solidism

004 Sugar - A History

003 Iron - Chains

002 Iron - Sharp Things and Blunderbusses

001 Iron - Out of the Ground and Onto the Table