Cajun cuisine | Bite Your Tongue

Cajun cuisine | Bite Your Tongue - Cajun cuisine (in French: Cuisine Acadienne) originates from the French-speaking Acadian or "Cajun" immigrants deported by the British from Acadia in Canada to the Acadiana region of Louisiana, USA. It is what could be called a rustic cuisine — locally available ingredients predominate, and preparation is simple. An authentic Cajun meal is usually a three-pot affair, with one pot dedicated to the main dish, one dedicated to steamed rice, skillet cornbread, or some other grain dish, and the third containing whatever vegetable is plentiful or available.

The aromatic vegetables bell pepper, onion, and celery are called by some chefs the holy trinity of Cajun cuisine. Finely diced and combined in cooking, the method is similar to the use of the mire poix in traditional French cuisine — which blends finely diced onion, celery, and carrot. Characteristic seasonings include parsley, bay leaf, "green onions" or scallions, and dried cayenne pepper. The overall feel of the cuisine is more Mediterranean than North American.

Cajun cuisine developed out of necessity. The Acadian refugees, who largely came from what is now modern-day New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, were farmers rendered destitute by the British expulsion, and had to learn to live off the land and adapted their French rustic cuisine to local (i.e. Louisiana) ingredients such as rice, crawfish, and sugar cane. Many households were large, consisting of eight to twelve people; thus, regardless what other vocations may have been followed by the head of household, most families also farmed. Feeding a large family, all of whose members did hard physical work every day, required a lot of food. Cajun cuisine grew out of supplementing rice with white meat, game, or other proteins where available such as crawfish or any other type of river creature. Other than French, Spanish and Indian culinary influences can also be detected in Cajun food.

From Cajun cuisine | Bite Your Tongue

New Orleans Creole Cuisine | Bite Your Tongue

Louisiana Creole cuisine

New Orleans Creole cuisine | Bite Your Tongue is a style of cooking originating in Louisiana (centered on the New Orleans area) which is a melting pot cuisine that blends French, Spanish, Canarian, Caribbean, Mediterranean, Deep Southern American, Indian, and African influences. It also bears hallmarks of British, Irish, Italian, German, Albanian, and Greek cuisines. There are some contributions from Native Americans as well. It is vaguely similar to Cajun cuisine in ingredients (such as the holy trinity), but the important distinction is that Cajun cuisine arose from the more rustic, provincial French cooking adapted by the Acadians to Louisiana ingredients, whereas the cooking of the Louisiana Creoles tended more toward classical European styles adapted to local foodstuffs. Broadly speaking, the French influence in Cajun cuisine is descended from various French Provincial cuisines of the peasantry, while Creole cuisine evolved in the homes of well-to-do aristocrats, or those who imitated their lifestyle. Although the Creole cuisine is closely identified with New Orleans culture today, much of it evolved in the country plantation estates so beloved of the pre-Civil War Creoles. (Despite its aristocratic French roots, Creole cuisine does not include Garde Manger or other extremely lavish styles of the Classical Paris cuisine.)

The Spanish and Canarian influences on Creole cuisine were in the heat of the peppers, the wide usage of citrus juice marinades, the supreme importance of rice, and the introduction of beans. The Spaniards and the Italians also used tomatoes extensively, which had not been a frequent ingredient in the earlier French era. Pasta and tomato sauces arrived during the period when New Orleans was a popular destination for Italian, Albanian, and Greek immigrants (roughly, 1815 to 1925). Many Italians, Albanians, and Greeks became grocers, bakers, cheese makers and orchard farmers, and so influenced the Creole cuisine in New Orleans and its suburbs. The African and Indian influences, which were extensive, came about because many of the servants were either African-American or Asian Indian American, as were many of the cooks in restaurants and cafes.

The first French, Spanish, and Italian Creole cookbooks date back to the era before the Louisiana Purchase. The first Creole cookbook in English was La Cuisine Creole: A Collection of Culinary Recipes, From Leading Chefs and Noted Creole Housewives, Who Have Made New Orleans Famous For Its Cuisine, written by Lafcadio Hearn and published in 1885. The full text and page images can be found at Feeding America: The Historic American Cookbook Project.

By that time Creole was already an identifiable regional cuisine recognized outside Louisiana: for example, an 1882 Florida hotel menu now in the New York Public Library's collection offered "Chicken Saute, á la Creole."

Starting in the 1980s, Cajun influence became important, spurred by the popular restaurant of Chef Paul Prudhomme. A national interest in Cajun cooking developed, and many tourists went to New Orleans expecting to find Cajun food there (being unaware that the city was culturally and geographically separate from Acadiana), so entrepreneurs opened or rebranded restaurants to meet this demand. The "New New Orleans Cooking" of celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse includes both Cajun and Creole dishes. In his writings and TV shows, Lagasse both draws the distinction between Cajun and Creole and explains where they overlap.

With the rise of Modern American Cooking in the 1980s, a New Creole (or Nouvelle Creole) strain began to emerge. This movement is characterized in part by a renewed emphasis on fresh ingredients and lighter preparations, and in part by an outreach to other culinary traditions, including Cajun, Southern, Southwestern, and to a lesser degree Southeast Asian. While the Cajun food craze eventually passed, Modern Creole has remained as a predominant force in most major New Orleans restaurants.

New Orleans Creole cuisine | Bite Your Tongue - From Wikipedia

Creole Cuisine | Bite Your Tongue

Bite Your Tongue | Creole Cuisine -Immigrants, most of French peasant ancestry, settled the "Acadian" region of the Bay of Fundy in Nova Scotia from 1604 to 1654. By 1713 the total population of Acadians in the Bay of Fundy area was 2,000; by 1755, the population had grown to 15,000. These settlers subsisted on cereal crops such as wheat, barley and oats, and garden vegetables such as field peas, cabbage, and turnips. This diet was supplemented by domestic livestock, wild game, and fishing.

Because of increased tensions between the French settlers and the British, the Acadians were ultimately forced out of Nova Scotia. This was a long and grueling journey for those that survived it; many of the Acadians were sent first to Maryland, then to France, and finally to Louisiana where they attempted to reunite with their family members. The name "Acadian" was transformed to "Cajun" by the English-speaking inhabitants of Louisiana. The Cajuns grew to be a unified ethnic group as a result of their struggles to overcome discrimination as refugees; they also became increasingly wary of outsiders and resisted acculturation with Anglos in Louisiana.

Initally, all incoming Acadian immigrants arrived in New Orleans. They were met by a lukewarm Spanish government that was eager to relocate the settlers to more rural areas. This included the areas north of New Orleans on the Mississippi River, as well as the prairie region of Southwest Louisiana. The Acadians newly settled into the river region soon found difficulty in growing their familiar crops such as wheat, barley and oats. Additionally, turnips and cabbage did not do well in Louisiana's sweltering heat. Assistance from the Spanish government came in the form of corn seed. The prairie was ideally suited for cattle, and successful ranches were soon established in this region, providing New Orleans with much desired beef.

A dual class system emerged with the Acadian settlers, dividing Acadians into the small elite planter class and the working class farmers; a minor intermediate "middle" class existed as well. The elite planters soon adopted slavery, farming large tracts of land. They became successful in farming cotton by the early eighteenth century, which was replaced with sugar by the mid-eighteenth century and rice shortly thereafter. The planters identified with the "Creoles," a more wealthy and educated class than the emerging Cajun culture.

As farm land became more valued with the profits of cotton in the early part of the nineteenth century, the poorer Acadians in the river region were forced to sell their land and move into the less desirable unclaimed swamp area. Swamp life was difficult and isolated, but did provide the settlers with a generous variety of foodstuffs that added to the unique diet of Cajuns.

In both wetland and prairie Cajun homes, kitchens were simple and utilitarian. Kitchen cookware consisted simply of a cast iron kettle suspended over a hearth; a few families had a cast-iron frying pan. Subsistence farming and hunting produced such mainstay foods as corn, potatoes, sweet potatoes, peas, beans, pumpkins, okra, and rice. Their diets were supplemented with wild game, domestic livestock (pork and beef), and home grown fruit (figs, oranges, plums, pecans, and grapes). Wheat flour was the only food staple that was not locally grown, and was purchased instead at the markets. Originally, Cajun meals were bland, and nearly all foods were boiled. The development of the roux gave more versatility to boiled dishes. Rice was used to stretch out meals to feed large families. While milk and wheat flour were considered "company foods", sugar and molasses were locally available, and used frequently; molasses topped cornbread at nearly every meal.

Social functions were vital to the culture, and parties, dances, and feasts were frequent and hearty. Coffee (usually black) was served generously, and gumbo was brought out to feed the guests at midnight. Other events such as communal harvest and butchering were also social gatherings with generous amounts of food and drink.

Cajun food is essentially the poor cousin to Creole. Today it tends to be spicier and more robust than Creole, utilizing regionally available resources and less of the foods gained through trade. Some popular Cajun dishes include pork based sausages such as andouille and boudin; various jambalayas and gumbos; coush-coush (a creamed corn dish) and etoufeé. The symbol of Cajun cooking is perhaps the crawfish, but,ironically, until 40 years ago crawfish were used mainly as bait; it took too much effort to remove the meat from the tiny crustacean.

The history of Creole cuisine can begin with the first European occupation of Louisiana in 1682 by the Frenchman La Salle. By 1722, New Orleans had become the capital of the region; French and other immigrants had settled in the area by this time. In 1762, the French government turned the Louisiana territory over to the Spanish, who welcomed immigrants with an open door policy. By the eighteenth century, trade was active and spices from the Carribbean were easily obtainable in the French Market. The Creole culture and cuisine (originally "Criolle," meaning "native born") emerged in this setting.

Creole cooking is based upon French stews and soups, and is influenced by Spanish, African, Native American, and other Anglo Southern groups. The Spanish brought into the cuisine the use of cooked onions, green peppers, tomatoes, and garlic. African chefs brought with them the skill of spices and introduced okra. Native foodstuffs, such as crawfish, shrimp, oysters, crabs,and pecans found their way into both Cajun and Creole cuisine. From the Choctaw Indians came the use of filé, a powdered herb from sassafras leaves, to thicken gumbo. One factor typically overlooked in the development of Creole-style cooking was that it was food prepared for affluent whites by their black slaves and servants. So often the emergence of a new dish was the result of creative chefs intermingling their cooking experience and heritage with the tastes of their employers. The Creoles differed from the Cajuns in another aspect: their insatiable sweet tooth. Such delicacies as pecan divinities and flan were enjoyed by Creoles frequently.

New Orleans, the capital of Creole cuisine, had established a culinary reputation by early 19th century. Antoine's Restaurant opened in the French Quarter in 1840. The region experienced food shortages and economic disaster following the Civil War, but had regained strength by 1885. This time period also marked a revival in Creole cuisine, ironically at the same time the culture itself was on the decline. The first Creole cookbook was published in 1885; before this time period it is difficult to establish the origins and evolutions of certain dishes.

From Origins of Southern Food - http://uwf.edu/tprewitt/sofood/past.htm#cajun

Creole Cuisine |

Creole

Bite Your Tongue - Cajun Newz

Welcome to “Bite Your Tongue” our Charlotte Cajun Restaurant featuring authentic New Orleans (Nawlins) cuisine right here in Charlotte, NC. Our cajun recipes (soon to be available in our Cajun cookbook) feature authentic New Orleans cajun food dishes that we served while we owned the “Bite Your Tongue - Take Out & Catering” in New Orleans, LA. Lucky for us, Katrina forced our evacuation to the wonderful city of Charlotte!

Located in the Randolph Medical Center at 1928 Randolph Road, we are centrally located to serve our breakfast, lunch and our “Gourmet-To - Go ” take home suppers. We also provide real Nawlins Style catering for your special events.

Bite Your Tongue - Cajun Newz

Bite Your Tongue -New Orleans Food - 10 Best Cities for Local Food

New Orleans - 6th Best place for Local Food -

We have our New Orleans cuisine here in Charlotte, Bite Your Tongue. I knew there was no way New Orleans didn’t make the list so I clicked through and there we were at number 6. Lucius and Martine bring real Cajun Cuisine to Charlotte serving up their own, from the streets of New Orleans cajun food like red beans and rice, jambalaya, gumbo, a grilled salmon salad, shrimp creole, vegetarian black bean chili, and lots of delicious homemade soups - just to name a few.

For the best Cajun Restaurant in Charlotte NC, be sure to visit!

P>S> Be sure to try the Bite Your Tongue Community Coffee-it's fantastic!

Bite Your Tongue - Creole and Cajun Cooking?

Creole and Cajun Cooking Cuisine - there is a difference!

What is the difference between Creole and Cajun Cuisine cooking? We'll take a look at this over the next few days.

First, if you don't live in Southern Louisiana probably would say there is very little difference between the two styles of cuisine.

In actuality, the difference is based in the history of each food style.

Generally speaking Creole Cooking is a more refined type of cuisine originating in the cities of Lousiana reflecting Creole's close ties to the European aristocracy who settled in cities along with their chefs.

Cajun cuisine by comparison is considered originating in the Lousiana back country. The common distinguishing factor is its many traditional one pot meals made up of whatever was on hand by the people who originally settled in the more rural parts of the area.

What is the history of these historic cuisines? Come back tomorrow for more ...

Bite Your Tongue | Charlotte Cajun Restaurant is Charlotte NC's newest authentic, Cajun restaurtant featuring authentic New Orlean's cajun/creole cuisine.