What is it ?

There must be something, apart from the hamburger, which is American.

Anything dripping with grease and stuffed full of high fructose corn syrup is distinctly American. The "convenience food," the "fast food," the "packaged meal." We are so proud.

I think the traditional Thanksgiving dinner is pretty straight-forward American. Actually I think America has a bunch of different cuisine styles. The most distinct probably being Cajun food and Southern Food (fried chicken, corn bread, mashed potatoes). Perhaps pies, too. Do you guys have pie?

quote:

Originally posted by jusork:
Perhaps pies, too. Do you guys have pie?

How do you define 'pie'? Apple pie? Pork pie ( a pie served cold: it is made of pressed pork, cooked in a rich pastry case)? Meat pie? (The last two seem to be completely unknown to Americans: American tourists quite often say 'Today I had a meat pie' as though they'd never had one before) We have other variants on meat fillings and toppings: the traditional one is 'steak and kidney pie',and we have Shepherd's pie (which is minced meat with a mashed potato topping) and Cumberland pie ( a variant of Shepherd's pie). There are some fish pies, too.

We also have Cornish pasties, a crescent shaped pastry, traditionally filled with hot steak or similar meat and vegetable, and many variants on that.

quote:

Originally posted by DorianGreyed:
Some Recipes for a Distinctly American Cuisine

Sounds about as American as our chicken vindaloo sounds British

Chili, as eaten in the US, and using that name, originated in the American West, possibly Texas.

Then there's Cincinnati Chili, from Greek influence. Yum!!!!!!!