Regional Foods and Culinary Treats of Central Upstate New York

If you live in the Central New York region of Upstate New York, between Utica and Syracuse, you will have encountered its unique regional food traditions. Here are six of those traditional culinary offerings which warm the hearts and stomachs of Central New York residents-- and will provide fond memories for those who have moved away.

1) Snappy Grillers

This product, made by the Hofmann Sausage Company of Syracuse has been around since 1879.

Alternately called coneys, snappys, or officially, Snappy Grillers, these white hog dogs are made with veal instead of beef or mixed meats. They contain no filler and no wheat , gluten, or chemical preservatives. They have a light delicate flavor and get a crispy skin when grilled. (This is likely the origin of the name Snappy Griller). Snappy Grilllers are shipped to supermarkets are far west as Rochester and as far east as Albany. There are also local restaurants that feature Snappy grillers and are known by devoted Snappy Griller enthusiasts for this very fact.

2) Utica Greens

Brought here by Italian immigrants to the restaurants of East Utica and beyond, Greens are basically made by filling a large pot with Kale or Escarole and water and boiling. But its the additional ingredients with which they are mixed that makes greens so delectable. Greens were, for years, popular as a breakfast item, eaten with eggs and sometimes steak. Lately, however, greens have been cropping up as a dinner entree, mixed with some combination of olive oil, hot peppers, cheese, and in some cases appearing in a dish called greens and beans.

3) Salt Potatoes

These are small gold-ball sized round potatoes ( often called New Potatos) which are boiled in salt water and served with butter. Salt potatoes are delicious staple of regional town and county fairs and field days and are often eaten along with sausage, peppers and onions, burgers or barbecued chicken.

4) Riggies

A new component of Utica-area cuisine are Riggies. Another Italian-inspired specialty, Riggies are rigatoni pasta paired with chunks of chicken or other meats and tossed in a creamy sauce. Local restaurants compete in an annual Riggie-fest for best riggie recipe

5) Tomato Pie

Tomato pie slices can be found near the checkout counter in Utica-area convenience stores and small delicatessens. I have never seen this item outside of the Utica region. Tomato pie is a kind of pizza without the mozzarella cheese. Mostly made by local italian bread companies, tomato pie is sold as individually wrapped rectangular slices of pizza dough on which a very flavorful tomato paste type sauce has been baked. If there is any cheese to be found on the slice, it is a sprinkle of parmesan. Though it might sound a bit lackluster, tomato pie is actually very tasty and a nice treat to find by a checkout counters that sell mostly candy and sugary items.

6) Friday Night Fish Fry

It's a Central New York tradition on Friday evenings to go out for a fish fry. Regardless of their usual cuisine, most local eateries provide a nice Friday fish fry consisting of a white variety of fish, tartar sauce, cole slaw and a choice of potato. The fish is almost always haddock. In later years, beer-battered and broiled fish have become popular variations.

http://www.hofmannsausage.com