The Cuisine of New England

New England is a region located in the north eastern part of the United States. New England is made up of six states; Connecticut (the nutmeg state), Maine (the pine tree state), Massachusetts (the bay state), new Hampshire (the granite state), Rhode island (the ocean state) and Vermont (the green mountain state).

English pilgrims, fleeing religious prosecution in europe, arrived at the beginning of the 17th century. In 1614, Capt. John smith gave the region it's name. New England was officially sanctioned on November 3, 1620.

Unprepared to survive their first winter, the pilgrims had to rely on the native Americans for survival. The wamponoag tribe shared their seeds of native corn plants with the pilgrims. They showed the pilgrims how to plant and fertilize the crops by planting a tiny fish with each seed.

The native Americans also introduced the pilgrims to the native squash and beans. Corn, beans and squash made up a triad called "the three sisters". Combing the triad together was known as succotash. The Indians taught the pilgrims how to fish and hunt. They also taught them how to cure and smoke food so it could be preserved through the cold winter months.

In the late 1800's immigrants, mostly from Ireland, Portugal and italy, began to arrive in new England. They brought with them culinary customs from their homelands. These customs were incorporated with the regional cuisine and cooking styles of new England. Braised and pickled beef was a mainstay in Britain and Ireland. This dish was a favorite among the new Englanders and today is known as new England boiled dinner.

New England's early settlers brought several different animals with them. Farmers used cattle for milk and beef, they used wool from their sheep, eggs and meat was from chickens, and they used horses and oxen to pull carts and plows. Pigs were owned throughout England, mostly because they could fend for themselves by foraging for food throughout the woods.

The American lobster (a.k.a. maine lobster) is caught in the north atlantic. Maine contributes to more than half of all lobsters caught in the united states. There are very strict laws that govern lobstering in new England; for example: lobsters that have a caraspace length under 3 ½ inches must be thrown back into the atlantic and the same goes for those with a caraspace over 5 inches.

New England has a history of shared culture and heritage. The region has been shaped by immigration from asia, Africa, Europe, and latin America. A cultural divide does exist however, between the urban new Englanders along the densely populated coastline and the more rural new Englanders in the west, where population density is low. The thing to be sure of in new England is that no matter where you travel inside the region, you will surely experience the vast amount of cultural differences, hands on!