Cajun Food History - Part 1

Cajun food originates from the French-speaking Acadian or "Cajun" immigrants in 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, called by some Cajun chefs the holy trinity of Cajun food, are ubiquitous. Characteristic seasonings include parsley, bay leaf, "onion tops" or scallions, and cayenne pepper (the dried and powdered form or as one of the locally made pepper sauces such as Tabasco, but rarely fresh!) The overall feel of Cajun food is more Mediterranean than North American.

Cajun food developed out of necessity. The Acadian refugees, farmers rendered destitute by the British expulsion, had to learn to live off the land and adapted their French rustic cajun food to local ingredients such as rice, crawfish, and sugar cane.

In addition to the obvious Canadian and French peasant influences, Cajun food was influenced by African and Native American food cultures. For example, 'gumbo', the name of a family of stews prepared in south Louisiana is a word brought to the region from western Africa. In parts of Africa as well as in standard French and in Caribbean Creolee languages "gumbo" means okra, which is a principal ingredient in some of the stews called "gumbo". A filà gumbo, on the other hand, contains no okra, is a dark roux based soup or stew, and is seasoned at the table with ground sassafras leaves, a practice borrowed from the Choctaw Indians.

To be continued...Stay Tuned

Cajun Food REsource