• 0 Posts
  • 52 Comments
Joined 2 months ago
Cake day: January 3rd, 2026
  • ThirdConsul@lemmy.ziptoLemmy Shitpost@lemmy.world•My father the tween literary critic
    3·
    5 days ago

    subseries wrote specifically for young adults

    but that was pretty shocking and I’d be a bit wary letting my 12 year old read that.

    While I do think that letting children read dark books (as long the “darkness” isn’t because the author’s edgy) is not only ok, but necessary for them to be able to handle darker emotions, I want to mention that 12 is teen, or pre-teen, but definitely not a young adult.

  • ThirdConsul@lemmy.ziptoLemmy Shitpost@lemmy.world•2 North American 4 you has been created
    1·
    7 days ago

    spam musubi

    That’s sushi with spam. I wouldn’t call that unique because how similar it is to any other sushi, its just an ingredient replacement. Now if the spam was specifically seasoned or prepared then yeah, it’d be a unique snack.

    Frybread is basically hungarian lángos

    And deep fried podpłomyk recipe is also very similar.

    loco moco

    I can’t find anything like it, or from similar ingredients, so I’d call it unique. They are similar dishes, but either with more than 1 ingredient removed, or lacking the complexity.

    cheese zombies, jojos, Seattle dog, huckleberry everything, etc.

    Grilled cheese sandwich, potato wedges, hot dog with a different ingredient, huckleberry is an ingredient, not a dish.

    Southwest USA and Mexican have a lot of overlap but are also just as distinct with “Tex-mex” being it’s own culinary thing. Puffy tacos, chili con queso, cornbread, cowboy caviar, nachos, etc.

    Igredient replacement, literally not a dish but a dip, Native American, a bean salad, nachos are Mexican. Tex-mex I think is mostly one ingredient replacement. Literally you had a lot of beef and cheese and that’s how you made Mexican recipes.

    Midwest, Alaskan, southern, east-coast, Puerto Rican

    Midwest and Alaskan, as well as east-coast, those three sound most promising. Can you maybe tell a bit more about them?

    Southern is likely to be European cuisine with one ingredient replacement, Puerto Rico is famously a territory of the USA, but not a state :-)

    pasta is any less “Italian” despite it just being Chinese noodles with a few changed ingredients.

    Yeah, pasta is not a unique Italian dish. It was invented by so many cultures independently. Bolognese sauce on the other hand is, as I can’t find any other similar dish that was invented independently from it. Do you see the distinction I’m looking for?

    Edit: you might wonder why then I count pumpkin pie as a unique - the main ingredient changed, and you often add caramel and pecan pies on top, making it significantly different than other pies.

  • ThirdConsul@lemmy.ziptoLemmy Shitpost@lemmy.world•2 North American 4 you has been created
    2·
    7 days ago

    Out of all the dishes you mentioned, only Gumbo is a uniquely USA dish.

    Jambalaya is an African recipe with an ingredient change to match what was available.

    Mudbugs are eaten everywhere where they are present, and I personally think that Polis Zupa Rakowa is the best usage of that ingredient. If were talking about the mudbug boil, every cousine I know of that has access to them have similar recipe.

    Blackened redfish is uhhh… Hot pan with spices to pretend its grilled (ingenious, but not a unique dish https://www.foodrepublic.com/1631780/origin-why-redfish-banned/)

    Crawfish etouffee - huh, I think it’s also an invention. The cooking method and igredients seem to be unique enough that its visibly distinct from any other similar dish that I know of and could check the recipe of.

    Courtbullion on the other hand is too similar to French one that I would call it a variation, instead of an unique invention.

    (Does that make sense? I’m not trying to diminish other foods but to showcase how unique Gumbo and etouffe are)

  • ThirdConsul@lemmy.ziptoLemmy Shitpost@lemmy.world•2 North American 4 you has been created
    5·
    7 days ago

    I’ve been thinking about it, and I can only name 3 dishes that were uniquely created in the USA (so no General Tsao Chicken), that were not an old recipe with a changed ingredient because it’s hard to get the original (so no Jambalaya), or were not just bigger sandwiches (so no Italian sandwich):

    Gumbo.

    Pumkin pie.

    Buffalo wings (but I’m not sure if this can be called a dish, as its so simple its more like a snack, and its fast food).

    If someone can think of more, please advise - I’m extremely curious.

    Edit: Etouffe is also one.

  • ThirdConsul@lemmy.ziptoLemmy Shitpost@lemmy.world•2 North American 4 you has been created
    3·
    7 days ago

    That is an interesting point and I want to add three cents to it.

    Sometimes diasporas preserve the original recipes better than the country of origin. An example of it are some Polish dishes that were preserved closer to the original than in Poland, because when Poland was under USSR occupation there were severe food shortages and some recipes had to evolve or were literally forgotten.

    (IIRC that was just a few cakes and pastries, but hey, it still happened!)

  • ThirdConsul@lemmy.ziptoLemmy Shitpost@lemmy.world•A succulent meal
    2·
    10 days ago

    I double checked and industrial bread doesn’t mold because they add E282, E250 etc which are mold inhabitants :) And the lack of moistness is an expression of cheap ingredients, fast process and the end product being premade frozen almost breads that just have to be heated in the store.

    The nonindustrial bread doesn’t spoil immediately because… Why would it? Put it in a warm environment with no air access and it will?

  • ThirdConsul@lemmy.ziptoLemmy Shitpost@lemmy.world•A succulent meal
    1·
    10 days ago

    No, on the contrary,

    Well, if by “spoil” you mean “make inedible”, then moistness makes the bread edible longer (because it slowly evaporates from outside in, and while it does you can still eat the bread). It will be a little stale, sure, but properly stored a loaf of non-industrial bread becomes a dry brick 7-10 days after buying.

    The industrial bread becomes sandpaper within 2-3 days.

    If by “spoil” you mean “get rotten” then yeah, improperly stored bread could get mold - I was unable to achieve that result at home though, and I literally just keep it in a cotton bag. At the same time industrial bread will get dry very very fast so the likeliness of mold when improperly stored is less.

  • ThirdConsul@lemmy.ziptoLemmy Shitpost@lemmy.world•A succulent meal
    1·
    10 days ago

    Then it’s slightly better industrial bread (was it baguette?), but yeah. Leavens or emulsifiers or weird making process lead to it. Like they also used one of the water retaining emusifiers instead of proper starch content - those tend to keep moistness for up to 48h since baking and then it evaporates instantly.

    Non industrial bread keeps water longer, but more importantly loses it more gradually and from the outside in (so that at least the “core” is still moist).

    (I’m not arguing pro/against breads here, or trying to, idk, shame you for buying baguettes lol, honestly just trying spread the knowledge)

  • ThirdConsul@lemmy.ziptoLemmy Shitpost@lemmy.world•A succulent meal
    1·
    10 days ago

    Crumb must be crumby, but “flesh” of the bread should be moist (do not confuse it with soft). Properly made bread shouldn’t be wet or chewy.

    When making bread you add water to the dough. Starch will keep the water and when baking, the flesh should retain it spread evenly. Industrial bread often dehydrates/dries it, as that’s how it works with their emulsifiers or leavens - don’t ask me why though, it’s just my observation.

    And you can be sure that dry bread is either old stale bread or fresh industrial bread.