|
Antioxidants and their importance to good health
Everyone has heard the news about antioxidants and their importance to good health and proper nutrition. It seems the more scientists learn about antioxidants, the more their value and potential increases. Antioxidants have shown promise in...
Food and drink - what to expect in Costa Rica
A traditionally mild, not over-spiced cuisine, the Costa Rican food has absorbed influences from the Caribbean, South America and Europe into its culinary cauldron. Many dishes are simple with the staples of rice and beans tending to form the basis...
How Fast is Fast Food? The Race is On!
I couldn’t help it. My neighbor was heading out on her almost daily trek to the McDonalds Drive-thru. I was about to start dinner. Who would win? I seasoned the steaks and put them aside. I washed and poked the potatoes to “bake” in the...
Learn To Deal With the Wine Steward in Restaurants
Ordering wine in restaurants is an essential step in 'enjoying your dining experience. You will find that there 'are two types of restaurants serving wine: simply, those 'that have a poor wine service and poor wine selections, 'and those that...
The Cocktail Party
Cocktail Parties arrived at the scene in the 1950's. Hollywood
glamorized the cocktail party as celebrities stood around in
swanky smoke filled rooms with dim lights casting shadows with
the sound of ice cubes clinking in glasses. Although the...
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
Regional Cuisine Of The United States: California-Style Cooking
The great state of California carries some of the most rich aspects of American culture, from the pioneers to the gold rush to quality cuisine. Bordered by the Pacific Ocean, Oregon, Nevada, Arizona, and Baja, classic California food can take on many forms. The unique cuisine of California is earmarked by a tradition of freshness and home grown quality, calling forth to mind fresh leafy green salads, fruit, and organic just-about-anything.
California is one of the major agricultural centers of the United States. The state of California, as one of the nation's leading producers of fresh produce, has an extreme abundance of fresh fruits and vegetables. When it comes to food in California, a lot of the focus is shifted to quality and nutritiousness rather than cost, taste, or anything else. While this does not necessarily mean that California cuisine tastes badly, it is not for everyone. Those who prefer a heavier, fried or battered food would have better luck sampling some other type of cuisine.
Fruits and nuts account for at least a quarter of California's farm income, and vegetables in themselves account for another 25 percent. This includes the famous grapes, oranges, nectarines, peaches, nectarines. and avocados that California is famous for producing, as well as almonds, pistachios, and walnuts. Organic food, which is grown without the aid of pesticides, insecticides, and other potentially harmful additives, is also an extremely popular aspect of California cuisine. Don't get it confused, though; contrary to popular belief, California food is not all about grapes, nuts, yogurt, and organic orange juice.
The taste of California is, of course,
highly accented by its major influence from the south--of course, Mexico. Tex-Mex or Baja-style cooking plays an integral role in good old-fashioned California Cuisine. Mexican-style food is part of the way of life in California; with the dense Mexican-American population in California (about 34.3 percent of the total number of California residents), a great California chef can put a south of the border twist on just about anything! El Pollo Loco is a fast-food restaurant very commonly seen in California. El Pollo Loco, which translates into The Crazy Chicken, specializes in marinated, grilled chicken in tacos, burritos, or alone. El Pollo Loco is an excellent representation of southern California's obsession with Baja-style "Mexican" food.
There are some restaurants in California, even, that boast to serve the "classic Californian cuisine." The California Pizza Kitchen is a chief example of this type of restaurants. The California Pizza Kitchen has more than 180 locations all over the United States and the world. On July 5 the company even opened a CPK in Shanghai, China. They specialize in making food authentically "California-style." The Pizza Kitchen specializes in healthier foods; they mainly serve many different kinds of salad and pizza. All of their pizzas are specially prepared in an open flame pizza oven, conforming to the California trend of healthier meal preparation and eating.
About the Author
Kirsten Hawkins is a food and nutrition expert specializing the Mexican, Chinese, and Italian food. Visit http://www.food-and-nutrition.com/ for more information on cooking delicious and healthy meals.
|
|
|
|
|
