Cuisine of the Northeastern United States

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The cuisine of the Northeastern United States refers to the distinctive styles of food indigenous to the states above the Potomac River. Maryland, Massachusetts, and Maine are centers of seafood cuisine. Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York cuisine is heavily influenced by Italian and German immigrants to the industrial centers of Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Jersey City, Binghamton, Elmira, Corning, Williamsport, Harrisburg, Wilkes-Barre and Scranton.

1 State by State

[edit] State by State

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[edit] Maryland

Maryland is generally considered to be the reigning power of the American seafood industry. The state boasts a plethora of marine fare, primarily crab-based, including such dishes as blue crabs, crabcakes, crab soup, seafood lasagna, raw oysters, and rock fish. The state even has its own brand of potato chip, called Crab Chips.

Marylanders use Old Bay, a local spice, to season everything from crabs to applesauce to peaches to popcorn. Along with the residents of Pennsylvania and New Jersey, Maryland's citizens are fond of a hearty Northeastern dish known as scrapple.

[edit] Massachusetts

Boston is the center of Massachusetts, and its norms and modes have influenced the whole of the state. A major seaport from Colonial times, Boston is famous for its clam chowder, called "New England clam chowder" to distinguish it from a similar soup made in New York.

[edit] Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania could easily be called the junk food capital of the United States. It is the home of Hershey's, Tastykake, Utz, Snyder's of Hanover, and the cheesesteak. Pretzels are a staple of the Pennsylvania diet. They come in many varieties, from the hot, soft, chewy pretzels sold by vendors on the street or stadium to the salty, hard, crunchy variety sold by pretzels manufacturers in the grocery and quick stop stores of Pennsylvania.