Europeans have always had a fascination with food from the New World. The first Europeans to experience New World cuisine were the Vikings, who arrived in Newfoundland in 1000 AD. Their leaders reported seeing the largest salmon that they had ever seen.

Columbus and his seafaring descendants all noticed that the food of the New World was much different from that of the old. Even though it may have mystified them, they were happy to eat just about anything once they had arrived. Columbus reported that on the journey across the ocean, his sailors waited until dark to eat, so they would not see the worms crawling in their biscuits and other food.

Following the example of Columbus, European colonists came to the Americas hoping for opportunity, but still expecting the European food that they were used to. They were not to receive it, however. Wheat, which they loved, did not grow well on the East Coast. Corn, a native species that was totally foreign to the colonists, had to be integrated into the diet, along with beans. The sweet potato became even popular in Europe when it was sent there, and it was included in numerous recipes.

Two plants that the colonists would not touch were the tomato and the white potato, neither of which was popular in Europe, either. In England, the Queen was the first to try the potato. She hated it (this was, for the most part, the fault of the cook, who served the leaves instead of the tuber). In France, the potato was thought to cause leprosy.

Meat played an important role in the development of the American Colonies. Dale Brown, writing in American Cooking, even claimed that, "Game made the settlement of America possible." It's true that the colonists loved game, and they were more ready to accept it, since the animals of the Americas were somewhat similar to the animals from Europe. A London traveler once visited the Colonies, and wrote a letter home about all the rich foods in America, yet he made no mention of a single vegetable. One American colonist reported:

Every animal was eaten, and every part of the animal was used. Bear fat was added frequently for flavor. Moose nose was considered a delicacy.

The main reason for settlers to rely mainly on meat was that agriculture was barely developed in the colonies. Constant war with the natives meant that colonists could never protect their fields.

In spite of all of the strange food available to them, the first cookbook in America was only published in 1742. Even then, it was not very useful. Timing was very difficult to master when making these recipes.

Almost the only piece of equipment that was employed by colonial housewives was the kettle. Leftovers, meats, and practically anything else were dumped into the cooking pot to make a stew. Even this simple process, though, could be dangerous. For example, embers from the hearth could jump indo the food, causing it explode. Or, the grease could drip on the fire which then might ignite the whole house. Turning a piece of meat by hand on a spit was hazardous, so a few ingenious colonists tried this method: they put their dog on a treadmill that was connected to the spit. When the dog started moving, the meat started turning!

The perilous nature of the kettle gave rise to the first oven, which was a brick box for baking bread. The box originally would just be thrown into the fireplace, but settlers eventually built a separate chamber, the oven.

The America of the Colonists was perhaps the best-fed section of the world at that time. This was due to the "Codfish Aristocracy" and the trade of cod around the world. Merchants would trade cod for fruit from the Mediterranean or rum and molasses from the Caribbean.

The restriction of this food by the English was one of the main causes for the American War of Independence. First, the English Parliament imposed heavy taxes on colonial favorites like tea, tobacco, wine, molasses, and rum. Then, they made the fatal mistake of forbidding cod fishing in most waters. Rallying against these restrictions, the colonists found the power to fight against the British rule. Even during the war, food helped Americans win. While the British soldiers had little to eat, Americans knew how to best use their food. Americans also had culinary support from the French, who were on their side. Starvation led the British troops to capitulation, and America became a free country. Food was to develop even more in the expansion of America.

	Make Johnnycakes, a favorite in Colonial America.
	Find out more about food in Colonial America.