Cuisine of New England

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The American lobster, a favorite ingredient in New England cuisine.

New England cuisine is a type of American cuisine found in New England, in the northeastern region of the United States. New England cooking is characterized by extensive use of seafood and dairy products, which results from its historical reliance on its seaports and fishing industry, as well as extensive dairy farming in states like Vermont. Two outstandingly characteristic ingredients native to New England are maple syrup and cranberries. Well into the 19th century, molasses from the Caribbean and honey were staple sweeteners for all but the upper class. The Mediterranean herbs are not hardy in much of New England away from the coast: parsley and sage are New England herbs, with a few Caribbean additions like nutmeg. The starch is potato. The favored cooking techniques are stewing and baking.

Maine is known for its lobster; once a poor man's supper, it has become a dish of the well to do. Vermont is known for its cheddar cheese and maple syrup; coastal Massachusetts is known for its clams, cod (formerly), haddock, and cranberries, while apples are grown in the state's interior (Johnny Appleseed heralded from this commonwealth). Rhode Island and Bristol County, Massachusetts are known for quahog clams, johnny cakes, coffee milk, celery salt hot dogs and pizza strips. Connecticut is known for its apizza (particularly the white clam pie), shad and shadbakes, and for New Haven's claim as the birthplace of the hamburger sandwich.

New England is also known for many of its fine, local lagers and ales, the most famous of which is Samuel Adams of the Boston Beer Company in Boston, Massachusetts, even though the recipe for the beer does not come from New England.

Prior to prohibition, some of the finest Rum distilleries were located in New England. The Boston Molasses Disaster occurred on January 15, 1919, in the North End neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, when a huge molasses tank used to prepare rum collapsed.

Even today, traditional cuisine remains a strong part of New England's identity. Some of its plates are now enjoyed by the entire United States, including clam chowder, baked beans, and homemade ice cream. In the past two centuries, New England cooking was strongly influenced and transformed by Irish Americans, the Portuguese fishermen of coastal New England, and Italian Americans.

Currently, the oldest operating restaurant in the United States, the Union Oyster House, is located in Boston, Massachusetts.