If you walk into an American restaurant and the waiter asks you if you want Blue Cheese or Chedder Cheese, and you're confused; or if the only thing that comes to mind when the waiter asks you for a dressing is mayonnaise (and you don't even know how to pronounce it); or if you can't think of anything other than french fries when choosing a side dish; or if you're planning to come to the United States - you might want to read this article (series)

----------------

Whenever I talk about food with Americans, I always proudly say that we have eight major cuisines and various Bang cuisines, such as Shanghai cuisine, sweet Hakka cuisine is a culture, Hangzhou cuisine has Dongpo pork, etc. Then the Americans will widen their eyes and say "wow~ cool!" with a confused look on their faces. But in the end they will still tell you that their favorite dish is "Sesame Chicken" (similar to sweet and sour chicken nuggets).

As a graduate student majoring in communication and culture, in my opinion, the distinction between food cuisines stems from geographical isolation and climate influences. The more humid the place, the more people tend to eat spicy food to relieve moisture. The fact that wheat is produced in the north and rice is produced in the south has led to the difference between people eating rice and noodles. Moreover, the historical geographical isolation has made the food of a certain region show its unique style. Just imagine that 600 years ago, it would probably take several months to transport Sichuan spicy bean paste from Sichuan to Hangzhou. Naturally, the people of Hangzhou could only use soy sauce and sugar to make Dongpo pork.

(Dongpo pork is a special case. Su Shi, who was born in Sichuan, brought this method of roasting pork to Hangzhou. In fact, Hangzhou cuisine doesn't often feature dishes heavily loaded with oil or sauce.)

(In brackets, someone down below said that chili peppers were introduced from South America hundreds of years ago, so there were definitely no chili peppers during Su Dongpo's time. The author of the original post is illiterate, but that's what the author meant. Regional differences in food culture are the result, so just let everyone feel it.)

If cuisine stems from geography, then American cuisine stems from the international cuisines brought by immigrants. Through generations of diligent effort, the American culinary landscape has embraced nearly every cuisine favored by Americans, while also Americanizing it. This is why you'll see labels like "Sichuan" and "Cantonese" on online reviews, while Yelp lists labels like "Italian," "Mexican," "Vietnamese," and "Mediterranean."

What I want to talk about today is the "Americano" on the Yelp label - American, and the most typical one: America Diner

If you've seen Two Broke Girls, you'll find they work in a retro Williamsburg diner. Perhaps in diverse New York, this diner is considered "retro," but in the traditional Midwest, it still represents Americana, affordable food, and a comfortable, relaxed atmosphere.

In my opinion, diners can't really be categorized as "fast food." Otherwise, how would McDonald's and Burger King compare? On the other hand, most diners are private restaurants, not the typical chains we see (with the exception of IHOP, Applebee, and VI, of course). So, while serving standard American fare, each restaurant has its own unique twist, incorporating local flavors to better reflect American culture.

The American Diner originated during the Great Depression—people couldn't afford expensive restaurants but desired quick and easy meals. Thus, typical restaurants like the Diner attracted many customers with menus priced under $5. After World War II, the rural-urban fringe experienced rapid economic growth, and a restaurant serving nearby communities without significant investment became a viable business model for many new immigrants. Today, however, most Diner dishes are limited to brunch (a general term for breakfast and lunch)—they are too simple to satisfy the diverse tastes of modern Americans. However, Diners have developed their own distinct characteristics by absorbing diverse culinary styles from around the world and across the United States.

1. American-style brunch

In my opinion, brunch in American families symbolizes the Sunday lunchtime gathering of the entire family after church. And compared to the vast array of American food, brunch is precisely the most traditional. As I mentioned earlier, most brunch dishes originate from colonial American meals. However, as living standards improved, simply eating scrambled eggs was no longer enough for a full meal, so hamburgers and steaks gradually became staples of the American diet.

1. Basic combination options

This basic combination is a bit like a breakfast buffet in China; it can be combined into a set meal (platter) or ordered individually as a side dish. I want to introduce some basic combinations here because when you order, the waiter usually doesn't tell you what your options are. For example, they may ask "How deep do you want your eggs?" or "What kind of bread do you want?" It can be quite embarrassing if you don't know these options.

In American restaurants, your choices are often

   Eggs + Meat + Bread

1) Egg selection: In the basic combination, the egg is often fried, but this fried egg is different from the fried eggs we often make in China. Americans spread butter on the bottom of the pan, put it on medium heat, then beat the eggs, add a little water, and fry the eggs with steam and butter. Usually the waiter will ask you how much doneness you want, and these names are often used in the United States.

   'Sunny side up': Fry one side only, the egg yolk is not coagulated at all and part of the egg white is not coagulated.

   'Over easy' : Fry both sides, the yolk is not coagulated, and the egg white is coagulated - my favorite!

   'Over  medium ':  Fry both sides, egg yolk solidified, egg white solidified

   'Over well ': Fry both sides, with the yolk and egg white fully set.

   'Over hard : Fry both sides, poke the yolk, and make sure the yolk is completely solidified, and the egg white is completely solidified - a bit like an omelet...

In the movie "The World's Fastest Indian," the New Zealander arrives in the US and, on his first morning, goes to breakfast with a boy lady. He gets into a tantrum because he doesn't understand what a sunny side up is. The director probably used this scene to poke fun at Americans for their insistence on splitting their eggs so thoroughly.

2) Choice of meat: It’s very simple, sausage patties or bacon strips. Some restaurants also offer sausages (sasugae). The most traditional one is of course ham!

Sausage patties are probably nothing like what we imagine sausages to be. They're ground pork mixed with various seasonings and fried into a patty. If you want to make your own, you can buy them at the supermarket for $3 a pound and fry them in a pan yourself.

Ham slices are another traditional breakfast item. They typically involve pan-frying a bone-in ham slice, ranging from the size of a palm to the size of a face. But be prepared before ordering, as some private restaurants will actually give you a whole ham the size of your plate.

3) Choice of bread

Europeans are quite particular about bread, with differences in everything from the degree of fermentation to the color, shape, and hardness, whether it's for breakfast or dinner or cereal. Meanwhile, in the United States, influenced by the long-standing fast-food culture, bread has been reduced to a few types, just like the bread you can choose from at Subway:

-White bread (left one): Bread made from pure wheat flour, which is also the most common bread in our country.

-Wheat bread (2nd and 3rd on the left): Bread made with  wheat bran and malt flour (the darker the crust, the higher the ratio)

- Rye bread (left 4, 5): Bread made with rye flour tends to have a harder texture. Another use for rye is making beer.

- Marble bread, mixed bread (below)

- Various breads can be mixed with different grains

Of course, if you go to a restaurant and only eat simple sausages and bread, it would be meaningless. The real American breakfast is mainly divided into scones, pancakes, and stir-fries (this is my own classification...)

   2. Flatbread

   1) Egg Benedict:  As the leader of American breakfast, unfortunately we can’t find a better translation in the Chinese-English dictionary.

The origins of Egg Benedict are quite interesting. A century ago in New York City, a wealthy man named Mr. Benedict would go to a restaurant for breakfast every morning. After trying every dish on the menu, one day he asked, "Can we have something new?" So, as he requested, the chef placed a quickly poached egg on an English muffin, topped it with bacon, and topped it with Hollandaise sauce.

The delicious part about this dish is that when you cut into the egg, the yolk oozes out, mixing with the hollandaise sauce and soaking into the English muffin. Then, eat it with the bacon, and you'll have a rich, eggy tang with the crispy bacon. An American friend once told me that the true measure of a brunch restaurant is how well they make their Egg Benedict, because making a good hollandaise sauce is not easy.

Although it's called Hollandaise, it's not particularly spicy. Its main ingredients are egg yolks and butter, seasoned with lemon juice, salt, and yellow pepper. The egg yolks are beaten over hot water until they become a paste, then the butter is slowly added and seasoned. Temperature control is crucial during this process, as too high a temperature will cause the yolks to solidify, while too low a temperature will prevent them from forming a paste. This practice forces restaurants to make a separate Hollandaise sauce each day, as the egg yolks are still raw and therefore cannot be left until the next day.

Modern American brunch is no longer limited to bacon on Egg Benedict. More options include steak, chicken breast, smoked salmon, etc. But no matter what kind of meat is used, Hollandaise sauce can perfectly blend them together.

   2) Biscuits and gravy

Many times I have to admit that Biscuits and gravy is one of the foods with the biggest contrast in appearance and taste that I have ever seen. It is also a very filling food - I can last a whole day on two Biscuits and gravy.

Biscuits and gravy can be considered the granddaddy of Americana: they originated in the South. Early Americans, especially in the South, often struggled to keep up a full day's meal. Meanwhile, colonial settlers sought to break away from British influence, so they removed a small spoonful of soda from English muffins, creating smaller, more compact biscuits. Interestingly, while in British English, biscuits means "biscuit," in the US, it's a food somewhere between a biscuit and a piece of bread.

Gravy, a gravy made from milk, flour, sausage, bacon, black pepper, and salt, was a common food in colonial America. In traditional American restaurants, gravy was poured over everything from steak to deep-fried pork chops. The smooth, milky, peppery flavors blended with the crunch of fried food were unhealthy, but incredibly delicious.

3. Stir-fried dishes

1) Skillet or Potato Platter (pan-fried bacon, sausage, and vegetables)

To be honest, American Skillet is far different from what we call Japanese flat-breaded grill or teppanyaki beef. Basically, you add butter to a frying pan, put a bunch of vegetables and meat in it, put it on a plate, put two eggs on it, and sprinkle cheese and black pepper on it. But the reason for this kind of food is that you can choose any vegetables you want.

Most of these pan-fried dishes are served with either ranch potatoes or hash browns. I've never seen a restaurant offer both types of potatoes. As for how the eggs are combined with the dish, each restaurant has its own preferences.

For example, the eggs in the picture above are fried separately from the vegetables, and the fried potatoes are also placed separately.

For example, in the picture above, eggs are fried with vegetables and potatoes.

For example, in the picture above, the eggs are not beaten, and the potatoes are fried shredded instead of fried potato cubes...

I still haven't found a pattern for when to fry skillet with eggs and when to fry potato shreds instead of potato cubes.

2) The Worst American Breakfast Ever: Scrambled Eggs and Omelettes

I still don't understand why Americans go to restaurants when they want scrambled eggs. Little do they know that in our great country, every child is already timidly preparing scrambled eggs with tomatoes before they can even drive. Personally, I think the only difference between a fifth-grader's scrambled eggs and the $7 scrambled eggs you get at an American restaurant is that they use butter, a little sausage and mushrooms, and finely diced tomatoes.

Even though Omelettes and Scrambled Eggs are simple dishes, they are still the most popular food in brunch (you know how easy it is for Americans to be fooled!)

Scrambled eggs

Of course, you could argue with me about whether scrambled eggs are actually that difficult. I once saw an article on Renren titled "How to Make American Scrambled Eggs." The article did mention that making a great dish of scrambled eggs is easy, but mastering it is not. For example, you need to know how to control the oil temperature, how to add milk, and how to stir the eggs to achieve a tender, delicious, and buttery scrambled egg. After scrambling over two dozen eggs, I finally developed some rules of thumb that I'll share with you someday.

Omelettes are fried egg pancakes topped with various vegetables and meats, then topped with cheese while still hot. Some might roll them up like an egg burrito, while others might just give you an egg pancake with the vegetables on top. For example, the one pictured above is a California-style omelette, with avocado and salsa.

4. Baking

1) Quiche (pronounced Ki-SH)

This dish isn't often found in restaurants, likely because it's too time-consuming to prepare and one person wouldn't be able to finish such a large pancake. Simply put, Quiche is an oven-baked version of a traditional Chinese steamed egg (with lots of vegetables, of course) or an egg-based pizza...

5. Pancakes

1) Waffles

I remember when the Gossip Girl characters were still in high school, if Uncle Rufus wanted his son or daughter to stay home, he could just say, "Oh, I'll make waffles in the morning," and they would stay home without worry. Later, after Rufus and Lily got married, they often had waffle parties.

What I want to ask is, are waffles really that attractive?

If you stay at any B&B in the US, you can make yourself a waffle in the morning: pour the batter into the waffle maker, and after 3 minutes it will "drip", and your waffle is done!

The story of waffles is said to date back to 13th and 14th century Europe. Due to the high price of sugar, merchants who controlled the sugar trade also controlled the waffle market. Today, Belgian waffles remain a popular dessert. However, when Americans introduced waffles to the US, they made a very Americanized change: adding butter and more milk to the ingredients, making the waffles even more buttery and fluffy.

Of course, you might use better milk, better butter, better fruit, better cream, and better maple syrup when you make your own, but no matter how good it is, this is the secret of waffles.

Waffles are a common breakfast item in Western countries, but it's probably because bakeries in China have made them seem too mysterious and complicated. Most people make the batter in advance and keep it in the refrigerator (or buy it directly at the supermarket), then put it directly into the waffle iron in the morning and it's ready in a few minutes.

In addition to the aforementioned sweet additions, you can also get waffles with fried chicken and drizzle it with maple syrup—probably the weirdest thing I've ever eaten.

2) Pancake

In a sense, pancakes are essentially the same thing as dorayaki, just without the red bean filling. Much like the story of waffles, Americans learned how to make pancakes from Europeans, then added a lot of butter and baking soda, making them soft, fragrant, and high in calories. Because they were so popular and inexpensive to make, Americans opened numerous pancake restaurant chains, such as the popular IHOP (International House of Pancakes), and the pancake gained notoriety.

6. Fancy bread

1) French toast

I actually forgot to mention French toast, as it's one of my biggest food aversions—I hate scammers first and cinnamon second, and French toast's main ingredient is cinnamon. But it's undeniable that French toast is an essential part of the American brunch. Personally, I always feel like two slices of French toast aren't enough to fill me up, so I usually don't order it unless absolutely necessary.

French toast probably shares the same concept as our "paofan" (cooked rice)—how to treat food that's been left out overnight. Long ago, before preservatives were added, bread often dried out after just two or three days. So, people devised a way to make this dry bread more palatable: soak it in a mixture of milk, eggs, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla, then deep-fry it in a pan filled with butter. This way, the bread becomes moist and delicious, with the flavor of milk and cinnamon.

When French toast was introduced to the US, Americans naturally wanted to try their hand at an American twist! So they added a big spoonful of cream, a bottle of maple syrup, and sometimes even a bunch of fruit on top... everything went towards high calorie counts!

2) Bagel (a bagel that is cooked first and then toasted)

Someone mentioned bagels in the comments. It's hard to say whether they're cafe food or brunch menu food. Most diners don't offer bagels. For one thing, they're too simple—just cut a bagel in half and spread some cream on it—so they're more like cupcakes. On the other hand, using sour cream and smoked salmon is too fancy to fit the diner's budget-friendly $5-10 price point. Of course, some more upscale brunch restaurants offer a variety of bagel options, like bacon, beef, various luncheon meats, or just two slices of it as a sandwich.

If you want a bagel, go to Panera Bread. They have the most comprehensive bagel lineup ever, with flavors like pumpkin, rye, sour cream, whole wheat, garlic, onion, blueberry, sea salt, cinnamon, walnut, chocolate, and cheese... Panera comes to our office one day every month to provide breakfast, and after trying all the varieties, I still think the garlic flavor stands out.

If Polish immigrants first brought bagels to the US from Poland, and less than a hundred years later, Americans invented doughnuts, there might not be a necessary connection, but I can certainly imagine Americans adapting cuisines from different countries—just like how they treat vegetables: swapping salt for lots of sugar, and baking for frying.

I once discussed with a friend why a bagel has a hole in the middle. They told me it's because they need to be briefly boiled before being grilled. The hole allows for more even heating, as sometimes the center is undercooked while the edges are burnt. Then I asked why the hole is a medium-sized hole. It turns out, according to our research, the original creator of the donut used a pepper shaker to dig a hole. Perhaps the hole in the bagel also came from this.

Recently, a Polish classmate told me that there is a kind of bagel without holes called bialy... Well, you win...

3) Croissant

Like the bagel mentioned above, Croissant isn't typically found on diner menus, more reminiscent of a café meal. However, as a breakfast item, Croissant seems more sophisticated than the casual American diner experience, and is often considered part of a Continental breakfast. A student commented on why I didn't mention cereals and other grains. They should be considered a Continental breakfast (originating from Europe), and are distinct from our unhealthy, high-calorie American brunch.

Of course, if a croissant exists in an American diner, it's often in the form of a sandwich. But when it's called a sandwich, it's lunch—which is what our next article will cover: the main course of dinner.

Even a simple brunch can be given different "styles" by mixing different vegetables, sauces and meats. Let's talk about the regional food styles in the United States.

   2. American Style

Just like the United States, different regions also have their own culinary specialties, but most of these specialties are named after states. When ordering food, you will often see foods named after places:

1. California style: The food is added with avocado, Mexican salsa, and sweet BBQ.

Californian cuisine is characterized by its blend of Mexican, Asian, and Oceanian culinary influences. Besides its own creation, the California Roll (sushi with avocado and cheese), its meat dishes are also influenced by Mexican BBQ.

2. Louisiana Style: Sour chili sauce, seafood, French style.

In a sense, Louisiana represents the American equivalent of Sichuan—a spicy, moist, and intensely flavorful cuisine. Their coastal location afforded them abundant access to fish, while early French immigrants also brought a strong French flavor to Louisiana. Louisiana's spicy crayfish is even more potent than our own thirteen-spice crayfish.

Southeast Style is closer to Louisiana Style, but they tend to fry their food more (as does the entire South!), so it's no surprise that Kentucky Fried Chicken was originally invented in Kentucky.

To be honest, I haven't tried authentic Cajun style, but I know it's popular in New Orleans. Traditional Cajun cuisine consists of three bowls: a main course, a vegetable, and rice (which can also be seafood)—that's one meat and one vegetable, right? Of course, the most famous Cajun dish is probably gumbo. Cajun style can be considered a culinary style that truly developed in the United States. It originated from French country roasts and stews, then incorporated New Orleans specialties like seafood and rice. Later, it incorporated Caribbean, Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese influences, adding many herb-based ingredients and various chilies, ultimately creating the red and spicy Southern food we know today.

If you're in California, you might want to go to The Boiling Crab and try this Southern-style sauce.

3. Chicago Style: Lots of Toppings

In the eyes of ordinary people, Chicago is a big city, but in the eyes of Americans, Chicago is the gateway to the Midwest, and naturally it has become the representative of Midwestern food. Chicago's thick crust pizza with lots of cheese and hot dogs with a lot of toppings are often mentioned, which has also created the impression that "Chicago style is very affordable" in people's minds.

4. Texas Style: Beef, Beef, Beef

It's hard to tell you the difference between French-influence BBQ and German-influence BBQ, but I can tell you that the difference between Texas BBQ and BBQ elsewhere in the US is that they grill beef instead of pork chops. Beef doesn't have much fat and tends to be drier after grilling, but Texas BBQ uses barbecue sauce constantly while grilling and uses smoke instead of charcoal to preserve the juices.

We have a beef joke in Nebraska: The American beef industry now feeds cattle corn stalks, so Nebraska ships the corn stalks to cattle farms in Texas, where the best cattle must be bred. Once the cattle are grown, they're shipped back to Nebraska for slaughter, as Texas can't kill them all. Finally, the beef is shipped back to Texas and labeled "Texas Steak." A small portion of the beef remains in Nebraska, becoming "Omaha Steak."

5. St. Louis Style: Sweet BBQ and Thin Pizza

If Texas is known for its beef BBQ, St. Louis is known for its sweet pork BBQ. This sweet, tomato-based BBQ is incredibly appetizing and less smoky than Kansas City-style BBQ.

In stark contrast to Chicago pizza, St. Louis pizza is famous for its thin-rimmed, yeast-free pizza base.

---

I originally just wanted to write something casually about American breakfast, but it got out of hand.

Regardless of culture, regardless of history, their food carries a national identity and cannot be easily explained in a few words. American culinary culture is incredibly diverse, and breakfast encompasses one of the most traditional aspects of American cuisine. The myriad terms, requirements, and subdivisions often leave international students bewildered.

I'm writing this article hoping that one Saturday morning, you can go to a brunch in the neighborhood with friends, spend less than $12 on an unlimited American coffee or orange juice, and try the Hollandaise sauce to see if it's really smooth and flavorful, and whether scrambled eggs can really taste like scrambled eggs with tomatoes.

(To be continued)