Hardcover
ISBN10: 0781811201
ISBN13: 9780781811200
| Pages: 150 | Width: 6.00 inches. |
| Publication Date: 9/2005 | Height: 9.00 inches. |
| Edition | |
Description
Despite the increased popularity of Cajun foods such as gumbo, crawfish étouffée, and boudin (a pork and rice sausage), relatively little is known about the history of this fascinating cuisine. The authors, all Louisiana natives, unlock the mystery of this flavorful and unique American cooking and eating culture.
Stir the Pot explores its origins and evolution from the seventeenth-century French settlement in Nova Scotia to the explosion of Cajun food onto the American dining scene over the past few decades. The authors debunk the myths surrounding Cajun food—foremost that its staples are closely guarded relics of the Cajuns’ early days in Louisiana—and explain how local dishes and culinary traditions have come to embody Cajun cuisine both at home and throughout the world. Stir the pot also explores the fascinating and important role that food plays in Acadia, both in everyday life and on special occasions such as boucheries (communal butcherings), festivals, and holidays. The book closes with a personal memoir of growing up in Cajun country and witnessing the modern evolution of the cuisine, which brings the history to life. Complete with b/w photgraphs.
About the author(s)
Marcelle Bienvenue is a cookbook author who has worked with such notable culinary figures as Ella Brennan of Commander's Palace and Emeril Legasse. Historian Carl A. Brasseaux is the director of the Center for Cultural and Eco-Tourism at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, and managing editor of Louisiana History and Louisiana History Quarterly. An anthropologist, Ryan A. Brasseaux is the director of research/project management at Exhibits, Etc., a nationally recognized museum design firm.