I know this is probably hard to predict, but... How would their traditional cuisines develop with the resources present in America? What would be some of their most known foods?
Cuisine and foods of Japanese/Korean/Chinese colonized west coast of North America?
- Thread starter paulisnotdead
- Start date
A very interesting question. I don't know that much about the various regional forms of traditional East Asian cuisine, but I'm sure that if the Japanese and Koreans colonised west coast North America, they would focus a lot on fishing at first. It would only be natural, given their domestic food-acquiring focus and the existing know-how they had with that. A greater shift towards trying out land-based new food sources would occur concurrently with efforts to expand more inland, eastward of the already chartered and explored coastal areas. I think the Chinese, being a nation with less of a focus on maritime cuisine, would be more willing to research and experiment with new ingredients from North America.
The northern as well as southern native cultures of the west coast would no doubt have an influence on what cooking and eating habits the longer-term colonists might develop over time. Provided their relationship with the natives is stable enough and hey can get along without too much overt conflict. Some cultural exchange is bound to happen, advice on food included. One thing to factor in is that there might be misunderstandings, such as some group of explorers or traders bringing back crops or berries or something from a native culture, but having confused (or misinterpreted) what they're supposed to do with these.
The northern as well as southern native cultures of the west coast would no doubt have an influence on what cooking and eating habits the longer-term colonists might develop over time. Provided their relationship with the natives is stable enough and hey can get along without too much overt conflict. Some cultural exchange is bound to happen, advice on food included. One thing to factor in is that there might be misunderstandings, such as some group of explorers or traders bringing back crops or berries or something from a native culture, but having confused (or misinterpreted) what they're supposed to do with these.
It depends on the origin of the sailors, I think. Some coastal provinces like Fujian (I just returned from a trip there haha) have a diet that is mostly seafood.
I believe that Chinese contact with Mesoamericans will be unavoidable too, and from there maize seem simply a too beneficial crop to not adopt.
Soba. As in buckwheat noodles. This is far easier to grow than rice, and grows in a lot of places, plus the Japanese already grew the stuff in large amounts though it was considered a peasant food. It isn't hard to believe our North American Japanese might have that as their staple instead of rice, even if their elite would prefer rice as in OTL Japan. That might as well be the staple for Japanese colonists there. Also the wapato plant. Relatives of the plant grow in Chinese rice paddies, and wapato itself is farmed for the Asian market nowadays, so it will probably be an important part of the diet there.
Sushi might have a chance to be invented there before in Japan proper.
Shochu will certainly be a huge part of New World Japanese cuisine. Going by the late invention of sobajochuu (buckwheat shochu) OTL, that sort of shochu will be quintessentially "New World" for the Japanese. For a Japanese-colonised Alaska, I like the idea of their sobajochuu being upped in its ABV to be more like vodka and thus give a harder hit for people forced to colonise what is basically the American Siberia. There's already shochu out there like that OTL, though not made from soba.
Sushi might have a chance to be invented there before in Japan proper.
Shochu will certainly be a huge part of New World Japanese cuisine. Going by the late invention of sobajochuu (buckwheat shochu) OTL, that sort of shochu will be quintessentially "New World" for the Japanese. For a Japanese-colonised Alaska, I like the idea of their sobajochuu being upped in its ABV to be more like vodka and thus give a harder hit for people forced to colonise what is basically the American Siberia. There's already shochu out there like that OTL, though not made from soba.