In the 1920s and 1930s, immigrants avoided displaying their ethnic heritage. They believed that being like everybody else was the way to be truly American. Fortunately, attitudes changed as Americans of all backgrounds realized they were part of a mosaic of cultures. Old Country festivals, languages, costumes, and cuisines burst forth and mingled happily with Americanisms. The result: more reasons to celebrate and delicious culinary adaptations.
This Thanksgiving, the best of both worlds can be found in millions of dining rooms where the native language may not be English but the spirit of thankfulness is as American as when the Pilgrims said grace with the Indians. Turkey is usually the star performer, while side dishes, condiments, vegetable casseroles, and desserts serve as reminders of Old Country ties.
Sigi Truumees, a native of Frankfurt, Germany, explains it this way. "We always have the traditional turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes, and the like. Our close friends from Germany bring their food specialties for the table. But for old times' sake, I fix apple strudel for dessert instead of pumpkin pie." She also prepares red cabbage, which goes well with turkey or goose.
The British often replace the standard turkey and trimmings with a standing rib roast of beef, Yorkshire pudding, roast potatoes, cauliflower and trifle. Helen Little, Washington correspondent for the Glasgow Herald, and her Scottish husband, science writer Charles Marwick, wear their tartans and invite numerous friends into their home to celebrate.
The Chinese community gives thank gastronomically as well as spiritually. Robert Tsui of the Peking Gourmet Inn in Falls Church, Virginia, points out that Thanksgiving is a substitute for the Harvest Moon Festival in China. "According to the lunar calendar, this falls on a different day each year. The five-centuries-old tradition refers to the moon cakes, round like a full moon, which had secret messages cooked inside them. Nowadays, Chinese-Americans consider Thanksgiving a family get-together day. Loved ones, wherever they may be, can look at the moon and feel close to those who may be far away," he says. It is the only day of the year when the restaurant is closed so that employees can be with their families.
As for the Tsui family foods, "We have turkey, half American-, half Oriental-style. Many vegetables and plenty of rice. Usually about thirty people are there at our farm." There is roast duck, of course, and barbecued suckling pig.
Hungarian-Americans successfully blend Old Country cuisine with American roast turkey. "I usually stuff my turkey with a mixture of ground meat, crumbled cooked bacon, cooked rice, chopped mushrooms, spices, and onions," says Manuela Kogutowicz, who arrived in America in 1957 from her native Budapest. Thanksgiving turkey, Hungarian style is accompanied by rakott burgonya, somewhat akin to scalloped potatoes; rakott kapozta (layered cabbage); a French salad with homemade mayonnaise; cucumber salad with sour cream; boiled prunes and peaches; pastries; and, of course, Hungarian white wine. "We serve lots of gravy," Kogutowicz says.
Zewditu Wondemu, the owner of Zed's Ethiopian Cuisine in Washington, D.C., says Thanksgiving is a family day. "It is new
...
Read Full Article
|
