Colonial CookingA Social Studies Presentation

By Jake Montagnino of ID2

Obviously, the concept of cooking was very different back in the 13 colonies than it is now. Given, cooking is cooking, and it is pretty much a uniform process, but the ‘earlier people’ couldn’t go about it the same way.

People in colonial times didn’t have the technology that we do today. They didn’t have the things that now bring the element of convenience to cooking, like microwaves, non-stick pans, spatulas, tongs, and convection ovens, to mention a few.

Foreword: THEN | NOW

Cooking: The duty of WHOM?

In the colonies, the role of the cook usually went to the mother/wife/woman of the house. It is that way still in many cultures. While the men went out and did the more ‘dirty work,’ the women stayed home, cleaned, raised the children, and cooked. However, in wealthy families, there can be slaves. In these situations, the slaves would probably do the cooking and the baking for the family.

The colonial oven:THE FIREPLACE

In a colonial home, the fireplace had to be in the kitchen because it was how the food was cooked. They didn’t have ovens back then, so the food would be cooked only by the warmth of the fire. Since the fireplace took on such a big role, it had to be big and it usually took up a lot of kitchen space. The fireplace was also the main source of heat in a colonial home.

Pots & Pans!

Even in colonial times, forms of pots and pans were used to cook food. Since homes didn’t have much storage space and cabinets/drawers like we do today, the pots and pans were either hung from the top of the fireplace or were placed on the floor near the fireplace, but out of the way so family members wouldn’t trip over them. Most tools were iron so they wouldn’t be damaged by the fireplace’s heat. You can see this in the picture below.

MORE KITCHEN TOOLS!

See Notebook™ File

HOW DID THE COLONISTS GET FOOD TO EAT?

The following few pages will talk about how the colonists got their food to eat. There are 3 main ways. These methods are quite the same as our methods today. In these slides, however, you will learn how the colonists learned these techniques and how they can be used.

HUNTING

Hunting was not a new idea to the colonists. After all, how would they have gotten food before? They needed to, however, adjust to the ‘zone’ they are in and the animals that are native to that area. These were the animals the colonists hunted. After all, a colonist living in Georgia probably couldn’t find an animal that is native to the north.

FISHING

Fishing and fish species were VERY LOCAL. The area has to be suitable for fishing. Suitability deals with temperature and other climactic properties of the area. Also, it depends on the current season. For example, fishing was essential in the New England colonies in the winter because things like farming weren’t possible in such cold weather.

FARMING There is a lot to say about farming.

Farming was done throughout the colonies, but different crops were grown in different areas.

In the heart of the slave trade, slaves were used to help with farming, especially in the south, where there were many plantations, which were giant farms used to grow a lot of one crop.

The growth of some crops, such as corn, was introduced to the colonists by the local American Indians.

FARMING (continued) Another factor was the soil type. Some soil

wasn’t very good for farming, like in some New England colonies.

Also, growing season lengths need to be taken into account. The length ratios of the different seasons could mean that there could be either a very long, very short, or moderate time for the colonists to grow all of their crops they need. For examples, the New England colonies had rather short growing seasons, while the middle colonies had very long growing seasons.

FARMING NATIVITY These are a few of the different crops

that were able to be grown in the colonies.

New England (North)

Middle Southern

Squash

Beans

Corn

Potatoes

Grains

Fruit

Vegetables

Tobacco

Rice

Indigo

[^Cash Crops^]

NOTE: The recipe we will focus on in the pages to come wasn’t always as easy as it is portrayed to be today. As you will see, even acquiring the ingredients was a bit more of an

inconvenience than it is now for us. It just goes to show exactly how convenient life is today.More details to follow.

Recipe Spotlight ~ Slapjacks

Ingredients:

1 cup milk2 cups

cornmeal4 eggs4 tbsp of flour.

Directions: Mix all

ingredients together.

Cook on griddle over medium heat. 

Flip when bubbles show on top.

Cook until both sides are browned.

SLAPJACKS

MUCH LIKE PANCAKES,

RIGHT?

IT’S AMAZING HOW SOME OF THE

RECIPES WE USE TODAY ACTUALLY ORIGINATED IN

COLONIAL TIMES.

Grown by farmers on corn stalks. It was then

scraped from the cob and pounded until fine. Then the

result was strained, so only the powder remained. Cornmeal

was the leftover product.

The colonial people got eggs from the chickens, who laid them. The colonists raised the chickens for

primarily this purpose.

I N G R ED I E N T S

The colonists also raised cows.When their udders are squeezed,milk comes out and you must catch it in a container to then use it for consumption.

EGGS MILK

CORNMEAL

FlourFlour comes from wheat, which is a grain grown by farmers. It was ground by a quern-stone.

SOURCES

The First American Cookbook http://www.1771.org http://www.adobetutorialz.com/content_images/AdobePhotoshop/MICKM/S

potlights/1.jpg http://www.istockphoto.com/file_thumbview_approve/2711766/2/istockpho

to_2711766-chocolate-milk-carton.jpg Food In Colonial America, By Mark Thomas http://images.oldhouseweb.com/stories/bitmaps/10262/kitchentoday.jpg http://www.finecooking.com/assets/uploads/posts/5890/ING-cornmeal_sql.j

pg Microsoft PowerPoint Tools Thesaurus http://www.ssdsbergen.org/Colonial/food.htm Smart Notebook Graphics http://67pics.com/pictures-flour.html http://www.engr.psu.edu/mtah/projects/images/clay_oven10.jpg Office Online http://www.socialstudiesforkids.com/articles/ushistory/13coloniesfarm.htm