Ethnic Tastes in a National Market.

During the 1870s, 1880s, and 1890s two opposing trends were visible in American eating habits. Regional and ethnic differences powerfully influenced selection and preparation of food. Where they lived—the western frontier, the rural South, the East, the Midwest, the Southwest—and where they left—Greece, Italy, Central Europe, or Africa —shaped what a family ate. Their style of food preparation linked people to their pasts and to their ethnic, regional histories. The second and competing trend in the United States was a move toward standardization, as improvements in transportation and preservation helped to create national markets for brand-name foods. Favorites from one region could be transported to others without spoiling, giving rise to a distinctive "American" diet.

Southern Food.

The American South produced some of the most enduringly popular dishes in the United States, many of...