Pennsylvania Dutch cuisine is the typical and traditional fare of the Pennsylvania Dutch. According to one writer, "If you had to make a short list of regions in the United States where regional food is actually consumed on a daily basis, the land of the Pennsylvania Dutch—in and around Lancaster County, Pennsylvania—would be at or near the top of that list," mainly because the area is a cultural enclave of Pennsylvania Dutch culture. Pennsylvania Dutch cuisine reflects influences of the Pennsylvania Dutch's German heritage,

agrarian society An agrarian society, or agricultural society, is any community whose economy is based on producing and maintaining crops and farmland. Another way to define an agrarian society is by seeing how much of a nation's total production is in agriculture ...

, and rejection of rapid change.David Rosengarten, ''It's All American Food: The Best Recipes For More Than 400 New American Classics'' (2003). Hachette Digital. It is common to find Pennsylvania Dutch cuisine throughout the

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

/ Delaware Valley region.

Techniques

In the 18th century baking was still done in wood-fired ovens that produced inconsistent results and could easily become too hot. The Pennsylvania Dutch baked

pastries Pastry is baked food made with a dough of flour, water and shortening (solid fats, including butter or lard) that may be savoury or sweetened. Sweetened pastries are often described as '' bakers' confectionery''. The word "pastries" suggests ...

on cabbage leaves to provide some protection from hot spots that could develop in the oven.

Soups

Soups, often featuring

egg noodle Noodles are a type of food made from unleavened dough which is either rolled flat and cut, stretched, or extruded, into long strips or strings. Noodles are a staple food in many cultures (for example, Chinese noodles, Filipino noodles, I ...

s, are characteristic of the Pennsylvania Dutch. Pennsylvanian Dutch homes have traditionally had many

broth Broth, also known as bouillon (), is a savory liquid made of water in which meat, fish or vegetables have been simmered for a short period of time. It can be eaten alone, but it is most commonly used to prepare other dishes, such as soups, ...

s on hand (vegetable, fish,

poultry Poultry () are domesticated birds kept by humans for their eggs, their meat or their feathers. These birds are most typically members of the superorder Galloanserae (fowl), especially the order Galliformes (which includes chickens, quails, ...

, and other meats) from the saving of any extra liquids available: "The Pennsylvania Dutch developed soup making to such a high art that complete cookbooks could be written about their soups alone; there was an appropriate soup for every day of the year, including a variety of hot and cold

fruit soup Fruit soup is a soup prepared using fruit as a primary ingredient, and may be served warm or cold depending on the recipe. Some fruit soups use several varieties of fruit, and alcoholic beverages such as rum, sherry and kirsch (a fruit brandy) ma ...

s."William Woys Weaver, ''Sauerkraut Yankees: Pennsylvania Dutch Foods & Foodways'' (2nd ed.) (2002), p. 93. Soups were traditionally divided into different categories, including ''Sippli'' or "little soup" (a light broth), ''Koppsupper'' or "cup soups", ''Suppe'' (thick,

chowder Chowder is a thick soup prepared with milk or cream, a roux, and seafood or vegetables. Oyster crackers or saltines may accompany chowders as a side item, and cracker pieces may be dropped atop the dish. New England clam chowder is typically ...

soups, often served as a meal with bread), and ''G'schmorte'' (a soup with no broth, often like a ''Brieh'' (Brei) or

gravy Gravy is a sauce often made from the juices of meats that run naturally during cooking and often thickened with wheat flour or corn starch for added texture. The gravy may be further coloured and flavoured with gravy salt (a simple mix of salt ...

).William Woys Weaver, ''Sauerkraut Yankees: Pennsylvania Dutch Foods & Foodways'' (2nd ed.) (2002), p. 94. Pennsylvania Dutch soups are often thickened with a starch, such as

mashed potatoes Mashed potato or mashed potatoes (American and Canadian English), colloquially known as mash (British English), is a dish made by mashing boiled or steamed potatoes, usually with added milk, butter, salt and pepper. It is generally served as a ...

, flour,

rice Rice is the seed of the grass species '' Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima'' (African rice). The name wild rice is usually used for species of the genera '' Zizania'' and '' Porteresia'', both wild and domesticat ...

noodle Noodles are a type of food made from unleavened dough which is either rolled flat and cut, stretched, or extruded, into long strips or strings. Noodles are a staple food in many cultures (for example, Chinese noodles, Filipino noodles, In ...

s, fried bread, dumplings, and ''Riwwels'' or '' rivels'' (small dumplings described as "large crumbs" made from "rubbing egg yolk and flour between the fingers"), from the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

verb for "to rub."

Pennsylvania Dutch specialties

Beverages

Birch beer Birch beer is a beverage, commonly found as a carbonated soft drink made from herbal extracts and birch bark. It was originally made from the extracts of both oak and pine barks (which are sometimes combined). There are dozens of brands of birch ...

Root beer Root beer is a sweet North American soft drink traditionally made using the root bark of the sassafras tree '' Sassafras albidum'' or the vine of '' Smilax ornata'' (known as sarsaparilla, also used to make a soft drink, sarsaparilla) as the ...

Dishes

* Amish potato salad *

Apple butter Apple butter is a highly concentrated form of apple sauce produced by long, slow cooking of apples with cider or water to a point where the sugar in the apples caramelizes, turning the apple butter a deep brown. The concentration of sugar gives a ...

* Apple dumpling—cored and peeled apple, covered in a pie-crust, dusted with sugar or cinnamon, and baked. Served in a bowl with milk. Sometimes eaten as dessert, but generally a meal in and of itself. * Beef or venison

jerky Jerky is lean trimmed meat cut into strips and dried (dehydrated) to prevent spoilage. Normally, this drying includes the addition of salt to prevent bacteria growth before the meat has finished the dehydrating process. The word "jerky" derive ...

* Bova Shankel—a pierogi-type dish of potato dumplings and sauce. * Brown butter noodles—egg noodles combined with butter that was melted and browned in a pan. * Hot bacon dressing—cooked, drained, crumbled bacon in a thickened sweet dressing, served hot over fresh salad greens; often used with dandelion greens to offset their tart taste. * Bacon gravy *

Chicken and waffles Chicken and waffles is an American dish combining chicken with waffles. It is part of a variety of culinary traditions, including Pennsylvania Dutch cuisine and soul food, and is served in certain specialty restaurants in the United States. De ...

* Chicken corn soup—made with egg noodles and sometimes

saffron Saffron () is a spice derived from the flower of ''Crocus sativus'', commonly known as the "saffron crocus". The vivid crimson stigma and styles, called threads, are collected and dried for use mainly as a seasoning and colouring agent in ...

, which has been cultivated in Pennsylvania Dutch country since the early 19th century; egg noodles, corn, hard boiled eggs, and chicken. Sometimes an addition is rivels, small

dumplings Dumpling is a broad class of dishes that consist of pieces of dough (made from a variety of starch sources), oftentimes wrapped around a filling. The dough can be based on bread, flour, buckwheat or potatoes, and may be filled with meat, fish ...

. *

Chow-chow The Chow Chow is a spitz-type of dog breed originally from northern China. The Chow Chow is a sturdily built dog, square in profile, with a broad skull and small, triangular, erect ears with rounded tips. The breed is known for a very dense ...

* Cole slaw * Cup cheese * Gingerbread,

ginger snap A gingersnap, ginger snap, ginger nut, or ginger biscuit is a biscuit flavored with ginger. Ginger snaps are flavored with powdered ginger and a variety of other spices, most commonly cinnamon, molasses and clove. There are many recipes. The bri ...

s, ginger cake, and

pot roast Pot roast is an American beef dish made by slow-cooking a usually tough cut of beef in moist heat. Tougher cuts such as chuck steak, bottom round, short ribs and 7-bone roast are preferred for this technique. These cuts are American terms; d ...

spiced with ginger and other aromatic spices. * Hamloaf—a

meatloaf Meatloaf is a dish of ground meat that has been combined with other ingredients and formed into the shape of a loaf, then baked or smoked. The final shape is either hand-formed on a baking tray, or pan-formed by cooking it in a loaf pan. ...

-like dish made of ground ham, often baked with brown sugar on top, lacking the spices and

bread crumbs Bread crumbs or breadcrumbs (regional variants including breading and crispies) consist of crumbled bread of various dryness, sometimes with seasonings added, used for breading or crumbing foods, topping casseroles, stuffing poultry, thicken ...

found in meatloaf. *

Hog maw Hog maw is the stomach of a pig. More specifically, it is the exterior muscular wall of the stomach organ (with interior, lining mucosa removed) which contains no fat if cleaned properly. It can be found in American, Soul Food, Chinese, Pennsylv ...

—pig's stomach, called ''Seimaaga'' in the Pennsylvania Dutch dialect. *

Lebanon bologna Lebanon bologna is a type of cured, smoked, and fermented semidry beef sausage; it is not, in spite of its name, a pork-based bologna. Similar in appearance and texture to salami, it is somewhat darker in color, and is typically served as a cold ...

* Peanut butter

schmear __NOTOC__ ''Schmear'' is a word of Germanic origin, equivalent to "smear" or "spread" (usually fat or butter). In some Germanic languages, the cognate of ''smear'' itself means butter (c.f. ''smör/smør'' in the North Germanic languages). The u ...

* Pepper cabbage—a sweet and sour dish *

Pork Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the domestic pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BCE. Pork is eaten both freshly cooked and preserved; ...

and

sauerkraut Sauerkraut (; , "sour cabbage") is finely cut raw cabbage that has been fermented by various lactic acid bacteria. It has a long shelf life and a distinctive sour flavor, both of which result from the lactic acid formed when the bacteria ferm ...

* Potato filling * Potato rolls *

Pot pie Pot pie is the North American term for a type of meat pie with a top pie crust that is commonly used throughout the continent. consisting of flaky pastry. Pot pies may be made with a variety of fillings including poultry, beef, seafood, or plant- ...

—not the baked pie with a pastry top, but a meat stew with large noodles (pot pie squares); often features

chicken The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated junglefowl species, with attributes of wild species such as the grey and the Ceylon junglefowl that are originally from Southeastern Asia. Rooster or cock is a term for an adu ...

, flour, salt, vegetables (such as

celery Celery (''Apium graveolens'') is a marshland plant in the family Apiaceae that has been cultivated as a vegetable since antiquity. Celery has a long fibrous stalk tapering into leaves. Depending on location and cultivar, either its stalks, ...

onion An onion (''Allium cepa'' L., from Latin ''cepa'' meaning "onion"), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus ''Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onio ...

, and carrots) as well as spices (such as parsley,

thyme Thyme () is the herb (dried aerial parts) of some members of the genus '' Thymus'' of aromatic perennial evergreen herbs in the mint family Lamiaceae. Thymes are relatives of the oregano genus ''Origanum'', with both plants being mostly indigen ...

black pepper Black pepper (''Piper nigrum'') is a flowering vine in the family Piperaceae, cultivated for its fruit, known as a peppercorn, which is usually dried and used as a spice and seasoning. The fruit is a drupe (stonefruit) which is about in dia ...

, and bay leaf). * Pretzel * Red beet eggs (pickled beet eggs) *

Sauerbraten Sauerbraten is a traditional German roast of heavily marinated meat. It is regarded as a national dish of Germany, and is frequently served in German-style restaurants internationally. It can be prepared from a variety of meats, most often from ...

—sour roast, is any one of various meats and spices that are marinated for several days in vinegar or wine, vegetables are added to the marinade during the final day. Sauerbraten was traditionally made using horse meat, but beef or other cuts of meat are now favored. It is often served with dumplings and red cabbage. Sauerbraten remains very popular throughout Germany. *

Schnitz un knepp Schnitz un knepp, often spelled Schnitz un Gnepp or Schnitz und Knepp, is a popular main dish item in the cuisine of the Pennsylvania Dutch in the United States. It is basically a dish of ham or pork shoulder with dried apples and dumplings. D ...

Scrapple Scrapple, also known by the Pennsylvania Dutch name ''Pannhaas'' ("pan tenderloin" in English), is traditionally a mush of pork scraps and trimmings combined with cornmeal and wheat flour, often buckwheat flour, and spices. The mush is forme ...

Desserts

Angel food cake Angel food cake, or angel cake, is a type of sponge cake made with egg whites, flour, and sugar. A whipping agent, such as cream of tartar, is commonly added. It differs from other cakes because it uses no butter. Its aerated texture comes fro ...

Apple dumplings An apple dumpling is a baked or boiled pastry-wrapped apple. To prepare apple dumplings, apples are peeled, cored and sometimes quartered and placed on a portion of dough. The hole from the core may be filled with cinnamon, butter and sugar and ...

Dutch baby pancake A Dutch baby pancake, sometimes called a German pancake, a Bismarck, a Dutch puff, or a Hootenanny, is a large American popover. A Dutch baby is similar to a large Yorkshire pudding. Unlike most pancakes, Dutch babies are baked in the oven, ...

*Church spread—made from molasses or corn syrup, marshmallow cream, and peanut butter, often found at Amish church services and community events. *Cracker pudding—thickened with saltine crackers * Fastnachts *

Funnel cake Funnel cake (Pennsylvania German: ''Drechderkuche'') is a regional sweet food popular in North America, found mainly at carnivals and amusement parks. It is made by deep-frying batter. History The concept of the funnel cake dates back to the ea ...

*Funny cake—a combination of pie and cake that is made by baking a cake surrounded by pie crust, marbled throughout with chocolate streaks. *

Whoopie pie The whoopie pie, alternatively called a black moon, gob (term indigenous to the Pittsburgh region), black-and-white, bob, or "BFO" for Big Fat Oreo (also recorded as "Devil Dogs" and "Twins" in 1835), is an American baked product that may be cons ...

*Montgomery pie—buttery crust with a gooey molasses and lemon filling and a buttermilk cake topping. * Moravian sugar cake *

Shoofly pie Shoofly pie is a type of American pie made with molasses associated with Pennsylvania Dutch cuisine. While shoo-fly pie has been a staple of Moravian, Mennonite and Amish foodways, there is scant evidence concerning its origins, and most of the ...

—molasses crumb cake with a pie crust for easier eating. *

Sugar cookies A sugar cookie is a cookie with the main ingredients being sugar, flour, butter, eggs, vanilla, and either baking powder or baking soda (depending on the type of sugar used). Sugar cookies may be formed by hand, dropped, or rolled and cut ...

Notes

External links

PA Dutch Country recipesBerks County Pennsylvania Dutch recipesPennsylvania Dutch recipes from Chester County, the Lehigh Valley, etc.
{{Amish Pennsylvania Dutch Amish in Pennsylvania Pennsylvania Dutch