These regional dishes have been influenced by various ethnic gorups - Native Americans, Europeans, Africans and Asians - as well as the local food and ingredient sources that were available at the time.

There are at least six culinary regions within the continental United States - new England and Mid-Atlantic, Southern, Midwest, Southwest/Tex-Mex, West and the Pacific Northwest. Within these regions, many dishes are similar in both the types of food used and cooking techniques.

New England/Mid-Atlantic. This region, which includes the states of Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, New York, Pennsylvania, new Jersey and Delaware, was influenced by early British settlers. These Pilgrims received culinary assistance from native Americans which included harvesting vegetables - especially corn- as well as hunting and fishing.

Popular New England and Mid-atlantic cooking techniques include roasting and boiling, which yield prepared foods such as clam chowder, baked beans, porridges, puddings, salted cod, and pork and beans.

Southern. The states of Virginia, West Virginia, kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, floirida and Maryland make up the southern region, which can simple be described as a "Melting Pot".

Prior to the Civil War, the South prided itself on grand plantation living. French, English, and Spanish ingredients and cooking techniques heavily influenced the cuisine of this Antebellum era. African slaves also affected the cooking; they were the cooks that seasoned and stirred the pot. These people brought okra, black-eyed peas, eggplant, and sesame seed to America.

African slaves used the American sweet potato-in place of yams-to create many Southern dishes. Slaves in South Carolina were experts at cultivating and preparing rice. Since Charleston, S.C., was the wealthiest city in America during the Antebellum era, the rice became known as "Carolina Gold." Popular dishes from this region include Hoppin' John, She Crab Soup, Shrimp Pilau and Rice Pudding.

African slaves and Native Americans also influenced Louisiana cooking, which is a mixture of Creole and Cajun foods. Creole cuisine is a blend of Spanish, Portuguese, German, and French cooking techniques, with African fare-rice, okra, tomatoes and greens- and local Louisiana ingredients. Creole is also known as "city" or "haute cuisine" and is usually eaten with good French wines.

Cajun cuisine was created by descendants of French Canadians who migrated to Louisiana. Cultivated from local swamp areas, Louisiana ingredients - duck, frog legs, alligator, pecans, cane syrup and yams - are used to make Cajun food. Cajun cuisine is also known as Louisiana country cooking, which is traditionally eaten with locally produced beer.

No other American region has marketed its foods to the world like the South, as evidenced by chef and restaurateur Paul Prudhomme, who has put Louisiana cuisine on the map. Purdhomme has produced a full line of regional spices and seasonings, along with prepared meats such as Andouille sausage (pork, potato and onion ingredients), and Smoked Cajun Pork Tasso, which are used to flavor Bumbo and jambalaya dishes.

Midwest. Known as America's heartland, the Midwest includes Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Kansas and Oklahoma. foods eaten in this region are considered "hearty" with no fancy and exotic seasonings.

Corn, wheat, soy beans, and dairy farms dot the landscape, which the cooking techniques of this region reflect Scandinavian, Dutch and German influences. German settlers in Wisconsin introduced favorites such as beef pot roast and chicken-fried steak with gravy, while Swedish immigrants who took roots in Minnesota touted their now famous meatballs. Sausage and sauerkraut, bratwurst and beer, hot German potato salad, and corn-on-the-cob are all Midwestern staples.

Southwest. The Southwest region includes the states of Arizona, New Mexico and Texas, Spanish immigrants introduced hearth cooking to America, utilizing chilies, tortillas and tomatoes. Other ingredients common to Southwestern cuisine include red pepper, cumin and cinnamon. This region also has its own version of a culinary melting pot. A combination of Spanish and Mexican dishes- blending Native American and Anglo cooking techniques such as barbecue and grilling - has given rise to Tex-Mex cooking.

Signature Southwestern foods include chayote burritos, blue cornmeal muffins, black bean chili, and caramel flan.

West. The Western region of the United States includes Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Idaho, Wyoming and Montana. The cooking techniques of early settlers in this region still effect meal preparation today. Whatever the settlers did not roast over an open fire was cooked in a large cast-iron dutch oven. The Dutch oven was used for both slow-cooked stews and sour-dough breads.

Traditional foods eaten in this region include Rocky Mountain trout, chicken pot pies, and Idaho twice-baked potatoes.

Although California is part of both the West and Southwest regions, a large portion of its cooking and culinary techniques fail to fit into either region. Within the past 25 years, California has reinvented its culinary palate, which can be described as "melting Pot-Fusion Cuisine"- a style of cooking drawing on European and Asian elements. Generally, it is the application of Asian preparation techniques combined with European and American ingredients. This is also known as "East meets West." Stir-fried seafood with linguine is an example of a California fusion dish.

Pacific Northwest. the Pacific Northwest, which includes the states of Oregon and Washington, is known for its abundance of seafood, game, apples, and wild berries. popular foods include venison, pumpkin soup, gooseberry relish, apple-cherry pie and pear cobbler.