Type | Stew |
---|---|
Place of origin | United States |
Region or state | Upper Midwest |
Main ingredients | Meat (commonly beef, chicken, or pork), vegetables (carrots, peas, onion, celery, rutabagas potatoes), seasonings |
Booyah (also spelled booya, bouja, boulyaw, or bouyou) is a thick stew, believed to have originated in Belgium, and brought to northwestern Wisconsin by Walloons, it is now made throughout the Upper Midwestern United States. [1] Booyah can require up to two days and multiple cooks to prepare; it is cooked in specially designed "booyah kettles" and usually meant to serve hundreds or even thousands of people. [2] [3] [4] The name can also refer to a social event surrounding the meal.
In cooking booyah, one makes a base or broth derived from meat bones, to which vegetables are added. Beef, chicken, and pork are popular varieties of meat for booyah (with all three often in the same kettle), [4] with vegetables such as carrots, peas, onions, and potatoes also in the mix. A wide variety of seasonings is used, sometimes lowered into the kettle in a cheesecloth bag. [5] Typical large-scale booyah kettles can hold more than 50 US gallons (190 L) and are made from steel or cast iron to withstand direct heat and the long cooking time. [6]
The term "booyah" may be a variant of "bouillon". It is thought to have derived from the Walloon language words for "boil" ( bouillir ) and "broth" (bouillon). The spelling with an H has been attributed to phonetic spelling by Wallonian immigrants from Belgium. [7] The Dictionary of American Regional English attributes the term to French Canadian immigrants; others attribute it to a derivation from the Provençal seafood dish bouillabaisse . [5]
An article in the Green Bay Press-Gazette on October 29, 1976, speculating on the origin of the spelling and related fundraiser event, reads:
Lester (Rentmeester) relates recollections of his schoolteacher father, Andrew, probably the "pioneer" of the word "booyah" . "At the old Finger Road School where he taught, funds were always in short supply," he recalls. "So my father hit on the idea of a community picnic to raise money for the school. He went around to parents and neighbors, gathering up beef and chickens for the traditional Belgian soup that would be the main dish at the benefit affair. And he also went down to the office of the old Green Bay Gazette, looking for publicity." The writer handling the news of the benefit picnic, so the story goes, asked what would be served. "Bouillon—we will have bouillon," came the reply, with the word pronounced properly in French. "The young reporter wrote it down as he heard it," Rentmeester relates. "It came out 'booyah' in the paper. It was booyah the first time it was served at Holy Martyrs of Gorcum Church—an affair my father also originated--and that's what people have called it ever since."
A November 19, 2015, Press-Gazette article repeats Rentmeester's claim, but also suggests that the dish "could have erupted as a tradition in multiple places at once". The article notes that several variations on the name "booyah" occur around the Upper Midwest that "appear to be attempts to phonetically manage the hard-to-spell word 'bouillon', and they all are pronounced roughly the same". [8]
Booyah is still made in northern and northeastern Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Michigan's Upper Peninsula at county fairs, VFW gatherings, booyah-cooking contests, and in small amounts at private gatherings. [9] [10] [4] In a 2018 article in the Post Crescent , Booyah was reportedly sold at church and other nonprofit fundraisers for US$20 per gallon (4 liters). [11] The Green Bay Booyah baseball team was named after the stew. [12]
Chicken soup is a soup made from chicken, simmered in water, usually with various other ingredients. The classic chicken soup consists of a clear chicken broth, often with pieces of chicken or vegetables; common additions are pasta, noodles, dumplings, or carrots, and grains such as rice and barley. Chicken soup is commonly considered a comfort food.
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, gravies, and sauces.
Stock, sometimes called bone broth, is a savory cooking liquid that forms the basis of many dishes – particularly soups, stews, and sauces. Making stock involves simmering animal bones, meat, seafood, or vegetables in water or wine, often for an extended period. Mirepoix or other aromatics may be added for more flavor.
Sinigang is a Filipino soup or stew characterized by its sour and savory taste. It is most often associated with tamarind, although it can use other sour fruits and leaves as the souring agent such as unripe mangoes or rice vinegar. It is one of the more popular dishes in Filipino cuisine. This soup, like most Filipino dishes, is usually accompanied by rice.
A bouillon cube is dehydrated broth or stock formed into a small cube or other cuboid shape. The most common format is a cube about 13 mm wide. It is typically made from dehydrated vegetables or meat stock, a small portion of fat, MSG, salt, and seasonings, shaped into a small cube. Vegetarian and vegan types are also made. Bouillon is also available in granular, powdered, liquid, and paste forms.
Pot-au-feu is a French dish of slowly boiled meat and vegetables, usually served as two courses: first the broth (bouillon) and then the meat (bouilli) and vegetables. The dish is familiar throughout France and has many regional variations. The best-known have beef as the main meat, but pork, chicken, and sausage are also used.
Burgoo is a stew, similar to Irish or Mulligan stew, often served with cornbread or corn muffins, that originated in Kentucky. It is often prepared communally as a social gathering. It is popular as the basis for civic fundraisers in the Upland South.
Ajiaco is a soup common to Colombia, Cuba, and Peru. Scholars have debated the origin of the dish. The dish is especially popular in the Colombian capital, Bogotá, being called Ajiaco santafereño, where it is typically made with chicken, three varieties of potatoes, and the herb Galinsoga parviflora, known locally as guasca or guascas. In Cuba, ajiaco is prepared as a stew, while in Peru the dish is prepared with a number of regionally specific variations.
Chicken feet are cooked and eaten in many countries. After an outer layer of hard skin is removed, most of the edible tissue on the feet consists of skin and tendons, with no muscle. This gives the feet a distinct gelatinous texture different from the rest of the chicken meat.
Soups in East Asian culture are eaten as one of the many main dishes in a meal or in some cases served straight with little adornment, particular attention is paid to the soups' stocks. In the case of some soups, the stock ingredients become part of the soup. They are usually based solely on broths and lacking in dairy products such as milk or cream. If thickened, the thickening usually consists of refined starches from corn or sweet potatoes.
Aush, sometimes transliterated as ash or āsh, is a variety of thick soup, usually served hot. It is part of Iranian cuisine and Afghan cuisine, and is also found in Azerbaijani, Turkish, and Caucasian cuisines.
Chicken and dumplings is a Southern dish that consists of a chicken cooked in water, with the resulting chicken broth being used to cook the dumplings by boiling. A dumpling—in this context—is a biscuit dough, which is a mixture of flour, shortening, and liquid. The dumplings are either rolled out flat, dropped, or formed into a ball.
Southern Illinois chowder is a thick stew or soup, very different from the New England and Manhattan chowders. In Edwards County, Illinois, it refers to both the food and to the social gathering at which it is prepared and served. It is believed to have been brought to the area by the earliest settlers, or "backwoodsmen". Traditionally, the chowder time season commences when the first tomatoes ripen and closes with the first heavy frost.
Chicken mull is a traditional dish from North Carolina, upstate South Carolina, and Georgia. It is a type of stew consisting of parboiled whole chicken in a cream- or milk-based broth, butter, and seasoned with salt, pepper, and other ingredients. Traditionally, the stew is served in the late fall and winter months. In northern Georgia, this part of the year is often referred to as "mull season". Often, the term "chicken stew" or "chicken mull" refers to an event or gathering where the dish is served.
The cuisine of Minnesota is a type of Midwestern cuisine found throughout the state of Minnesota.
The cuisine of Wisconsin is a type of Midwestern cuisine found throughout the state of Wisconsin in the United States of America. Known as "America's Dairyland", Wisconsin is famous for its cheese as well as other dairy products, such as cheese curds and frozen custard. Other notable foods common to the region include bratwursts, beer, brandy Old Fashioned cocktails, butter burgers, fish fries and fish boils, cranberries, and booyah stew.
A stew is a combination of solid food ingredients that have been cooked in liquid and served in the resultant gravy. Ingredients can include any combination of vegetables and may include meat, especially tougher meats suitable for slow-cooking, such as beef, pork, venison, rabbit, lamb, poultry, sausages, and seafood. While water can be used as the stew-cooking liquid, stock is also common. A small amount of red wine or other alcohol is sometimes added for flavour. Seasonings and flavourings may also be added. Stews are typically cooked at a relatively low temperature, allowing flavours to mingle.
Nilaga is a traditional meat stew or soup from the Philippines, made with boiled beef or pork mixed with various vegetables. It is typically eaten with white rice and is served with soy sauce, patis, labuyo chilis, and calamansi on the side.