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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", [1] 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.
The state is well known as a home to many cheesemakers. Currently, Wisconsin has 58 Master Cheesemakers, who are all qualified through an extensive process set by the Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board. [2] The program is the only one of its kind outside of Europe. Wisconsin cheesemaking is diverse, ranging from artisans who hand-craft their product from the milk of their own dairy herds to large factories.
Colby cheese was first created in Wisconsin in 1885 (named after the town it came from), and Brick cheese was first created in the state in 1877. The state has also played origin to Blue Marble Jack cheese, and is the only producer of Limburger cheese in the United States.
Cheese curds can be eaten separately "squeaky," or cold, as a snack, or covered in batter and fried as an appetizer, often served with ranch dressing as a dipping sauce.
Hot and spicy cheese bread is a popular type of bread created and sold in Madison, Wisconsin from Stella's Bakery. [3]
Wisconsin is one of the Midwestern states that commonly sells blue moon ice cream. The flavor is described to be similar to Froot Loops. While the flavor's origins are not well documented, it was most likely developed by flavor chemist Bill "Doc" Sidon of Milwaukee.
At the University of Wisconsin–Madison, Babcock Dairy Plant and Store produces and sells ice cream, milk, and cheese products on campus. [4] Babcock ice cream uses beef gelatin as its stabilizing agent, making the majority of its flavors non-vegetarian. [5]
Scratch Ice Cream is a small-batch brand of ice cream founded in Milwaukee. [6] Scratch Ice Cream can also be found in Madison, Wisconsin and Chicago, Illinois.
Wisconsin is home to numerous frozen custard stands, particularly around Milwaukee, Wisconsin and along the Lake Michigan corridor. Frozen custard is a dessert similar to ice cream that is also made with eggs.
Besides its "cheesehead" status, Wisconsin has a reputation for alcohol consumption. Common traits of "drinking culture" are embedded in Wisconsin traditions, from festivals and holidays to everyday life. Many large breweries were founded in Wisconsin, largely in Milwaukee, which gained the epithet "Brew City" before the turn of the century. Miller Brewing Company, Pabst Brewing Company, Joseph Schlitz Brewing Company (all from and originally based in Milwaukee) and Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company all began as local businesses before entering the national and international markets.
Wisconsin has experienced a resurgence in this industry, however, with numerous microbreweries and craft beers now being created and exported. Several other favorites include Ale Asylum, [7] Capital, Sprecher, and New Glarus, the latter being well known for the Spotted Cow Farmhouse Ale. New Glarus is also known for refusing to sell their liquor outside of Wisconsin, which was originally to meet demand but has since become a marketing tactic. [8]
Cooking with beer is also common across the state. Wisconsinites boil or braise their sausages (especially bratwursts) in several types of beer (most often a Pilsner) with butter and onions, and beer batter fish, typically walleye or perch. Beer-battered cheese curds and onion rings are also typical fare.
Beer cheese soup is usually made from a variety of beer and a sharp cheddar or more mild colby cheese, with sausage, potatoes, and green onions.
Another recipe involving alcohol is "beer butt" or "beer can" chicken (similar to drunken chicken), a vernacular meal involving a whole chicken slow-roasted, typically over a fire, with a can of usually amber beer directly inserted into the poultry's cavity.
Besides beer, Wisconsinites also drink large quantities of brandy, [9] often mixed into the unique Badger libation, the "brandy Old Fashioned," which can be sweet, sour, or press. Another though considerably more recent brandy-based cocktail is the Wisconsin Badger, [10] derived from a mix of brandy, cranberry juice, and cherry schnapps.
Pewaukee, Wisconsin is also home to the alcoholic beverage RumChata, described as an horchata recipe containing the primary ingredients of rum and Wisconsin cream.
Wisconsin cuisine also features a large amount of sausage, or wurst (German for "sausage"). The state is also a major producer and consumer of summer sausage, as well as the nation's top producer and consumer of brats.
Brats are typically boiled in a mix of beer, butter, and onions, served on a bratwurst bun, and topped with sauerkraut and often a spicy, brown-style mustard. The city of Madison, Wisconsin, the state's capital, plays host to the annual "World's Largest" Brat Fest, a four-day-long festival incorporating music, recreational activities, and bratwursts grilled on a 65-foot-long grill.
The American Family Field in Milwaukee has the Sausage Race, a mascot race involving racing sausage mascots representative of some of the most common sausages found in the state: bratwurst, kielbasa, Italian sausage, the hot dog, and chorizo. Venison sausage, Andouille sausage, and Belgian trippe (pork and cabbage sausage) are a few other common sausages found in the state, though they do not constitute a part of the Sausage Race. American Family Field is also notable for being the only U.S. stadium in which brats outsell hot dogs.
Booyah is another common Wisconsin meal, found especially in the Northeast region of the state. The origins of this dish are disputed, but the Wisconsin origin contends that the word is a vernacular Flemish or Walloon Belgian spelling of the French word bouillon, in this context meaning "broth." The recipient was likely brought to Wisconsin by Walloons that settled in the region. Recipes vary but common ingredients usually involve chicken or other meats—beef, pork, or ox tail are most often used—as well as a mirepoix of vegetables, commonly onion, celery, carrots, cabbage, peas, potatoes, and rutabaga. The ingredients are all cooked together in a special kind of large, cast-iron kettle often known as a "booyah kettle," over low heat for several days.
The Friday night fish fry, often battered and fried perch or walleye, is traditional throughout Wisconsin, while in northeast Wisconsin along Lake Michigan and the Door County the fish boil is more popular. The supper club is another common phenomenon of Wisconsin culinary heritage and often a destination for fish frys, which usually feature a portion of aforementioned fish, along with various sides: a fried food such as french fries and onion rings are common, potato pancakes served with applesauce, along with condiments of tartar sauce and cole slaw (especially crimson slaw, a variety of cole slaw that incorporates Wisconsin's cranberries [11] ) and garnishes of parsley and lemon wedges.
A popular Wisconsin dessert is the cream puff, a type of profiterole that is a famous treat at the Wisconsin State Fair.
The southeastern Wisconsin city of Racine is known for its Danish kringle, a sweet flaky pastry often served as a dessert. The recipe was brought by Danish immigrants to the region in the 1800s. [12] The kringle became the official state pastry of Wisconsin on June 30, 2013. [13]
Chef Carson Gulley created a fudge-bottom pie recipe at the University of Wisconsin–Madison that is still sold on campus. [14]
Simply Cinnamon Bakery in Pewaukee, Wisconsin is known for their cinnamon rolls.
Seymour, Wisconsin, claims to be the birthplace of the modern hamburger, [15] although several other locations make similar claims. The butter burger originated in Wisconsin, most likely in Solly's Grille in Milwaukee. [16] Butter burgers are hamburgers with butter spread on the buns.
Culver's is a midwestern fast casual food restaurant chain originally from Sauk City, Wisconsin and currently headquartered in Prairie du Sac, Wisconsin. Culver's is known for serving butter burgers, fried cheese curds, and frozen custard.
Dane County Farmers' Market in Madison is the largest producers-only farmer's market in the nation. [17] [18]
La Croix Sparkling Water originates from La Crosse, Wisconsin.
Wild rice grows in Wisconsin, and is an important staple especially for Native American tribes such as the Menominee.
Wisconsin is the country's leading producer of cranberries, which is also the state's official fruit. [19]
Cannibal sandwiches–a type of open-faced sandwich made with rye bread, raw beef, and raw onion–are commonly eaten during the winter season in and around Milwaukee. [20]
The cuisine of the American Midwest draws its culinary roots most significantly from the cuisines of Central, Northern and Eastern Europe, and Indigenous cuisine of the Americas, and is influenced by regionally and locally grown foodstuffs and cultural diversity.
New England cuisine is an American cuisine which originated in the New England region of the United States, and traces its roots to traditional English cuisine and Native American cuisine of the Abenaki, Narragansett, Niantic, Wabanaki, Wampanoag, and other native peoples. It also includes influences from Irish, French-Canadian, Italian, and Portuguese cuisine, among others. It is characterized by extensive use of potatoes, beans, dairy products and seafood, resulting from its historical reliance on its seaports and fishing industry. Corn, the major crop historically grown by Native American tribes in New England, continues to be grown in all New England states, primarily as sweet corn although flint corn is grown as well. It is traditionally used in hasty puddings, cornbreads and corn chowders.
Wisconsin is a state in the Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. With a population of about 6 million and an area of about 65,500 square miles, Wisconsin is the 20th-largest state by population and the 23rd-largest by area. It has 72 counties. Its most populous city is Milwaukee; its capital and second-most populous city is Madison. Other urban areas include Green Bay, Kenosha, Racine, Eau Claire, and the Fox Cities.
Bratwurst is a type of German sausage made from pork or, less commonly, beef or veal. The name is derived from the Old High German Brätwurst, from brät-, finely chopped meat, and Wurst, sausage, although in modern German it is often associated with the verb braten, to pan fry or roast. Beef and veal are usually incorporated amongst a blend often including pork. Beef or veal is usual in halal and kosher Bratwurst sausages, which never include pork for religious reasons.
Cheese curds are moist pieces of curdled milk, eaten either alone as a snack, or used in prepared dishes. They are most often consumed throughout the northern United States and Canada. Notably, cheese curds are popular in Quebec, as part of the dish poutine, and in Wisconsin and Minnesota where they can be served breaded and deep fried. Curds are sometimes referred to as "squeaky cheese" or fromage en grain.
Danish cuisine originated from the peasant population's own local produce and was enhanced by cooking techniques developed in the late 19th century and the wider availability of goods during and after the Industrial Revolution. Open sandwiches, known as smørrebrød, which in their basic form are the usual fare for lunch, can be considered a national speciality when prepared and garnished with a variety of ingredients. Hot meals are typically prepared with meat or fish. Substantial meat and fish dishes includes flæskesteg and kogt torsk with mustard sauce and trimmings. Ground meats became widespread during the industrial revolution and traditional dishes that are still popular include frikadeller, karbonader and medisterpølse. Denmark is known for its Carlsberg and Tuborg beers and for its akvavit and bitters, but amongst the Danes themselves imported wine has gained steadily in popularity since the 1960s.
Austrian cuisine consists of many different local or regional cuisines. In addition to Viennese cuisine, which is predominantly based on the cooking traditions of the Habsburg Empire, there are independent regional traditions in all the states of Austria.
Coleslaw or cole slaw, also known simply as slaw, is a side dish consisting primarily of finely shredded raw cabbage with a salad dressing or condiment, commonly either vinaigrette or mayonnaise. This dish originated in the Netherlands in the 18th century. Coleslaw prepared with vinaigrette may benefit from the long lifespan granted by pickling.
Dutch cuisine is formed from the cooking traditions and practices of the Netherlands. The country's cuisine is shaped by its location on the fertile Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta at the North Sea, giving rise to fishing, farming, and overseas trade. Due to the availability of water and flat grassland, the Dutch diet contains many dairy products such as butter and cheese. The court of the Burgundian Netherlands enriched the cuisine of the elite in the Low Countries in the 15th and 16th century, so did in the 17th and 18th century colonial trade, when the Dutch ruled the spice trade, played a pivotal role in the global spread of coffee, and started the modern era of chocolate, by developing the Dutch process chocolate.
Lithuanian cuisine features products suited to the cool and moist northern climate of Lithuania: barley, potatoes, rye, beets, greens, berries, and mushrooms are locally grown, and dairy products are one of its specialties. Various ways of pickling were used to preserve food for winter. Soups are extremely popular, and are widely regarded as the key to good health. Since it shares its climate and agricultural practices with Eastern Europe, Lithuanian cuisine has much in common with its Baltic neighbors and, in general, northeastern European countries.
Romanian cuisine is a diverse blend of different dishes from several traditions with which it has come into contact, but it also maintains its own character. It has been influenced mainly by Turkish but also a series of European cuisines in particular from the Balkan Peninsula and Hungarian cuisine as well as culinary elements stemming from the cuisines of Central Europe.
Culver Franchising System, LLC, doing business as Culver's, is an American fast-casual restaurant chain. The company was founded in 1984 by George, Ruth, Craig, and Lea Culver. The first location opened in Sauk City, Wisconsin, on July 18, 1984, under the name "Culver's Frozen Custard and ButterBurgers." The privately held company is headquartered in Prairie du Sac, Wisconsin. The chain operates primarily in the Midwestern United States, and has a total of 1000 restaurants in 26 states as of January 2025.
Latvian cuisine typically consists of agricultural products, with meat featuring in most main dishes. Fish is commonly consumed due to Latvia's location on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea.
Czech cuisine has both influenced and been influenced by the cuisines of surrounding countries and nations. Many of the cakes and pastries that are popular in Central Europe originated within the Czech lands. Contemporary Czech cuisine is more meat-based than in previous periods; the current abundance of farmable meat has enriched its presence in regional cuisine. Traditionally, meat has been reserved for once-weekly consumption, typically on weekends.
Traditional Estonian cuisine has substantially been based on meat and potatoes, and on fish in coastal and lakeside areas. However, it now shows influences from a variety of international cuisines and ingredients, with a number of contributions from the traditions of nearby countries. German, Swedish, Russian, Finnish and other influences have played their part. The most typical foods in Estonia have been rye bread, barley, pork, fish, potatoes and cow dairy products. In terms of staple food, Estonia is similar to other countries in the Baltic Sea region.
The cuisine of Minnesota is a type of Midwestern cuisine found throughout the state of Minnesota.
Regional street food is street food that has commonalities within a region or culture.
The Dane County Farmers' Market is the largest producers-only farmers' market in the country, with additional markets around the county nearly every day of the week, Kemble said.
Beyond the supper clubs, one highlight of our trip that surprised me was the epic Saturday Dane County farmers market, which stretches for blocks around the capitol. It's said to be the largest producers-only farmers market — meaning that all items must be produced locally — in the country.
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