Utica is a city in the Mohawk Valley and the county seat of Oneida County, New York, United States. The tenth-most-populous city in New York State, its population was 65,283 in the 2020 U.S. Census. Located on the Mohawk River at the foot of the Adirondack Mountains, it is approximately 95 mi (153 km) west-northwest of Albany, 55 mi (89 km) east of Syracuse and 240 mi (386 km) northwest of New York City. Utica and the nearby city of Rome anchor the Utica–Rome Metropolitan Statistical Area comprising all of Oneida and Herkimer Counties.
An omelette is a dish made from eggs, fried with butter or oil in a frying pan. It is a common practice for an omelette to include fillings such as chives, vegetables, mushrooms, meat, cheese, onions or some combination of the above. Whole eggs or egg whites are often beaten with a small amount of milk, cream, or water.
A mirepoix is a mixture of diced vegetables cooked with fat for a long time on low heat without coloring or browning. The ingredients are not sautéed or otherwise hard-cooked, because the intention is to sweeten rather than caramelize them. Mirepoix is a long-standing part of French cuisine and is the flavor base for a wide variety of dishes, including stocks, soups, stews, and sauces.
Chow mein is a dish of Chinese stir-fried noodles with vegetables and sometimes meat or tofu. Over the centuries, variations of chǎomiàn were developed in many regions of China; there are several methods of frying the noodles and a range of toppings can be used. It was introduced in other countries by Chinese immigrants. The dish is popular throughout the Chinese diaspora and appears on the menus of most Chinese restaurants abroad. It is particularly popular in India, Nepal, the UK, and the US.
Gumbo is a stew that is popular among the U.S. Gulf Coast community with the New Orleans stew variation and is the official state cuisine of the U.S. state of Louisiana. Gumbo consists primarily of a strongly flavored stock, meat or shellfish, a thickener, and the Creole "holy trinity": celery, bell peppers, and onions. Gumbo is often categorized by the type of thickener used, whether okra or filé powder.
Roux is a mixture of flour and fat cooked together and used to thicken sauces. Roux is typically made from equal parts of flour and fat by weight. The flour is added to the melted fat or oil on the stove top, blended until smooth, and cooked to the desired level of brownness. A roux can be white, blond (darker), or brown. Butter, bacon drippings, or lard are commonly used fats. Roux is used as a thickening agent for gravy, sauces, soups, and stews. It provides the base for a dish, and other ingredients are added after the roux is complete.
Jambalaya is a savory rice dish that developed in the U.S. state of Louisiana fusing together African, Spanish, and French influences, consisting mainly of meat or seafood, and vegetables mixed with rice and spices. West Africans and Spanish people each had versions of jambalaya in their respective countries. Historian Ibraham Seck states Senegalese people were making jambalaya. The French introduced tomato to West Africans and they incorporated the crop into their one-pot rice dishes that created jambalaya and enhanced jollof rice. Spanish people made paella which is also a one-pot rice dish cooked with meats and vegetables. These styles of cuisines blended in Louisiana and resulted in cultural and regional variations of the dish.
Collard is a group of loose-leafed cultivars of Brassica oleracea, the same species as many common vegetables including cabbage and broccoli. Part of the Acephala (kale) cultivar group, it is also classified as the variety B. oleracea var. viridis.
Moussaka is an eggplant (aubergine)- or potato-based dish, often including ground meat, which is common in the Balkans and the Middle East, with many local and regional variations.
Risotto is an Italian rice dish cooked with broth until it reaches a creamy consistency. The broth can be derived from meat, fish or vegetables. Many types of risotto contain butter, onion, white wine, and Parmesan cheese. It is one of the most common ways of cooking rice in Italy. Saffron was originally used for flavour and its signature yellow colour.
Beef Stroganoff or beef Stroganov is a Russian dish of sautéed pieces of beef in a sauce of mustard and smetana. From its origins in mid-19th-century Tsarist Russia, it has become popular around the world, with considerable variation from the original recipe. Mushrooms are common in many variants.
Leaf vegetables, also called leafy greens, pot herbs, vegetable greens, or simply greens, are plant leaves eaten as a vegetable, sometimes accompanied by tender petioles and shoots. Leaf vegetables eaten raw in a salad can be called salad greens.
Mastering the Art of French Cooking is a two-volume French cookbook written by Simone Beck and Louisette Bertholle, both from France, and Julia Child, from the United States. The book was written for the American market and published by Knopf in 1961 and 1970.
Maqluba is a traditional Levantine dish, a variety of Pilaf that is popular across Palestine, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq. It consists of meat, rice, and fried vegetables placed in a pot which is flipped upside down when served, hence the name.
Chicken riggies or Utica riggies is an Italian-American pasta dish native to the Utica–Rome area of New York State. Although many variations exist, it is a pasta-based dish typically consisting of chicken, rigatoni, and hot or sweet peppers in a spicy cream and tomato sauce. Many of the chefs from the Utica area seem to have a claim to the dish, yet there seems to be no clear idea who was the originator.
Clams casino is a clam "on the halfshell" dish with breadcrumbs and bacon. Green peppers are also a common ingredient.
Pizza arrived in the United States in the early 20th century along with waves of Italian immigrants who settled primarily in the larger cities of the Northeast, such as New York, Philadelphia, Boston, and Baltimore. After American soldiers stationed in Italy returned from World War II, pizza and pizzerias rapidly grew in popularity.
Macaroni cheese pie is a pie dish based on baked macaroni and cheese. Primary ingredients may include elbow macaroni, cheese, and milk.
Bolognese sauce, known in Italian as ragù alla bolognese or ragù bolognese, is a meat-based sauce in Italian cuisine, typical of the city of Bologna. It is customarily used to dress tagliatelle al ragù and to prepare lasagne alla bolognese.
Acquacotta is a hot broth-based bread soup in Italian cuisine that was originally a peasant food. Its preparation and consumption dates back to ancient history, and it originated in the coastal area known as the Maremma, in southern Tuscany and northern Lazio. The dish was invented in part as a means to make hardened, stale bread edible. In contemporary times, ingredients can vary, and additional ingredients are sometimes used. Variations of the dish include acquacotta con funghi and acquacotta con peperoni.
