Hot in the US

California is known for its cuisine that is representative of a breezy, sunny life. That’s why it’s spread so far and so fast through the rest of the country. Perhaps the birthplace of American fusion cuisine, California food is often portable, simple and fresh, taking aspects of American and immigrant culinary history. Let’s take a look at some of California’s staple food items:

In-N-Out burger. Although not the first drive-thru fast food establish, California’s In-N-Out burger popularized the “Double-Double,” a cardboard box filled with a cheeseburger and French fries. It’s purpose was explicitly for eating in the car, which has definitely contributed the grab-and-go mentality of American eaters. Other burger chains started in Southern California were McDonald’s, Jack in the Box and Carl’s Jr.

Latino cuisine. Because of California’s Hispanic history and huge number of residents, taco shops, traditional Mexican food places serving tamales, mole and the like and Central American establishments serving pupusas abound throughout the state. Perhaps most well-known is the advent of Fresh Mex or Baja-style Mexican food, which combines traditional Mexican foods like burritos with California’s preference for fresh food and seafood. Across the United States, burrito shops like Qdoba and Chipotle serve this style of food.

Seafood. The rest of the country imagines California as a beachside paradise with blonde surfers, so they better prove themselves. San Francisco serves Dungeness crab on Fisherman’s Wharf while in Northern California and the Central Coastal region, salmon and Dungeness crab are popular.

Sushi and Japanese food. Because of its location, California was the birthplace of the American sushi craze, which has certainly been around long enough to call a mainstay. Obviously, a number of the rolls that are available in the United States were created here, specifically the California roll, an inside-out roll filled with mock crab meat, cucumber, and avocado. More recently, mochi icecream, a flavored glutinous rice patty filled with the same flavor of ice cream, have become popular in the state.

Fusion cooking. Again, Californians interest in fresh food, often purchased at farmers’ markets, often means that dishes served at restaurants need to change daily based on the ingredients available. That means a plethora of Chinese-American dishes, French-Chinese and a multitude of different combinations of cuisines. French chef is one of the earliest and most famous proponents of fusion cusinine, establishing the French-Chinese restuarnat “Chinois” in Santa Monica.

What are your favorite dishes from California?

I have certainly noticed a surge of nostalgia amongst twenty-somethings in the past few years. I don’t know how many bar conversations I’ve had about favorite childhood toys or how many friends I've made reminiscing about our favorite cartoons on Nickelodeon. Young adults outside of my friend circle have certainly gotten into the act as well; blogs like “I’m Remembering” are blowing up and complete seasons of ‘90s television shows have been uploaded to YouTube.

I was glad to see that this phenomenon was picked up by CNN, who published a piece last week called “2011: The Year of Nostalgia.” It examined the idea that every generation must have a turning point in which it looks perhaps too fondly back on its childhood years, while stores and network outlets capitalize on this nostalgia by referencing ‘90s pop culture in its current output.

In 2012, the trend doesn’t seem to be slowing. TeenNick will continue to show its late-night block of programming called “The ‘90’s Are All That,” which features Nickelodeon hits like Clarissa Explains It All, All That and Are You Afraid of the Dark? Disney is also running with the trend, and will re-release The Lion King and Beauty and the Beast in 3-D later this year. Titanic will also be re-released this year in 3-D, which sounds like a decidedly less pleasant viewing experience than innocuous 3-D dancing teacups.

CNN postulates an interesting argument that the huge boom of ‘90s nostalgia was spurred because of the dismal career prospects for young people who recently graduated from college. Many are unemployed or underemployed, and more young people are living at home with their parents than ever before. Perhaps this nostalgic turn was instigated by young people who wish that their lives were simple again, like they were in childhood.

I buy this argument completely. Nostalgia is a powerful force in most peoples' lives, but if it can be used as a device to bring a diverse generation together in difficult circumstances, of course it will be magnified ten-fold. Plus, you can’t help but miss the thousands of YouTube videos of My Little Pony, the Facebook postings about Jonathon Taylor Thomas’ thirtieth birthday or wistful reminisces of the quirky toys we received on Christmas morning ’96. Twenty-somethings are nothing if not Internet-addicted.

CNN worries about this backwards-thinking generation ever being able to create anything new because its insistence on the greatness of the past. But I worry about nostalgia never allowing my generation to think what we have now is good enough. I see it in my family so often—politics were cleaner, television was better, life was less dangerous way back when. I hope that twenty-somethings don’t fall into that kind of cycle because thinking that the best is over and done with is a depressing way to live.