War affects how countries eat. Moatly, as seen recently in Ukraine, cause shortage and starvation.Yet the one good thing about conflict is that it introoduces service people to other cultures . Despite the harshness and scariness it does bring people together. Mostly that occurs in eating. There's something communal in sharing.
It's the American conflicts that have created firsts. The Revolutionary War was the first to introuce rations for its' troops. Thanks to the Continental Congress of 1773 colonial fighters were able to receive a pound of beef, and half a pound of pork or salted fish a week. There were also three pints of bean or peas along with a pint of rice or meal a week too. They also got flour or hard bread along with cider or beer. Everything was salted for preservation. As for veggies, onions and turnips which were easy to carry and cook also were part of their diet.Vinegar was later added to prevent scurvy. Did these men bring their wives' and mothers' recipes with them. Probably. Did they swap them? Most likely , being the first to expand the American palate. The Civil War saw canned foods on the troops' menu . Condensed milk, pork and beans were fed to the Union troops.Cattle also moved with the men, being slaughtered for the only fresh food. There was chicken fricasee if they could gert their hands on poultry and Union forces also made mushroom ketchup by boiling mushrooms. They may have brought the recipe home. There were also Cornish game hens and ham and beans stew to eat .
It;s the Twentieth Century wars, however that created the modern American cuisine that we know.The Spanish American War saw troops being deployed to the Phillipines and Puerto Rico. These troops may have tried some fo the native foods like curries from the first and mofongo from the second. The First World War saw Americans going off to fronts in France ,Italy and Germany. Some may have tasted the dishes there and brought dishes such as duck stew, risotto and wursts.(althought they could easily get some variation of these in immigrant communities back in the States). Yet it was the Second World War that brought more recipes to the American table. GIs stationed around Naples brought home pizza , loving it so much that it became part of the American diet from Maine to California. This also happened with lasagna too, with servicemen bringing home recipes that they got form the Southern Italian villagers they protected. It happened with Japanese food, especially during the Korean War when servicemen spent their R&R in Tokyo.Japanese restaurants grew in popularity after that. Recent wars like the Vietnamese Conflict along with the Gulf and Afghani wars saw refugees brining their dishes to the US.
War is hell. Yet it does bring about innovations and exploration into different cultures. it shows in our many different dishes brought about by conflict.
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