10 Quintessentially Canadian Foods

[nayr69sg]

https://www.sobeys.com/en/articles/10-quintessentially-canadian-foods/

For most Canadians, what qualifies as our “national” cuisine is a little mysterious. But our provinces and territories do share a love of some distinctive foods that originated from inside our borders. Here are 10 that make us proud to be Canadian.

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1. Bannock

A satisfying quick bread steeped in Canadian history, basic bannock is flour, water and butter (or lard) that is shaped into a disc and baked, fried or cooked over a fire until golden. It may have come with Scottish fur traders in the 18th century, or a First Nations version made of corn, nuts and starchy roots could have influenced European settlers, who changed the recipe to include wheat flour. Either way, this easy-to-make bread sustained families and travellers alike through the harsh winter months and is still enjoyed across our great land today.

Try it: Pull-Apart Bannock Bread

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2. Nanaimo Bars

There are as many origin stories for these three-layer bars as there are recipe variations. One thing is for sure, though: Nanaimo bars are named after the city in British Columbia. The creamy, custardy centre is what sets Nanaimo bars apart from the buttercream-filled New York slice—both have a smooth chocolate topping and a rich graham cracker crust. You can personalize any of the layers or turn the bars into a completely different dessert, but their B.C. heritage still shines through.

Try it: Combine the flavours of a Nanaimo bar and a Coffee Crisp ® chocolate bar, and you have our super delicious Nanaimo Coffee Crisp ® Cake.

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3. Maple Syrup

Canada produces 80 percent of the world’s maple syrup, so we reign supreme when it comes to this sweet treat. We love it so much that we even made the sugar maple our national tree! Luckily for us, it is a versatile ingredient—you can add a touch of maple goodness to just about any dish you can imagine, from salads to cakes to roasts. Learn how Canada’s liquid gold goes from tree to table in our article.

Try it: Roasted Maple Salmon & Brussels Sprouts

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4. Saskatoon Berries

The city of Saskatoon was named after these abundant summer berries—not the other way around! Saskatoons were a main ingredient in pemmican, a dried-meat dish that historically nourished First Nations peoples, voyageurs and explorers through the freezing winter months. Sweet and juicy with an almond-like flavour, they are related to apples and continue to ripen once picked. Swap fresh or frozen saskatoons for blueberries in any recipe.

Try it: Replace blueberries with saskatoon berries in our Blueberry Grunt.

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5. Caesars

A proud Calgary invention, the Caesar was the brainchild of Italian-born bartender Walter Chell. Legend has it that in 1969, Chell adapted his beloved pasta with clam sauce into this zesty tomato-clam juice cocktail spiked with vodka. The Caesar immediately became hot, hot, hot nationwide—and now it’s often called Canada’s national cocktail. Today’s Caesars are sometimes crowned with over-the-top garnishes, such as spring rolls or lobster tails.

Try it: Ultimate Canadian Caesar

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6. Ketchup Chips

Since the 1970s, Canadians have eaten tons of these crunchy chips. While both Canadian and American companies have laid claim to the original recipe, this addictive, finger-staining snack has been wholeheartedly embraced in the Great White North. These days it’s tough to find a chip with the same zippy flavour outside our borders. Crumbled ketchup chips are amazing sprinkled over baked squash, fried eggs and popcorn.

Try it: Ketchup Chip Popcorn

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7. Montreal Smoked Meat

This salty, smoky deli beef is a Canadian sandwich superstar, best slathered with mustard and sandwiched in rye bread. Montreal smoked meat is dry-rubbed with more garlic and savoury spices than its sweeter deli cousin, pastrami, before being smoked, steamed and sliced. Think beyond the sandwich and bring Montreal smoked meat’s intense flavours to salads, tacos and appetizers.

Try it: Montreal Smoked Meat Crostini

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8. Lobster

Sweet, succulent lobster from our Atlantic waters is loved across the globe. Once a cheap food source for servants and prisoners, Canadian lobster is now the ultimate delicacy. But don’t let its fancy status intimidate you—lobster is meant to be enjoyed! Whether it’s served whole in a Maritime boil or chunked in a long bun with a big dollop of mayonnaise, there’s a lobster dish for every Canadian taste (and budget).

Try it: Chive-Lime Lobster Rolls

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9. Donairs

It doesn’t matter if you’re enjoying it as a late-night nosh or a Tuesday-night dinner—a good Canadian donair is all about gobs of sauce. A Nova Scotian twist on traditional gyros, donairs feature spiced ground beef, onions, tomatoes and a tangy-sweet condensed milk sauce. Some say a true donair is served on a soft, Lebanese-style pita for soaking up all the juices, but the sturdier Greek variety keeps the mess to a minimum.

Try it: Donair Burgers & Halifax Sauce

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10. Poutine

Warm, gooey and indulgent, the famous Canadian snack of fries, cheese curds and gravy is now adored the world over. It debuted in rural Quebec snack bars in the 1950s and found its way onto Canada-wide fast-food menus by the late 1980s. While poutine purists insist on cheese curds made in eastern Quebec, today’s poutine variations are endless, featuring everything from extravagant foie gras toppers to homemade oven-fry bases.

Try it: Chicken & Goat Cheese Sweet Potato Poutine

 

[nayr69sg]

I quite agree with the list above.

Bannock indeed. I first had it at Fort Edmonton. Made by the First Nations people during Thanksgiving weekend.

Nanaimo bars too.

Maple syrup for sure

Saskatoon berries....I have a a Saskatoon berry bush in my backyard

Cesars cocktail this one I dunno I dont drink

Ketchup chips! Really! I never had them till I came to Canada and is very common.

Montreal smoked meat. Is more a Montreal or Quebec thing.

Poutine. Quebec very proud of this one and is more a Quebec than a Canada food. Quebec people say Canada is trying to steal their food and assimilate into Canadian culture. But I love poutine. Especially from Costco (which is American company)

Donairs......is like some kind of Middle Eastern sausage usually found at Shawarma outlets

Lobster! Yeah this one is fantastic! Love it!

 

[nayr69sg]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_cuisine

Interesting wiki write up. I agree with the way the classify it. Probably most well thought out and extensively researched.

Canadian cuisine​

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Canadian cuisine
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Canadian cuisine varies widely depending on the regions of the nation. The four earliest cuisines of Canada have indigenous, English, Scottish and French roots. The traditional cuisine of English Canada is closely related to British cuisine.
The traditional cuisine of French Canada has evolved from 16th-century French cuisine and the difficult conditions New France colonials and Coureur des bois faced. French Canadian cuisine is also now often divided into Québécois cuisine and Acadian cuisine.
With subsequent waves of immigration in the 19th and 20th centuries from Central, Southern, and Eastern Europe, South Asia, East Asia, and the Caribbean, regional cuisines were affected.

Contents​

• 1History
  • 1.1Definitions
  • 1.2Regional and cultural contributions
    • 1.2.1Indigenous peoples
    • 1.2.2European settlers and European immigrants
    • 1.2.3Asian immigrants
• 2National food of Canada
• 3Regional
• 4Canadian foods
  • 4.1Savoury foods
  • 4.2Sweets
  • 4.3Commercially prepared food and beverages
  • 4.4Alcohol
    • 4.4.1Straight
    • 4.4.2Mixes
  • 4.5Street food
  • 4.6Meal formats
• 5See also
• 6References
• 7Further reading
• 8External links

History[edit]​

Definitions[edit]​

Although certain dishes may be identified as "Canadian" due to the ingredients used or the origin of its inception, an overarching style of Canadian cuisine is more difficult to define. Some Canadians such as the former Canadian Prime Minister Joe Clark believe that Canadian cuisine is a collage of dishes from the cuisines of other cultures. Clark himself has been paraphrased to have noted: "Canada has a cuisine of cuisines. Not a stew pot, but a smorgasbord."[1]
While the immense size of Canada and the diversity of its inhabitants compounds the difficulty in identifying a specific Canadian food identity, Hersch Jacobs acknowledges that the lack of a hegemonic definition does not preclude the existence of Canadian cuisine.[2] Lenore Newman argues that there is a distinctly Canadian creole cuisine. She identifies five key properties that together define Canadian cuisine, namely its reliance on seasonality, multiculturalism, wild foods, regional dishes, and the privileging of ingredients over recipes.[3]
Indigenous food in particular is considered very Canadian. Métis food is especially so, since the Métis people played a particularly important role in the origin of Canada and Canadian cuisine. Foods such as bannock, moose, deer, bison, pemmican, maple taffy, and Métis stews such as barley stew are all either traditional Indigenous foods or originated in Canada with roots in Indigenous cuisines, and are eaten widely throughout the country.
Other foods that originated in Canada are often thought of in the same overarching group of Canadian food as Indigenous foods, despite not being so, such as peameal bacon, cajun seasoning, and Nanaimo bars.
There are also some foods of non-Canadian origin that are eaten very frequently. Pierogies (dumplings of Central and Eastern European origin) are an example of this, due to the large number of early Ukrainian and Polish immigrants.
Some regional foods are not eaten as often on one side of the country as on the other, such as dulse in the Maritimes, stews in the Territories, or poutine in the Francophone areas of Canada (not limited to Québec). In general, Canadian foods contain a lot of starch, breads, game meats (such as deer, moose, bison, etc.), and often involve a lot of stews and soups, most notably Métis-style and split-pea soup.

Regional and cultural contributions[edit]​

A 1908 photo of an Ojibwe woman tapping for tree sap, which is made into maple syrup.
Canadian food has been shaped and impacted by those of indigenous people, settlers and immigrants.[2]

Indigenous peoples[edit]​

Main articles: Inuit cuisine and Tlingit cuisine
The traditional Indigenous cuisine of Canada was based on a mixture of wild game, foraged foods, and farmed agricultural products. Each region of Canada with its own First Nations and Inuit people used their local resources and own food preparation techniques for their cuisines.
Maple syrup was first collected and used by aboriginal people of Eastern Canada and North Eastern US. Canada is the world's largest producer of maple syrup.[4] The origins of maple syrup production are not clear though the first syrups were made by repeatedly freezing the collected maple sap and removing the ice to concentrate the sugar in the remaining sap.[5] Maple syrup is one of the most commonly consumed Canadian foods of Aboriginal origins.
Dried meat products such as pânsâwân and pemmican are commonly consumed by the indigenous peoples of the plains. In particular, the former was a predecessor for North American style beef jerky, with the processing methods adapted for beef.[6]
In most of the Canadian West Coast and Pacific Northwest, Pacific salmon was an important food resource to the First Nations peoples, along with certain marine mammals. Salmon were consumed fresh when spawning or smoked dry to create a jerky-like food that could be stored year-round. The latter food is commonly known and sold as "salmon jerky".
Whipped Soapberry, known as sxusem (sk-HOO-shum, "Indian ice cream") in the Interior Salish languages of British Columbia, is consumed similarly to ice cream or as a cranberry-cocktail-like drink. It is known for being a kidney tonic, which are called agutak in Arctic Canada (with animal/fish fat).

Sliced and prepared muktuk
In the Arctic, Inuit traditionally survived on a diet consisting of land and marine mammals, fish, and foraged plant products. Meats were consumed fresh but also often prepared, cached, and allowed to ferment into igunaq or kiviak. These fermented meats have the consistency and smell of certain soft aged cheeses. Snacks such as muktuk, which consist of whale skin and blubber is eaten plain, though sometimes dipped in soy sauce. Chunks of muktuk are sliced with an ulu prior to or during consumption.
Fish are eaten boiled, fried, and prior to today's settlements, often in dried forms. The so-called "Eskimo potato" (Inuit: oak-kuk: Claytonia tuberosa)[7] and other "mousefoods" are some of the plants consumed in the arctic.
Foods such as "bannock", popular with First Nations and Inuit, reflect the historic exchange of these cultures with French fur traders, who brought with them new ingredients and foods.[8] Common contemporary consumption of bannock, powdered milk, and bologna by aboriginal Canadians reflects the legacy of Canadian colonialism in the prohibition of hunting and fishing, and the institutional food rations provided to Indian reserves.[9]
Due to similarities in treatment under colonialism, many Native American communities throughout the continent consume similar food items with some emphasis on local ingredients.

European settlers and European immigrants[edit]​

Main articles: American cuisine, Cuisine of Quebec, Acadian cuisine, Cuisine of the Maritimes, and Rocky Mountain cuisine

This section needs expansion with: explanations, examples and additional citations. You can help by adding to it. (March 2021)

Settlers and traders from the British Isles account for the culinary influences of early English Canada in the Maritimes and Southern Ontario (Upper Canada).[2] Southwestern regions of Ontario have strong Dutch and Scandinavian influences.
The French settlers who became the Canadiens and Acadians account for the cuisine of southern Quebec (Lower Canada), Northeastern Ontario, and New Brunswick.[2]
In Canada's Prairie provinces, which saw massive immigration from Eastern and Northern Europe in the pre-WWI era, Ukrainian, German, and Polish cuisines are strong culinary influences. Also noteworthy in some areas of the British Columbia Interior and the Prairies is the cuisine of the Doukhobors, Russian-descended vegetarians.[2]
The Waterloo, Ontario, region and the southern portion of Manitoba have traditions of Mennonite and Germanic cookery.
The cuisines of Newfoundland and the Maritime provinces derive mainly from British and Irish cooking, with a preference for salt-cured fish, beef, and pork. Ontario, Manitoba and British Columbia also maintain strong British cuisine traditions.
Jewish immigrants to Canada during the late 1800s played a significant culinary role within Canada, chiefly renowned for Montreal-style bagels and Montreal-style smoked meat. A regional variation of both emerged within Winnipeg, Manitoba's Jewish community, which also derived Winnipeg-style cheesecake from New York City recipes. Winnipeg has given birth to numerous other unique dishes, such as the schmoo torte, smoked goldeye and "co-op style" rye bread and cream cheese.

Asian immigrants[edit]​

Main article: Canadian Chinese cuisine
Much of what are considered "Chinese dishes" in Canada are more likely to be Canadian or North American inventions, with the Chinese restaurants of each region tailoring their traditional cuisine to local tastes.[2] This "Canadian Chinese cuisine" is widespread across the country, with great variation from place to place, from Calgary ginger beef,[10] to Montreal peanut-butter dumplings[11] and Thunder Bay bon bons.[12]
The Chinese buffet, although found in the United States and other parts of Canada, had its origins in early Gastown, Vancouver, c.1870. This serving setup came out of the practice of the many Scandinavians working in the woods and mills around the shantytown getting the Chinese cook to put out a steam table on a sideboard.
Unique Indo-Canadian food includes East Indian roti which gained popularity in Toronto during the 1980s and 1990s; using North Indian/Pakistani bread and curries as stuffing, local chefs originally drew inspiration from the West Indian roti which had entered the city's food scene in the 1960s and 1970s after a wave of Caribbean immigration.[13] Also known as butter chicken roti,[14] the dish is served at many Indian restaurants and fast food locations across Southern Ontario.[15]
Compared to other cultural contributors, South Asia was a very recent influence to Canadian cuisine due to their late prominence in post-1960s immigration era.[16] Indian food is particularly popular in Canada, deriving mostly from Northern Indian cuisine. It is characterized for its use of bread, curry, and use of yogurt and cream for meat-based dishes; it also draws inspiration from South Indian cuisine in its use of sour and spicy combinations.[16]
Contributions from Southeast Asia to Canadian cuisine includes a style of medium-thick crust pizza Margherita in Toronto. An example of fusion cuisine, the pizza is topped with garlic and basil oil topping, combining an Italian pizza with the Vietnamese tradition of using herbed oil toppings in food.[17]

National food of Canada[edit]​

Foods typically considered national dishes of Canada include poutine[18][19][20][21] and butter tarts.[22][23]
According to an informal survey by The Globe and Mail[better source needed] conducted through Facebook from collected comments, users considered the following to be the Canadian national dish, with maple syrup likely above all the other foods if it were considered:[21]

1. Poutine (51%)
2. Montreal-style bagels (14%)
3. Salmon jerky (dried smoked salmon) (11%)
4. Perogy/Pierogi (10%)
5. Ketchup chips (7%)
6. Nova Scotian donair (4%)
7. California roll (1%)

Canada's most "iconic" foods were named in a survey conducted by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, in the summer of 2012, as:[24]

1. Maple syrup
2. Poutine
3. Nanaimo bars, smoked salmon and butter tarts

Regional[edit]​

While many ingredients are commonly found throughout Canada, each region with its own history and local population has unique ingredients, which are used to define unique dishes.
Ingredients and defining dishes by region

Ingredient	Defining dish	Pacific	Mountain	The Prairies	Ontario	Quebec	Atlantic	Northern
Caribou	Caribou stew				X	X		X
Potatoes	Poutine				X	X	X
Saskatoon berries	Saskatoon berry jam Saskatoon berry pie		X	X	X
Fiddlehead ferns	Boiled fiddleheads				X	X	X
Cloudberry	Bakeapple pie					X	X
Maple syrup	Pancake topping				X	X	X
Dulse	Dulse crisps						X
Harp seal	Flipper pie						X	X
Sockeye	Smoked salmon	X
Pacific salmon	Cedar-plank salmon	X
Atlantic salmon	Smoked salmon					X	X
Atlantic cod	Fish and brewis					X	X
Lobster	Boiled lobster					X	X
Winnipeg goldeye	Smoked goldeye			X
Pork	Farmer sausage			X
Summer savoury	Dressing						X

Wild game of all sorts is still hunted and eaten by many Canadians, though not commonly in urban centres. Venison, from white-tailed deer, moose, elk (wapiti) or caribou, is eaten across the country and is considered quite important to many First Nations cultures.[25] Seal meat is eaten, particularly in the Canadian North, the Maritimes, and Newfoundland and Labrador. Wild fowl like ducks and geese, grouse (commonly called partridge) and ptarmigan are also regularly hunted. Other animals like bear and beaver may be eaten by dedicated hunters or indigenous people, but are not generally consumed by much of the population.
West Coast salmon varieties include sockeye, coho, Tyee (also known as Chinook or king), and pink. Freshwater fish, such as the walleye (also known as pickerel) and lake whitefish are commercially fished in the Great Lakes and are popular in southern Ontario. Both wild-caught and farmed rainbow trout are consumed throughout Canada.
Wild chanterelle, pine, morel, lobster, puffball, and other mushrooms are commonly consumed. Canada produces good cheeses and many successful beers, and is known for its excellent ice wines and ice ciders. Gooseberries, salmonberries, pearberries, cranberries and strawberries are gathered wild or grown.

Canadian foods[edit]​

The following are selections of the most prominent Canadian foods.

Savoury foods[edit]​

Although there are considerable overlaps between Canadian food and the rest of the cuisine in North America, many unique dishes (or versions of certain dishes) are found and available only in the country. Some are more commonly eaten than others.
Dishes by region ("O" = originating and "X" = found)

Dish	Description	Pacific	Mountain	The Prairies	Ontario	Quebec	Atlantic	Northern
Calgary-style ginger beef	Candied and deep fried beef, with sweet ginger sauce.	X	O	X
Roast beef with Yorkshire pudding	Traditionally a common Sunday dinner among Canadians of British ancestry	X	X	X	X	X	X
Roast turkey	North American roast turkey	X	X	X	X	X	X
Baked beans	Beans cooked with maple syrup	X	X	X	X	X	X
B.C. roll	A variety of sushi containing salmon	O	X	X
California roll	A variety of sushi	O	X	X	X
Dynamite roll	A variety of sushi typically containing prawn tempura	O	X	X	X
Sushi pizza	Fusion sushi dish with fried rice patty as base, with sushi ingredients on top	X	X	X	O	X	X
Jiggs dinner	A Sunday meal similar to the New England boiled dinner						O
Back or peameal bacon	Bacon that includes the pork loin from the back of the pig	X	X	X	O		X
Tourtière	A meat pie made of pork and lard	X	X	X	X	O	X
Montreal-style smoked meat	Deli style cured beef		X	X	X	O	X
Bannock	A fried bread and dough food	X	X	X	X		X	X
Bouilli	Québécois beef and vegetable potroast					O
Bologna stew	A stew made of cubed chunks of Bologna sausage						O
Cod tongues and scrunchions	Baked cod tongue and deep fried pork fat						O
Yellow pea soup	Split pea soup eaten by settlers such as the Habitant			X	X	O	X
Poutine	A dish of fries topped with cheese curds and gravy	X	X	X	X	O	X	X
Montreal-style bagels	A sweet, firm, wood-fired bagel				X	O
Pemmican	Ground dried meat, fat, and berries			X				X
Oka cheese	Cheese originally manufactured by Trappist monks			X	X	O
Flipper pie	Pie made with harp seal flipper						O
Hot chicken sandwich	Chicken (or turkey) sandwich doused in gravy and peas		X	X	X	X	X
Toutons	Fried bread from Newfoundland						O
Fish and brewis	Salt cod and hardtack, with pork cracklings						O
Rappie pie	Grated potato and meat casserole						O
Cretons	Pork spread containing onions and spices				X	O
Poutine râpée	Grated Acadian stuffed potato dumpling						O
Nova Scotian donair	Ground beef doner kebab served with a sweet milk sauce		X	X	X		O
Garlic fingers	Dough with cheese, garlic, and sometimes meat on top, similar to pizza	X	X		X	X	O
Lobster roll	Lobster meat mixed with mayonnaise and served in a toasted hot dog bun				X	X	O
Cipaille/sea-pie	Fish and meat layered in a pie				X	O	X
Pictou County pizza	Regional pizza variant from Nova Scotia with its unique sauce						O

• 
  Inuit bannock fried bread
• 
  Calgary-style ginger beef
• 
  Oka cheese
• 
  Montreal smoked meat sandwich
• 
  Fish and brewis: salted cod and hard tack
• 
  Montreal-style bagels
• 
  Canadian peameal bacon
• 
  Poutine is made with french fries, curds and gravy
• 
  Rappie pie: grated potatoes and meat casserole
• 
  Oreilles de crisse: deep fried pork skin and fat
• 
  Arctic berries Sxusem

Sweets[edit]​

Traditional Nanaimo bars

Butter tarts

• Beaver tails—also known as elephant ears, moose antlers, dog ears, whale tails, or simply fried dough.
• Bumbleberry pie—bumbleberry is a mixture of fruit, berries, and rhubarb.
• Butter tarts—said to be invented in Eastern Ontario around 1915. The main ingredients for the filling include butter, sugar and eggs, but raisins and pecans are often added for additional flavour.
• Candy apple—also known by the British term "toffee apple", candied apples are far more popular than in the United States, where the caramel apple is common.
• Cinnamon buns (known as Cinnamon roll outside of Canada).[26][27][28]
• Date square, aka Date Crumblies aka Matrimonial cake—date filled desserts.
• Figgy duff—a pudding from Newfoundland.
• Jam busters—prairie jelly doughnuts[citation needed].
• Flapper pie—wafer pie in Manitoba; a custard pie popular in Western Canada.
• Grandpères—dough dumplings boiled in maple syrup.
• Maple syrup — especially tire d'érable sur la neige or "maple toffee", also as flavouring, for example in maple leaf cream cookies.
• Maple taffy —a sugar candy made by pouring hot maple sap onto snow.
• Moosehunters—molasses cookies.
• Nanaimo bars—most common in British Columbia.
• Nougabricot—a Québécois preserve consisting of apricots, almonds, and pistachios.[citation needed]
• Persians—somewhat like a cross between a large cinnamon bun and a doughnut, topped with strawberry icing, unique to Thunder Bay, Ontario.
• Pets de sœurs—"nuns’ farts", pastry dough wrapped around a brown sugar and butter filling.
• Pouding chômeur—poor man’s pudding.
• Saskatoonberry pie—pie made from saskatoonberries.
• Sucre à la crème—Québécois sweet milk squares.
• Sugar pie—"tarte au sucre", Québécois pie based on a French dessert

Commercially prepared food and beverages[edit]​

Coffee Crisp Mocha

• Canadian pizza—typically includes tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, bacon, pepperoni, and mushrooms; variations exist.[29] The recipe is also known internationally by this name.[30] The classic preparation, however, is often referred to in the province of Quebec as pizza québécoise.[31]
• Candy
  • Bridge mixture (bridge mix)
  • Chocolate bars: Coffee Crisp, Mr. Big, Caramilk, Big Turk, Cherry Blossom, Crunchie, Crispy Crunch, Aero, Pal-o-mine, Eat-more Chocolate bar,[32][33] Canadian Smarties.[34][35][36]
  • Glosette[37] pieces (peanut, raisin, or almonds)
• Baby food
  • Pablum[38]
• Cereal
  • Red River Cereal
  • Shreddies
  • Vector[39]
• Coffee—Canada is the 10th-highest coffee consumer, per capita, in the world.[40]
  • Nabob Coffee
  • Second Cup Coffee
  • Tim Hortons
• Cows ice cream
• Honey dill sauce
• Kraft Dinner (also a proprietary eponym)
• Non-alcoholic drinks
  • Bagged milk
  • Brio chinotto
  • Canada Dry ginger ale
  • London Fog
  • Red Rose Tea
  • Spruce beer—bière d'épinette, non-alcoholic soft drink from Quebec
• Snacks
  • Ketchup, salt and vinegar, dill pickle, and "all dressed" flavoured potato chips
  • Hawkins Cheezies
  • Hostess Potato Chips
  • Ringolos and Humpty Dumpty Party Mix
  • Nuts and Bolts aka Chex Mix[citation needed]
  • Tiger tail ice cream—black licorice- and orange-flavoured ice cream, once popular throughout Canada

Alcohol[edit]​

A bottle of aged Canadian whisky

Straight[edit]​

• Alcohol Global 94%
• Canadian beer
  • Ice beer
  • Cream Ale
• Canadian whisky, "rye" whisky
  • Crown Royal
  • Canadian Club
• Canadian wine
  • Ice wine
• Ice cider
• Newfoundland Screech
• Yukon Jack — a Canadian liqueur made of whisky and honey

Mixes[edit]​

• The Caesar, originally called the Bloody Caesar, is a cocktail made from vodka, clamato juice (clam-tomato juice), Worcestershire sauce, and Tabasco sauce, in a salt-rimmed glass (table salt or celery salt), and garnished with a stalk of celery, or more adventurously with a spoonful of horseradish or a shot of beef bouillon. The Caesar was invented in 1969 in Calgary, Alberta, by bartender Walter Chell, to mark the opening of a new restaurant, Marco's.[41]
• Caribou—a mix of red wine, maple syrup, and Canadian whisky; consumed during winter festivals in Quebec
• Maple liqueur—sold bottled as Sortilege, this drink combines Canadian whisky and maple syrup
• Moose Milk—a cream and spirit (usually rye whisky and dark rum) drink served and consumed at celebratory events of the Canadian Armed Forces
• Rye & Ginger—Canadian whisky and ginger ale

Street food[edit]​

This section needs to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (March 2021)

While most major cities in Canada (including Montreal, in a pilot project) offer a variety of street food, regional "specialties" are notable. While poutine is available in most of the country, it is far more common in Quebec.
Similarly, sausage stands can be found across Canada, but are far more common in Ontario (often sold from mobile canteen trucks, usually referred to as "fry trucks" or "chip trucks" and the sausages "street meat").
In Western Canada, a version of the Ukrainian garlic-pork sausage, referred to as "Kubasa" (a corruption of the Ukrainian sausage "Kobasa")[42] is widely available and celebrated.[43] The term "smokies" or "smokeys" may refer to Kubasa rather than frankfurters.
Fusion cultural foods are constantly evolving, such as the Japadog, which tops a hot dog with traditional Japanese ingredients such as wasabi, teriyaki, shredded daikon radish, or bonito (fish) flakes.
Each Canadian region has street specialties which reflect regional cultural influences. Montreal food trucks offer shish taouk, the Montreal hot dog, and dollar falafels. Although falafel is available in Vancouver, Asian-influenced offerings are much more widespread including sushi, samosas, Vietnamese banh mi subs or Pho soup, Filipino offerings, and various Japanese and Chinese cuisines. In Victoria, British Columbia, vegan and vegetarian burgers are on offer, as are various seafood take-aways and Mexican influenced street food.
Pizza slices are a common street offering. Shawarma is quite prevalent in Ottawa and Windsor, while Halifax offers its own unique version of the döner kebab called the donair, which features a distinctive sauce made from condensed milk, sugar, garlic and vinegar.
Ice cream trucks can be seen (and often heard due to a jingle being broadcast on loudspeakers) nationwide during the summer months. Winnipeg has a famous line up of food truck vendors on Main street. Since 2007, the city of Toronto has encouraged vendors to sell street food from a wider variety of cuisines.[44]

Meal formats[edit]​

• Lumberjack's breakfast, aka logger's breakfast, aka "The Lumby"—a gargantuan breakfast of three-plus eggs, rations of ham, bacon and sausages, and several large pancakes.
  This was invented by hotelier J. Houston c.1870, at his Granville Hotel on Water Street in old pre-railway Gastown, Vancouver, in response to requests from his clientele for a better "feed" at the start of a long, hard day of work.[45][46]

See also[edit]​

Canada portal
Food portal

• Cuisine of Quebec
• Cuisine of the Maritime Provinces (Canada)
• Cuisine of Toronto
• Canadian Chinese cuisine
• Honey garlic sauce
• Margo Oliver
• Jean Paré
• North American cuisine

 

[nayr69sg]

Especially this

Asian immigrants[edit]​

Main article: Canadian Chinese cuisine
Much of what are considered "Chinese dishes" in Canada are more likely to be Canadian or North American inventions, with the Chinese restaurants of each region tailoring their traditional cuisine to local tastes.[2] This "Canadian Chinese cuisine" is widespread across the country, with great variation from place to place, from Calgary ginger beef,[10] to Montreal peanut-butter dumplings[11] and Thunder Bay bon bons.[12]
The Chinese buffet, although found in the United States and other parts of Canada, had its origins in early Gastown, Vancouver, c.1870. This serving setup came out of the practice of the many Scandinavians working in the woods and mills around the shantytown getting the Chinese cook to put out a steam table on a sideboard.
Unique Indo-Canadian food includes East Indian roti which gained popularity in Toronto during the 1980s and 1990s; using North Indian/Pakistani bread and curries as stuffing, local chefs originally drew inspiration from the West Indian roti which had entered the city's food scene in the 1960s and 1970s after a wave of Caribbean immigration.[13] Also known as butter chicken roti,[14] the dish is served at many Indian restaurants and fast food locations across Southern Ontario.[15]
Compared to other cultural contributors, South Asia was a very recent influence to Canadian cuisine due to their late prominence in post-1960s immigration era.[16] Indian food is particularly popular in Canada, deriving mostly from Northern Indian cuisine. It is characterized for its use of bread, curry, and use of yogurt and cream for meat-based dishes; it also draws inspiration from South Indian cuisine in its use of sour and spicy combinations.[16]
Contributions from Southeast Asia to Canadian cuisine includes a style of medium-thick crust pizza Margherita in Toronto. An example of fusion cuisine, the pizza is topped with garlic and basil oil topping, combining an Italian pizza with the Vietnamese tradition of using herbed oil toppings in food.[17]

it is true some of the Asian offerings are only found in Canada. So does it make it Canadian too? I think so.

Ginger beef is like sweet and sour pork except the batter is thinner and it is strips of beef in some sauce that has a bit of gingery flavor. Was surprised was invented in Calgary.

Indian "butter chicken" I think this also very Canadian. Never heard of it outside Canada. Certainly never eaten that in Singapore.

 

[glockman]

Canada has its Caesar, we have our Sinkie Sling

 

[nayr69sg]

So there is an actual Canadian pizza?

• Canadian pizza—typically includes tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, bacon, pepperoni, and mushrooms; variations exist.[29] The recipe is also known internationally by this name.[30] The classic preparation, however, is often referred to in the province of Quebec as pizza québécoise.[31]

 

[glockman]

Especially this



it is true some of the Asian offerings are only found in Canada. So does it make it Canadian too? I think so.

Ginger beef is like sweet and sour pork except the batter is thinner and it is strips of beef in some sauce that has a bit of gingery flavor. Was surprised was invented in Calgary.

Indian "butter chicken" I think this also very Canadian. Never heard of it outside Canada. Certainly never eaten that in Singapore.

We have Indian butter chicken in sg. Usually have it with nan.

 

[nayr69sg]

https://xyuandbeyond.com/traditional-canadian-food/

Canadian foods you must try​

I got a bit tired of these articles talking about the top 10 Canadian dishes or the 17 dishes you need to eat in Canada. The truth is Canada is a vast and gorgeous country with so much more to offer than Nanaimo bars and poutine. The Indigenous cuisine of Canada and what native Canadians taught us combined with a history of gathering in immigrants and refugees from all over the world has led Canada to be a first-class food world destination and we have way more to show than 10 top dishes.

Canada Food – not generally speaking two words you think of when planning a trip to Canada but I’m here to tell you there is much more to Canadian cuisine than poutine. Not personally a fan of it I just don’t think cheese and gravy go together.

Table Of Contents

1. Canadian foods you must try
   • Top 10 Canadian Foods:
     • Poutine
     • Tourtiere
     • Butter Tarts
     • Nanaimo Bars
     • Ketchup and all Dressed Potato Chips
     • Maple Syrup
     • Beaver Tails
     • Montreal Smoked Meat
     • Montreal style bagels
     • Caesar Cocktail (not a bloody Mary)
   • What are Traditional Canadian Foods?
     • 39 more Canadian dishes you should try
     • Saskatoon Berries – pie and jams
     • Timbits and a Double Double
     • A London Fog
     • Great Lakes Perch
     • Canadian Peameal Bacon
     • Flipper Pie
     • French Canadian yellow split pea soup
     • Pudding Chomeur
     • Ice Wine
     • Steamies
     • Hodge Podge
     • Ployes
     • Chicken Fricot
     • Lunenburg Pudding
     • Rappie Pie
     • Blueberry Grunt
     • Blueberry Duff
     • Jiggs Dinner
     • Vancouver Spot Prawns
     • Salmon Candy
     • Cretons Quebec pate
     • Oreilles de crisse
     • Toutons
     • Persians
     • Moon Mist Ice Cream
     • Cream Soda
     • Ice Cider
     • Screech
   • Indigenous Canadian Foods
     • Fiddleheads
     • Bannock and Indian Tacos
     • Pemmican
     • Three Sisters
     • Wild Rice
     • Wild Game meats
     • Wild Fruits & Berries
     • Fresh and dried fish
     • Shellfish and seafood

 

[nayr69sg]

We have Indian butter chicken in sg. Usually have it with nan.

I never ate it in SG. First time was in Edmonton. My kids love it.

 

[nayr69sg]

Poutine​

I think probably that poutine would be considered the National Dish of Canada. Created in the 1950s in Quebec it has become a firm favourite right across the country. There are not many Canadian Food dishes that you can also find stretching from Hong Kong to Europe, but poutine is there.

I have to say it isn’t my favourite Canadian food, I’m just not sure about cheese and gravy. Anyways, poutine is served all over Canada but it originated in Quebec. The hand-cut fries need to be perfectly crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside the cheese curds have to be squeaky very squeaky and the beef gravy must be rich, thick and tasty.

 

[nayr69sg]

Tourtiere​

Another Québécois favourite this pie is available again all over Canada. This pie must have a pastry top and bottom and is packed with a mix of veal and pork meat. Seasoned with the usual salt and pepper and the unusual cinnamon and cloves. This used to be a traditional pie for Christmas but now its eaten every time of year.

Quebec is one of the most fabulous foodie destinations in Canada and I am a huge fan of Montreal there are just so many things to do in Montreal and not just eating constantly (although that is my favourite).


©Mack Male C.C.

 

[nayr69sg]

Butter Tarts​

These just happen to be a family favourite. Our big mastiff got into one of these a few years ago and he was like a human child on speed, the sugar went straight to his head and he zipped around the house destroying everything until he crashed an hour later. The next day he slept all day long – didn’t even want a walk.

A good butter tart is made from simple ingredients butter and sugar in a shortcrust pastry. Traditionalists would say it should have raisins but there are also plain versions and those with walnuts or pecans. I like my butter tarts gooey with crispiness from the caramelized sugar on the bottom.

Need to know how to make proper Canadian Butter Tarts well Julia of Vikalinka has a fantastic recipe on her site that her husband baked and they look truly fabulous as only a great Canadian food could.

 

[nayr69sg]

Nanaimo Bars​

If you think butter tarts sound teeth-achingly sweet try the Nanaimo Bar. They must have three layers, a base of cracker crumbs and coconut. Sweet custard for the middle and a chocolate ganache-like topping. You can now get these is all kinds of flavours but a traditional one is these three layers.

Jane has a brilliant recipe for gluten-free Nanaimo bars on her website The Heritage Cook and they are delicious.

 

[nayr69sg]

Ketchup and all Dressed Potato Chips​

God only knows why Canadian love Ketchup flavoured potato chips (crisps) but they do. Another favourite All Dressed which is exactly what it sounds like. Chips with a little BBQ flavour, salt and vinegar, ketchup, and that other Canadian favourite chip sour cream and onion. Sounds revolting but actually pretty tasty.

 

[glockman]

I never ate it in SG. First time was in Edmonton. My kids love it.

Nan, butter chicken and paneer (veg and goat cheese). I could eat every day, but need to watch my diet.

 

[nayr69sg]

Maple Syrup​

A true Canadian classic and a pure Canadian traditional dish. Americans claim their Vermont maple syrup is the best but we Canadians know better Canadian maple syrup is the world’s best.

We love it in cakes, cookies and candy, but best of all in early spring we head to the nearest sugar shack at Maple syrup time and pour fresh syrup onto packed snow and tuck into our maple taffy.

 

[nayr69sg]

Maple Syrup​

A true Canadian classic and a pure Canadian traditional dish. Americans claim their Vermont maple syrup is the best but we Canadians know better Canadian maple syrup is the world’s best.

We love it in cakes, cookies and candy, but best of all in early spring we head to the nearest sugar shack at Maple syrup time and pour fresh syrup onto packed snow and tuck into our maple taffy.

we first tried these taffy at the Edmonton Silver Skate Festival. They pour the maple syrup on the snow/ice then use stick make into like taffy on stick. Very interesting. It was free.

 

[nayr69sg]

Beaver Tails​

We save these glorious treats for our sugar hit at festivals and fairs throughout the summer months. A delicious oval of deep-fried dough that we cover in toppings from peanut butter and chocolate to strawberries and cream. They are hot, melty, gooey piles of deliciousness.

 

[nayr69sg]

Beaver Tails​

We save these glorious treats for our sugar hit at festivals and fairs throughout the summer months. A delicious oval of deep-fried dough that we cover in toppings from peanut butter and chocolate to strawberries and cream. They are hot, melty, gooey piles of deliciousness.

Beaver tails are so good!

It is like ham chin bang. Fried dough/bun. But those toppings many varieties to choose from.

I am surprised there is no Beaver Tails outlet in SG. Would be a hit I think.

 

[nayr69sg]

Montreal Smoked Meat​

Oh, I do miss Schwartz’s Deli Montreal smoked meat. Now pretty much every deli in Canada carries a version of this delicacy. It is a close relative to pastrami but not the same at all.

Pastrami is usually made with dense, fatty beef plate although it is now common in the United States to see it made from beef brisket, beef round, and turkey. Smoked meat comes from leaner, stringier brisket. Pastrami is usually brined while smoked meat is dry-rubbed with curing salt. You can see the difference as well the smoked meat is a dark rich red and Pastrami a sort of insipid pink.