Canadian Food Culture

Wild blueberries are a popular food item in many parts of Canada.

Canada's homegrown food supply is limited by its short summers and long winters. Yet some trends and tendencies bridge the different regions and create a distinct food culture.

Doughnuts

According to the Canadian Broadcasting Company, Canada has more doughnut shops per capita than anyplace else on the planet. This parallels the general assumption that Canadians are especially fond of sweets, including their popular homegrown product of maple syrup.

Wild Foods

Besides the maple syrup, several other wild foods are regular additions to the Canadian diet. In the spring fiddlehead ferns are one of the first plants to emerge after the winter snow cover melts. Named for the curled shape of the green shoot, many people harvest the common forest plant and it is available by the pound in grocery stores, from which it most commonly finds its way into a hot bowl of soup. Then in late summer people pick the tiny blueberry and add it to pies, muffins or ice cream. A popular Canadian food combination is blueberry pancakes topped with maple syrup.

Canadian Bacon

Called back bacon in Canada, Canadian bacon differs widely from the bacon sold in the U.S. Cut from the middle of the pig's back, this smoked meat is leaner and costlier than American bacon. In fact, it more closely resembles ham than it does bacon.

References

• Bella Online: Canadian Food - Is There Such a Thing?
• Food By Country: Food in Canada
• Epicurious: Definition of Canadian Bacon