A cuisine (/kw?

'zin/ kwi-zeen , from French cuisine, "cooking; culinary art; kit

chen"; ultimately from Latin coquere, "to cook") is a style of cooking character
ized by distinctive ingredients, techniques and dishes, and usually associated w
ith a specific culture or geographic region.[1][2][3] A cuisine is primarily inf
luenced by the ingredients that are available locally or through trade. Religiou
s food laws, such as Islamic and Jewish dietary laws, can also exercise a strong
influence on cuisine. Regional food preparation traditions, customs and ingredi
ents often combine to create dishes unique to a particular region.[4]
Contents [hide]
1 Cuisine factors
2 New cuisines
3 History
4 Global and regional cuisines
5 See also
6 References
7 Further reading
8 External links
Cuisine factors[edit]
Some of the elements that have an influence on a region's cuisine include the ar
ea's climate, which in large measure determines the native foods that are availa
ble, the economic conditions, which affect trade and can affect food distributio
n, imports and exports, and religiousness or sumptuary laws, under which certain
foods and food preparations are required or proscribed.
Climate also affects the supply of fuel for cooking; a common Chinese food prepa
ration method was cutting food into small pieces to cook foods quickly and conse
rve scarce firewood and charcoal. Foods preserved for winter consumption by smok
ing, curing, and pickling have remained significant in world cuisines for their
altered gustatory properties even when these preserving techniques are no longer
strictly necessary to the maintenance of an adequate food supply.
New cuisines[edit]
A example of nouvelle cuisine presentation. This dish consists of marinated cray
fish on gazpacho asparagus and watercress
Cuisines evolve continually, and new cuisines are created by innovation and cult
ural interaction. One recent example is fusion cuisine, which combines elements
of various culinary traditions while not being categorized per any one cuisine s
tyle, and generally refers to the innovations in many contemporary restaurant cu
isines since the 1970s.[5] Nouvelle cuisine (New cuisine) is an approach to cook
ing and food presentation in French cuisine that was popularized in the 1960s by
the food critics Henri Gault, who invented the phrase, and his colleagues Andr G
ayot and Christian Millau in a new restaurant guide, the Gault-Millau, or Le Nou
veau Guide.
History[edit]
Further information: List of historical cuisines
Cuisine dates back to the Antiquity. Rome was known for its cuisine, wealthy fam
ilies would dine in the Triclinium on a variety of dishes, their diet consisted
of eggs, cheese, bread, meat and honey.
Global and regional cuisines[edit]
Main articles: Global cuisine, Regional cuisine and List of cuisines
A global cuisine is a cuisine that is practiced around the world, and can be cat
egorized according to the common use of major foodstuffs, including grains, prod
uce and cooking fats.
Regional cuisines may vary based upon food availability and trade, cooking tradi
tions and practices, and cultural differences.[3] For example, in Central and So

uth America, corn (maize), both fresh and dried, is a staple food. In northern E
urope, wheat, rye, and fats of animal origin predominate, while in southern Euro
pe olive oil is ubiquitous and rice is more prevalent. In Italy the cuisine of t
he north, featuring butter and rice, stands in contrast to that of the south, wi
th its wheat pasta and olive oil. China likewise can be divided into rice region
s and noodle & bread regions. Throughout the Middle East and Mediterranean there
is a common thread marking the use of lamb, olive oil, lemons, peppers, and ric
e. The vegetarianism practiced in much of India has made pulses (crops harvested
solely for the dry seed) such as chickpeas and lentils as significant as wheat
or rice. From India to Indonesia the use of spices is characteristic; coconuts a
nd seafood are used throughout the region both as foodstuffs and as seasonings.