Mormon foodways
Brock Cheney argues that Mormon foodways in the west were distinct from those of miners, Native Americans, and other non-Mormons in the same area.
Many pioneers immigrated from Europe, and brought food traditions from there, including making cheese and sauerkraut.
As the faith tradition becomes international, there is no longer a cuisine common to all members, but food remains an important feature of ward functions.
The term foodways is used in the social sciences to refer to overall food production, distribution, storage and consumption in a given society, culture, or subculture, which is the focus of this article.
[2] Section 89 of the Doctrine and Covenants, commonly known as the "Word of Wisdom" gives members dietary guidelines.
This increased enforcement in the 1920s coincided with the temperance movement, and perhaps grew from members of church leadership desiring approval from Protestants, who were generally for prohibition.
Pioneers also grew herbs for tisanes, including peppermint, rose hip, jasmine, hops, and lemon balm.
Members often donate the money saved from not eating as a fast offering to help feed the poor in their area.
One woman would cut the crusts off the sacrament bread and transport it on a special crystal platter, creating her own ritual from domestic work.
[10] The settlers in Nauvoo had access to food crops including apples, cucumbers, Indian corn, gooseberries, grapes, melons, oats, peaches, potatoes, pumpkins, rice, squash, tomatoes, and wheat.
Women made maple syrup when the snow thawed and enjoyed fresh vegetables in the summer.
The first crop planted in Salt Lake Valley in 1847 was potatoes, followed by buckwheat, corn, oats, turnips, beans, and others.
[12] Some pioneers brought seeds from other places, including club-head wheat, the California pea, and the now-extinct Garnet Chili potato.
Farmers, including Wilford Woodruff, strove to breed varieties of apples, peaches, and pears suited for Utah's climate.
Livestock had multiple uses, with Shorthorn cattle lugging wagons and plows as well as providing milk and beef.
[19][20] When grasshoppers decimated crops in 1855, pioneers fished and stored millet and trout for their winter food supply.
[21] The types of wild berries they harvested were serviceberries, chokecherries, currants, raspberries, strawberries, elderberries, and gooseberries.
[23] Seasonal food included peas, radishes, and sego bulbs in the spring, lettuce, beans, and corn in the summer, and tomatoes, cabbages, carrots, and potatoes in the fall.
[24] Brigham Young discouraged pioneers from buying imported sugar in an attempt to keep more cash within the borders of the Utah Territory.
Brigham Young encouraged pioneers to plant sorghum cane and sugar beets, which they processed into molasses.
In the 1860s, the LDS Church coordinated the sale of dried fruit, buying it from member farmers or accepting it as tithing and selling it to miners.
Wheat flour made up the most weight in wagons travelling westward, where they leavened their bread with saleratus, a type of unrefined baking powder.
[39] Leaders of the church encouraged pioneers to save meat for the winter and eat fish and eggs in the summer, which was a common seasonal practice.
[41] Neighbors helped butcher a pig for winter consumption; ham, shoulders, bacon, and sausage were made from the carcass.
[51] Before 1950, it was common for church members to grow vegetables and fruit, can their own preserves, and make their own bread, pickles, and other food items.
[57] In the 1980s, Jell-O had a marketing campaign promoting the snack as fun for children and easy for parents, which played well among family-oriented Mormons.
[61] Fry sauce "functions as a cultural identifier for Utahns",[62] and it is popular with both Mormons and non-Mormons in the state.
[66] Utah fathers enjoyed grocery shopping and taking their family out to eat as their way of helping with food needs.
