St. Louis cuisine is the culinary culture of the Greater St. Louis area, which comprises and completely surrounds the independent city of St. Louis (its principal city) and includes parts of both the U.S. states of

Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...

and

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rock ...

History and composition

An independent city and a major U.S. port in the state of Missouri, St. Louis dates to an early French settlement in 1764. Built along the western bank of the Mississippi river, which marks the border of Missouri with Illinois, it was founded by French fur traders and Pierre Laclède and

Auguste Chouteau René-Auguste Chouteau, Jr. (September 7, 1749, or September 26, 1750 – February 24, 1829Beckwith, 8.), also known as Auguste Chouteau, was the founder of St. Louis, Missouri, a successful fur trader and a politician. He and his partner had a ...

, and named after the medieval French King, Louis IX. Spain took control of the region after defeating France in the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754 ...

in 1764. France regained control in 1800, but sold it to the United States three years later in the

Louisiana Purchase The Louisiana Purchase (french: Vente de la Louisiane, translation=Sale of Louisiana) was the acquisition of the territory of Louisiana by the United States from the French First Republic in 1803. In return for fifteen million dollars, or ap ...

. St. Louis grew quickly in the 19th century, becoming America's fourth-largest city by 1904, when it hosted the

Louisiana Purchase Exposition The Louisiana Purchase Exposition, informally known as the St. Louis World's Fair, was an World's fair, international exposition held in St. Louis, Missouri, United States, from April 30 to December 1, 1904. Local, state, and federal funds tota ...

and the

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The ina ...

St. Louis cuisine

A number of foods are specific to, or known to have originated in

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

St. Louis-style pizza

St. Louis has a variation of pizza which features

provel cheese Provel () is a white processed cheese product particularly popular in St. Louis cuisine, that is a combination of cheddar, Swiss, and provolone cheeses. Provel has a low melting point, and therefore has a gooey and almost buttery texture at room ...

, a very thin crust, and is often square cut.

Imo's Pizza Imo's Pizza is an American chain of pizza restaurants headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. As of 2020, the company says it has more than 100 restaurants and stores in Missouri, Illinois and Kansas. The chain was founded by Ed and Margie Imo in ...

is a well-known seller of St. Louis-style pizza.

Gooey butter cake

Gooey butter cake is a type of cake traditionally made in, and invented in, St. Louis. It is served locally as a breakfast

pastry Pastry is baked food made with a dough of flour, water and shortening (solid fats, including butter or lard) that may be savoury or sweetened. Sweetened pastries are often described as '' bakers' confectionery''. The word "pastries" suggests ...

, though also served as a dessert.

Toasted ravioli

Toasted ravioli is breaded deep-fried

ravioli Ravioli (; singular: ''raviolo'', ) are a type of pasta comprising a filling enveloped in thin pasta dough. Usually served in broth or with a sauce, they originated as a traditional food in Italian cuisine. Ravioli are commonly square, tho ...

, usually served as an

appetizer An hors d'oeuvre ( ; french: hors-d'œuvre ), appetiser or starter is a small dish served before a meal in European cuisine. Some hors d'oeuvres are served cold, others hot. Hors d'oeuvres may be served at the dinner table as a part of the m ...

. Generally, some type of meat is wrapped in square

, breaded and

deep fried Deep frying (also referred to as deep fat frying) is a cooking method in which food is submerged in hot fat, traditionally lard but today most commonly oil, as opposed to the shallow oil used in conventional frying done in a frying pan. Norma ...

until the pasta shell becomes slightly crispy, dry and browned. Vegetarian options exist, generally consisting of cheese, spinach, or mushroom fillings. Toasted ravioli is generally served with marinara sauce for dipping.

St. Paul sandwich

St. Paul sandwich The St. Paul sandwich can be found in many Chinese American restaurants in St. Louis, Missouri, as well as other cities in Missouri, including Columbia, Jefferson City, and Springfield. The sandwich consists of an egg foo young patty (made with ...

is a type of sandwich served at many Chinese takeout restaurants in St. Louis. The sandwich consists of an egg foo young patty (made with

mung bean sprouts Mung bean sprouts are a culinary vegetable grown by sprouting mung beans. They can be grown by placing and watering the sprouted beans in the shade until the hypocotyls grow long. Mung bean sprouts are extensively cultivated and consumed in Eas ...

and minced white onions) served with dill pickle slices, white onion,

mayonnaise Mayonnaise (; ), colloquially referred to as "mayo" , is a thick, cold, and creamy sauce or dressing commonly used on sandwiches, hamburgers, composed salads, and French fries. It also forms the base for various other sauces, such as tarta ...

, and

lettuce Lettuce (''Lactuca sativa'') is an annual plant of the family Asteraceae. It is most often grown as a leaf vegetable, but sometimes for its stem and seeds. Lettuce is most often used for salads, although it is also seen in other kinds of food, ...

between two slices of

white bread White bread typically refers to breads made from wheat flour from which the bran and the germ layers have been removed from the whole wheatberry as part of the flour grinding or milling process, producing a light-colored flour. This milling p ...

. The St. Paul sandwich also comes in different combinations and specials, such as chicken, pork, shrimp, beef, and other varieties. Steven Yuen is said to have invented the sandwich in the 1940s for his restaurant Park Chop Suey.

Slinger

A slinger is an

American Midwest The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. I ...

diner A diner is a small, inexpensive restaurant found across the United States, as well as in Canada and parts of Western Europe. Diners offer a wide range of foods, mostly American cuisine, a casual atmosphere, and, characteristically, a co ...

specialty typically consisting of two eggs,

hash browns Hash browns, also spelled hashed browns, are a popular American and British breakfast food, consisting of finely chopped potatoes that have been fried until browned. Hash browns first started appearing on breakfast menus in New York City in th ...

, and a

ground beef Ground beef, minced beef or beef mince is beef that has been finely chopped with a knife, meat grinder (American English), mincer or mincing machine (British English). It is used in many recipes including hamburgers, bolognese sauce, meatloaf, ...

(or other type of meat)

patty A patty or burger (in British English) is a flattened, usually round, Serving size, serving of ground meat and/or legumes, grains, vegetables, or Meat analogue, meat alternatives. Patties are found in multiple cuisines throughout the world. ...

, all covered in

chili con carne Chili con carne (also spelled chilli con carne or chile con carne and shortened to chili or chilli; ), meaning " chili with meat", is a spicy stew containing chili peppers (sometimes in the form of chili powder), meat (usually beef), tomatoes ...

(with or without beans) and generously topped with cheese (

cheddar Cheddar most often refers to either: *Cheddar cheese *Cheddar, Somerset, the village after which Cheddar cheese is named Cheddar may also refer to: Places * Cheddar, Ontario, Canada * Cheddar Yeo, a river which flows through Cheddar Gorge and t ...

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

) and onions. The eggs can be any style. Hot sauce is usually served on the side. The slinger is considered to be a

late-night culinary original. It is described as "a hometown culinary invention: a mishmash of meat, hash-fried potatoes, eggs, and chili, sided with your choice of ham, sausage, bacon, hamburger patties, or an entire T-bone steak.

St. Louis-style barbecue and pork steaks

See St. Louis-style barbecue and

pork steak A pork steak, also called Boston butt or pork blade steak, is a steak cut from the shoulder of the pig. Pork steaks are mentioned as far back as 1739, though without details about how they were cut or how they were cooked. Shoulder steaks are c ...

Gerber sandwich

Gerber sandwich The Gerber is an open-faced sandwich made in St. Louis, Missouri. The Gerber consists of a half section of Italian or French bread, spread with garlic butter and topped with ham and Provel cheese (the original sandwich was made with provolone), ...

is a hot, open faced sandwich served in St. Louis. The Gerber consists of a half section of Italian or French bread, spread with garlic butter and topped with

ham Ham is pork from a leg cut that has been preserved by wet or dry curing, with or without smoking."Bacon: Bacon and Ham Curing" in ''Chambers's Encyclopædia''. London: George Newnes, 1961, Vol. 2, p. 39. As a processed meat, the term "ham ...

and Provel cheese, seasoned with a sprinkling of

paprika Paprika ( US , ; UK , ) is a spice made from dried and ground red peppers. It is traditionally made from '' Capsicum annuum'' varietals in the Longum group, which also includes chili peppers, but the peppers used for paprika tend to be milder ...

and then toasted.

Fried brain sandwiches

A fried brain sandwich is a sandwich of sliced, fried calves' brains on sliced buttered bread, optionally served with raw onion, lettuce and tomato.

References

{{St. Louis Cuisine of St. Louis Culture of St. Louis