I am from St Louis so we have:
Toasted ravioli
Toasted ravioli, from
The Hill
One food that originated in the St. Louis region of
The Hill is
toasted ravioli, which is a ravioli coated in breading and toasted dry or fried, instead of being boiled or baked wet.
St. Louis-style pizza
St. Louis has a unique and regionally popular variation of pizza known as
St. Louis-style pizza. The pizza's traditional characteristics include:
- It is cut in squares ("tavern cut") as opposed to wedges.
- The crust is thin and crisp and is not made with yeast.
- Greater crust strength through square-cutting and crisp crust is needed because the toppings are traditionally arranged in much larger pieces, and are often sliced instead of diced.
- The white processed cheese Provel (composed of provolone, Swiss, and white cheddar) and was originally created because of the low melting point. This allowed for a faster cooking time than other cheeses.
- Its pizza sauce is seasoned with more oregano and less basil than is typical.
Gooey butter cake
A slice of Gooey butter cake with powdered sugar and raspberries
Supposedly originating with a botched cake recipe in the 1930s,
gooey butter cake and gooey butter cookies are popular in the region.[
citation needed] The bottom layer of the cake is flat and dense, made with a box cake mix. The top layer is the "gooey butter" and is made from powdered sugar and cream cheese. The cake is typically dusted with powdered sugar once cooled. Nationally, food enthusiasts largely became aware of the cake when
Paula Deen published the recipe in one of her cookbooks.
St. Louis-style BBQ
Pork steaks cooking, St. Louis-style
St. Louis-style barbecue involves direct grilling rather than indirect heat and smoking, as well as a larger volume of the style's sweet, sticky, and acidic tomato-based sauce. It is commonly used with two local meat cuts:
Pork steak
In St. Louis, one of the most common pork dishes is the
pork steak, a shoulder cut that is slow-cooked until it becomes very tender, then barbecued.
St. Louis-style ribs
St. Louis-style ribs are
spare ribs with the sternum, cartilage and rib tips removed to create a rectangular-shaped rack. The cut of ribs, formally recognized by the
USDA as "Pork Ribs, St. Louis Style," supposedly originated with numerous meat-packing plants located in the region in the mid twentieth century.
In past years St. Louis has routinely been named one of the best cities in the country for barbecue.
Slinger
The
Slinger is a St. Louis diner food consisting of two eggs,
hash browns, and hamburger, steak, or other meat, all covered in chili, onions, and cheddar or American cheese. A variation on this, the Toby, replaces the chili with white gravy.
Gerber sandwich
The
Gerber sandwich is an
open-faced sandwich, with Italian or French bread,
garlic butter, ham, and provel cheese. It is sprinkled with paprika and toasted
St. Paul sandwich
The
St. Paul sandwich originated in St. Louis in the 1940s. It is made with white bread with an
egg foo young patty inside, served with dill pickle, white onion, mayonnaise, lettuce, and tomato
