What exactly qualifies a particular food as is ethnic food?

If it's English food. Can that be ethnic or what if it's Russian, Lavian or Greek? Is Soul-Food ethnic food? Is there a real definition or this description just made up willy nilly on the spot?|||For a food to called "ethnic" it must be any food, dish, drink etc which is consumed by people living in that country as a minority ethnic group. I don't know if you are in USA or UK, but I give examples from Europe.


In UK ethnic food is: chinese mushrooms, bacalau or salt fish (a dried cod used in Portugal, Italy, Spain Jamaica), and I could carry on with a very long list. Also for instance Jewish Kosher food can be classified as ethnic, just because is normally used by Jews who stick to the Kosher diet. This food is in UK because there are people using it, so somebody import it and can be found in the shops, but not everywhere... because it is still an ethnic food.


Nowadays it is very difficult to say what is ethnic and what is common food. Good example: Indian curry. is not certainly english, of course not, but because the presence of indian culture being so embedded in the english culture in the last 300 years or so (not sure how long, don't quote me on that) curry as become a national english food, not an ethnic food anymore.


Do not confuse "ethnic" with "exotic" food which is food, normally fruit and veg, coming from abroad. Here again things change: I can remember when a kiwi, in Italy 30 years ago used to be an exotic fruit. Now, kiwi are normally grown locally, so no longer exotic.|||Ethnic means that it is commonly found in that country or religion etc.


You can have Ethnic Cleansing. Hitler tried this with Jews and Blacks in the 2nd. world war.So that all would be left would be Blue eyed blondes.


Ethnic food Jambalaya in the south of USA.


Jerk Chicken originated from Jamaica etc.


Souvlaki Greek.


Vodka, beetroot soup-Russian|||When I asked a similar question the best answer I got was that any culture's food different from your own could be considered ethnic food. So to an english person, american southern bbq or buffalo wings could be considered ethnic food. To an american, english meat pies could be considered ethnic food.|||All food recipes are ethnic to somewhere. The term is usually used to describe foods which do not derive from the speakers ethnicity. So Greek food might be described as ethnic by an Italian, while the Greeks consider Italian food to be ethnic.|||ethnic food is just different in the us, yes greek and lavian food is ethnic


now, i went to mexico and pizza and hotdogs and hamburgers are ethnic


now im sure if you go to greece the greek frood is not ethnic


depends where you are|||if it a strong association with a certain culture