As befits the all-American melting pot, many residents in this part of Louisiana are Cajuns, descendents of the French-speaking Catholic Acadians of Eastern Canada. During the mid-1700s, the Acadians refused to swear allegiance to the British crown and were deported. The king of Spain offered them land grants in the Louisiana Territory.

The "land" turned out to be mostly alligator-filled swamps and barren prairies, but still the folks thrived, becoming known as Cajuns--the shortened form of "Acadian" spoken with a southern drawl. Thus, many Louisiana dishes have French roots and foreign-sounding names: po' boys, etouffee, muffaleta, gumbo, andouille sausage, cracklins, maque choux, beignets, and boudin.