Bruce Kraig

Bruce Kraig has an abiding interest in hot dogs and all that they mean to human beings. But, he does have other interests, some of them academic, as follows:

With a Ph.D. in History (and Archeology), Bruce Kraig is Professor Emeritus in History at Roosevelt University in Chicago. Professor Kraig has taught courses in history, prehistory, popular culture, American social and cultural history, the history of food, world cultures, political and legal problems food, and travel and tourism. He has lectured on these subjects in the United States, Europe, Latin America, and Australia and has an international reputation as a food historian with special emphasis on the cultural and social significance of food.

Kraig’s publications range from books and articles in academic journals on European and world prehistory through American history. His award winning Elementary and High School textbooks on World History, World Cultures, and American history have been adopted nationally. He is the author of several books on culinary history, among them, Mexican American Plain Cooking (Nelson-Hall, 1982), The Cuisines of Hidden Mexico, John Wiley (1996), Favorite Recipes: A Columbian Exposition Autograph Souvenir Cookbook (editor) ( 2000), Cooking Plain: Illinois Country Style, (editor) (2011) , and Hot Dog: A Global History ( 2009) and Man Bites Dog: Hot Dog Culture in America (2012, 2014) Recent books include: Street Food : Everything You Need to Know About Open-Air Stands, Carts, and Food Trucks Across the Globe (with Colleeen Sen),(2017), The Chicago Food Encyclopedia (with Colleen Sen and Carol Haddix) (2017), and A Rich and Fertile Land: A History of Food in America (2017). He has written numerous articles on food and food history, world cultures and travel as a regular food columnist and as a guest writer. He also writes for the Chicago daily newspapers, notably his major article on the history of Chicago food for the 150th anniversary of the Chicago Tribune and recent articles on international and ethnic foods (including Korean) for the Chicago Sun-Times. In addition to authoring many encyclopedia articles, Kraig was Senior Editor of the multi-volume Oxford Encyclopedia of American Food and Drink (Oxford University Press, 2004), the new shorter version (2007) and the new full revision (2012). He is also Series Editor of Heartland Foodways, for the University of Illinois Press.

Dr. Kraig has appeared widely in the electronic media as an on-camera host and narrator, and as an expert in the field of food and cultural history. He has been the host, writer, and historian for the nationally broadcast Public Television (PBS) documentaries Hidden China, Hidden Mexico, Food for the Ancestors, Hidden India: The Kerala Spicelands and Hidden Turkey. He has also hosted his own television program about food in the Chicago area, "Traveling Fare," and two radio series, The Mysterious World," and "Chicago's Food." His programs have won many awards, including: Two Lente de Plata Awards (Mexico); Silver Apple Award (National Education Media Competition); Gold Apple Award; CHRIS (top award, Columbus International Documentary Comp); Bronze Medal (Columbus International Documentary Competition); and several EMMYs. These programs are widely viewed in the United States, particularly in schools from primary to college-level, and in international markets.

He has made many appearances as an authority on food history and culture on national, local, and international radio, television, and on other media. Professor Kraig has had and continues to have many speaking engagements worldwide and during one in Australia, (where he delivered the keynote address at the Australian Symposium on Gastronomy) he appeared on a number of national and regional radio shows -- to discuss food and world culture. He delivered the keynote address to America's food editors at the 1998 Pillsbury Bake-Off on the topic of the rise of ethnic foods in America and has been a regular contributor and speaker at the Oxford (England) Symposium on Food and Cookery since 1985. Among the papers delivered at the Symposium are the seminal works on the history of hot dogs, the first paper on Southern Illinois foodways, entitled "Fried in the Heartland," (2003), “Entomophagy” (2004), “Riverworld: The Vanished World of Illinois Riverfolk”(2005), and “Why Not Eat Pets” (2007). Professor Kraig is the Founding President (Emeritus) of the Culinary Historians of Chicago. He has been Consulting Scholar for the Illinois Humanities Council and Smithsonian Institutions' Museums on Main Street project entitled "Key Ingredients." In this capacity, he has lectured to and consulted with historical societies and museums throughout the state on the subject of food history and traditional culture. He is also a long time Illinois Road Scholar, the public speaking arm of the Illinois Humanities Council. He has been Scholar-in-Residence for the International Association of Culinary Professionals the major international organization for professional writers, chefs and practitioners in the culinary arts. Kraig continues to lecture on food history and culture across the United States and abroad.