Once a delicacy found in upscale restaurants of New York City some 150 years ago, turtle soup has faded from mainstream American cuisine. Famous figures like President William Howard Taft and Campbell’s, known for their canned mock turtle soup, praised this culinary delight. Even the renowned cookbook, The Joy of Cooking, featured a recipe for turtle soup until 1974.

The consumption of turtle meat dates back to pre-colonial times. Both Indigenous people of North America and the Caribbean included turtles in their diets. Europeans initially used the turtle as an affordable protein source for sailors and colonists. However, it gradually transformed into a status symbol, savored in opulent bowls of soup across 18th to 20th-century America.

Unlike typical food trends, turtle soup was not a mere flash in a pan. Their meat lent a unique viscous texture to the soup, verging on gelatinous when cooled. It became a staple of American food culture. Sea turtles caught in the Caribbean by European sailors were a popular source of turtle meat, and this love for turtle soup eventually crossed the Atlantic into American kitchens.

Preparing a sea turtle for soup was a festive and messy occasion. As explained by Henry Voigt, a historian with a collection of over 10,000 historical American menus, a typical 1880s recipe would involve butchering and draining the turtle, crafting a stock from its organ meat, pork and veal knuckles, onions, turnips, carrots, and spices such as bay leaves and allspice. The mixture was then seasoned with red pepper, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, and sherry.

As green turtle soup's popularity stretched across America, its demand outpaced its supply. Consequently, mock turtle soups, substituting authentic turtle meat with easily accessible alternatives, entered the scene. Dr. Paul Freedman, a history professor at Yale University, compared these substitutes to opting for pork cutlets instead of veal scallopini today.

Despite the availability of mock turtle soup, the original turtle soup remained a gourmet delight. However, overfishing and the evolving tastes of American palates contributed to the decline of turtle soups.

Another contributing factor is the changing fondness for gelatinous textures. "We tend to be extremely narrow in our sense of what is desirable," Freedman explained. "Things of the relatively recent past - organ meat, for example - are now shunned."

Yet, those with a traditional palate can still find turtle soup on menus in Louisiana. New Orleans' Creole cuisine still savors this dish made with locally sourced snapping turtles. Melvin Rodrigue, President of the legendary Galatoire's restaurant in New Orleans, claims the dish is still popular among tourists and locals alike.

Despite the dwindling popularity, a taste of tradition remains, whether in authentic turtle soup or its mock counterpart. The rise and fall of turtle soup provides a rare glimpse into America’s culinary history and the environmental, social, and consumer forces that shape our dining habits.