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The Melting Pot
Booyah hero image coming soon
1850s-present - Belgian American communities in northeast Wisconsin
Booyah is more than soup in Green Bay and northeast Wisconsin. It is a community event food tied to Belgian American settlements, church picnics, fundraisers, and enormous kettles stirred for hours.
Difficulty
Moderate
Prep time
45 minutes
Cook time
3 hours
Total time
3 hours 45 minutes
Servings
10 to 12 servings
Region
Northeast Wisconsin
Era introduced
1850s-present
Introduced by
Belgian American communities in northeast Wisconsin
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Booyah is a regional food with a regional social life. Belgian immigrants, many from Walloon communities, settled in northeast Wisconsin in the 19th century, and large-kettle chicken-and-beef stews became part of church picnics, reunions, and community fundraisers. Recipes vary by family and fire department, but they usually include chicken, beef, cabbage, potatoes, carrots, onions, and tomatoes cooked long enough for the flavors to merge.
Drafted with Wisconsin booyah history from Wisconsin Academy (https://www.wisconsinacademy.org/magazine/spring-2022/wisconsin-table/booyah-noun-verb-exclamation), Belgian American context from WBAY (https://www.wbay.com/2026/01/08/we-people-history-booyah-belgian-dish-thats-become-northeast-wisconsin-tradition/), and recipe/history context from What's Cooking America (https://whatscookingamerica.net/soup/chickenbooyah.htm).
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