|
An insightful guide
to Soul Food Cuisine
for diners and travelers
by an established authority
Why Soul Food
cooking
is special
Soul Food Cuisine was created by Black slave woman cooks in the Old South. Its
culinary roots are West African. Like other
ethnic comfort foods in our world, Soul Food Cuisine is hearty and filling - and evokes a satisfying
emotional response to one's cultural heritage.
Difference between
Soul Food Cuisine and
Southern Cuisine
The first is a subset of the second. Both were substantially inspired
by inventive Black slave woman cooks. Some critical differences: Soul Food is more
assertively seasoned, simpler in technique, and relies on more basic, less
expensive cooking ingredients.
A sampling of
dishes shared
by both cuisines
The preparations listed below are mainstays on the Soul Food Cuisine table.
They are also part of the overall Southern Cuisine repertoire. Click the
"Southern" button on the left for brief insights on them:
 Barbecued
Ribs
Biscuits
Chicken-Fried
Steak
Cornbread
Country
Ham
Fried
Catfish
Fried
Green Tomatoes
Game
Meat
Grits
Pies
and Cobblers
Southern Fried
Chicken
How many of these famous
Soul Food specialties
have you tried?
They are not the exclusive domain of Soul Food, but
that cuisine has the most bragging rights to them.
 Black-Eyed Peas
- This legume is enriched with salt pork. When rice is mixed in, it becomes Hoppin' John, a
traditional good-luck dish served on New Year's Day.
Candied
Sweet Potatoes - A widely loved side dish. Sweet potatoes are similar to the
West African yam.
Chitlins
-
Boiled or fried hog intestines, often served with hot sauce.
Collard
Greens - No Soul Food meal is complete without a side of simmered collard
greens (or their alternatives, mustard and turnip greens).
Hush
Puppies - Deep-fried corn fritters. So-named because cooks tossed a few to
the dogs to keep them quiet.
Smothered
Chicken -
The meat is sautéed then cooked slowly with onions until the pan liquid
appreciably thickens. It is then poured over the chicken, smothering it.
Cuisine insights
Name
- Soul Food goes back centuries, but didn't receive its "Soul Food" appellation
until the 1960s.
How
it began
- Soul Food was born of hard times. Slaves received the culinary undesirables
from their masters, who reserved the choice portions of the animals and
vegetables for themselves. The slaves had to make do with animal parts like
pig's feet, jowls, ears, and intestines - and vegetable parts like the fibrous
green tops of turnips.
Nutrition
- The vegetable-dominated diet of the slaves was often a healthier one than that
of their oft-sedentary masters. The latter typically ate meals high in fat, sugar and calories. Slaves also consumed substantial calories, but they worked them off performing
their strenuous, long-hour jobs.
America's
famous cuisines
 
 
 
 
Also learn
about these
exciting
world cuisines
My food & wine
credentials
My books have been critically acclaimed by major magazines and newspapers. Click
the button below to read a sampling (in Acrobat format).
|
