4.2 southern cooking main dishes and comfort food

MAIN DISHES:COMFORT FOOD

& SOUL FOOD

SOUTHERN COOKING

comfort food (s.n.) Traditional food that is usually prepared in a simple way and reminds people of home or family.

soul food (s.n.) usually considered to be food associated with African-Americans living in the southern U.S.

Black-eyed peas are used to make dishes like Hoppin’ John, made with onions, peppers and bacon, and served with rice.

The dish is originally from South Carolina but is common throughout the South.

It is traditional in some parts of the South to eat Hoppin’ John on New Year’s Day. The tradition is that the peas represent coins, and to leave three peas on the plate for good luck.

HOPPIN’ JOHN

Jambalaya and Gumbo are examples of Cajun cooking. CAJUN COOKING

Jambalaya is a rice dish similar to paella, made with meat or seafood and vegetables.

Gumbo is a heavily-seasoned stew served over rice, with meat or seafood.

The traditional New Orleans version of Gumbo includes both seafood and sausage.

Red beans and rice is an important part of the New Orleans identity.

Traditionally, ham was a Sunday meal and Monday was washday: the day for washing all the clothes. A pot of beans could sit on the stove and simmer while the women were busy scrubbing (washing).

While Monday washdays are a thing of the past, red beans remain a main dish for large gatherings such as Super Bowl and Mardi Gras parties.

Fried chicken is common around the world, but in the South is considered one of the most popular comfort foods.

Southern fried chicken is prepared by cutting the chicken into its main parts –the breast, wings, thighs and drumsticks (the legs)– battering them with eggs and flour and deep frying in vegetable oil.

If you’ve ever been to KFC, then you have an idea of southern fried chicken.

One famous “soul food” dish is fried chicken and waffles.