How America Embraced The Comforts Of Southern US Cuisine

The Comforts Of Southern Recipes

Every nation will say that they have the best, unique cuisine in the world and the very best ingredients. Cheese-mongers across Europe can argue about their regions’ delicacies. The fight between Scottish and Japanese beef still rages, and now whiskey is involved. Then you have the conflicting areas of the United States. Southern Recipes food has a distinct heritage and style, and the dishes and flavors vary from state to state.

Southern foods are seen as the original recipes of the US, and many families work hard to maintain them. US food from the south has become recognized more and more in recent years, and some trendy restaurants even sell grits. The difference is that these restaurants can offer the heart of Southern US Cuisine and the farm-to-table heritage of the region.

Southern US Cuisine Has Seen A Boom In Popularity Since The Turn Of The Century.

America has become a lot smaller as a nation over the decades. The states may still be a long way apart and wonderfully diverse, but they are better connected. Digital communication, social media, domestic flights, online dating and so much more have broken down the miles between north and south.

Out-of-state diners started to learn more about cuisine, flavors, and customs. There was something new, but also something comforting about the way the South did things. This was local food grown, sold, and cooked with love to create some of the best comfort food in the world.

This idea of comfort food in Southern recipes resonated with people in 2001. The so-called “Southern food renaissance” has links to this period of pain and hurt in America. Citizens reached out for comfort food to find a way to heal and connect with their wounded nation.

The answer was southern food – the old recipes that have healed family rifts and heartache for centuries. A hearty meal of pork, vegetables, and fruit pie around the kitchen table is much more satisfying.

One of the big trends latest for home-made food. Something with an odd quirk and rustic feels that has come from the garden or local artisan. Some choose to grow heritage vegetables. Others look for local bread or hand-made sausages from the local farm. Food no longer needs to be mass-produced or perfect.

This has led to a rise in farmers’ markets. The market used to be for the elite. Now it is for everyone. The next generation wants to buy real food from a real person instead of buying online. This may be new and exciting to a couple in California, but it is normal in the south. The only concern with new trends is how far they will go.

The Problem With Southern US Cuisine Is That It Is Open To Dilution And Stereotyping.

American-style dining abroad is dominated by certain dishes and flavors that offer a narrow view of the nation’s cuisine. These restaurants focus on diner food, burgers, fries, waffles, and a good rack of BBQ ribs from the south.

The problem is that these clichés can often begin in the US. Talk of Southern food turns to stereotypes the further north you go. Some blame it on a few basic concepts getting out of control, such as the “soul food” of the South.

Many diners don’t realize that southern recipes are far more diverse than that. The South is a big place, larger than many countries, with countless states, cities, and districts. Each one has an identity and that identity is translated into the food.

Barbecue meat is a staple of the South, but different areas will have different ideas. Peach pies will always be better in Georgia. New Orleans is a million cultural miles away from Nashville. Shrimp and grits are very much a thing of the Lowcountry. In all honesty, the list could go on and on.

Three Great Recipes From The South To Tempt The Taste Buds.

Many of the most popular Southern recipes in the world involve Barbeque in some way. Any restaurant across America, or perhaps across the Atlantic, turns to BBQ sauce first when symbolizing the South.

There are lots of people that think that they know how to cook Southern barbecue. There are also plenty that will fail to do it properly. Cooking a good rack of pork ribs is as much about the attention to detail in preparation as the cooking. You need to know your cuts, your cooking methods, and your sauces.

Another staple of southern US cuisine is heat. A good BBQ sauce packs a punch, but Southern chefs are never afraid of a bit of heat either. There is one tried and tested recipe that combines three key elements: juicy meat, a hot, rich sauce and a celebrity endorsement.

That recipe is Paula Dean’s Spicy Buttermilk Fried Chicken. The recipe is simple. All you need is a marinade of hot sauce and buttermilk, some chicken and a coating of garlic, onion, pepper and flour.

Finally, few southern recipes are more authentic than those with shrimp, andouille, and grits. Saying Spicy Shrimp and Andouille Over Charleston-Style Grits to anyone, not from the South is like speaking another language. That said, everyone is sure to love this dish.

The dish is complicated as there are so many elements going on. First, there are the Charleston-Style Grits to whip up. Then you need to cook your shrimp and andouille sausage mixture with the broth, cream, and veg. It takes some effort, but it is worth it.

Southern US Cuisine is essentially about three things: fun, flavor and family.

There are hundreds of recipes from the south of the United States that highlight the tastes and palette of the region. Restaurants across the world try and replicate the feel of these southern dishes by incorporating the right ingredients in the right measurements.

Where they often fail is replicating the feel of the food. Restaurants can try and refine grits and shrimp or make a twist on the barbecue, but the heart won’t be there. Southern cuisine is hearty food, made with love. That is shared by generations around the family table. It is always this way, and it will always stay that way.