First let me explain that I’m a Navy Brat and grew up on each coast and a few places in the middle. Mom was from Washington State, Dad from New York German stock.
So, marrying a Southern guy was quite an eye-opener for me. Especially one from Louisiana. Food is different here.
The first thing I noticed that rice was served at dinnertime. Rice and gravy. I was raised with a white gravy, which I never ate. In the south the gravy poured over the rice was made from the juice of the meat, light without much thickener, and quite delicious once I got used to it. I checked out Wikipedia to make sure I was calling the gravy by the right name, and I don’t see it listed in the types of gravy at all. But then I’ve never heard or eaten Chocolate Gravy either.
Let me describe how to make it a little better. For smothered chicken: Brown some chicken pieces with skin, throw in a chopped onion, then pour water until chicken is covered (that’s why it’s called smothered – round steak is super good this way as well), cook until the chicken is tender, remove chicken, and reduce the broth until it thickens up, you can add several tablespoons of flour to thicken it a little more. Put the chicken back in the pan. To serve put a large scoop of rice, put chicken on the side, and cover rice with gravy. I’m getting hungry just writing this down!
As a kid, the only way I ate rice was as a breakfast cereal with sugar and cinnamon or as a rice pudding. So, rice with gravy was a new concept for me. Oh, and no instant rice. I made that mistake on my first meal as a bride. The rice, long grained, must be cooked the right way. Thank heavens rice cookers started selling in Louisiana many years ago. A life saver.
Gumbo is another dish that is a staple in Louisiana. Try any of Emeril’s recipes from FoodNetwork.com. Gumbo is considered a ‘poor man’s’ dish in Louisiana. You could easily make one from a chicken from the yard, it would feed a family, and it was delicious. Yes, it’s served over rice. You can use chicken, seafood, sausage and there’s even a Green Gumbo recipe made with greens. So, it’s a versatile dish. When the kids were little, I always took the meat off the chicken bone so they wouldn’t have to, and I loved the dish even more that way.
Not to be slighted, the vegetable side dishes I like best are smothered fresh corn, green beans with potatoes and bacon. Carrot Souffle is out of this world good. A salad might be made with carrots and chopped eggs, or beets with sliced onions and potatoes, which turn a cheery reddish color. Of course we like salads with greens and in our area, an arugula salad when the garden is growing is outstanding.
Desserts are decadent. Red Velvet cake. Sweet potato pie. One of the best cakes I’ve ever eaten is a Hummingbird Cake. And Southern ladies know how to make candy. Daunting if you’ve managed to freeze fudge in the pot and had to boil the beaters out. Don’t laugh, it was quite traumatic for me at the time. But I have managed to make truffles that were as good as any store bought candy.
So, that’s a little about the food we eat in Louisiana. There’s much much more, as different cultures moved into area. The people here enjoy food. Especially with family and friends.
Thanks for stopping by Pepper Phillips!
Juliet Barriere says
This post really made me hungry. Off to the kitchen for me!
Andrew says
That’s really amazing otherwise i don’t look content like this but this one drawn me.
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Samantha says
Well…I’m off to eat now 😉