In the spirit of hospitality, I've found that people from outside the South often try to determine what Southerners eat and adjust menus to accommodate those of us from south of the Mason-Dixon line.
When I visited friends in Italy, they served ribs. While ribs are popular in parts of the South, my family was not big on ribs. I chalk this up to the "messiness" factor. With four kids, Mom perhaps did not want to clean us up after chowing down on ribs.
My college son recently ate with his girlfriend's family. They bought greens in a can and served them, because they had heard or read that Southerners love greens. That was the first time my son had collards. I do like collards, but they just had not been on the radar. So, he was introduced to greens served to make him feel "comfortable." He did, in fact, like the greens. So, I'll be cooking them in the future.
So, What Do Southerners Eat?
As with any other area of the country, the South is diverse. What folks eat in North Carolina varies quite a bit from what people eat in Louisiana. Texas and Florida are much different from the deep South or the states bordering on the North.
If I had to note some basic trends, they would include the following for Southerners:
- We tend to eat more fried foods.
- We like our meat (though there are exceptions).
- Fresh produce in season is big (along with roadside stands to by garden foods).
- Pot luck dinners are popular.
- It's common to take cooked food to families when there's a death in the family.
- Church dinners and community compiled cookbooks are very popular.
- Many Southerners still enjoy family dinners in the evening (although it's hard to get everyone together these days).
Specialty dishes in the South might include:
- Grits
- Livermush
- Country ham (salt cured)
- Barbecue (slow smoked meats - and not just foods cooked on the grill)
- Sweet potato dishes
- Onions (Vidalia being a favorite)
- Soul food (drawing from the African American and mountain communities)
- Macaroni and cheese (especially baked)
- Beans (usually cooked with some kind of fat like salted pork)
- Homemade biscuits
- Cornbread
- Desserts
The list of Southern favorites could go on and on. Feel free to add your local favorites in the comment section. If you're in the deep South on the coast, then you'll find things like boiled peanuts which are delicious.
How Can You Make a Southerner Feel Comfortable at Your Home?
It's really nice that people do take the time and effort to look up food and cooking traditions and try to mirror what others may be used to eating. When I lived in Japan, I thought it was very nice that a host group treated us to American pizza. That was the first and only time I had squid and corn kernals as toppings. That was rather odd to an American from the South, but I enjoyed the pizza and especially enjoyed the effort made.
My thoughts, however, are that it makes more sense to share your favorite dishes. It's really hard to try to serve up a meal that you're not used to cooking. And, it's likely that you find that the dish you thought was what the person eats is not one they do eat or that you put very strange toppings on a pizza which shifts it from a familiar food to something entirely different.
One thing I would note is that Southerners tend to be very polite. Your efforts will appreciated even if you miss the mark. So, if you cook something you think we love (but have never had) or if you treat us to your own favorites, we will tend to eat up and enjoy. I guess that is the best part of having Southerners over to eat. We're likely to be good sports no matter what the meal. After all, it is much more about the gesture.
Cyndi Allison - Southern born and fed, Cyndi Allison is a college lecturer and newspaper advisor as well as being a freelance writer. She writes on ...
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