A New Year's Southern Meal

Blazor

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As we prepare to ring in 2021
A New Years is coming...and a New decade

Understand what might or should be cooking in your Kitchen has Been a long Standing Southern Tradition with a sobering reminder to us all...
Enjoy a good bowl of black eye peas is one thing but know there meaning makes it that much better

A story that you might hear a lot as New Year is approaching. A story that should be retold and reminded to us every year

Why does Southerns eat Black Eye Peas on New Years Day?
What Is In Your Kitchen?

The story of the Southern tradition of eating black-eyed peas as the first meal on New Year's Day is generally believed to date back the winter of 1864 - 1865 during the later part of the of Southern Independence.

When Union General William T. Sherman led his invading troops on their destructive march through Georgia, the fields of black-eyed peas were largely left untouched because they were deemed fit only for animals.

The Union foragers took everything, plunder the land, and left what they could not take burning or in shambles.
But one thing did remain the lonely peas and good Ol Southern salted pork.

As a result, the humble yet nourishing black-eyed pea saved surviving Southerners - mainly women, children and the disabled veterans of the Confederate army - from mass starvation and were thereafter regarded as a symbol of good luck.

The peas are said to represent good fortune. Certainly, the starving Southern families and soldiers were fortunate to have those meager supplies.

According to the tradition and folklore, the peas are served with several other dishes that symbolically represent good fortune, wealth and prosperity in the coming year. Some folks still traditionally cook the black-eyed peas with a silver dime in the pot as a symbol of good fortune.

Greens represent wealth and paper money. Any greens will do, but in the South, the most popular are collards, mustard greens, turnip greens, and boiled cabbage.

Cornbread - a regular staple mean among Southerners in absence of wheat - symbolizes gold and is very good for soaking up the juice from the greens on the plate.
Good for dinner and in the morning with syrup

Pork symbolizes bountiful prosperity and then progressing into the year ahead. Ham and hog jowls are typical with the New Year meal, though sometimes bacon will work too.

Stewed tomatoes are often eaten with this meal as well. They represent health and wealth.

This is just of few of rich Southern New Year Traditions

I hope you reflect on those stories when you sit down at your family table this coming year

Enjoy this humble uniquely Southern meal every New Years Day. Be thankful for what this year did give you and better days that are coming ahead of you

It was what your Southern Kinfolk DID and reflected upon every year.
Time is coming to get the Southern Smell a cooking
In all things and Holidays keep true to your Southern Roots




Well I made my Southern themed New YEar meal.......

Southern-meal.jpg
 

Lokmar

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Interesting read! I know Sherman is still hated to this day by Southerners.

My favorite Southern/Cajun dish is sausage and chicken gumbo with sausage from
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and chicken cooked in garlic, pepper, and paprika. Learning to properly cook the roux is the hardest part.
 
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Blazor

Blazor

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Interesting read! I know Sherman is still hated to this day by Southerners.

My favorite Southern/Cajun dish is sausage and chicken gumbo with sausage from
Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!
and chicken cooked in garlic, pepper, and paprika. Learning to properly cook the roux is the hardest part.


Sherman burned everything. He had no interest in saving slaves, instead pushed them out to sea to drown to save ammo. He was despicable, patoo!

My friend, hear my plea, toss out that chicken, and add shrimp and scallops instead. You got the right kind of sausage. Also, dont use chicken broth, use beef stock. Trust me man, my for real Cajun friend told me it has to be seafood and not chicken, with beef broth instead of chicken, for it to be REAL gumbo. He gets me to make it for him when he is in town, says it reminds him of home. You're right, the roux is the hardest damn part!!! lol
 

Lokmar

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Unfortunately, even though I'd like to use shrimp, my son is allergic to the point where his throat nearly swells shut.
 

Breakfall

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@Blazor : tell me about fried green tomatoes. I love tomatoes, I eat them like fruit and use a lot of salt when doing so. I have some good tomatoes in the garden. Do fried green tomatoes taste good and do you have to fry them covered in corn meal?

images
 
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Blazor

Blazor

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Unfortunately, even though I'd like to use shrimp, my son is allergic to the point where his throat nearly swells shut.

Oh damn. I have a "shellfish" allergy, but only lobster and crab affect me.

Well keep it mind, do it one day after he moves out lol.

Mine turned 22 last month, moved out 6 months ago. House so quiet, I have to play music lol.
 
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Blazor

Blazor

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@Blazor : tell me about fried green tomatoes. I love tomatoes, I eat them like fruit and use a lot of salt when doing so. I have some good tomatoes in the garden. Do fried green tomatoes taste good and do you have to fry them covered in corn meal?

images


Lucky you, I just made these a few years ago lol. I just treated them like fried squash. I dipped them in egg, then flour, let them sit while the oil in a CAST IRON pan warms up. Then a lil garlic salt on 'em. Super good. Havent done cornmeal, but I imagine it to be good. I been using this new breader that has both flour and cornmeal and been liking it. Its what I used on the pork chops above lol.

I actually like grilled green tomatoes too. Brush 'em with oil, garlic salt.
 

Breakfall

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@Blazor : tell me about fried green tomatoes. I love tomatoes, I eat them like fruit and use a lot of salt when doing so. I have some good tomatoes in the garden. Do fried green tomatoes taste good and do you have to fry them covered in corn meal?

images


Lucky you, I just made these a few years ago lol. I just treated them like fried squash. I dipped them in egg, then flour, let them sit while the oil in a CAST IRON pan warms up. Then a lil garlic salt on 'em. Super good. Havent done cornmeal, but I imagine it to be good. I been using this new breader that has both flour and cornmeal and been liking it. Its what I used on the pork chops above lol.

I actually like grilled green tomatoes too. Brush 'em with oil, garlic salt.
Yeah I’ve heard the reference to fried green tomatoes in the movies and in a couple of blues songs. I’m going to give it a go. When I lived in the tropics we use to fry up green mangoes and use them in curry dishes. The Southern Style cooking comes up with really different ideas. I dig it!
:ThumbsUp3:
 
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Blazor

Blazor

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Interesting read! I know Sherman is still hated to this day by Southerners.

A Philadelphia woman was in Richmond visiting the former White House of the Confederacy. The tour guide, a retired army SGT Major was talking about President Davis and General Lee. The woman protested that the guide had been giving such praise to these two men and asked "what about Generals Grant and Sherman"?

The guide turned to her and stated "madam, this is Richmond Virginia and this is the home of the Former President of the Confederacy Jefferson Davis and Richmond is the Capital of the Confederacy. No other men were ever as great as these two men were. If you want to find out about Grant and Sherman then you will need to go back to Philadelphia."

A preacher spoke up and said "SGT Major if she wants to find Grant and Sherman she won't find them in Philadelphia. To find Grant and Sherman, she will have to go to Hell."