by Ray Linville What makes our state so special for grilling ribs? Most of us can remember our first cookout when someone in the family, neighborhood, or church served home-cooked ribs. They were so tender that the meat literally fell off the bones. The homemade sauce was delicious, and often the recipe was a secret… Read More →
Pomegranate Kitchen, Durham, NC
by Frances O’Roark Dowell Imagine a kitchen that’s not unlike your own, only bigger and better equipped, with a cash box on the counter and a menu on the wall. Imagine the air thick with ginger, cumin and cinnamon. Now imagine a friend—your most hospitable, generous friend—standing before a flotilla of simmering pots, calling out… Read More →
Home of Collard Sandwich Expands on Soul Food Day
by Ray Linville A collard sandwich is not the typical attraction to establish a regional reputation. But it is for Chef Kenneth Collins and his UPro restaurant in Aberdeen, NC, where he has developed an extensive following of appreciative customers. The star attraction of his business begins with fresh, hand-cut collards. The greens are cooked… Read More →
Max Huang’s Last Bao
by Bernie Herman Part of our goal is to let you know about some of the diverse voices we hear … and sometimes somebody simply says it so well on their own blog that we can’t wait to share it with you! Max Huang’s Last Bao by Bernie Herman Originally posted on Meditations on the… Read More →
Carson Varnam’s Shellfish Market
Last Tuesday I went to Carson Varnam’s Shellfish Market to photograph a typical day during oyster season. Around 9:30 the first of the day’s harvest arrives at the market, where they’re placed into cold storage before being sold locally or delivered to restaurants or retail markets. There are opportunities for Mikey Fulford, Carson Varnam’s grandson,… Read More →
Local Seafood: Kitchen on the Roll
Where can you get fresh fish prepared by an award-winning chef? Sometimes the location may not be on the coast or a river but instead from a mobile kitchen. In downtown Wilmington, I found Chef Keith Rhodes hustling to serve customers eagerly standing in line at his food truck parked on North Fourth Street in… Read More →
Oysters in the Parking Lot
One of the best perks of doing fieldwork for the North Carolina Folklife Institute is the amazing food you run into on the road. When I arrived in Brunswick County last night for a community meeting related to a folklife survey we’re doing, supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, fieldworker Steve Kruger showed… Read More →
Burns Day: A Time to Celebrate Scottish Food Traditions in North Carolina
by Ray Linville Where in North Carolina is Scottish food celebrated, and when can you find authentic Scottish food in our state? Travel no farther than to the multi-county Sandhills where many residents still celebrate Scottish heritage, particularly today – known to many as Burns Day in honor of the birth of Scottish poet Robert… Read More →
Sorghum Molasses: A Tradition Worth Preserving
Is sorghum molasses sweet and flavorsome for you, or is it a syrup that is sticky and sinister? Although I only occasionally eat sorghum molasses, I’m sure that I would have learned how to make it if I had grown up on a farm. It was syrup that my father grew up eating regularly, and… Read More →
Moravian Cookies
Here’s part two of our peek inside just one of our NC communities rich in tasty traditions. We hope your holidays are filled with sugar and spice and all things nice! Best, Joy & Deborah ___________________________________________ Moravian Cookies by Matthew Lardie Chances are you’ve tasted, or at least seen, the thin, ginger-snap-like cookies that show… Read More →