SIDE DISHESSOUTHERN COOKING:

No southern dish is complete

by itself…

Be it barbecue, jambalaya or chicken fried steak, a proper southern meal should come with one, two or more side

dishes.

Collard Greens

Macaroni and Cheese

Fried Okra

Baked Beans

Many southern dishes are based on corn, and the origin of many of these corn dishes goes back to the Native Americans.

Hushpuppies are balls of cornmeal batter mixed with spices and fried. They are usually served with seafood dishes.

One legend says the name "hushpuppies" comes from the Civil War, when Confederate soldiers would throw bits of fried cornbread to silence (hush) their dogs (puppies).

Grits is a ground-corn breakfast food of Native American origin.

They are prepared by adding five or six parts boiling water seasoned with salt to one part grits and cooking for 20 to 30 minutes.

Grits are often served plain or with butter as a side dish to a big southern breakfast.

Grits can also be served as a dinner or a meal by themselves, mixed with cheese, bacon, shrimp, sausage, ham or red-eye gravy.

Cornbread is made from cornmeal and cooked in a skillet. It became popular during the American Civil War because making it is cheap and quick, and can be made in many different ways.

Today it is an important part of any soul food.

In the United States when you talk about “biscuits” people don’t think about sweet cookies: they think about the small pieces of bread that accompany southern cooking.

Biscuits can be eaten for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Biscuits are “quick breads” like cornbread. This means they don’t need time to rise before baking them.

Biscuits are often made with milk or buttermilk, and can be served with a thick gravy.

Sometimes people mix cheddar cheese into the biscuit dough, or make a breakfast sandwich with a piece of ham or sausage patty.

Coleslaw is a salad made of cabbage and carrot with a mayonnaise or buttermilk dressing.

It is an essential side dish in summer dishes, especially barbecues in North Carolina and Virgina.

Actually, coleslaw and baked beans are the typical side dishes to go with barbecue anywhere.