African American Holiday Traditions

[DrPhil]

Originally Posted by amIblue?

Earlier in the thread I mentioned that my family's food traditions are often closer to my African American friends' families' traditions than my white friends' families. I believe the bold is the reason; my ancestors were primarily poor, subsistence farmers. For example, my grandmother always ate the neck of whatever poultry we had. Even when my grandparents were able to afford pretty much whatever they wanted (within reason), she kept eating what she ate growing up.

I do believe that the similarities in what all Southerners eat is due to Black women doing the cooking for the higher classes, first through slavery and then via employment as domestic help. (i.e., I've never met a southerner who didn't like fried chicken, which I believe has its roots in African food ways.)

I think you hit the nail on the head. I also read a lot about the connection between southern culinary traditions, Black culinary traditions, and Native American culinary traditions.

Originally Posted by amIblue?

Healthy soul food cookbook? Really?

Google "healthy soul food cookbook."

Originally Posted by als463

...I would love to see a forum set up in chit chat about cultural awareness or something.

The hundreds of GC threads created over the years are more than sufficient for GC purposes. Most of those threads were not created for the purpose of awareness and that's a good thing. I hate anything that resembles diversity training whether in real life or the Internet.

[DrPhil]

Originally Posted by Munchkin03

Deviled eggs! I forgot about those!

Daag, how did I forget the deviled eggs? I ate a couple of servings and packed the Significant Other and me two plates that included deviled eggs. My plate was intentionally better than the plate that I packed for the SO.

Lesson that SO remembers every holiday: Pack your own plate so you won't be stealing DrPhil's awesomely good leftovers. SO is more into chitterlings and other dishes that SO's family cooks but my family does not cook.

[KDCat]

Originally Posted by amIblue?

(i.e., I've never met a southerner who didn't like fried chicken, which I believe has its roots in African food ways.)

Healthy soul food cookbook? Really?

FFried chicken, like a lot of things in American culture, has its roots in both European and American culture. Fried chicken is Scottish. Scots were known for frying chicken; English people boiled or baked it. It was bland, though The Scots didn't put any spices in it. African Americans added spices and seasonings to it and made it taste a lot better.

[DrPhil]

Originally Posted by KDCat

FFried chicken, like a lot of things in American culture, has its roots in both European and American culture. Fried chicken is Scottish. Scots were known for frying chicken; English people boiled or baked it. It was bland, though The Scots didn't put any spices in it. African Americans added spices and seasonings to it and made it taste a lot better.

In all seriousness, *taking off my subjective hat* every group of people has spices and seasonings. I would never claim one group's spices and seasonings to be superior.

*Putting my subjective hat back on* Yeah, some spices and seasonings are better tasting. Too bad traditional "soul" food is very unhealthy (especially for a subpopulation that no longer walks hundreds of miles and works the land all day and everyday) and contributed to diabetes being considered a part of Blackness.

[amIblue?]

Originally Posted by KDCat

FFried chicken, like a lot of things in American culture, has its roots in both European and American culture. Fried chicken is Scottish. Scots were known for frying chicken; English people boiled or baked it. It was bland, though The Scots didn't put any spices in it. African Americans added spices and seasonings to it and made it taste a lot better.

The things you learn on GC. I had no idea that fried chicken had Scottish origins, but yuck without the spices. That's what makes it so good.

[christiangirl]

Originally Posted by DrPhil

Too bad traditional "soul" food is very unhealthy (especially for a subpopulation that no longer walks hundreds of miles and works the land all day and everyday) and contributed to diabetes being considered a part of Blackness.

You're lucky I'm typing because, if I had to say this statement, you wouldn't be able to understand it through my mouthful of macaroni and cheese. I know it's not really funny, but iChuckled at the thought of diabetes being part of Blackness. Call it a shame, but not even the threat of diabetes could make me put this bowl down. I only get this dish 2-3 times a year. Given there's enough butter in it to last a season, I think it's appropriate.

[DrPhil]

Mac and cheese is a vegetable during the holidays.

Yeah there is a problem when a large percentage of a subpopulation of people does not change their eating habits to adjust to the change in daily living patterns (i.e., the majority no longer walking and working the land). It became the norm to be overweight, have high blood pressure, and be diabetic. Actually, if you were of a healthy weight and did not have diabetes, depending on where you were, you were called uppity and wannabe white. That still happens in some places. Yep.

/end necessary PSA for Black food thread

[Gusteau]

Originally Posted by DrPhil

Mac and cheese is a vegetable during the holidays.

Only during the holidays? That certainly changes Gusteau's Food Pyramid...

[amIblue?]

Originally Posted by DrPhil

In all seriousness, *taking off my subjective hat* every group of people has spices and seasonings. I would never claim one group's spices and seasonings to be superior.

*Putting my subjective hat back on* Yeah, some spices and seasonings are better tasting. Too bad traditional "soul" food is very unhealthy (especially for a subpopulation that no longer walks hundreds of miles and works the land all day and everyday) and contributed to diabetes being considered a part of Blackness.

At the bold - I would.

But I mostly mean it in the spirit of your "subjective hat" statement, not in any kind of "culture A uses spice 1 and culture B uses spice 2, therefore spice 1 is better." That would be dumb and really poor logic.

[Honeykiss1974]

Originally Posted by christiangirl

Our holidays always consist of the same foods: deviled eggs, collard greens, mac and cheese, ham, turkey, stuffing, yams, cranberry sauce (real cranberries this year thanks to MommyCG), baked corn, and a bajillion desserts. Corn bread and potato salad were absent this year. We save the chitlins and black eyed peas for New Year's.

New Years is typically black eye peas, cornbread, and neck bones. Now I will probably continue the neck bone tradition because those are really good and not as much work as chitterlings. lol

Speaking of healthy soul food, Patty LaBelle has a cookbook too and I've heard great reviews about it.

[TonyB06]

Originally Posted by Honeykiss1974

People confuse 'black/soul" food and southern food all the time. Bless his heart.

Anyway, my mom prepares chitterlings every Thanksgiving. I've already told her that tradition will probably pass on when she does since there is NO WAY I'm standing in front of my kitchen sink cleaning those things. lol We still have those along with turkey and dressing (NOT stuffing), butter beans & okra, cornbread with sweet potatoe and pecan pie (with sweet tea to wash it down).

HK,
Please kiss you chitterling-making mama for me, because, like my Aunty Ricky who always makes them for me and my cousin (her son) during the holidays, those who make this delicacy are really special people.

My family has many of the other traditional items, including fried chicken and ham for those that don't do turkey, but "chess pie" an old southern delicacy is usually the hit of the dessert tray, along with sweet potato, apple pie and assorted cakes.

[christiangirl]

I can't remember why, but I always thought chess pie was English.

[DrPhil]

I never heard of it so I had to wikipedia.

It was brought from England: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chess_pie

[ElieM]

^^^what she said

[DrPhil]

I read wikipedia and still don't know what the heck chess pie is supposed to be. What does it taste like. Wikipedia references vinegar pie and says they are similar.

Speaking of vinegar, my family puts vinegar on our cabbage and cornbread dish. Is vinegar pie that tasty? If so, sign me up.