A History of Southern Food with Chef Kevin Mitchell
Conversations around southern food have been met with passion and debate. Oftentimes, the holders of these traditions are overlooked. Chef Kevin Mitchell, C.E.C, C.F.S.E, M.A, examines the stories of the freed and enslaved Black cooks from Charleston, who, through their skill, created the authentic cuisine still alive today. In this session, you will discover the lives of some of the greatest black caterers of Charleston and explore some of the most important ingredients, such as Carolina Gold Rice, that play a vital part in the story of Southern food, ingredients that still today show how deep the African influence is on Southern food.
Featuring Chef Kevin Mitchell’s Work:
Charleston chef instructor and USC professor team up to write guide to SC food
Nat Fuller’s Feast: The Life and Legacy of an Enslaved Cook in Charleston
A Tale of Two Dinners: A History Through Food
Chef Kevin Mitchell presents “From Black Hands To White Mouths”
Meet Kevin Mitchell, South Carolina Chef Ambassador 2020
The Ingredients
Sea Island Red Peas from Anson Mills
Carolina Gold Rice from Geechie Boy Mill
Benne Seed Oil from Oliver Farms // The Summer Slow Food Box has Oliver Farms Benne Oil in it!
Kevin Mitchell’s Recommended Reading List
Soul: A Chef’s Culinary Evolution in 150 Recipes by Todd Richards
The Jemima Code by Toni Tipton Martin
Jubilee: Recipes from Two Centuries of African American Cooking: A Cookbook by Toni Tipton Martin
South: Essential Recipes and New Explorations by Sean Brock
Consuming Identity: The Role of Food in Redefining the South (Race, Rhetoric, and Media Series) by Ashli Quesinberry Stokes and Wendy Atkins-Sayre
Building Houses Out of Chicken Legs by Psyche Williams Forson
Southern Provisions by David Shields
The Cooking Gene by Michael Twitty
The Potlikker Papers: A Food History of the Modern South by John T. Edge
The Edible South by Marcie Cohen Ferris
High on the Hog by Jessica Harris
Hog and Hominy by Frederick Douglass Opie
A Mess of Greens: Southern Gender and Southern Food by Elizabeth S.D. Engelhardt
The Larder, edited by John T. Edge, Elizabeth S.D. Engelhardt, and Ted Ownby
Chef Mitchell indicated that he was willing to share his Masters thesis if it was requested. Is this the correct place to make that request? If not, please let me know where to send my request Thank you.
Please send an email to comms@slowfoodusa.org. Thank you!
Learned so much! Is it best to soak grits overnight?
Well done, Kevin.
Pamela,
It is best to soak grits prior to cooking. You only want to soak stone ground grits, not instant