The Grand Plan For Southern Food

Farmers are the focus of yesterday's New York Times article about producers and chefs tackling Southern clichés in the name of the real deal. Emile DeFelice of Caw Caw Creek Farm, whose pork is a favorite among chefs, is just one of many working to "reclaim the agrarian roots of Southern cooking, restore its lost traditions and dignity, and if all goes according to plan, completely redefine American cuisine for a global audience." The piece also mentions the dedication of chefs like Charleston's Sean Brock and Atlanta's Linton Hopkins (also featured this week in the NYT piece on sorghum syrup), artisan producers such as Anson Mills, and the long-standing work of organizations like the Southern Foodways Alliance and Slow Food USA. The in-depth look at the "Southern revival" concludes with DeFelice's challenge of clichés like those on the menu at Cracker Barrel: "My mother didn't cook like that, and my grandmother didn't cook like that...Southern cooking is a lot more interesting than people think."

· Southern Farmers Vanquish the Clichés [NYT]
· Fox vs. NYT: Has the NYT Declared "War" on Southern Cuisine? [-EN-]