Digging Deep on Soul Food

This article excerpt is taken from a series of custom written papers about American cuisine.

Food has always been a vital part of culture and society. It not only serves as nourishment for one's body, but it also tells the story of the society or civilization who eats it. An example of a cuisine that reflects these traits is American soul food.

The term soul food was popularized during the 1960's, when the word soul became synonymous to African Americans. However, the cuisine can actually be traced back in in their native land where products such as okra, rice and sorghum were brought by the slave to the Americas. Eventually, these slaves incorporated other ingredients from other parts of the world into their cuisine such as cabbage and turnips.

Another notable development in soul food is the way African slaves utilize the plantation owners' throwaways and turn them into filling meals. Examples of these ingredients are collards, kale, ham hocks, hog jowls, chitterlings and even raccoon. Most of the recipes in this type of cuisine were mostly passed on orally from each generation until the late 19th century. However, most of the soul food cookbooks published before the mid-20th century are now lost.

Today, African Americans and other cultures have rediscovered the joys of eating and cooking soul food. Restaurants catering to this type of cuisine have become increasingly popular in the United States as well. More cookbooks and custom papers about soul food are also written for people interested in learning how to cook dishes like these.

For more information for custom papers about American soul food cuisine, please check out these links:

http://www.soulfoodcookbook.com/

http://www.thegutsygourmet.net/soul.html

http://soulfoodonline.net/history.php

http://www.chitterlings.com/

Clare Walker is a sous chef for a soul food restaurant in Atlanta, Georgia. She also helps out culinary students and apprentices on making their custom papers regarding American cuisine.