Southern Comfort

What is it about southern cooking that makes us feel so satisfied and happy (besides the flavor of course)? My guess is that it's something to do with the southern comfort, the feeling of being at home even if you aren't from the south. People of the southern states have a way about them, and it's always pleasant. Here are some true southern dishes to make you happy, because, after all that is what cooking and eating is all about.

Fried Green Tomatoes:

Ingredients:
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup all-purpose flour, divided
1/2 cup cornmeal
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
3 medium-size green tomatoes, cut into 1/3-inch slices
Vegetable oil
Salt to taste

Method:

1. Combine egg and buttermilk; set aside.Combine 1/4 cup all-purpose flour, cornmeal, 1 teaspoon salt, and pepper in a shallow bowl or pan. 
2. Dredge tomato slices in remaining 1/4 cup flour; dip in egg mixture, and dredge in cornmeal mixture. 
3. Pour oil to a depth of 1/4 to 1/2 inch in a large cast-iron skillet; heat to 375°. 
4. Drop tomatoes, in batches, into hot oil, and cook 2 minutes on each side or until golden. 
5. Drain on paper towels or a rack. Sprinkle hot tomatoes with salt. 

Buttermilk Biscuits:

Ingredients:
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour , plus more for dusting the board (if you can get White Lily flour, your biscuits will be even better)
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon baking powder (use one without aluminium)
1 teaspoon kosher salt or 1 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter , very cold
1 cup buttermilk (approximately)

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 450°F. 
2. Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl, or in the bowl of a food processor. 
3. Cut the butter into chunks and cut into the flour until it resembles course meal. 
4. If using a food processor, just pulse a few times until this consistency is achieved. 
5. Add the buttermilk and mix JUST until combined. 
6. If it appears on the dry side, add a bit more buttermilk. It should be very wet. 
7. Turn the dough out onto a floured board. 
8. Gently, gently pat (do NOT roll with a rolling pin) the dough out until it's about 1/2" thick. Fold the dough about 5 times, gently press the dough down to a 1 inch thick. 
9. Use a round cutter to cut into rounds. 
10. You can gently knead the scraps together and make a few more, but they will not be anywhere near as good as the first ones. 
11. Place the biscuits on a cookie sheet- if you like soft sides, put them touching each other. 
12. If you like"crusty" sides, put them about 1 inch apart- these will not rise as high as the biscuits put close together. 
13. Bake for about 10-12 minutes- the biscuits will be a beautiful light golden brown on top and bottom. 
14. Do not over bake. 
15. Note: The key to real biscuits is not in the ingredients, but in the handling of the dough. 
16. The dough must be handled as little as possible or you will have tough biscuits. 
17. I have found that a food processor produces superior biscuits, because the ingredients stay colder and there's less chance of over mixing. 
18. You also must pat the dough out with your hands, lightly. 
19. Rolling with a rolling pin is a guaranteed way to overstimulate the gluten, resulting in a tougher biscuit. 
20. Note 2: You can make these biscuits, cut them, put them on cookie sheets and freeze them for up to a month. 
21. When you want fresh biscuits, simply place them frozen on the cookie sheet and bake at 450°F for about 20 minutes. 

Southern Fried Chicken:

Ingredients:
2-3 pounds of any part of the chicken you like best-legs, breast or even a whole cut-up fryer.
1 quart of buttermilk
4 eggs
3 cups of flour
seasoning like salt & pepper or Mrs. Dash
1 1/2 cup Crisco vegetable oil or shortening
3 medium sized bowls, large cast iron skillet

Method:

1. Rinse chicken parts under cold running water and place in a bowl, cover with buttermilk. 
2. Let the chicken marinate in the buttermilk for at least 10 minutes, preferably longer. You can cover and refrigerate this for hours prior to frying. 
3. Place flour in a bowl, season flour to taste with salt, pepper, etc. 
4. Crack open the eggs in another bowl, beat the eggs. 
5. Put Crisco in the skillet and place on stove on medium high heat 
6. Remove 1 piece of chicken from the buttermilk, allowing excess buttermilk to drip off. 
7. Roll the chicken in the flour. 
8. Roll the chicken in the raw eggs, then roll in flour again. 
9. Place chicken in skillet. Repeat process until all the chicken has been coated and is in the skillet. 
10. The Crisco in the skillet should be hot enough to instantly begin to fry the first piece of chicken, if not, turn the heat up slightly. 
11. Each piece of chicken needs to be browned quickly on the outside for crispiness, then turn the heat down to finish cooking the chicken through. 
12. Cooking time will be about 30 minutes. 
13. Do not cover the frying chicken with a lid, the chicken will absorb more of the Crisco and not be as crispy if you do. 
14. To test for doneness, poke the chicken with a fork. 
15. You only want to see clear liquid run out, not blood. Place the crispy southern fried chicken on a paper towel to absorb the excess grease, serve with mashed potatoes, green beans, corn, homemade biscuits and sweet tea for a complete southern meal. 

Enjoy the goodness!


Bitter mood makes bitter food! So fucking smile! :D