spindles

exactly what ryfo said in #39

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Infinite_Loser

Erm... Who doesn't know what those are?

Of course, I live in Pensacola (Florida) so that could have something to do with it.

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Higgis

I'm from Lancashire, England and I've heard of grits but never had them. I haven't heard of the other two.

MSD

I've heard of okra and grits, I still have no idea what they are, and from what I've heard I'm not missing out on much.

Bill O'Rights

Pennsylvania born and bred, of a transplanted Floridian for a mother.

I now live in Nebraska.

Okra? Yes, I'm familiar with it. It's nasty.
Boiled peanuts? Not so much.
Grits? Oh, yeah. Mom was forever trying to foist that nastiness in a bowl on me. And failed.

While Mom did manage to raise me with the manners of a good southern gentleman, she failed to impart upon me a southern pallette. Except, perhaps, for some good sippin' whiskey.

I love southern people, as a whole. Very colorful language and customs. But...DAMN...y'all eat some nasty assed food. Perhaps, Sherman is to blame?

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BadNick

I grew up in the Philadelphia area and I ate grits many times as a kid since my parents made it at home ...even though they emigrated here from Hungary, I guess something like grits was common there, too. I like it, as a kid I put sugar and cinammon on it. Now I put all sorts of stuff on it, either sweet or not; last week I had it with salt, pepper, good olive oil and hot sauce.

I like ocra, but didn't eat it until I was an adult and cooking for myself. I knew the word "ocra" and when I saw it in the market, I bought it to try. Basically, if I see something new in the market, I buy it to eat ...that's my "see food" diet. I eat ocra steamed and cook it into stewish things, and of course I love it fried too.

Boiled peanuts I first had about ten years ago since the guy who owns the company I work for is from Texas and he turned me on to it.

little_tippler

So, now that we've established that most people know what you're talking about, for all us non-US people out there, some clarifications would be nice!

I have heard of all 3 but never tried any of them. So what are they? Can we see a pciture? What do they taste like? I can offer you several portuguese foods I'm sure you've never had and you're definitely missing out on!

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We are ever unapparent. What we are
Cannot be transfused into word or book.
Our soul from us is infinitely far.
However much we give our thoughts the will
To be our soul and gesture it abroad,
Our hearts are incommunicable still.
In what we show ourselves we are ignored.
The abyss from soul to soul cannot be bridged
By any skill of thought or trick of seeming.
Unto our very selves we are abridged
When we would utter to our thought our being.
We are our dreams of ourselves, souls by gleams,
And each to each other dreams of others' dreams.

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Leto

Born and raised in Ontario eh? (Canada).

never heard of boiled peanuts (sounds like a good way to ruin 'em!)

- Okra: yes, my wife learned from her mother how to cook okra with greens and ox-tails in a stew. It's called Calalloo (she was born in Trinidad) and has a slimy consistancy wish requires a bit of time to get used to.

- the Harvey's burger chain here in Canada also experimented with battered and deep fried okra slices a few years ago. These were magnificent, too bad they are no longer part of the menu.

- Grits: Yes, ever since I was a wee lad, making the annual Christmas trek to Florida, my dad would pull into a Holiday Inn in Kentucky, and we would order us up a mess of grits. Other than the first time when we were stunned that there was no brown sugar and cream for our 'cream of wheat' cereal, we started to enjoy putting butter and salt/pepper on Grits.

Now it is my favourite way to gain weight while visiting the US. Just a coule of weeks ago, I was heaping a platefull of sausages mixed in with the grits at the Washington DC Marriott (on F at 9th). MMM .... Next week I'll be in Houston. I wonder if I will have to spend extra time on the treadmill there???

thingstodo

OK...strap yourself in. Here we go:

http://www.grits.com/

Grits are small broken grains of corn. They were first produced by Native Americans centuries ago. They made both "corn" grits and "hominy" grits. Falls Mill produces "corn" grits.


Corn Grits
Falls Mill mills locally grown whole white hybrid corn. The corn is dried to a 14% moisture content, then each kernel is cleaned with forced air. The kernels of grain are run through the mill stone where they are ground to a certain texture and then sifted through two wire mesh screens. The three products sorted are white corn meal, white corn grits and the bran that pops off. There is a fine bran still in the grits product. This bran will never soften up with cooking. Depending on personal preference, the bran can be left in or removed by rinsing the grits before cooking.

Yummy!

Hominy
Is made from field corn that is soaked in lye water (potash water in the old days) and stirred over the next day or two until the entire shell or bran comes loose and rises to the top. The kernel itself swells to twice its original size. After the remaining kernels have been rinsed several times, they are spread to dry either on cloth or screen dryers.

How Corn Grits are made at Falls Mill
The first step in the production of our whole corn grits is the purchase of hybrid white corn from a local farmer. We pull a small grain wagon to his storage bin and auger out about 125 bushels of corn at a time. We weigh the corn and then bring it to the mill for unloading and cleaning. We auger it from the wagon into the mill building, where it is deposited in a floor bin. An elevator, running off our water wheel, picks up the corn a bucket at a time and carries it to the second floor grain cleaner. The cleaner has two shaker screens and a bottom blast fan, which operate to remove stalk, cob, unwanted seeds, cockleburs, and other field trash from the corn. The cleaned corn then drops into a basement auger, which moves it to a second elevator, where it is again carried upstairs and may be conveyed to one of four grain storage bins (usually the grinding bin above the millstones). It takes about five hours for us to unload and clean the 125 bushels.

When ready to mill, we belt up the millstones, fan suction system, and grits separator, and step up the speed of the water wheel, which drives all the machinery through a series of gears, flats belts, line shafts, and pulleys. The millstones we use are a set of 42-inch horizontal granite buhrs manufactured by the R.D. Cole Company of Newnan, Georgia, around the turn of the century. The granite was quarried at the Esopus Quarry in New York state. The millstones rotate about 125 revolutions per minute, and the upper (runner) stone weighs more than 1,500 pounds. Corn is fed into the stones via the hopper and shoe, from the upstairs storage bin. The stones are separated wider than when milling pure corn meal to obtain a coarser product. However, the milled product is a mixture of cracked corn, grits, and corn meal, so must be separated in a sifter (grits separator). As it comes off the stones, it falls into a pipe where the fan suction carries it to the second floor and drops it into the sifter. The corn meal is first sifted through a #20 screen and drops into a bagging bin on the first floor. The coarser product travels over this screen and grits drop through a #12 screen next, into a second bin below. The cracked corn tails off the end of the sifting drum and we regrind it to obtain more grits. The final yield is roughly 55% corn meal, 40% grits, and 5% light bran. The grits, however, will still contain a little bran or chaff. This is usually skimmed off prior to cooking.

http://www.boiledpeanuts.com/

NEW! The Deluxe Lee Bros.
Boil-Your-Own Peanuts Kit


We provide the raw peanuts and the know-how you need to make boiled peanuts at home (you furnish the salt, water and heat). Fun and easy. Packaged in our popular presentation tub, suitable for serving and storing.

3lb boiled peanuts kit in tub (makes 6lbs) $15.75
additional raw peanuts $4 per lb

http://www.dianaskitchen.com/page/veggies/ffokra.htm

Fried Okra

((Scroll down the page for more okra recipes, including fried okra, okra with tomatoes, and other recipes. ))

1 pound okra
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
2 cups self-rising cornmeal
vegetable oil

Wash okra and drain well. Remove tip and stem end; cut okra into 1/2 inch slices. Sprinkle okra with salt; add buttermilk, stirring until well coated. Let stand at least 15 minutes; then drain okra well. Dredge in corn meal. Deep fry okra in hot oil at 375F until golden brown; drain on paper towels.

Serves 4 to 6.

Have fun, ya'll!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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robot_parade

yes, yes, and yes. I love okra, *sometimes* like grits, and don't really care for boiled peanuts.

Oh, and born in LA, now live in NC.

greytone

You have to love grits. Like any good starch, they are simply a medium to transport some flavorfull fat (butter or cheese) through your lips in way that has good texture and fills you up. Don't forget plenty of salt and pepper.

Okra is required in any gumbo. It is ok fried. It may be ok pickled in some cases. It is never palatable as a stewed veggie.

People can not believe I have lived in Atlanta on and off for more than two decades, yet I have never had boiled peanuts. I can not bring myself to try the canned variety, and I have never had the inclination to stop for the roadside offerings. But with every other food I can think of except eggs, the roasted version is superior to the boiled food. So why go out of my way to try them.

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1010011010

My dad visited a few days ago and went with my wife to a local farmers market. He bought a bunch of okra because, apparently, I like it. News to me.

My mother-in-law also visited shortly after my dad left. We still had the okra, still in the paper bag. There was talk of "fried okra". You southern folks know exactly what I'm talking about. My mother-in-law, though she has lived in Tennessee for the past decade and a half, was born in Tehran. Her idea of "fried okra" was to take the okra and submerge it in hot oil.
It was better than I expected.

I've also had pickled okra... a Texas thing, as I recall. Also better than you might think.

Grits... I've lived in the South my entire life (excepting less than a year in upstate New York for prototype) and I do not particularly like grits. I like farina, which is basically just grits using a different plant... but grits... meh. Seems overcooked.

Boiled Peanuts... saw them for sale whenever we were driving through Georgia to visit a brother in Florida. I'm sure we bought some. I'm sure I ate some. I have no comment, though- made no impression.

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rhaevyn

I know what they are, and I absolutely love canned boiled peanuts. My mom's family lives in Florida and Georgia, so whenever we go down to visit, I stock up on peanuts.

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The_Jazz

Not only do I know what they are, I've eaten all of them, although I really don't care for boiled peanuts.

Born and raised in Knoxville, TN, although I migrated to Chicago years ago.

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stevo

yes. yum. I'm hungry now.

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majik_6

I'm a big fan of grits and okra (fried, pickled, or otherwise) and I'm sure I've had boiled peanuts, but I can't recall my impressions of 'em.

I'm from West Virginia, so I'm well acquainted with most southern food. Ophelia783 is from Montreal, however, so I've had the priviledge of introducing her to grits (salted or sweet, depends on the mood), okra, cat's head biscuits (damn good!), cornbread and beans, proper sweet tea, fried mush, funnel cakes, deep-fried catfish, pickled sausage, beef jerkey, venison, hushpuppies, and other southern delicacies.

I haven't been able to serve her head cheese, pig's feet, fried green tomatoes, or a few of our more "acquired" flavors.

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Lady Sage

I adore fried okra
Never had boiled peanuts
Grits..... well that would make a good adhesive but not good food for my tastebuds.

ShaniFaye

proper sweet tea and hushpuppies...you become more endearing every day majik lol

pickled pigs feet...used to eat those with my grandfather when I was little, along with cornbread and milk

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I want the diabetic plan that comes with rollover carbs. I dont like the unused one expiring at midnite!!

snowy

A must-have in any fridge, in my opinion, especially in summertime.

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Leto

Well, her being from MTL, she should be well versed in pork hocks and head cheese, as there are many, many fine delicatessans there.

Same goes for beef jerky, as this is a staple amongst the many Chinatowns grocers.


can you explain? what is 'proper sweet tea'? and 'hushpuppies'? I'll tell you what I think and tell me how close I am:

proper sweet tea: Iced tea, made from tea bags rather than a powdered mix and then with the sugar adjusted to taste

hushpuppies: hotdogs rolled in Pillsbury crescent dough?

ShaniFaye

this is how I make my tea

2 luzianne tea bags (the smaller size not the big ones)
fill up coffee pot with 12 cups water and pour in, put tea bags in the pot and turn it on. Let the bags steep in the hot water for about 30 minutes

In a one gallon tea pitcher I add 2 1/2 cups of sugar. Pour in the tea from the pot and stir til sugar is disolved (it is impossible to get the sugar to disolve right if the tea is not hot, hence adding sugar to cold unsweetened tea is NOT proper lol) fill the rest of the pitcher with cold water and serve over ice.

What you described are pigs in a blanket lol hush puppys a deepfried mixture of cornmeal, egg and butter milk (kind like frying your cornbread mixture instead of baking it) dropped by the tablespoon into hot oil

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I want the diabetic plan that comes with rollover carbs. I dont like the unused one expiring at midnite!!

The_Jazz

You forgot the chopped onions. As a former Cap'n D's (A Great Little Seafood Place!) employee, I can tell you that onions are absolutely required. Our recipe, which I actually still use, was 1 part flour, 1 part cornmeal, enough milk to make a paste and diced onions.

The tartar sauce recipe will make you nausous. The fact that it required literal mixing by hand should be enough to curl your toe hair.

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ShaniFaye

lol yes I forgot the onions....I was just trying to give a general sense of what they were....I LOVE captian d's puppies....they are better than long john silvers...but homemade is best!!

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I want the diabetic plan that comes with rollover carbs. I dont like the unused one expiring at midnite!!

JamesB

Ottawa, ON, Canada

Grits are gross - had is at Denny's once.

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ShaniFaye

you poor thing...anything at Denny's is gross IMO

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I want the diabetic plan that comes with rollover carbs. I dont like the unused one expiring at midnite!!

Leto

goddam. those hushpuppies sound good. I'm hungry and i just ate supper! (which was butter chicken on rice pilaf by the way).

I'm going to Houston next week. I'll see if there's any Hushpuppies on the local menus.

here's what i found on hp:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hushpuppies

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Hushpuppies)
Jump to: navigation, search
For other uses, see Hush puppies.
Hushpuppies or Hush puppies is an American term for small cornmeal breads that are deep fried in a spherical or oblong shape. The usual ingredients include cornmeal, flour, eggs, salt, baking soda, milk, and water, and can include onions and pepper. Sometimes, pancake batter is also used. The batter is mixed well, adjusting ingredients until it is suitably thick. Then the batter is dropped into hot oil (such as vegetable oil). The cook is able to tell that the oil is hot enough when the hushpuppy floats to the surface. The hush puppy is typically fried until golden brown, and then set on a paper towel to absorb some of the oil before it is consumed. They are often eaten with catfish, seafood, or barbecue. They are usually made at home or served in restaurants that advertise "Home Cookin'" as opposed to fine dining establishments. Captain D's is a well-known franchise that serves hush puppies. They are a hearty heavy food that can easily be eaten outside of the home.

Hushpuppies are a distinctly Southern food, associated with cajun dishes and soul food. One story dates them back to 1727, claiming they were created by Ursuline Nuns who came to New Orleans from France. The Nuns named them croquettes de maise. An older,far less common term for them is 'dough boys'. The name hushpuppy is explained by various stories involving the central theme of throwing this cornmeal goodie to a dog (puppy) with the command 'quiet!' or 'hush!'.

Outside of North American English speaking world, these terms are not known. For example in England the word 'hush puppies' refers to the popular and well known brand of suede shoes, Hush Puppies, whose name was inspired by the food. But see the other entry "Hush Puppies" which gives a different explanation of the brand name given to the shoes.

SugahBritches

HUSHPUPPIES! Heh. I didn't think anyone would not know what that was! LOL!

Okay, anyone for swamp cabbage?

Min

Born and reared in Louisiana, of course I know what those are I was shocked to discover in my teens years not everyone did.

HamiC

I've had #1 (blech) and #3 (yum)....MA, US

majik_6

Leto: She tends to shy away from certain foods, especially if they're gelationous masses of cranial butcher's remnants, preferring more of the traditional Jewish foods that she was raised on in the West Island, such as brisket, smoke meat, and karnatzel. Once she figured out what head cheese was, I wouldn't have been able to convince her to try it if it'd been the most Canadian thing since beavertails and maple syrup!

She said that they have SOME beef jerky in her suburb now that she knows to look for it, but it's a brand she doesn't care for and that it's not as common of a snackfood as it is in the southern US (hell, I'm a vegetarian and I can still give a pretty good rundown of most brands, flavors, and styles after 5.5 years of not eating meat).

And "proper" sweet tea, is to be served in a pitcher, and made quite like Shani recommended. If, for some reason, you desire an unsweetened tea to be sweetened to taste, it's best to use a simple syrup, as it dissolves in the cold tea better. That being said, any southerner worth their collard greens will go ahead and add CUPS of pure, delicious sugar to the strong, hot brew before icing and (if necessary diluting) the tea. When my grandmother (who lives on a farm and used to make TRUE apple butter over a fire) makes it it tastes something like tea-flavored Karo syrup...simply amazing. If you'd like, you can always add a few sprigs of fresh mint (we've usually got some growing wild in the yard) for garnish and just a hint of refreshing flavor.

It sounds to me like you need to get a glass of sweet tea, some fried catfish, and a heaping basket of hushpuppies STAT!

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nikkiana

The only one I've tried of the three is grits. I used to be friends with a family and the father was from the South and he often made wonderful southern dinners... and I had grits once at their house... I didn't like it very much and said it reminded me of cream of wheat... He laughed and said that's why most Notherners want to put sugar in it instead of butter.

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nikkiana

Frowning Budah

I never had any of the above when I lived up North, but now that I am living in the South we eat them quite often. It is a regional thing.

ShaniFaye

Trick I have learned anytime I go somewhere up north that doesnt have sweet tea in an eating establishment (because people do NOT seem to understand that adding sugar to tea that is already cold DOES NOT WORK)

Order the ice tea but ask then to not fill the glass up to the top, also oder coffee cup 1/2 full of HOT water. Disolve sugar packets in that and then pour into your tea glass and stir and viola!!

**and for people that say why dont you just use equal or something...#1 it makes tea taste like shit IMO #2 Artificial sweetners are an immediate migraine trigger for me and I cannt ingest anything containing them

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I want the diabetic plan that comes with rollover carbs. I dont like the unused one expiring at midnite!!

Leto

Oh don't you know it! I've been in Houston since monday (it's thursday evening now) staying at the Hilton. I have not seen a single helping of grits, or hushpuppies. I did get some decent meat (surf and turf ) and some Tex Mex.

During the lunches at this hotel, we were given iced tea, without sugar, just lemon. It was really refreshing. NOt that we needed it, even though it is about 90 degrees outside, the locals maintain their air conditioning to such frigid levels that I'm sure I'm catching a cold...

beavstrokinoff

Don't know what grits are. Don't know what okra is. Boiled peanuts I'll bet are peanuts boiled, never seen 'em or heard of 'em. I'm from Canada, eh.

BadNick

It's been mentioned, grits is a starch that you work with and add other things to eat in it or with it, not necessarily just eat plain by itself; though I also like it quite plain with salt & pepper & butter or olive oil or even bacon drippings.

I think this thread needs pictures of appetizing versions of these things ...not my pics or recipes, I'm picking these off the webworld since they look good

Shrimp & grits = how could you NOT like this? Lots of shrimp, little chunks of bacon, cheesy grits, scallions or onions, maybe celery if you like

OR
Gorgonzola grits cakes, lightly fried, I like a teeny bit of fresh oregano in it or other herb to your taste:

OR
Broiled Salmon over Parmesan grits:


Vegetarian delight? Fried okra, mashed potatoes, collard greens, skillet cornbread:

or Thai style fried okra with chili fish sauce, maybe a little rice

or country fried steak with greens and fried okra:


Boiled peanuts ...plain, or you can add any spice you like to the boil


Korean style boiled peanuts with sesame seeds and sauce

noodle

I've lived in FLorida my entire life.

I love grits. Not sweet grits, that's an abomination. Grits with cheese. Grits with garlic and smoked gouda and scallions. Low country grits... Yum.

Okra is abhorrent. It's like a pregnant, alcoholic dragonfly sneezed and all its eggs came flying out its ass... bitter and snotty seeds. I don't like it.

Boiled peanuts have not been on my "like" list but I've tolerated them a few times.

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ring

Ohhhh.. okra homa.

I love okra, but just like strawberrys- it makes my mouth and lips itch a little.

Sometimes I crave the foods I am slightly allergic to.

Grits are a thang unto themselves, or a base you can ' Culture'.

I have used anything from pure maple syrup, sesame oil, ginger, and barbecue sauce.(not all at once.)

My favorite though is grits fried in bacon grease with baby portabella mushrooms.

Sion

"Do you know what these are?"

yup...nasty stuff

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casual user

okra is a weird looking green vegetable, grits are a creamy, goopy vegetable food from the south, and i'm assuming boiled peanuts are peanuts that are boiled

i've had grits once, but i can't say i've consumed the other two. i'm a north-easterner from the US