by April McGreger
Collard greens, pork stock, and corn dumplings soak in the rich broth of history. (Photos by April McGreger)
Recently I was one of more than 1,000 Southern farmers,
chefs, and co-producers attending the Georgia Organics Conference in Athens, Ga.
The theme of the conference was “Reclaiming Agriculture,” with the spotlight on
“culture.” The keynote speaker, Slow Food International founder Carlo Petrini,
gave an inspiring speech calling on all there to remember that Slow Food‘s mission is not simply to support local food, but
to preserve local, cultural food practices.
He suggested that if we can reconnect food to culture, we can restore a healthy
relationship with food. He stressed that we must get back to the place where
food is sacred, with important ties to both family and religion, just as
animals were sacred to the hunter gatherers thousands of years ago.
One of the greatest problems with our current industrialized
food system, Petrini argued, is that we have become so preoccupied with price
that we have forgotten all about value. He suggested that we combat the higher
price of good, clean, and fair food by valuing it more and wasting less.
Currently 22,000 tons of food are wasted daily in the United States. No wonder
we insist on it being cheap; we are buying twice as much as we need.
Carlo Petrini inspires farmers and cooks in GeorgiaPetrini challenged us to take a hard look into our
refrigerators, where we were sure to find “parsley begging for mercy,” and
encouraged us to be less wasteful cooks. He called on chefs and home cooks alike
to bring back the art of recycling leftovers, invoking the great Italian
peasant soup ribollita, which is made from yesterday’s leftover beans,
greens, and bread. He also praised Georgia’s collard greens, which he called “a
monument to Georgia.” The greens are resilient and easy to grow, cooked in a
rich pork broth made of less desirable cuts of pork or various pork scraps, and
served with simple, aromatic corn bread for a satisfying meal.
“Who is the 3-star Michelin chef who invented this dish?”
Petrini teased, encouraging us to recognize the wisdom and resourcefulness of
the traditional culture from which the dish arose. “I want to travel the world
and speak of your collard greens,” he exclaimed to a laughing—but proud—Georgia audience.
Petrini’s words struck a chord with me. I have long been
troubled by how the environmental and good-food movements in the U.S. largely
ignore traditional food knowledge and culture. So today I offer you a recipe
for soup that is delicious, nutritious, economical, resourceful, recycled, and
an ingenious product of my traditional food culture.
The basis of the soup is what we in the South refer to as potlikker, a mineral-rich broth leftover
from cooking a pot of greens that was born out of privation. It is said to have
its origins amongst slaves who had to feed their own families with the
leftovers from the big house. Little did the well-to-do masters know, they were
tossing out the most nutritious part of their pot of greens.
Regardless of its origins, potlikker and greens are an
important and beloved dish for all Southerners, regardless of class or race.
Those nutritionists who scold us for boiling all the nutrients out of our food
do not understand the way we eat. We know well the value of the potlikker, and
we relish it ladled over a wedge of crispy cornbread. We save it for the
makings of tomorrow’s soup. We’re even known to sip it in a juice glass
alongside our supper. We use it to make cornmeal dumplings (see recipe below),
also known as Indian dumplings, as they were one of the first foods English
settlers in coastal Virginia and North Carolina learned to make from Indians.
This dish has persevered for 400 years (though admittedly gets scarcer every
year) and is most commonly found on top of a pot of greens.
Here, with these historic Southern dishes, I proudly
salute the American Indians, slave cooks, and homesteaders with whom these
dishes originated, as well as my grandparents and my parents who made sure to
pass the love and value of these foods on to me. I for one am happier eating
potlikker soup with corn dumplings at my Mama’s house than eating in the finest
Michelin-starred restaurants in France.
Homemade corn dumplings turn potlikker soup into a satisfying meal. Potlikker Soup with Greens, Turnips, and Corn Dumplings
The cooking liquid from yesterday’s mess (the Southern
term to designate a potful of greens), is often recycled as
a base for soup (along with any leftover greens). Here, however, we
start from scratch.
1 bunch of greens: collard greens, mustard greens, turnip greens, kale, or chard
1 medium to large turnip or rutabaga
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 bay leaf
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
~ 1 teaspoon salt, depending on the saltiness of your pork stock
Rich Pork Stock, recipe below (you may substitute a stock made from simmering a several parmesan rinds, a smoked turkey wing stock, or a rich chicken stock)
Corn Dumplings, recipe below
Bring the pork stock to a simmer in a large soup pot. Wash
your greens well. Remove tough stems and cut large leaves in half lengthwise.
Julienne the greens so that you have thin strips about 3 inches long and
1/8-inch wide. Add greens to the pork stock.
Peel and dice the turnip and add it to the stock along with
the chopped onion, garlic, bay leaf, crushed red pepper, and salt to the
stock. Cover and simmer the soup
about 1 hour and 15 minutes. You may need to add a bit more water if your soup
looks too thick. Taste for seasoning and add more salt and black pepper as
needed.
Make dumpling batter (see below). Drop the batter by the
teaspoonful into the simmering broth. Cover the pot and cook until the
dumplings are firm and cooked through, about 12-15 minutes. Serve with pepper
sauce (pepper-spiked vinegar) or hot sauce.
Rich Pork Stock
3 smoked ham hocks or 6 pieces of bacon or a ham bone and a few ham scraps
10 cups water
In a soup pot, place the ham hocks and cover with the water.
Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Cover and simmer for about 2 to 2.5
hours. Strain the broth and discard the hocks or other seasoning meats. You
should have about 8 cups of stock.
Corn Dumplings
Makes about 20 dumplings
1 cup of white or yellow, fine or medium cornmeal
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon of salt
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 cup hot potlikker
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/4 cup chopped scallions or onion (optional)
Mix the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, salt, and pepper in
a bowl. Stir in potlikker, a little at a time, to make smooth batter that is
stiff enough to hold together. Vigorously stir in the egg, then fold in the
scallions or onions. Let the batter rest for a few minutes.
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