16 Essential Southern Recipes, According to a Home Cook
From robust Cajun fare to cozy soul food to spicy Tex-Mex, Southern cooking is as diverse as it is delicious. The different regional foodways have always intrigued Allrecipes Allstar Sarah Kornbrek, especially after she moved from Michigan to Virginia in her 20s. Both places prize from-scratch cooking, but do so in their own way. (For instance, whether sugar belongs in cornbread continues to be a hot topic when comparing Northern to Southern cooking!)
To help Kornbrek learn more about how to recreate some of her new Southern food favorites, including barbecue and shareable sides, Kornbrek has been using the new MyRecipes tool to save and categorize recipes from Allrecipes and its sister sites. 'Saving is so easy with one click—just press the 'heart' symbol to keep it in a collection. The recommendations I get as a result have introduced me to a whole new category of dishes from brands like Southern Living, Better Homes and Gardens, and Food & Wine,' Kornbrek tells us. 'This has me excited about recipe browsing again!' Here's a shortlist of the delicious dishes she has tucked away to learn in the year ahead.
Chef John's Barbecue Chicken
Dotdash Meredith Food Studios
In addition to being smoky and tangy, barbecue sauce is sweet. The sugar it contains 'only takes a minute for it to go from brick red to solid black—so you have to be careful,' Chef John admits. 'To ensure a sticky, sweet glaze that's not burnt, I sear the skin quickly, then cook it skin-side up on a covered grill, brushing on the glaze while it cooks.' The result turns out 'very moist and delicious,' according to Allrecipes member Pamela, who serves this with corn on the cob and cast-iron biscuits. That makes for a 'really delicious dinner that whipped up quickly. A keeper.'
View Recipe
Chef John Pulled Pork BBQ
Chef John
After just 15 minutes of prep time, spice-rubbed pork shoulder is ready to set and forget in your oven. Once it's done cooking low and slow, shred the meat, toss it with your favorite barbecue sauce, and 'do your patriotic American duty and serve this pork on the cheapest, lightest white hamburger buns you can find,' Chef John recommends. When you do, you'll likely agree with Linda Adams Dodge, who declares this 'the absolute bomb! I can't believe I set my alarm on a Saturday morning to put this in the oven. I am so glad I did. This meat is to die for. I can't rave enough about how good this was.'
View Recipe
Chef John's Nashville Hot Chicken
DOTDASH MEREDITH FOOD STUDIOS
'If you've never had Nashville Hot Chicken, we're talking about mouthwateringly, ultra-crispy, fiery fried chicken with a cayenne-infused glaze, and by 'glaze' I mean melted butter and lard,' Chef John explains. (Sign us up!) 'While I've never been to Nashville myself, this recipe works well for me. Serve chicken pieces on white bread and brush with extra sauce and pickles if you like.' Even though Chef John hasn't been to Music City yet, this recipe is right on target, Allrecipes fans rave. 'I'm a fried chicken snob, and this recipe came very close to the fiery version I've eaten down South. Shatteringly crisp skin and moist delicious meat! A huge hit,' says home cook Leslie Kelly.
View Recipe
Hot Water Cornbread
Dotdash Meredith Food Studios
Regarding that sweet or not-so-sweet cornbread debate, Kornbrek believes, why choose? 'Golden Sweet Cornbread is a personal favorite—I've made it many times! This is a Yankee version of cornbread that is sweet. In Virginia and in the South, they eat unsweetened cornbread like this Hot Water Cornbread with dinner. Southerners seem to be quite particular about not eating sweet cornbread. I eat both!' Even Northerners won't be disappointed by the low-sugar Hot Water Cornbread, which is 'so easy and so good,' according to Allrecipes member Melinda. 'I've never been able to seem to get the right kind of consistency,' until this one, she reveals. 'This will definitely be a staple in my house.'
View Recipe
BBQ Shrimp and Grits
Kornbrek tells us this zesty Southern specialty made the cut 'since grits have become a personal favorite after moving to Virginia. I've made many breakfasts-for-dinner with a bowl of creamy grits topped with bacon and cheese. My husband loves any recipe with shrimp, and we are both barbecue fans, so this recipe is perfect!' These aren't just standard grits; they're infused with melty shreds of Cheddar cheese. As for the shrimp, it gets its BBQ flair from paprika, cumin, and Carolina-style BBQ sauce. Fellow Allrecipes member Stan Ray declares this 'a winner!'
View Recipe
Old Southern Chocolate Pecan Sheet Cake
A variation on the delectable Texas sheet cake, Leslie41 scored this recipe from another Southern cook, who shared 'a copy of a copy of a typed-up sheet from long ago, annotated with her notes (which included the word 'oleo' instead of 'margarine').' Leslie was intrigued by how the cake batter was heated on the stove before heading to the oven, before being topped with cooked icing while still warm. 'The result is a wonderfully rich, yet surprisingly light, chocolate sheet cake topped with a cooked chocolate and pecan frosting. This cake has an incredible homemade taste, yet is foolproof!'
View Recipe
John's Pimento Cheese
Rhonda, who shared this recipe, admits that she doesn't usually enjoy pimento cheese, but this rendition, courtesy of a co-worker, changed her tune. Made simply with shredded Cheddar, chopped pimentos, garlic powder, and mayo, this dip/spread takes just 10 minutes to prepare. The result is 'delicious' if you ask Allrecipes member Saveur. 'I just threw everything in the blender for a smoother spread, then used this as a sandwich spread. It was so tasty. I'll definitely use this again.'
View Recipe
Cream Cheese Sausage Balls
Sausage balls crafted from baking mix, shredded cheese, and pork sausage are a go-to appetizer in the South. This variation really shines thanks to the cream cheese, which makes them tender, moist, and irresistibly flavorful. Home cooks like Chelsey rave that after trying sausage balls with cream cheese, 'I'll never go back to making them the traditional way!' If you're worried that the cream cheese might dampen the flavor of the Cheddar or sausage, Belgianvrouw says fear not: 'It only enhances. Plus, even the leftovers (we make a ton of them) are no longer dried out.'
View Recipe
J.P.'s Big Daddy Biscuits
DOTDASH MEREDITH FOOD STUDIOS
Kornbrek saved these buttery biscuits not because she hasn't tried them yet, but because she has—and adored them so much, she wants to revisit them. 'This is a really great recipe, and the biscuits rose really high.' JP is John Pickett, who kindly shared his easy mix, roll, and cut biscuit recipe with us. Not only are the fluffy, large biscuits a breeze to prep, but also 'the dough can also be prepared several hours, and up to a day, ahead of time,' John Pickett says. One fan who comes 'from a family of very picky biscuit lovers looked all summer for a soft big biscuit,' and with this, 'I have found it!'
View Recipe
Southern Coleslaw
ALLRECIPES / JULIA HARTBECK
Sweet, tangy, and reminiscent of KFC coleslaw, according to Kristina who confirms this 'recipe has been passed down the generations,' this make-ahead coleslaw recipe is one of the best Southern side dishes for barbecues. Allrecipes member Kls02a60 notes that 'a friend of mine brought this coleslaw over as a side dish, and I loved it' so much that she begged for the how-to, and found it here on Allrecipes (just like Kornbrek)!
View Recipe
Mississippi Chicken
Photographer: Grant Webster / Food Stylist: Lauren McAnelly / Prop Stylist: Gabriel Greco
Mississippi Pot Roast featuring beef chuck is delectable as-is, but the Allrecipes team thought the dish could use a lighter refresh. 'Mississippi Chicken is simple to make with just four ingredients for juicy, tangy shredded chicken that's delicious in buns or served over mashed potatoes or rice,' our test kitchen team explains. 'You can make this in a slow cooker if you prefer.' While it's originally designed as a main dish, Kornbrek might want to consider following the lead of FlashyTea6737, who says you can 'easily turn this into a party dip by adding cream cheese or sour cream.'
View Recipe
Creamed Corn with Tomatoes
AR Magazine
Atlanta-based chef Virginia Willis relies on cream cheese for a tangy, flavorful way to transform corn kernels into luscious creamed corn. Fresh basil, parsley, and tomatoes brighten things up. Kornbrek can look forward to 'the perfect use for leftover corn on the cob,' explains Stephanie Towery-Haynes. 'I will definitely make this again. It was delicious!'
View Recipe
Best Carolina BBQ Meat Sauce
Inspired by Big Daddy's Carolina-style sauce, TRIPPER shares that they 'had to search, snoop, and experiment to get it right. It's fantastic on pork, or try brushing some on chicken as it finishes on the grill.' No matter what protein you pair it with, 'this is an awesome BBQ sauce,' Allrecipes member Daydra says. 'We got rave reviews and incredulous looks that we'd made this ourselves. This is great party fare, because all the work is done the day before. Day of, you just heat it up.'
View Recipe
Best Fried Green Tomatoes
DOTDASH MEREDITH FOOD STUDIOS
Best enjoyed alongside a summer sunset, notes recipe creator Diana Swenson-Siegel, Kornbrek can look forward to 'the best fried green tomatoes,' says TwoDCsPlus1. 'I followed the directions exactly, and the batter stuck perfectly and held up really well. This was my first time making these myself, and I had no problem whatsoever—in fact, I had never even fried anything before, and I still had no problems.'
View Recipe
Sweet and Tangy Sautéed Collard Greens
'Greens or cabbage prepared anyway are pretty popular,' Kornbrek says. 'I recently tried sautéed greens and they were good that way vs. the traditional long-cooked method.' After that unexpected discovery, Kornbrek felt compelled to save this side dish recipe, especially after seeing fan feedback like 'my wife (who doesn't normally care much for collards) liked it,' Allrecipes member RandyO says. 'I usually use a pressure cooker and these end up with a very similar texture. I will definitely be trying this recipe again soon!'
View Recipe
Chess Pie
Dotdash Meredith Food Studios
This 'very sweet, rich dessert which cannot be described as anything but marvelous' landed with T Knecht after being passed down from several generations of grandmothers in her family tree. When you cook along with Kornbrek and are able to take a bite of the custard pie, 'you will think you have died and gone to heaven when you taste this, particularly when served with whipped cream,' T Knecht adds. But don't just take her word for it. Home cook Jennifer Hayes calls it 'fabulous! My brother-in-law calls it 'sugar cookie pie.' It takes on an almost crème brulee quality with the caramelized top. Incredible!'
View Recipe
Read the original article on ALLRECIPES
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Yahoo
‘I'm not the hero': At 99, one of America's few living D-Day vets would rather be fishing
How do you carry a shard of history everybody wants a glimpse of, a memory everyone craves? Edward Sandy and his friend Spero Mihilas shared one such memory but bore it differently. Friends since their Depression-era childhood in upstate New York, they enlisted together in the Navy in 1943, Sandy at just 17. A year later — June 6, 1944 — they found themselves on the same gunner boat off the coast of Normandy, France. Shells exploded around them. Nazi gunfire pounded from the shoreline. It was D-Day, one of the 20th century's most famous battles, history's largest amphibious invasion. With an assault wave of 160,000 Allied soldiers, the Battle of Normandy has been memorialized in countless books and movies. To the soldiers, it was a mess of sea spray, confusion and slaughter. Theirs seemed a suicidal mission — the two friends and their crew were assigned to run a converted landing craft up and down the shoreline, their job to draw enemy fire away from troops making landfall. Mihilas would later recall their commanding officers 'informed us we'd be slaughtered." But they survived unscathed. After the famous ground invasion broke through, marking the beginning of the end of the war, their role in the initial assault wave turned into a weeks-long rescue mission, one that left their decks drenched with the blood of wounded comrades they shuttled from shore. In the decades to come the two men would remain friends, each finding their way in later years to Florida. But they would treat their shared experience differently. Whereas Mihilas would aerate it with discussion and recollection, Sandy would keep it close, demurring on details, leaning into understatement. 'It didn't look too good, believe me,' he says now of the battlefield that day. That reluctance held true even when he and his friend would meet, Sandy traveling north from his home in Lantana to visit his old friend, now deceased, in Winter Park. 'That's all he'd talk about would be the war,' Sandy recalls now. 'He'd say, 'Sandy, we were lucky.' ' D-DAY: Veteran lost leg but not spirit on fateful 1944 day Lucky they certainly were. Sandy finished a three-year tour of duty, went home and started a life and family as nations rose and fell. Eighty-one years later, here he is on the cusp of a century of life, sitting in a Tex-Mex restaurant in Lantana waiting to place his order. The 99-year-old can do fewer things these days. He loves fishing but his balance isn't what it once was. That and swollen feet make getting in and out of boats difficult. Mostly he and his son watch fishing shows on TV. He doesn't talk much about the war now. Not that he ever did if he could avoid it. 'I don't know,' he says. 'It's just a feeling in me. I just don't like it.' But you can get him talking about fishing. About the snakehead fish and clown knifefish he caught last summer on Lake Ida in Delray Beach, an increasingly rare boating excursion to celebrate his 99th birthday. His son thinks he may now hold the record of oldest person to catch each one. Sandy's face brightens, too, when the conversation switches from war to what followed. When his three years in the Navy ended, he returned to his home in Amsterdam, New York, a small city 32 miles northwest of Albany. D-DAY: Palm Beach County remembers He doesn't hold back talking about how he met his wife, Barbara, now 90. It was a buddy who summoned him one day to come out and meet her. 'He says, 'Ed, you've got to come to the bowling alley,' " he recalls. " 'This girl, she's something. You gotta meet her.' ' 'Boy, he was right,' he says. 'She was nice. And we hit it off together.' WORLD WAR II: Christmas dinner 1943: WWII Navy vet cooked all night for 8,000 sailors ... 'A lot of guys weren't going to be around the next year' They married in 1959 and honeymooned in Miami. Thirteen years and three kids later, they moved to Palm Beach County. Sandy got a job with the county government's traffic engineering department, striping roadways. They bought a house with a pool on 57th Avenue in Greenacres. 'It worked out perfect,' he said. 'Everything just clicked just like that. So I figured we moved at the right time.' He loved the warm weather, raised his family, retired from the county at 62 and never looked back. A long, rich life followed, but memories of D-Day are always there. D-DAY: The men on the beach remember Yet those frightening days along the Normandy beaches are what people push for a glimpse of. Not just the names and dates — the sensations, that brush with the sweep of history. It's not that he refuses to discuss it. In February he and the family drove down to Sunrise, where he was honored at a Florida Panthers hockey game. The stadium played a prerecorded interview with him on the Jumbotron, where he gamely summarized his experience. 'We were on a gunboat. We were patrolling the shore,' he said in the video. 'I helped protect the men on the beach.' 'A bomb went over our bow and another bomb went over our stern,' he recalled. 'We were very lucky we didn't get hit.' He brought down the house with his go-to line about confidence in victory that day: 'We knew we were going to do it. We're Americans.' 'I'm not the hero,' he was quick to add. 'The heroes are the ones that are left there.' From a seat in the arena, he waved to acknowledge the crowd's applause, all smiles. Sandy's son, Mark, a Navy veteran himself, said his father's reservedness is borne from his awareness that so many others paid such a steep price. It's estimated some 4,400 Allied soldiers died on D-Day, including 2,500 Americans. 'He's lucky that he's here, is the way that I think he looks at it,' he said. 'And he doesn't really want to talk about it because there were a lot of people lost during that time. He's just fortunate that he came back. And he's really humble about that.' There are fewer and fewer World War II veterans still living. Of the 16 million Americans who served during the war, the Department of Veterans Affairs estimated in January that just 66,000 were still alive. Of the 73,000 American soldiers who fought in the Battle of Normandy, it's likely just a few hundred remain. Sandy's 100th birthday comes in July. To celebrate, his son Mark hopes to take him out boating again. If he can document his father catching another snakehead or clownknife fish, maybe he'll set a new record, on the day of his centennial no less. Now that would be something to talk about. Andrew Marra is a reporter at The Palm Beach Post. Reach him at amarra@ This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Navy vet Edward Sandy, 99, of Lantana, survived D-Day
Yahoo
11 hours ago
- Yahoo
Boy Scout building warning kiosks at beach where boy drowned in Conneaut
CONNEAUT, Ohio (WJW) – An aspiring Eagle Scout in Ashtabula County, who was upset about the drowning of a young boy in Lake Erie one year ago, has poured his heart and soul into a project to save lives on the lake. It was on June 7, 2024, that a family from Summit County was enjoying a day at the beach at Township Park in Conneaut, unaware that a warning had been issued for dangerous rip currents on the lake. Hunter Ebie, 11, was wading in shallow water near the shore when he was swept away by the currents and his mother nearly drowned as she tried to save him. Red Cross honors bus driver who saved kids from fire After an exhaustive search, Hunter's body was found four days later. John Repasky, 16, and his mother watched as the tragedy unfolded. They say it was heartbreaking, but they were also angry and disappointed that Ebie's family did not know about the danger they were in. 'I felt very upset with how there's just not information that can help people with that, the currents on the lake, and I felt that something needed to change,' John said on Thursday. 'It was devastating,' his mother, Bri Repasky, added. 'I didn't know there was a warning either and I live here, but I also know that when you pull up and waters are rough and they look like that, it's not safe.' John decided to launch a crusade to improve safety at the lakefront park. At a public meeting in Conneaut three days after the drowning, he told the audience, 'this has happened at least once per year and I believe that many of us can agree that it needs to stop.' John is a Boy Scout. As part of his project to become an Eagle Scout, he raised funds to building a series of kiosks that will be placed along the beach. The kiosks are designed to warn visitors about dangerous currents and provide QR codes to access current weather conditions and information about CPR. The project is designed to prevent tragedies like the death of Ebie. 'It always brings at a least a bit of a tear to my eye, and that's why we're naming this whole thing the 'Hunter Project,'' John said. 'I am incredibly proud of him. Anytime someone can turn a tragedy into something that helps others and saves lives, it is impressive,' his mother said. Aaron Rodgers coming to AFC North: reports Until John got involved, the only warning provided to visitors to the beach at Township Park were signs that read, 'no lifeguard in this area, swim at your own risk.' After the teen began his campaign to prevent the loss of life, the park board decided to add life preservers along the beach. Some Conneaut residents are calling the decision the 'John Repasky effect.' He calls it the 'Hunter Ebie effect.' 'If I could save just one life or go one year without somebody drowning, that would be the greatest success I've had so far in my life,' he said. John's new warning kiosks will be unveiled in a ceremony at the Lakefront Park on June 21. Among those attending will be Elbie's family. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
A Group of Rogue Canadians Are Trying to Relocate a Problem Grizzly Against the Government's Wishes
A large male grizzly bear swam to British Columbia's Texada Island last month. The bear's ear tag identifies it as a problem bear, and locals are worried that officials will come and euthanize it. Now concerned residents are attempting to interrupt the bear's impromptu coastal getaway by crowd-sourcing the bear's one-way ticket off the island. The grizzly, which the islanders have nicknamed 'Tex,' showed up near Shehtekwahn Bay on May 25, likely swimming over from the Powell River area, according to a qathet Regional District social media post. Since then, Tex, who sports a yellow ear tag, has been roaming around and randomly making appearances. The bear was even spotted in a backyard on Saturday. While the bear showed no aggression, just having a grizzly on the 116-square-mile island is enough to keep folks on high alert. 'When I first heard about Tex, I didn't panic. I took simple precautions — securing garbage, making sure no pet food was left outside, and adjusting my routines,' Texada resident Katrin Glenn-Bittner wrote on Facebook. 'Living with wildlife is nothing new here in Canada, yet to Texada, who has been mostly predator-free, we need to be proactive now, and in the future.' Rather than wait for wildlife officials to take management action, a few islanders are taking matters into their own hands with a plan full of small-town grit. Glenn-Bittner, along with her partner Kelly Hughes and her brother David Bittner, a biologist and bear researcher from Switzerland, are spearheading a grassroots solution to raise enough funds to get Tex the Bear tranquilized, GPS-collared, and airlifted to a suitable wilderness area. The ambitious plan could cost up to $30,000, according to the organizers, who say the bear has already been relocated twice in the past by officials. 'He hasn't harmed anyone or caused serious trouble,' Glenn-Bittner wrote in her post. 'And he deserves a second chance.' But the province isn't on board. 'This plan is not sanctioned by the COS (Conservation Officer Service) or the province,' the Ministry of Environment and Parks said in a statement. Read Next: Mushroom Hunters Shoot and Kill a Grizzly That Charged Them in Montana According to the Ministry of Environment and Parks, Tex's 'conflict history' means the bear is considered a threat, which puts it on the wrong side of BC's Human Wildlife Conflict Response Guidelines. Those guidelines call for lethal removal for bears that have damaged property, attacked pets or livestock, or show aggressive behavior toward people. For now, Tex remains at large. Locals are being asked to secure their garbage, keep pets close, and report any sightings of the bear.
