Exploring Southern Soul Food Vegetables

When it comes to traditional Southern cooking, there are typical accompaniments to consider when it comes to the side dishes. Below you will find an assortment of common vegetables that generally decorate the average table of a soul food meal:

Black-eyed Peas: Usually cooked as a separate dish, these peas are often times paired with rice as Hoppin' John, which is the Southern United States' version of the Caribbean dish – rice and beans. A variety of seasonings are used in its preparation, including ham hocks, fatback, vinegar, green peppers, and an array of spices. See: Black-Eyed Peas and Collard Greens

Cabbage: This vegetable is often boiled and seasoned with salt, vinegar, ham hocks, or fatback. In more recent times, smoked turkey or chicken has been used as a seasoning.

Greens: Ham hocks are usually used to season greens, especially when it comes to mustard greens, turnip greens, and collard greens.

Butter Beans: Butter beans are actually immature lima beans that are cooked in butter or sometimes combined with sausages of the region.

Red Beans: This type of beans is usually served alone or in chili.

Succotash: Originally a Native American dish, soul food has adapted the combination of tomatoes, yellow corn, and butter beans, which are then cooked in butter.

Green Beans: Pork, onions, and tomatoes are the typical seasonings used to flavor this side dish.

Mashed Potatoes: Condensed milk and butter are usually used to create the mashed potatoes that are then usually drenched in gravy.

Rutabagas: Rutabagas are either cubed or mashed and then seasoned with pork.

Squash: Summer and yellow squash is typically stewed with onions and pork. Sometimes, squash is cooked into a tasty casserole.

Sweet Potatoes: Usually, sweet potatoes are parboiled, sliced, and then baked with cinnamon, sugar, nutmeg, and butter. Sweet potatoes are also boiled, pureed, and then seasoned to make a filling for pies that are similar in taste and texture to pumpkin pie. See: Creamy Sweet Potato Casserole and Best Ever Sweet Potato Casserole

Okra: Okra is often fried in cornmeal and flour (and sometimes stewed), which is then often accompanied with corn, tomatoes, onions, and hot peppers. In Charleston, okra is used as a thickening agent for gumbo. In the South, it is quite popular to bread the okra and deep-fry it.