The Ultimate Gullah Cookbook: A Taste of Food, History and Culture from the Gullah People
- ISBN-10
- 0974220205
- ISBN-13
- 9780974220208
- Pages
- 123
- Language
- English
- Published
- 2002
- Publisher
- Sands Pub.
- Authors
- Jesse Edward Gantt, Veronica Davis Gerald
Description
One pot dishes, deep frying, rice dishes, sea food, boiling and steaming, baking in ashes, basic and natural seasonings, and food types consistent with those received in the weekly rations on plantations are all characteristics of Gullah food. The food is characterized by the ever presence of rice and a distinct "taste" present wherever Gullah people are cooking. The recipes are simply frames; the art work is created in the taste buds of the preparer. Try to obtain a recipe or cooking directions from Gullah cooks, and you will more than likely get the generic response, "ah 'on measur." They will tell you that they cook "cordin' ta taste." This taste is passed down from generation to generation, but unlike other ingredients, it is an elusive quality guided by memory and taste buds, almost impossible to explain in words. It is an ingredient that must be experienced. Tasted first, then duplicated each time Gullah food is prepared. Simply speaking, Gullah food is about ancestral ties and American living, adaptability, creativity, making do, livin' ot da waddah and on the lan.' It is a culture within the culture, with its own history, heritage, and distinction. It is a food culture handed down through practice more so than with words It lives among us in the restaurants, homes, kitchens, backyards, family reunions, church anniversaries, birthday parties and other celebrations that dot across the grounds that the Gullah call home.
