What’s on the plate?
Catfish, black-eyed peas, collard greens, corn bread, and sweet potato pie
Soul food is a term used for an ethnic cuisine traditionally prepared by African-Americans typically in the South. The term soul food didn’t become common until the 1960s with the rise of the civil rights and black nationalism movements.
Many African Americans recognized in mainstream America the culinary, cultural and marketing appeal of soul food, and simply thought of it as a new label for the very best home cooking passed down. It was also used as a way to unify Black Americans across geography and various experiences. (Source: Alexandria White, Center for Inclusion and Cross Cultural Engagement)
“Soul food is not just the dish itself, but the care that goes into it. . . It’s a way of life we grew up in, and how the soul is nurtured by the foods that we eat and the caring that goes into the food that we make as Mississippians and Southerners.” Brinda Fuller Willis
“Soul food is not just the dish itself, but the care that goes into it. . . It’s a way of life we grew up in, and how the soul is nurtured by the foods that we eat and the caring that goes into the food that we make as Mississippians and Southerners.” Brinda Fuller Willis
Read more about the tradition of soul food:
Why do we call it soul food?
‘Why We Call It Soul Food’ program explores farm-to-table as a way of life for Black Mississippi foodways culture
