3 Delicious Southern Cooking Recipes

Editor’s Note: Meet the food truckers who are heading up one of the country’s most popular dining traditions, and discover the southern cooking recipes that have made them famous in their home cities and beyond! Here are three mouth-watering southern cooking recipes from Heather Donahoe’s, new book Southern Food Truck Cookbook. The cookbook features chefs from James Beard Award-winning kitchens—chefs who’ve now taken to the streets with menus that reflect their top-shelf training—and home-cooks-turned-food-truckers who are finally making a living from those recipes their family and friends have been raving about for years.

Fried Deviled Eggs

Makes 10–12 servings.

Gather it up

1 dozen eggs (local, if possible), hard-boiled and cooled
1 scallion, white and green parts, finely diced
1∕4 red onion, finely diced
4 slices applewood smoked bacon strips, cooked crisp and crumbled
1∕3 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1 teaspoon smoked Hungarian paprika
Garlic powder to taste
Salt and black pepper to taste
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1∕2 cup mayonnaise
1 1∕2 cups flour (mix with a dash or two of paprika for extra flavor)
1 cup buttermilk
1 1∕2 cups panko bread crumbs
Vegetable oil for frying
Honey mustard dipping sauce, for serving

Make it happen

Place the cooled, hard-boiled eggs in a food processor and pulse enough to chop them up but not enough to make them mushy. Place in a large bowl and add the scallion, red onion, bacon, cheese, paprika, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Mix all ingredients well with your hands, then add the Dijon mustard and mayonnaise. You can always add more mustard and mayonnaise if needed, but you don’t want an overly wet mixture.

Once everything is blended, shape the mixture into 10 to 12 Ping-Pong ball–size egg shapes, and place in the freezer for about 30 minutes, or long enough to firm them up. This makes the handling process for dipping and frying much easier.

While the eggs are in the freezer, prepare three pans (pie plates work well): one with flour, one with buttermilk, and one with the panko bread crumbs. Preheat a deep-fryer or deep skillet with oil heated to 350 degrees.

Dredge each of the firmed-up eggs once in each pie plate: flour, buttermilk, panko—in that order—and gently place in the hot oil. Fry until the outside is golden brown. Remove from the oil, sprinkle with a dash of salt, and serve with your favorite honey mustard dipping sauce.

Miss Birdsong’s Fried Peachy Pie

Makes 8 servings.

Gather it up

2 tablespoons butter
4 Clingstone peaches, peeled, cored, and sliced; or 1 (15-ounce) can peaches in light syrup, drained
1∕2 cup sugar
1∕2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 (8-count) container refrigerated flaky biscuit dough
2 tablespoons water
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

Make it happen

Add the butter to a large sauté pan and melt over medium heat. Add the peaches, sugar, nutmeg, and lemon juice. Cook over medium heat until the peaches are soft, about 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool.

When the mixture has cooled, roll the biscuits out on a lightly floured surface so that each biscuit forms a 7- to 8-inch circle. Place 2 to 3 tablespoons of the filling on each biscuit circle. Brush the edges of the circle with water. Fold the circle over the filling to make a halfmoon shape. Seal by pressing the edges with the tines of a fork.

Fill a deep-fryer with oil and preheat to 350 degrees. Carefully add the pies to the oil, one at a time, and fry until golden brown, turning the pies as necessary for even browning, about 5 to 8 minutes. Drain on paper towels for 2 minutes. Drizzle with sweetened condensed milk and serve immediately.

Roasted Pork and Yukon Hash

Makes 6 servings.

Gather it up

1 (2-pound) pork shoulder
1 1∕2 tablespoons sugar
1 1∕2 tablespoons salt
Yukon Hash (recipe follows)
1∕2 teaspoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon molasses
4 eggs, fried to order
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 scallions, thinly sliced for garnish

Make it happen

Season the pork shoulder liberally with the sugar and salt. Let rest, refrigerated, for at least 2 hours. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Place the pork in a roasting pan and cook uncovered for 6 to 8 hours, basting with pan juices every hour after the first 2 hours. The pork should pull apart easily with a fork. Allow to cool slightly and shred with two forks.

Bring it all together

Combine the Yukon Hash with 3 cups of the shredded pork and the sesame oil, mustard, and molasses. (You will have leftover pork.) Mix thoroughly. Portion the hash equally and sauté in a skillet over medium-high heat until lightly browned and crispy around the edges, 3 to 4 minutes. Top each serving of hash with a fried egg, hoisin sauce, and scallions.

Yukon Hash

Makes 4 cups.

Gather it up

1∕2 cup unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons and divided
2 large Yukon Gold potatoes, diced
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 poblano peppers, seeded and diced
2 tablespoons minced ginger root
1 large gala apple, diced

Make it happen

Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the potatoes and sauté for 5 to 7 minutes, until browned and fork-tender. Set aside. Melt the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter and add the onion, poblanos, and ginger. Sauté 3 to 4 minutes, until the onions are translucent. Add the apple and sauté an additional 3 to 4 minutes.

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Your Turn

What are some of your favorite southern cooking recipes? Leave your comments below. We’d love to hear from you!