Taste of the South May/June 2018

ONE OF MY FIRST FOOD MEMORIES is of a pig pickin’ with my godmother’s family in Chesapeake, Virginia. The smell of charcoal and the low-hanging haze have stayed with me more than the pig itself (though I’m sure it was incredible). The crowd of family and friends started tending the coals in the early hours of the morning on a handmade roaster to get the hog ready for supper. Throughout the day there were refreshments aplenty. Sweet tea and deviled eggs must have certainly been served, but was there pimiento cheese? Salty boiled peanuts? I wish I could remember. While whole-hog pig roasts like that one aren’t as common as they used to be, anyone who has experienced one (like pitmaster Elliot Moss, who we interviewed on page 13) knows they’re something…

When most were cooking Thanksgiving turkeys or Christmas hams, Elliot Moss’s family was roasting whole hogs in barbecue pits built by his father and grandfather. He solidified his love for pork early on, but it wasn’t until 2015 that the James Beard Award semifinalist sought to make a living out of it by opening Buxton Hall Barbecue in Asheville, North Carolina. Why whole-hog barbecue? Because it’s special to me. That’s what I grew up on. It’s a style of cooking that was forgotten for 20 to 30 years in the South. It’s a dying art that’s been around long before you and me, and I’m trying to preserve that. You use only pasture-raised hogs. Why? We’re not doing it to be different, we’re just doing it because that’s what we stand for.…

1 HANDMADE STUDIO TN LINEN PIATRA PLATTER Handcrafted in Nashville, this platter is the perfect serving piece for your summer-fresh vegetables or grilled recipes. Its texture and color resemble fresh clean linen, and we love that it's dishwasher safe for easy cleanup. $80; handmadestudiotn.com 2 MOTYL POTTERY HANDMADE CERAMIC PIE PLATE Take this durable pie plate from oven to table to refrigerator with ease. Hand-thrown and glazed by Tori Motyl in the mountains of North Carolina, this ceramic dish’s soft turquoise color will make your pies shine. $38; motylpottery.com 3 BACON’S HEIR PORK PANKO This Georgia-made panko is a flavorful twist on bread crumbs. Made from finely ground pork rinds simply seasoned only with salt, it‘s a deliciously crisp, gluten-free breading for fried chicken or green tomatoes. $8 for 3 (3-ounce) bags; baconsheir.com 4 DOUX SOUTH…

PORTER ROAD Princeton, Kentucky & Nashville, Tennesse When co-founders James Peisker and Chris Carter discovered firsthand the difficulties of finding quality meat in everyday markets, they saw an opportunity for change. Now, they ship superior cuts of fresh pasture-raised beef, pork, chicken, and lamb to doorsteps across the United States. porterroad.com GIANT NATIONAL CAPITAL BARBECUE BATTLE June 23–24 | Washington, D.C. Southerners love their barbecue, and there’s no place more evident than at Washington, D.C.’s Giant National Capital Barbecue Battle. Sprawled along historic Pennsylvania Avenue, this weekend event showcases some of the nation’s best pitmasters and their competitive ’cue. Stick around for cooking demonstrations, live music, plenty of feasting, and lots of fun. bbqindc.com NEW ORLEANS TRICENTENNIAL 2018 | New Orleans, Louisiana 2018 is a big year for the Big Easy, as it celebrates 300 years of vibrant…

To best understand a people and place, look to the foods they eat on the run, those iconic handheld meals—quick, »lling, portable, and tasty. In Lafayette and the surrounding towns and parishes of Acadiana, that fast food is boudin. Simply and affectionately referred to as “links,” boudin is roughly a half-pound, half-foot length of sausage available for purchase in nearly every local meat market, grocery store, and gas station. A perfect way to explore the region is to try one boudin after another, link after steaming hot link, to form a chain that connects, or literally links, the Cajun prairie towns to the Creole bayou communities. Though the recipe is uncomplicated—pork, rice, seasonings, and spice stuffed into an edible casing—each and every boudin is unique in texture and taste. Vendors are known…

One of the oldest cities in America, Charleston has successfully evolved into a modern metropolis without sacrificing the rich history of its landscape or architecture. With a skyline punctuated by church steeples instead of high-rises and streets lined with grand Georgian homes, this popular South Carolina destination envelops you with the charm of its colonial past while delighting you with a seemingly endless array of noteworthy restaurants, boutiques, and cultural opportunities. When it comes to dining, Charleston’s star has been rising for years, becoming a landing spot for some of the South’s most innovative chefs. With so many meals to enjoy and neighborhoods to explore, you may never want to return home. IF YOU’RE VISITING ON A WEEKEND, start the day with brunch at McCrady’s Tavern, a gathering spot so cozy you…