Food questions from an Australian - Charleston and Savannah visit
 

We leave soon for 2 weeks in northern Florida, Georgia and South Carolina. Would love some help with food terms I've come across but don't know what they are:

1. She-crab - what is it? Does it come still in the shell making it hard to eat?

2. Collard greens - what are they? Is it like spinach or cabbage?

3. Lobster - is it generally served in an easy to eat manner or would I need to struggle with implements to crack legs etc?

4. What is drawn butter?

5. When they say frogs legs, is that really what they mean? (I mean I know buffalo wings aren't really buffalo.) How do they come, in the bone and you pull the meat out?

6. What is cooter?

7. What is a Florida Cracker?

8. Shrimp and grits - this seems popular and I adore seafood. Are the shrimp tiny or like big prawns? Would they be unpeeled - minus head and shell? We had grits once for breakfast at a lovely B&B in North Carolina and thought they were horrible. It's a bit like giving an American hot toast with vegemite for breakfast - something we love but you would hate.

9. Fried shrimp - does it still have the head and shell on (had it served like that in Italy once - yuck), how does it generally come? In breadcrumbs?

10. We find the meal sizes in America too big for us, do most places mind if you share a main meal between two? Or just order an appetizer and dessert? I know in Europe that would be frowned on.

We loved the food in New Orleans and Mississippi area and are looking forward to trying some new things but would love some guidance. Any other things we are likely to come across? I've seen something called a blue plate special, I think this is a meat and 3 veg deal served in cheaper places?

Thanks for any help.
Kay

Hi Kay,
I can help with a few:

2) Collared greens are like kale. Sometimes they are cooked down like a wilted spinach.

3) Lobster can be served many different ways. At higher end restaurants, they will most likely have it out of the shell for you. Your always safe with ordering lobster tail - no work and the best part.

4) Drawn Butter - The best part of eating lobster! This is just warm melted butter on the side.

5) Frog legs come breaded/fried. They are e good and taste like chicken. They really are frog legs - weird I know!

9) Fried Shrimp - are breaded and fried. They usually have just the tails on. Yummy! Try to find a coconut fried shrimp with a sweet sauce.

10) I often find portions to be large as well, usually at more casual spots. Most higher end restaurants usually have smaller portions. I would see you are fine splitting or just doing appetizers and desserts. People understand and it's your vacation - not theirs!

Have a wonderful trip, we have been to Charleston and loved it!

In general, a Florida Cracker is a native Floridian, generally one whose family has been there for generations.

Shrimp and grits is a must try. Usually fresh caught shrimp in grits (a white cereal like Cream of Wheat). Often with cheese or small chunks of sausage.

Glad you are headed to our part of the country. I hope you enjoy your visit!

I have only had she crab in the famous soup. No shells, just a wonderful treat, unique to the Charleston area. Lovely!

cooter is a term used for a turtle but also is slang for a woman's private parts. Probably best not to use it in conversation.

Grits are really just polenta (ground white corn meal cooked), which you probably would eat in many places. The shrimp are usually large and probably have tails but not heads or shells. They are cooked and served in a sort of brown gravy over the grits. Grits are distinctly "Southern" and Shrimp and Grits is a speciality mostly served in South Carolina's "Low Country" (coastal areas). I do not think you will find shrimp and grits in Florida.

She-crab really is a female crab and the term usually refers to she-crab soup which is a creamy soup with both crab meat and the roe from a female crab. I don't think She-crabs are on any menus other than in soup.

And, as they say about many foods, frogs legs taste "just like chicken" ;)

Couple more...
1. she-crab is a female crab. You normally hear it used in the form of soup, as in she-crab soup.
2. looks similar to spinach, not as sweet, usually cooked with pork as flavoring.
5. frog legs is in fact, the hind legs of a frog. Supposedly, it tastes like chicken.
6. the only reference I have ever heard to cooter is as part of the female anatomy. Not used in most polite conversation.
7. Florida Cracker is a derogatory term used much the same as "redneck". "Cracker" is the usual term, "Florida" just reflects where he is from. Not used in most polite conversation.
8. shrimp would be smallish, peeled, no head, cooked in a cassarole(sp) with grits. Grits are an aquired taste. If given a choice, try grits at breakfast with what is called red-eye gravy. This is a watery type gravy made from country ham (ham that has been "cured" ((aged)) using salt as a preservative). The ham is very salty, but very good.
9. Most shrimp dishes in the south will involve shrimp that has been peeled, de-headed and de-veined. Fried shrimp may be lightly breaded before being (eg) deep fat fried.
10. Ordering an appetizer and desert is not normally frowned upon at all.
Your definition of Blue Plate Special is correct.
If you haven't already, go to www.chowhound.com. They have some of the best bulletin boards concerning food. One of the ways the boards is divided up is by regions in the US. There is a South board and is peopled with some very knowledgeable individuals. They can answer most of your questions and give good restaurant recommendations. Enjoy your trip.

This is fantastic - thanks everyone for all the info, and also the warnings about what is polite conversation and what isn't!! I had no idea.

One other to add - what is a raw bar? Do they serve raw seafood like sushi?

My mouth is watering, just reading all this! Can't wait to get there.
Kay

In Savannah be sure to eat at Mrs. Wilkes Boarding House. Very popular so arrive early--no reservations. Our group of four sat at a table for eight and enjoyed visiting with our tablemates, two couples from Canada. You will be served a great variety of good old Southern Cooking dishes (21 were served when we were there). Each dish is placed on the table and passed, so you may take some or not. We thoroughly enjoyed it.

If you go to Tybee Island, another fun place to eat is the Crab Shack. We had the Low Country Boil (shrimp in shells, sausage, corn on the cob, etc.). There is a small pool of alligators. It's a big touristy and corny, but we're glad we went.

Nicer resataurants include the Pink House, where we had planned to eat but time didn't allow; Vic's on the River; Il Posticcio, a nice Italian restaurant (we ate at the latter two).

I have a long file on Savannah that I compiled when planning our trip. If you'd like it, e-mail me.

KayF-
Your uncertainty is quite understandable.

On our trip to Oz in 2005, we were similarly confused with the prospect of eating <b>Morton Bay Bugs</b>, <b>Bush Tucker</b> and your national icon sometimes referred to as <b>Skippy!</b>

Florida Cracker is not necessarily a derogatory term; we have Cracker festivals here in Central Florida! A Florida Cracker was an American settler in Florida who raised cattle. One theory about &quot;Cracker&quot; is that the term came from the sound made by the crack of a whip used when herding cattle.

Now, back to food: if you see cheese grits on a menu, by all means have them! Yes, they are terrible for you, but oh....are they ever good.

Thanks everyone.

Giovanna - I have emailed you for a copy of your file. Thanks very much.

Vic - it's funny but when something is very familiar to you, like Moreton Bay Bugs, you don't stop and think what someone from a foreign country might think it is. Moreton Bay Bugs, for anyone wondering, are seafood, similar to a crab or a lobster, and generally only on menus in Queensland, where they are caught.

Bush Tucker (native food from trees and plants etc that aboriginals originally lived on) and kangaroo, emu, camel etc are usually aimed at tourists. Your average Aussie is more likely to eat chicken, fish, beef or lamb. I'd much rather have she-crab soup and lobster with drawn butter - much more exotic. Not sure about cheese grits - maybe an acquired taste.

Kay

If you liked the food in New Orleans and Mississippi, you will like the food in the Low Country, though it is not as spicy as Louisiana.

You have had good information here, but I will add a few notes:

Red eye gravy is very much an acquired taste. Shrimp with grits is a better introduction to grits for those who weren't born to them.

Shrimp in the US are close to prawns, not to the tiny shrimps that Anglo-Saxons pot with butter. Unlike crawfish, they invariably have their heads removed, but the tails often remain. If they are fried, the tails are often crisp enough to eat. If you have shrimp in a boil, the heads are gone but the tails and possibly legs are still there. Ask the waitress how to peel them.

Some interesting dishes:
Frogmore Stew: shrimp, hot sausages, potatoes and sweet corn on the cob are all boiled together and served in a pile on newspaper with lots of beer. Dirty rice: rice cooked in chicken broth with bits of vegetable and small pieces of chicken, including the offal, something like a biryani but without the spices. Another connection to Indian food, but without the spices, is Perloo (pilau) usually a dish of fish and rice.

A raw bar is usually a bar that serves raw shellfish, most commonly oysters in that part of the country. You can often find cold but cooked items along with the oysters.

She-crab soup can be delectable - esp. if served with a dash of sherry, but in the area you'll be visiting, it'll probably not have that but rather some fairly spicy seasonings common to the region.

Re: shrimp and grits -- think of it as the Southeastern US version of prawns with soupy polenta. You might even enjoy it!

If you go out to Middleton Place Plantation near Charleston, have lunch at their restaurant. Their shrimp and grits was Shrimp Creole (a la New Orleans) over cheese grits, and it was wonderful! All their food is delicious, and the gardens are lovely.

Two more delicious items you may want to sample: key lime pie &amp; barbeque pulled pork. If you run across gator on a stick,give it a try. It's pretty good.

A few more pointers:

Key Lime Pie in the south is a must. Pecan Pie is also a favorite. If you really have a sweet tooth, the pralines (sugary confections) at the Savannah Candy Kitchen on River Street are special.

While on River Sreet, which is touristy, but one of the stops on Savannah Trolley Tour (which you should do) try lunch at The Shrimp Factory, for She Crab Soup (with Sherry) or Shrimp/Okra Gumbo.

Other Savannah restaurant suggestions - The Old Pink House (mentioned previously)is excellent, and Belford's in the City Market, has some of the best Crab Cakes I have ever tasted. Skip Lady and Sons -- very popular, but over-rated, where you will spend an hour in line for a mediocre southern buffet.

Regarding lobster, you may want to wait until you have a chance to visit New England. The hard shell, cold water lobsters from Maine are the absolute best. You can certainly find them on menues in the south, but they are very expensive and not really a &quot;southern&quot; experience. Rock Lobster tails are not the same as a steamed whole Maine lobster. Stick with native (not farm raised) shrimp, oysters, crab and fish indigenous to the area you are visiting.

You are right about our portions being too large, and it is totally ok (in most restaurants) to split entres, or order just appetizers.

Enjoy!

Agree with 321go in that Florida Cracker is not necessarily a derogatory term. The same with <b>Bubba</b> and <b>Good Ole Boy.</b>
But I'm getting off on a tangent. We are here to celebrate Southern cuisine.

I have never heard &quot;cooter&quot; used as slang for lady business. I have heard it used as a synonym for a bubba or a good ole' boy. Wasn't there a character on Dukes of Hazzard named Cooter?

Here in Tampa, &quot;Florida Cracker&quot; is certainly not derogatory, but it is also not a term a foreigner would be expected to know and use, being quite specific, as others have said, to early settlers of Florida. &quot;Cracker&quot;, used alone and in a certain context, can be a derogatory term for a white person in other parts of the South. KayF, as long as you're clear that it's not food, you'll be fine!

Btw, we do have shrimp and grits in Florida, although I agree that it isn't the specialty it is in the Low Country.