GENERATIONS of SOUL FOOD ORIGINS

Soul Food is food that you make do with what you have. I am from a generation of people that didn't have the money to buy the types of meats most people like to eat. We had to make due with what we had or could afford, which, was mostly parts of the pig and cow that some people turn their nose up at, meats like: hog maws, chittilins, pig feet, ham hocks, neckbones, and salt pork, just to name a few for pork. Beef: (no one hardly like), beef tripe, tongue, cow feet, ox tails, just to name a few.

Because the meats were a type that were undesirable by most people for whatever reasons, these meats had to be cleaned a special way,which is, you could say is a bit disgusting, (chittilins), but after cleaned and cooked, taste amazingly good.

I love soul food, because its cooked with real ingredients that taste like something my mother and grandmother use to make. I love soul food also because, its an art form, you give me a certain amount of ingredients and through the art of soul food, I could make a great meal.

To make soul food you must know flavors, seasonings, meats, and how to prepare the meats you choose. But, most importantly: you must learn how to taste your food, when you taste your dish, you will know how it taste, "if you like what you cooked, notice! that everyone else will like it, or love it".

To improve my art form of soul food, I attended 2 years of Culinary Arts trade at Los Angeles Trade Technical College, and completed 1 year of Professional Cooking, and 1

year of Professional Baking. Since then, I have done numerous catering jobs, Bar-B-Ques, and other food industry jobs. Not to mention that I've been cooking from the age of 14 years as a wife at a young age, but through the rearing of 4 children whom are all grown and gone. But out of the 4 children of 3 girls and 1 boy, he is my inspiration to write this generation of soul food origins.

When I was fifteen newly married, and could only make a pan of cornbread, that was all the time I had for my mother, why? Because growing up to that age, I was a daddy's baby and I would sneak away to follow him. So, when I got married I didn't know how to cook anything but cornbread. But, my dad fixed that, he would come

to my house after dinner when he knew that my husband had ate his dinner. He would come over unannounced and go straight to the kitchen while asking what did

you cook today? It was not good, my husband wouldn't eat it, because it was salty. My dad would fix his own plate even while trying to stop him because it wasn't good. He fixed his plate and sat down at the table and ate it, I was so shocked, but while eating he would tell me "baby, next time, put a little salt at a time and taste your food, if you need a little more, then you add a little more, until it taste good to you, then you know to stop adding and let it cook down to a thickness and its ready".

He taught me how to cook soul food, and the most important thing in soul food cooking is being able to taste your dish and season it to taste.

My personal version of soul food cooking.