{"id":29889,"date":"2019-11-07T07:00:18","date_gmt":"2019-11-07T15:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/shescookin.com\/?p=29889"},"modified":"2022-08-16T13:45:54","modified_gmt":"2022-08-16T20:45:54","slug":"delta-cuisine-catfish-barbecue-soul-food-and-hot-tamales","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/shescookin.com\/delta-cuisine-catfish-barbecue-soul-food-and-hot-tamales\/","title":{"rendered":"Delta Cuisine: Catfish, Barbecue, Soul Food, and Hot Tamales"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Mississippi

Catfish Plate at Downtown Bar & Grill, Helena, AR. \u00a9Priscilla Willis<\/p><\/div>\n

What are the foods that define Delta Cuisine?<\/h2>\n

Delta cuisine is its own category in the realm of Southern food. The food of the Mississippi River Delta is like an epicurean time capsule created by crops born of the nutrient-rich soil, diverse cultural influences, and overwhelming poverty. As they have always done, locals prepare dishes that stretch ingredients and waste no part of a plant or animal. Last month, I set off on a road trip to Helena, Arkansas in the Delta region of eastern Arkansas to experience the Delta blues at the annual King Biscuit Blues Festival<\/strong> and savor Delta cuisine along the way.<\/p>\n

\"Delta

Eddie Evans of Downtown Bar & Grill with his popular catfish plate.<\/p><\/div>\n

Fried Catfish – Arkansas Food of the Year<\/h2>\n

Earlier this year, the Arkansas Food Hall of Fame<\/strong><\/a> proclaimed catfish as the 2019 Arkansas Food of the Year. During the Food Hall of Fame’s induction banquet, Arkansas writer and historian Cindy Grisham noted: “A true food of the people, catfish is consumed with relish by everyone regardless of race or class. It can be found on the finest menus in the most exclusive restaurants as well as in just about every small-town diner and roadside convenience store. … Crispy, onion-tinged hushpuppies are a staple across the state, although many folks prefer a simple slab of crusty cornbread. But the rest of the plate is a bit more of a problem. Coleslaw is a popular side item whether its dressing is creamy or the more tangy vinegar-based kind. Beans are always a hit with soupy pintos fighting for the right to sit on the plate with sweet, sticky baked beans. A relish of some sort is needed, and that can range from cabbage-based chow-chow to sweet-and-spicy green tomato relish.” {Arkansas Gazette<\/a>}<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"Delta

Downtown Bar & Grill sources their catfish from Pride of the Pond in Tunica, Mississippi. Honestly, the sweetest catfish I’ve ever eaten. \u00a9Priscilla Willis<\/p><\/div>\n

Long a part of Arkansas culture, Arkansas Gazette senior editor Rex Nelson’s toast to King Catfish at the Arkansas Foodways Dinner, “Catfish Tales in Four Courses”, went like this: “Here’s to the noble catfish, the king of the Arkansas waterways. Thanks for providing us sustenance and good times. Long live King Cat.”<\/p>\n

While I’ve lived in Southern California for 30 years and been spoiled by the abundance of fresh-caught fish, growing up in Arkansas I ate a fair amount of cornmeal-dredged fried catfish and, hands down, the best catfish I’ve ever eaten was at Eddie Evans’ Downtown Bar & Grill<\/strong> in Helena. Hand coated with a cornmeal mixture and quickly fried, the catfish plate comes with a generous portion of 3 large fillets with hush puppies (love!), fries, and coleslaw.<\/p>\n

\"Arkansas

Owner Eddie Evans with mom Ramona and I holding Downtown Bar and Grill favorites.<\/p><\/div>\n

Eddie’s love of cooking started at home with his mother Ramona. He began his career as the head chef at Isle of Capri Casino before starting his own food truck business. After seven years, he decided to make the leap to a brick and mortar and bring some good vittles to the downtown area where Downtown Bar & Grill<\/strong> is one of only two restaurants. Besides outstanding catfish, his hand-formed burgers and BBQ pulled pork sandwiches are wildly popular. More chunky than pulled, Downtown Bar & Grill’s barbecue pork sandwich stands out for the burnt ends that he chops up and mixes in with the rest of the meat rather than selling separately as many restaurants do.<\/p>\n

\"Delta<\/p>\n

James Beard Award-Winning Barbecue<\/h2>\n

Not only is Jones Bar-B-Q Diner<\/strong> the first and only winner of a coveted James Beard culinary award in the state of Arkansas but it also believed to be the oldest Black-owned business in Arkansas, selling barbecue pork since around 1910. After winning the James Beard American Classics<\/a> award in 2012, barbecue lovers from near and far have trekked along Highway 1, the Great River Road, to the beleaguered town of Marianna seeking the award-winning pork sandwich that put the town on the map.<\/p>\n

\"Delta

Jones Bar-B-Q Diner in Marianna, Ark., has done business out of this shotgun-style building since 1964, but the Jones family has been selling barbecued pork since around 1910. (Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism)<\/p><\/div>\n

Owner\/pitmaster James Jones proudly carries on the family business, believed by food historians to be one of the nation’s oldest restaurants owned by an African-American family<\/a>. The menu is simple\u2014chopped barbecue pork. Buy it by the pound for $7.00 or in a sandwich for $3.50, with or without homemade coleslaw. The secret is showing up before Jones runs out of meat for the day. Driving to Helena, Arkansas<\/a> past frost-dusted cotton fields along Highway 1, the Great River Road, I arrived at Jones Barb-B-Q Diner at 10:30 a.m. to get a taste.<\/p>\n