Among the staple foods most welcomed on southern tables--and on tables around the world--rice is without question the most versatile. As Michael W. Twitty observes, depending on regional tastes, rice may be enjoyed at breakfast, lunch, and dinner; as main dish, side dish, and snack; in dishes savory and sweet. Filling and delicious, rice comes in numerous botanical varieties and offers a vast range of scents, tastes, and textures depending on how it is cooked. In some dishes, it is crunchingly crispy; in others, soothingly smooth; in still others, somewhere right in between. Commingled or paired with other foods, rice is indispensable to the foodways of the South.

As Twitty's fifty-one recipes deliciously demonstrate, rice stars in Creole, Acadian, soul food, Low Country, and Gulf Coast kitchens, as well as in the kitchens of cooks from around the world who are now at home in the South. Exploring rice's culinary history and African diasporic identity, Twitty shows how to make the southern classics as well as international dishes--everything from Savannah Rice Waffles to Ghanaian Crab Stew. As Twitty gratefully sums up, Rice connects me to every other person, southern and global, who is nourished by rice's traditions and customs. 

BIO

Michael W. Twitty is a culinary historian and author of the James Beard Award-winning The Cooking Gene: A Journey through African American Culinary History in the Old South.

REVIEWS

"In Rice, culinary historian Michael W. Twitty, who knows so much about Gullah culture, shares the story of the ascent of rice cookery, which has been around for centuries. His unique offerings of Gullah rice recipes, dishes that continue to grace many tables today, reflect the motherland of Sierra Leone and other West African countries." --Sallie Ann Robinson, author of Gullah Home Cooking the Daufuskie Way and Sallie Ann Robinson's Kitchen

"This is Michael W. Twitty's love letter to rice in the form of a cookbook. Twitty takes readers around the globe examining this humble but precious ingredient in a voice both intimate and authoritative. A perfect guide to selecting, preparing, and cooking rice--will make a fine addition to any cook's kitchen." --Bridgette A. Lacy, author of Sunday Dinner: A Savor the South Cookbook

"Before embarking on the recipes, Twitty offers a history of how rice became a staple in the American South, especially after the arrival of enslaved people. . . . Another excellent addition to the Savor the South cookbook series that will appeal to fans of Southern cooking, and anyone looking for new takes on a common ingredient." --Library Journal 

University of North Carolina Press  /  March 01, 2021

0.6" H x 8.7" L x 7.7" W (0.7 lbs) 120 pages