Southern+and+Asian+Delights

Growing up with parents from the South gave me an aquired taste for a vast majority of foods. Some people can remember their great aunt's apple pie and others feel that Granny shepard's pie is award winning. What I can say is that there's nothing like good 'ol down South cooking. The cooking styles of those from the South tend to be calorie-filled, finger-licking good delights. Very tasty, yet too much of a good thing can be bad. I researched about the history of Southern food and found that those hearty meals that were prepared were due to the long, intense work days that slaves would have to endure while working in the fields. Nowadays, people are not working nearly as intensely and would benefit from a more balanced diet. But oh, to enjoy the tastes of baked macaroni and cheese, sweet potato pie, and black-eyed peas every now and again ain't 'gon hurt nobody suga. I can still remember the aroma of collard greens cooking on the stove and not appreciating all of the time and effort put into the prepping of the vegatable, or how they came to be grown here in America. Some dishes however I wouldn't have missed being cooked at home, for instance chitlins. Chitlins are pig intestines that became a commonly cooked food in the South due to the slave owners just suppling them scapes of unwanted foods. Some Southerners still enjoy them today while others opt for the other parts of the pig. Though my family is not Asian, we have a intense desire for Asian cuisine. Maybe it is partly due to my daughter's admiration of the Asian culture. Whatever the case, be it Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Thai or others I have yet to try, Asian meals are always welcomed in my home. Rice seems to accompany many of the Asian meals. Some say that when certain areas of China became flooded and plantations were cleared away there was a dog that carried yellow seeds on it's back. When the Chinese planted them they found that it was rice. It fed more than than had even hoped for and hense, rice became known as being precious commodity. Woks are a primary cooking tool for preparing Asian meals. Reason being that fuel, amoungst other things, was often hard to come by and woks allowed for speedy cooking times, the option to deep-fry, stir-fry, boil or sautee, right in one pan. These meals are prepared with ample vegatables with the option of preparing a low-cal menu. There are so many variations to the tastes of Asian foods that are sure to please families worldwide.