The South Will Kill You

[4WD]

The basic difference is the minimum wage, lots of places in the South are still at the federal minimum wage of $7.25. My state is $14.25 and you won't find a meal that cheap here either. I think in some locations, the minimum wage is even higher than $14-$15/hour. I think there's also a few cities like Seattle where minimum wage is $17.27 and a few cities in California that are over $17.

Getting harder to pull that off with convenience stores starting at $15/hour …
Most are becoming more aware of the struggles … we now leave good tips for both waiters and cooks …

 

[aquariuscsm]

I made a nice semihealthy lunch to take from home today....

I caved and went out instead...

Meat & 3 from the Local Diner.

Country Fried Steak w/ White Gravy
(at least 14 oz if I'm any judge)

Mashed Potatoes w/ White Gravy

Purple Hull Peas

Fried Green Tomatoes

Banana Pudding

Iced Tea

$10 including tip...

Living in the South is going to kill me yet.

That's a deal! You can't even make that meal at home for $10.

 

[aquariuscsm]

Beef cut, breaded, then fried like chicken.

And the high end ones are chicken fried sirloins.

 

[SammyChevelleTypeS3]

I made a nice semihealthy lunch to take from home today....

I caved and went out instead...

Meat & 3 from the Local Diner.

Country Fried Steak w/ White Gravy
(at least 14 oz if I'm any judge)

Mashed Potatoes w/ White Gravy

Purple Hull Peas

Fried Green Tomatoes

Banana Pudding

Iced Tea

$10 including tip...

Living in the South is going to kill me yet.

In Da South , we call it a slow suicide with a spoon & a fork!!! Most folks are mighty happy doing it.

 

[SammyChevelleTypeS3]

Going to KFC tonight in honor of this thread.

No KFC near us today. But when KFC came out with those Tv commercials for "chicken bowls" the wife and I about fell off the sofa laughing at the idea of all that fried chicked and food thrown together in a bowl. Well , little did we know we were laughing at ourselves. We tried them and liked them too much. Glad our KFC shutdown or they would have killed us! We used to have a Churches that we all joked they served "chicken on steroids!" cause the pieces were giant. We used to say "they must be serving emu parts..."

 

[aquariuscsm]

No KFC near us today. But when KFC came out with those Tv commercials for "chicken bowls" the wife and I about fell off the sofa laughing at the idea of all that fried chicked and food thrown together in a bowl. Well , little did we know we were laughing at ourselves. We tried them and liked them too much. Glad our KFC shutdown or they would have killed us! We used to have a Churches that we all joked they served "chicken on steroids!" cause the pieces were giant. We used to say "they must be serving emu parts..."

The Famous Bowls. Mashed potato bowl

 

[Hermann]

Yesterday I had a 1/2 pound (Halfa Heifer) cheeseburger(Meracan), two large strips of crisp bacon, grilled onions, tomato that was red and ripe, Lettuce, and fresh crispy hash browns, at a local KC chain (4 locations) restaurant called Corner Cafe, that is served with a smile for $12.49. I tipped $2.51 for a $15 total. My drink was water with lemon. My lady friend had a 1/4 burger (no cheese) and tasty fried okra for $9.49. I bought hers and tipped $2.51 also. This place also serves a freshly prepared Open Face Tenderloin and REAL smashed potatoes and loads of cream gravy for $10.99. It's big enough for two meals. You can tell the food is REAL in that it reheats well.

People in the Heartland know good value, (except BBQ joints) consistently good tasting food. This place is busy even at 2:30pm. The food is superior to Cheddars, 54th Street, and other home style chain restaurants. The servers are cute with a "GENUINE" friendly attitude. Always makes the food better.

 

[KJSmith]

Recipe & story
"Turns out there's a completely rational etymological explanation for the phrase. Chicken-fried steak hearkens back to the 19th century when German immigrants to Texas brought with them Wiener schnitzel, the classic Austrian dish of pounded veal that's breaded and fried. Adapting it to local ingredients and tastes, those immigrants first pounded tough cuts of Texas beef into tender submission, then coated them not in breadcrumbs, but the seasoned-flour dredging mixture commonly used for fried chicken. Thus chicken-fried steak was born. (Read up more about its fascinating history.)

Fast-forward to this century, when chicken becomes the most popular meat across all of the U.S., and we have another update on the dish. In place of beef, cooks started using chicken breasts split in half horizontally and pounded out flat. Served with a peppery cream-based gravy, it's, er, a lighter and healthier take on the dish, perhaps."

Further updated, Wiener schnitzel went from Veal to Pork and now most places will serve Chicken schnitzel also... took me a long time to change over to chicken... but its really good.

 

[KJSmith]

In Da South , we call it a slow suicide with a spoon & a fork!!! Most folks are mighty happy doing it.

I call it retirement plan B.
If you can't save enough to retire, have a massive heart attack and go early.

 

[Slow Car Sport Mode]

Fudge dude, I’m next to a church’s.

Does Church's taste like they put everything in Okra to anyone else?

 

[Pablo]

Greens. Fresh as possible but even frozen will work.
Olive oil (not much)
Broth or water
Salt
Maybe some lean ham/sausage/meat
Some herbs if you like.

Start the oil up warm, throw in the greens, cook a bit. Dump in the broth, salt as necessary, Meat, herbs.
Some hot sauce to taste. Cook well.

Enjoy and completely healthy.

 

[Gene K]

You could have went for sides that are even higher in fat. Mustard greens cooked in fat back. Mac and cheese. Fried okra.

Actually, the small local buffet style diners is one of the things I miss most about the South. They typically have very few healthy choices. But that's not what they are about.

I suspect the Fried Green Tomatoes were not much different than Fried Okra and the chunk of fatback in the purple hull peas says they definitely were not cooked the low fat way. Of course that's why they tasted so good. Oh well at least I won't die hungry.

 

[jstert]

Sounds healthy. We don't do that around here.

I've brought TN and KY BBQ home before from a roadtrip. Shame we don't have any good mom-and-pop BBQ places up here, or maybe it's a good thing so I don't gain weight.

is bbq in this mix? well now, i’m all in!

 

[Gene K]

is bbq in this mix? well now, i’m all in!

BBQ is always in the mix.
Big Bob Gibsons for Pulled Pork Shoulder.
Big Daddy Bishop's (Original Dreamland) for Ribs.

 

[SammyChevelleTypeS3]

BBQ is always in the mix.
Big Bob Gibsons for Pulled Pork Shoulder.
Big Daddy Bishop's (Original Dreamland) for Ribs.

Anyone ever see this special on Tv? There was 1/2 hour piece about a little old place (looked like in a remodeled old gas station) I believe in
North Mississippi that was famous for frying things. One of the main draws to the place is their fried pickle chips. Oh, and they promise to
fry anything you request! Now thats country cooking. I a know a bit about cooking. I am an Itajun (half Cajun / half Italian).

 

[PandaBear]

I was told smoking is a retirement plan as well by an insurance agent.

I call it retirement plan B.
If you can't save enough to retire, have a massive heart attack and go early.

 

[Slow Car Sport Mode]

Anyone ever see this special on Tv? There was 1/2 hour piece about a little old place (looked like in a remodeled old gas station) I believe in
North Mississippi that was famous for frying things. One of the main draws to the place is their fried pickle chips. Oh, and they promise to
fry anything you request! Now thats country cooking. I a know a bit about cooking. I am an Itajun (half Cajun / half Italian).

Heard fried donuts are the bee's knees.

 

[Donald]

A recent news article talked about diets that could add years to your life. Basically the Mediterranean Diet. No mention of country fried steak or double cheeseburger or almost any meat.

 

[KJSmith]

A recent news article talked about diets that could add years to your life. Basically the Mediterranean Diet. No mention of country fried steak or double cheeseburger or almost any meat.

You don't live longer, it just feels that way.

 

[Slow Car Sport Mode]

A recent news article talked about diets that could add years to your life. Basically the Mediterranean Diet. No mention of country fried steak or double cheeseburger or almost any meat.

I think a Paleo diet.. Chicken for breakfast.