Arkansauce: Check It Out!

Okay, now, what do the following all have in common:

—Mammy Hannah’s Fried Chicken

—Grapette

—Pan-fried squirrel

—A hundred pounds of pickled beef

—Fried green tomatoes

—Purple hull peas

—“Grape acid”

—Butchering a hog

—Blackberry cobbler

—Green beans

—Fried crappie

—Barbecue pulled-pork sandwiches wrapped in wax paper

—Turnip greens

—Beans and cornbread

—Rhoda’s Famous Hot Tamales

and

—Sweet potato pie.


I know: You’re thinking, “southern food” and “Ozarks food,” right? Well, sure, but we should be more precise: these are all mentioned in the premier issue of Arkansauce: The Journal of Arkansas Foodways, a new (currently annual) publication of the University of Arkansas Libraries Special Collections department!




The journal is a forum showcasing the university libraries’ wonderful collection of elderly cookbooks, old menus, and other printed culinary materials, but it’s also a place for reflection on Arkansas food history, traditions, and folklore, as well as the current status of food and cooking in that state.

The inaugural issue is online and can be read right here.

Note that it’s a pdf file, and with all the nifty pictures and graphics on twenty-four pages, it will take a while to load. Don’t worry: it’s worth the wait.

Or, you can receive the publication in the mail for free (yes!) by contacting Diane F. Worrell (dfworrell@uark.edu) or by calling her at 479-575-5577. (Naturally, she’ll need your mailing address.)

I hope you’ll check it out!


Special thanks to Op Op friend Michael Saar for telling me about this fun new journal!