A long journey out of Africa

During a dinner of dishes that might have been at home on a Southern plantation where ingredients were cultivated, cooked, and served by Africans enslaved and transplanted against their will, Jessica B. Harris spoke of what it means to live high on the hog.

"Eating not the pig's feet, but the ham. That's higher on the hog, right?" Harris said to an assemblage of food enthusiasts on a recent wintry night at Mount Airy's Geechee Girl Rice Cafe.

More than a dozen had paid $55 each to dine with Harris, a food historian who has 11 cookbooks to her credit, and now, a nonfiction narrative, High on the Hog: A Culinary Journey From Africa to America (Bloomsbury, January 2011).

The book comes alive with the stories of people whose fortunes and sorrows depended, in part, on their ability to grill, roast, steam, and stew other people's meals. They worked on the Sea Islands off the Southern coast, on railroad cars, and in Northern taverns; for the wealthy and the well-placed; for Presidents Washington and Jefferson, both of whom kept enslaved chefs in Philadelphia, Hercules and James Hemings, respectively.

Covering a vast terrain of geography and time, Harris traces the path of okra from Africa and the Caribbean to Louisiana and finally Philadelphia where, by 1748, it graces our pepper-pot soup.

In pre-Civil War Philadelphia, households without slaves or staff hired "public butlers" to organize and carry out dinner parties. But Robert Bogle saw a better way and became the city's first and most esteemed black "caterer" (a term that would not come into common use for 50 years).

Harris came to be at Geechee Girl on this night after meeting Valerie Erwin, who owns and operates the cafe with her four sisters, at a food conference in October. Harris and Erwin agreed that the restaurant setting would be more than suitable for a dinner and discussion.

Opened in 2003, the cafe is named in tribute to West Africans brought as slaves to cultivate rice on the Carolina coast, where they came to be known as geechee. Year-round, the Erwin sisters shape their menu by drawing on recipes from their Southern grandparents, adding Chinese, Thai, and other global influences.

On this night, they served Accra, which are fritters made with black-eyed peas; sugarcane shrimp atop sweet potato salad; roasted peanuts; roasted lamb with garlic, rosemary and lavender; Yassa au Poulet (Chicken Yassa) with lemon and onions (see recipe); sauteed greens; basmati rice; pecan pralines; and more.

Chicken Yassa, Harris writes in the recipe section of her new book, "is the first dish I tasted on the African continent and it launched me on my culinary journey of connections."

Harris told the dinner guests that the culture of food both expresses and transcends geography. She grew up in the North - in Queens, N.Y. - with grandmothers who made what are considered Southern specialties, beaten biscuits, pickled pears, and watermelon rind.

Food is an expression of politics, as well. Consider African American followers of Islam, for example, who reject pork as unfit and promote bean pie instead (see recipe). Or the lunch counter sit-ins that began in a Woolworth's store in Greensboro, N.C., 51 years ago this month.

Harris has traveled widely and was Essence magazine's travel editor from 1977 to 1980. And she has a local connection, having graduated from Bryn Mawr College in 1968 with a degree in French.

But early on she hungered to know more about the food of Africa and the African diaspora. Her titles on the subject include The Africa Cookbook (1998), The Welcome Table (1996), Iron Pots and Wooden Spoons (1999), and Sky Juice and Flying Fish (1991).

A student of the past, she still gets piqued about the present. For example:

While free and enslaved Africans were led to work in kitchens and later as caterers and restaurant owners, their descendants are rarely counted among today's top chefs, or enjoy their financial success.

And television cooking shows should not be dominated by men - boys at heart, she says, who focus too much on molecular gastronomy and too little on the capacity of food to nurture.

Another gripe? The term "soul food." Overdone, she proclaims, and inaccurate.

"It diminishes the scope of the food of the diaspora, leaving only the fat-laden and the fried - dishes like catfish, corn bread, macaroni and cheese, pork chops, and collard greens."

She prefers her collard greens stir-fried (see recipe). Without bacon drippings and ham hocks, she says, the dish retains its soul.

Makes 8 servings

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1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

4 large onions, sliced

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

5 tablespoons peanut oil, divided use

1 habanero chili, pricked with a fork (or substitute a less fiery pepper, such as jalapeño)

1 frying chicken, 21/2 to 41/2 pounds, cut into serving pieces

1/2 cup water

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1. The night before, prepare a marinade by mixing the lemon juice, onions, salt and pepper, 4 tablespoons peanut oil, and the chili in a deep bowl. (Beware this pepper, it's hot: Wear rubber gloves and do not get the juice in your eyes.) When marinade has reached the desired spice heat (from a few minutes to overnight), remove the chili and discard.

2. Place the chicken pieces in the marinade, cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight.

3. When ready to cook, preheat the broiler. Remove the chicken pieces from the marinade, reserving the marinade, which will be cooked separately.

4. Place the chicken pieces on the broiler rack and broil them briefly, until they are just lightly browned on both sides. Set them aside.

5. Remove the onions from the marinade with a slotted spoon. Heat the remaining tablespoon of oil in a deep skillet. Add the onions and saute over medium heat until tender and translucent. Add the remaining marinade to the skillet and cook until the liquid is heated through.

6. Add the chicken pieces and the water and stir to mix well. Lower the heat and simmer, covered, for 30 minutes, or until the chicken pieces are cooked through. Serve hot over white rice.

Per serving: 420 calories, 28 grams protein, 6 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams sugar, 31 grams fat, 112 milligrams cholesterol, 106 milligrams sodium, 1 gram dietary fiber.

Makes 8-10 servings

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1 9-inch pie shell, baked for 10 minutes and cooled.

2 (15 ounce) cans great northern beans, drained

3 eggs, slightly beaten

11/4 cups sugar

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground allspice

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/3 cup evaporated milk

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1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place the drained beans in a bowl and beat them with an electric mixer until they are smooth. Add the eggs, sugar, butter, vanilla, and spices.

2. In a separate bowl, combine the baking powder and the evaporated milk. Pour that into the bean mixture and beat well.

3. Pour the batter into the partially baked pie shell and bake for 50 minutes or until it is firm. Allow to cool before serving.

Per serving (based on 10): 390 calories, 12 grams protein, 57 grams carbohydrates, 27 grams sugar, 14 grams fat, 79 milligrams cholesterol, 157 milligrams sodium, 8 grams dietary fiber.

Makes 4 to 6 servings

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2 pounds fresh young

collard greens (kale, or a mix of dark leafy greens

may be substituted)

3 tablespoons olive oil

8 cloves garlic, or amount to taste, minced

1 to 2 tablespoons water

Hot sauce to taste

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1. Wash the collards thoroughly and bunch the leaves together. Roll the bunch tightly and cut it crosswise into thin strips - a method the French call en chiffonade.

2. Heat the oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Cook the garlic, stirring, until it is only slightly browned. Add the collard strips and cook them, stirring constantly for five minutes, so that the greens are soft but retain their bright color.

3. Add a tablespoon or two of water, cover, lower the heat, and continue to cook for 2 minutes. Serve hot with the hot sauce of your choice.

Per serving (based on 6): 141 calories, 5 grams protein, 16 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams sugar, 8 grams fat, no cholesterol, 66 milligrams sodium, 3 grams dietary fiber.