Often served with fried fish, Hushpuppiesare a classic southern side dish!
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I say it quite often. “Shut it down, Max.” Or sometimes it’s, “Seriously, Max? What are you barking at?” Our dog Max (a 30-pound, white co*ckapoo) has always loved a good window. In my apartment in Baton Rouge, he’d climb on the back of the couch and then lean off so he could look out the window. And he’d sit there for hours watching as my neighbors came home from work. (He’d bark when he recognized someone.)
The front living room in our house has full-length windows facing the street. That means Max just needs to stand there and look out. He watches the mailman go by each day. He keeps an eye on the neighbor when he’s working in his yard. He yells at the UPS man. And God forbid someone actually ring the doorbell. They’d probably think a 100-pound attack dog is about to come barreling through that door!
And no matter how many times I tell him to hush, he doesn’t listen. He’s a stubborn dog, but we love him! I’m thinking a good batch of hushpuppies would helpdistract Max from his self-appointed guard dog position. Hushpuppies are a classic Southern food. They’re essentially just fried cornbread batter, but man are they delicious!
According to legend, fishermenwould fry up bits of the leftover cornbreadbatter from dinner and then give it to their dogs as a snack. “Hush, puppy” soon become hushpuppies. Some folks will tell you that the term actuallycame about in the Civil War when soldiers wanted to keep their dogs quiet. As with many such regional foods, the realorigin is murky. And you know what? I’m ok with that. At the end of the day, hushpuppies are easy to make and quite delicious!
Hushpuppies are typically served as a side dish with fried fish. After all, nothing beats a fried main course like a fried side dish, too, right? And since they often show up at fish fries, hushpuppies are typically served with tartar sauce for dipping. But when it comes to the sauce, I say do what you want to do. I didn’t care for tartar sauce when I was a kid, so I dipped mine in ketchup. These might as well have been called hushsons because a basket of hushpuppies with a side of ketchup would always shut me right up.
Hushpuppies are an iconic southern side dish, and they’re a bit hard to find here in the northeast. We have a couple of fish fry restaurants near us, but sadly they don’t offer hushpuppies. So I decided to just make my own here at home. Laura walked in from work, took one look at the plate on the counter and said, “Hold up…are those hushpuppies?” Sure enough! If you can’t find hushpuppies near you (or if you’ve got a dog who barks a lot), then just whip up a batch at home! Enjoy!
*On a side note, hushpuppies are not actually safe for dogs as they include onions. Just make your pups a batch of homemade dog bones instead!
Southern Hushpuppies
Often served with fried fish, Hushpuppies are a classic southern side dish!
Using a large bowl, whisk together dry ingredients (cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt).
In a separate bowl, whisk together egg, buttermilk, grated onion and green onions. Pour mixture into bowl with dry ingredients and stir just until combined. (Note: Do not overmix or hush puppies will be tough.) Let mixture stand for 10 minutes.
Using a deep fryer or a large Dutch oven, heat the canola or vegetable oil to 375°F. Oil should be ~2-3” deep. (An easy way to check the temperature is to drop a pinch of flour in the oil. If it bubbles up and turns brown quickly, then the oil is ready to go.)
Using two spoons or a small ice cream scoop, drop rounded tablespoons of batter into oil. (Tip: Fry these hush puppies in batches of 8-10 to avoid overcrowding pan.)
Fry until golden brown (~3-4 minutes).
Using a metal slotted spoon, remove hush puppies from the oil and let drain on paper towels or brown paper bags.
Salt lightly and then serve with tartar sauce for dipping.
Cornmeal is a meal ground from dried corn. It is a common staple food and is ground to coarse, medium, and fine consistencies, but it is not as fine as wheat flour can be. In Mexico, very finely ground cornmeal is referred to as corn flour.
In fact, the Carolinas can proudly claim to be the birthplace of this now-iconic American food. A hushpuppy is a simple treat—thick cornmeal batter dropped in spheres (or nuggets or fingers) into hot oil and fried till crisp and brown. But the origin of the name . . . well, that's where it all goes to the dogs.
Don't over mix. Overworking the batter will make for dense, tough hush puppies. Stir the batter only up until the dry ingredients become moist. Add sugar.
The name came from southerners who would fry some basic cornmeal mixture (possibly a bread-coating or battering) and feed it to dogs to "hush the puppies". Although there are many possible origins for the dish, it is found to be akin to "red-horse bread", named after the red horse fish of the South Carolina rivers.
If your hush puppies are falling apart, you may have used too much cornmeal. Try adding a little more (but not too much) flour. If you add too much flour, they'll become dense. For healthier hush puppies, try baking them.
In a large bowl, mix together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, onion powder, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper. In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, egg, and sugar. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
Fresh shrimp, crab and more served up with a helping of light, corn-studded puffs of fried cornmeal batter will satisfy your appetite as well as your expectations for something filling and delicious.
the slaves would use hush puppies on the trail as they were running away. it was a distraction. for the bloodhounds WHO were trying to track them down it would be to hush the puppy.
Well, it appears that Confederate soldiers would use. hush puppies along the trail. to distract the dogs of Union soldiers.while they got away.In slavery, slaves would use hush puppies to also distract the dogs.
When the hush puppies turn golden brown, start temping them with your Thermapen. If the lowest temp you see is 165°F (74°C), the hush puppies are done! Remove the hush puppies to a paper towel-lined pan, bring the oil back up to heat, and fry the rest in batches as above.
If oil is not hot enough, the puppies will be greasy. I usually put 1 or 2 spoonsful of batter in the hot oil to test it before making a whole batch of these tasty little Southern treats. Adjust oil temperature as needed.
What do you eat hush puppies with? Besides fried catfish, shrimp, chicken, crab cakes, or bbq, you might want to serve a dipping sauce for you hush puppies. We like honey or ranch, but ketchup, tartar sauce, remoulade sauce, or Outback sauce are all great options that go well with the savory-sweet fried cornmeal dough.
Hush Puppies is an American brand of casual footwear. A division of Wolverine World Wide, Hush Puppies is headquartered in Rockford, Michigan. Wolverine also licenses the Hush Puppies name for apparel, toys and accessories.
The main difference is that cornbread is baked and hush puppies are fried, hence the difference in texture—though hush puppies can be air fryed, too. "Typically hush puppy batter is a little thicker than cornbread batter, but that is just a matter of moisture. The basic ingredients are the same," Matijevich said.
As the story goes, French nuns arriving in New Orleans in the early 18th century discovered cornmeal from local American Indian tribes and eventually created dough-based corn patties named croquettes de maise. There is no explanation for how (or why) the name shifted to hush puppies.
Hushpuppies Recipe. These hush puppies are crisp on the outside, soft, light and airy in the inside. Cornmeal, green onions, red onions, flour, milk are some of the main ingredients in this recipe. The batter is then deep fried until golden brown.
Hushpuppies can be a modest source of essential vitamins and minerals. They often contain small amounts of vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium, and iron, which play vital roles in supporting overall health and well-being.
These heavenly bites boast a perfectly crunchy exterior, a soft and fluffy interior, and are bursting with rich, corn flavor. Bet you can't eat just one! Hush puppies are a beloved Southern dish that pair perfectly with seafood or BBQ.
Introduction: My name is Mrs. Angelic Larkin, I am a cute, charming, funny, determined, inexpensive, joyous, cheerful person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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