Somewhere South

Vivian’s crash course in mass producing hand pies inspires her to revisit the applejacks of her youth. Her journey includes a trip to West Virginia for a taste of their signature pepperoni rolls and a look at the world’s most popular hand pie — the empanada.

Vivian heads to Charleston, S.C. to cook a special dinner honoring the late pioneering African American chef, Edna Lewis. Vivian gives porridge the royal treatment and learns about African American contributions to Southern cuisine. While in the port city, Vivian learns how rice holds the key to slavery’s sordid history.

A charity dinner and a trip to the Mississippi Delta and farther south reminds Vivian that not all dumplings are the same. But whether filled with minced meat, chopped veggies, or nothing at all, dumplings stretch our ingredients and our imagination.

Vivian is tapped to give a lecture on the wide world of pickles at the first ever Chow Chow Festival in Asheville, N.C. Her turn as a pickle professor sparks a deeper look at the funk and acidity that fermented or vinegar pickles bring to most meals. From there, her preservation education dives into Indian and Sri Lankan pickles, Puerto Rican escabeche and Korean kimchi.

At the Lumbee tribe’s annual homecoming, Vivian samples their famous collard sandwich and learns the roots of Southern hospitality. On a trip to Clarkston, Ga., Vivian meets a group of refugee farmers who grows greens that remind them of home. Whether stewed or sautéed, pounded or stir-fried, Vivian sees first-hand what it takes to make a good pot of greens.

Every Southerner has a particular way they cook and eat barbecue. While Vivian knows North Carolina’s tradition of whole hog barbecue, she travels to Florida for smoked mullet and Texas for barbecue with Japanese and Mexican twists.