North Carolina (southern food as a special challenge)

I may not be a Carolina girl, but I am a Georgia girl. Born, breed, and raised on the classics.

Quoted: "you and i both know the secret carolina handshake is one hand on the wheel, raising 4 fingers to passersby. "

Pretty much the same as the Georgia wave:bigsmile:

I have found it to be some what true in that there isn't a lot of options sometimes. ( I live in a really small town), but I have "aggravated" a lot of cooks in restaurants by asking them to take a regular menu item and making it a bit healthier by asking for substitutions. Like instead of a grilled buttered bun, how about dry toasting it on the grill? Yes, it still will have some fats from the grill, but not as much with all that butter added. Or asking for them to hold butter, fats, or gravy on the side so I can dip my fork instead of smothering the stuff in gravy. Most of the people have been really good about altering/subbing out if I ask politely.

I have finally started a cookbook with all my favorite southern family classics that I have made healthier. Takes a bit of work but so worth it, I just can't give up my southern.

[you and i both know the secret carolina handshake is one hand on the wheel, raising 4 fingers to passersby.

OMG that is so true! NC girl here too

Aaaand while I did make country style steak with gravy, mashed potatoes, and beans for dinner last night, other posters were right about the great produce to be had that does not have to swim in butter to be good. Lots of "fixes" I have learned to get that down home taste without so many calories. For example, when I made my green beans last night, instead of throwing in a ham hock, i threw in a beef bullion cube. yummy!

Also: IN for hushpuppies and chicken 'n' waffles.

I'm in Virginia so not the deep south but I find I can get flavorful low carb meals anywhere I choose to eat. My husband was a chef at a 5-star restaurant and one thing I learned from him is if you don't see it the way you want it on the menu, ask. They will usually accommodate you. If we go to an Italian restaurant, I get something like chicken or veal piccata and ask for steamed vegetables in place of pasta. I love NC barbecue.

The good news is the stytle North Carolina BBQ sauces are low calorie. And the pulled pork is high in protein, not too bad in other things. The sides always get me, so my solution is more meat.

Having lived in CA, AK, MN and now living just south of Raleigh, I will say I have to agree with you.... NC's love their fried foods and SWEET tea (whoah!). I am a huge believer in supporting local businesses and so tend to favor mom/pop shops, and the "under dogs", and of course, their family recipes are usually comfort foods, fried or slathered with butter....but oh so tasty! I have found quite a few restaurants throughout the Raleigh area though, that have become more health conscious with their menus. Eating out has become more of a "treat" rather than a regular weekly thing - all about portion control!

Sidenote: My first day in NC I tried a burger (and subsequently a hot dog) "Carolina style"....my life has never been the same

I'm in NC myself, born and raised here and yes...I agree...it makes weight loss difficult. We just don't eat out unless we absolutely have to (traveling, very special occasions, etc) and eat as clean as we can (non-processed stuff, fresh meats, vegetables, healthy cheeses, etc) because there's just too many fattening places to eat around here. Far too much fried chicken and BBQ! Not to mention grandma's cooking! :laugh:

...

Sidenote: My first day in NC I tried a burger (and subsequently a hot dog) "Carolina style"....my life has never been the same

My first meal, ever, in NC was Andy's just outside of Currituck on a day trip me the (then) SO took (I like to ride the ferry between Va to NC) I actually know someone who "won" the eating contest they have with the huge burger...gross.

I moved to NC from Baltimore and gained 60 pounds in 2 years. It started as just trying all the restaurants to eating all the restaurants all the time. McCall's BBQ Buffet and BoJangles!

Southern girl here! While there's no doubt the south has some healthy traditional food, you just have to look to find it. Maybe it's the choice of places to eat. The RTP area can give you whatever healthy food you need. Durham was named one of the best food cities in the South by Southern Living and their whole dining scene has blown up into incredible restaurants and food trucks-- I was born there and cannot believe the change. When I went back home after being away a while, I swung down through Calabash to get my hush puppy fix satisfied. So watch the fried foods and ask for them broiled. Good seafood is good seafood whether broiled or fried. And watch southern desserts, like the pies, pudding and cakes, or work them into your daily goals. You do not want to regret eating a piece of homemade peach pie. . Srsly.
Also, try to cook in or find a friendly health restaurant , and use the crazy fat southern staples for treats within your budget. .Farmers markets and locavore approach is quite popular and you'll find some great local produce. Close to the coast, it gets better. If you're going to be there a while, llook for a local CSA program, where they supply you with a basket of seasonal veggies and fruits and learn to cook them. When I develop a healthy version of Brunswick stew, I'll let you know ,

Best suggestion --- if you know you've got an occasion coming up where you 're going to be eating only old southern food, plan ahead and work out like crazy the week before! Then you can enjoy the day. And leave the fast food joints alone. Nothing good ever happens there for people watching their weight LOL

Yes, Hwy 55 (formerly Andy's) has some awesome burgers... However, my introduction to "Carolina style" was at Cook Out. I thought I hit the jackpot when I realized it wasn't a joke that chicken nuggets and corn dogs were actually a SIDE ITEM choice to a main meal.....And I definitely made my rounds with the milkshake menu!

Cookout tray with burger, two corndogs and a cheerwine float! Most food you can get for $5.37, especially at 3am.

On the topic of awesome NC food, any of you within a couple of hours of Durham, really should make your way to Backyard BBQ on Hwy 55...and take a cheat day. I highly recommend the baked beans and mac & cheese to go with their amazing bbq. Of course, the green beans are awesome, too. Aw *kitten* it...just order two plates. :-)

Pizza is my true food love, but I haven't found any place down here that compares to pizza in NY. Marios, Elizabeth's, and NY Pizza are all okay, sometimes good, but not great. I heard about a place called Sticks and Stones that I want to try next.

There's an awesome pizza place called Bella Mia in Cary that makes a proper neopolitan style pie in a brick oven. Their pie would be in the top 10 in NYC...maybe in the top half of that list. It's really outstanding, and I say that as someone whose favorite pie is the margherita from Grimaldi's on Clinton St. Oh, and their meatballs are out of this world, as are the oven baked chicken wings.

I'm in TN and half my family is in NC and I know what you mean by the infamous southern food, however you have to learn how to clean it up that you still have the flavor without the calories. I find chicken to be easy to clean up as well as veggies. Once you get all the butter and salt out of your system it is so much easier, or at least it is for me. I still have my cravings, but I get creative to help the binges to not happen as often.

I agree with this. We have healthier for you meals. You can oven fry anything in whole wheat bread crumbs and a little olive oil. There's also the healthy classics like hoppin john, and suckatash.
Sometimes portion control goes alot further than clean eating.

I'm from up north originally, but transplanted down here in NC to live with my hubs. I was amazed by the caloric content of most foods here especially the greens!
Experimenting with the flavors of maybe not so healthy (ok no maybe about it) favorites has become a favorite hobby of sorts. For instance, I've found that if I rub a pan with a dab of oil and add onion, garlic and a Tbsp of bacon bits cook over med high for a couple of minutes then add greens and saute another minute then splash with a teeny bit (couple Tbsps to taste) of vinegar and about a quarter cup of water then let steam for a minute or two... I get a very low cal and healthy version of an old favorite.


Sorry had to edit due to the fact that im up wayyyyyy past my bedtime. LOL :yawn:

Ah this thread makes me miss home, just moved to Maine from Wilmington, NC. Just getting started here. Was huge into crossfit a while back but been pretty lazy over the past year, moving a lot of traveling for work etc. all excuses. And started back into the gym last month but no CF gyms here and I miss that environment. Using the app here as a tracker starting today

I LOVE IT.

I moved here from Wisconsin and just love the food.

I'm pretty convinced that I became a gestational diabetic during pregnancy because of all the sweet tea I drank.

Anywho... I try to focus less on the deep-fried south and more on the abundance of produce we have. With the longer growing season, I have expanded my palette to different fruits and veggies.

I will still tear up some country fried steak and boiled peanuts though... washed down with some sweet tea or Cheerwine.