Robert Moss
Serious Eats
Charleston, SC, United States
Contact Robert
Discover and connect with journalists and influencers around the world, save time on email research, monitor the news, and more.
| Recent: |
|
| Past: |
|
Past articles by Robert:
The Historic Problem With Hoppin' John
For a long time, if offered a plate of collards and Hoppin' John on New Years, I would have been inclined to say, "keep the change," for I never understood why anyone made a fuss over a mushy mound of rice and black-eyed peas. The problem: none of the ingredients used to make taste like they did when the dish was first invented. → Read More
Why "As Southern as Sweet Tea" Isn't Very Southern at All
The history of sweet tea is a prime example of "Southernization"—namely, the way in which certain foods and other cultural trappings come to be associated with the region. The only problem? Sweet tea actually hails from the North. → Read More
The Complete History of Ice Cream Cones
Out of all the many classic American food items claimed to have been invented at the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis, only one truly has a connection to it: the ice cream cone. But it probably didn't start with a rolled-up waffle. → Read More
The Real History of Hushpuppies
Hushpuppies delicious, iconically Southern, and no one seems to have a clue where they came from. Which isn't to say that people haven't tried to explain their origin. Plenty have. The problem is that no one has really tried hard enough. → Read More
How Cajun Deep Fried Turkey Took Over America
These days, frying turkey is an American birthright. But it began as a Cajun specialty, little known outside crawfish country. → Read More
From Trash to Treasure: The History of Barbecued Ribs
Far from being a delicacy that traces its roots to the antebellum South, barbecue ribs are a 20th century innovation that came about due to industrial meatpacking and mechanical refrigeration. → Read More
The Complete History of Ice Cream Cones
Out of all the many classic American food items claimed to have been invented at the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis, only one truly has a connection to it: the ice cream cone. But it probably wasn't invented in a burst of inspiration right there on the fairgrounds, and it probably didn't start with a rolled-up waffle. → Read More
How Banana Pudding Became a Southern Icon
Banana pudding has a strong, genuine Southern identity that stretches back more than half a century. Earlier versions of the dessert go back even further. The real question is not whether it's Southern, but when and how it got that way. → Read More
The Real Reason Sugar Has No Place in Cornbread
Sometimes a truth is so self-evident that you can't present an impartial case for both sides. So I'm just going to say it: sugar has no business in cornbread. To know why, you need to dig deep into the history of corn. → Read More
The Real History of Hushpuppies
Hushpuppies delicious, iconically Southern, and no one seems to have a clue where they came from. Which isn't to say that people haven't tried to explain their origin. Plenty have. The problem is that no one has really tried hard enough. → Read More
How Thanksgiving, the "Yankee Abolitionist Holiday," Won Over the South
A true old-fashioned Southern Thanksgiving would be a pretty spartan affair, for that particular holiday feast was all but unknown in the South for most of the 19th century. Thanksgiving was a Yankee holiday, birthed in New England and adorned with that region's symbols and traditions—and cultural conflicts. → Read More
How Ambrosia Became a Southern Christmas Tradition
With its pineapples, pecans, and coconut, ambrosia is full of ingredients associated with Southerners love, but how did it come to exist at all, and why did it become a Southern Christmas tradition? → Read More
How Ambrosia Became a Southern Christmas Tradition
With its pineapples, pecans, and coconut, ambrosia is full of ingredients associated with Southerners love, but how did it come to exist at all, and why did it become a Southern Christmas tradition? → Read More
How Pastrami Really Arrived in New York City
As a Southerner and barbecue lover myself, I would be delighted to claim pastrami as a legacy of the long, proud Southern tradition of slow-smoking meats. But, unfortunately, I can't: The historical record simply doesn't hold up. Here's the true origin story of America's iconic deli meat. → Read More
The Surprisingly Recent Story of How Shrimp and Grits Won Over the South
When it comes to Southern foods, what could be more iconic than shrimp and grits? The funny thing is, until just fairly recently, there weren't a whole lot of Southerners eating shrimp and grits. In fact, most Southerners hadn't even heard of the dish. → Read More
Mull, Muddle, and the 12-Gallon Soup Pot: The Secret History of the South's Most Obscure Stew
This is chicken mull, the traditional barbecue stew that no one has ever heard of. A thin, buttery concoction, usually pale yellow in color, it's basically a soupy stew with fine bits of slow-simmered chicken in a rich broth thickened with crushed saltine crackers. But it's also a window into the deepest folds of Southern food history. → Read More
Don't Call Chicken and Dumplings Depression-Era Cheap Eats
All too often, chicken and dumplings gets labeled as a thrifty meal invented during the Great Depression as a way to stretch out an old chicken. But as you look into the history of chicken and dumplings—and when you eat them, too—you soon realize that, far from some sort of humble economy dish, it's actually a rich, luxurious Southern icon. → Read More
The Real Origins of the Boiled Peanut
The boiled peanut is an iconic Southern staple, but how did it come to win over the South? → Read More
How Congress Almost Killed the Southern Boiled Peanut
From the their arrival on Southern shores as a provision on slave ships to a starring role in civil rights debates on the floor of Congress, boiled peanuts are inextricably entwined with the South's original sin. → Read More
How the South Cornered the Soda Market
Why is it that the sweet, fizzy beverages so many of us guzzle today have a Southern twang to their history? I've come to believe that it stems from the region's reinvention of itself following the Civil War, during the New South era—a tumultuous period of industrious entrepreneurs, pharmacists with cure-all tonics, Bible-banging temperance reformers, craven hucksters, and a hot climate that… → Read More