0:00
Hey, I'm Jocelyn and this is The Eats of North Carolina
0:04
And we're going to start with one of my favorite beverages, Cheerwine Soda
0:08
It's not something that you can get everywhere in the country, but if you find it, you should
0:13
definitely try it. It is an original from North Carolina. And we actually, I know people who like asked me to bring it home with me when I go somewhere
0:22
So I always gladly do that. I get a couple extra bottles or so and bring it back for them
0:26
So when you're here, Cheerwine is a different North Carolina thing you need to try
0:31
And while we're talking about soda, I just want to say Pepsi was invented here too
0:35
So much of the South, when you order a soda, you actually say, all the Coke, especially when you're in Georgia
0:41
And that means, you know, any kind of soda. But in North Carolina, Pepsi is, you know, kind of king
0:47
I don't know. It's, this is where it came from. So check out those two great sodas and always their sweet tea because it's the South
0:54
So one other drink we should probably talk about is beer. I swear to you, there's a brewery on every corner everywhere I go in North Carolina
1:02
And you get some really great craft beers all over the place. So don't be afraid to try out some local brews and, you know, not just the national things
1:10
Go ahead and try out some local stuff. You might find some really amazing things
1:14
So barbecue is a staple all over the South and North Carolina is no exception to that
1:20
But the barbecue here has this nice vinegary sort of sauce. It's something a little bit different
1:25
You know, most of the places you go and you have it, it's like tomato based
1:30
South Carolina's got a mustard base, but North Carolina is definitely a vinegar based sort
1:34
of thing And for as many people make it it a different sort of something So go ahead and try that barbecue And also barbecue with hush puppies and coleslaw is a definite thing
1:45
Those three things together, barbecue, hush puppies, coleslaw. Try them all together
1:51
Something interesting that you can find in North Carolina is called chow chow
1:55
Chow chow is, um, it's kind of a mix. It's like, I want to call it a coleslaw
2:01
It's definitely not a coleslaw. It's just a bunch of stuff all mixed up together
2:04
like you'll have green tomatoes, you'll have some cabbage, there'll be onion, all this stuff is
2:10
chopped up and oh it's all put together and it's just really yummy and tasty and so you should
2:15
definitely try chow chow. So some people around here like to put chow chow on top of their hot
2:20
dogs and that leads me to the Carolina hot dog which is something you really definitely want to
2:25
try when you're here. It's a hot dog and it's got several unusual toppings to many people. There's
2:31
onions, there's coleslaw, there's chili, and sometimes there's mustard on top. It sounds like
2:36
a weird grouping of food, right? But it's actually pretty tasty. And the things are, you know, you've
2:41
got that sweet tangy of the slaw. And then of course you've got the meat and the heat of the
2:46
chili and those onions just give it some bite. It's interesting. And you should definitely try
2:51
one when you're here. If you're in coastal North Carolina, one of the things you'll find that you
2:56
don't necessarily get everywhere is a soft shell crab. Soft shell crabs are blue crabs that are in their molting state
3:04
So the crab is no longer hard on the outside. It's soft shell
3:09
And then they fry it and you eat the entire thing. You don try to pop it open and just eat the meat inside You eat the entire thing It a different sort of thing I personally really like them but I know a lot of people just kind of can get past the texture of that soft shell It
3:26
just different and you should try it if you're brave. Along with the crab theme, we'll talk a
3:31
little bit about she crab soup. She crab soup is something you'll find throughout the south coast
3:36
of the United States, but North Carolina is like many places. They do great she crab soup. It's a
3:43
bisque. It's definitely creamy and rich and thick and can be really hearty. But the difference
3:49
between just crab bisque and a she crab soup is that in she crab soup you've got the roe
3:54
So the eggs if you will. So not only is it the meat but you've got the eggs and then usually
3:59
they drizzle like a little bit of dry sherry over the top and it is tasty no matter where you get it
4:05
So my favorite thing from North Carolina is Krispy Kreme. When that hot now sign is on I thank the
4:11
North Carolina gods that made it because they're my favorite donuts. I don't even love donuts. Like
4:17
I'm not a donut person, but hot Krispy Kremes get in my belly like so good, right? And while we're
4:23
talking about donuts, we can't really talk about North Carolina and donuts and not talk about
4:28
duck donuts. Duck donuts are originally from the Outer Banks, but they've kind of grown and you
4:34
might find them outside the Outer Banks. But if you go, it's an experience that's kind of industrial
4:39
where you get to see them make them on a conveyor belt type of thingy
4:43
I don't know. I mean, it's just, it's a different experience than, you know
4:47
just going and going, I want that donut and that donut and that donut. And they've got really interesting flavors and all sorts of toppings and stuff
4:54
So definitely if you get a chance check out Duck Donuts So two fast food places that are original to North Carolina are Bojangles and Cookout Cookout is like barbecue and things like that Bojangles has
5:06
the best dang biscuits you can get outside Mama's Kitchen. I swear to you, I've never had a bad
5:11
biscuit from Bojangles. Both are, you know, kind of like fast food, whatever, but I just thought
5:17
you should know that those are two places to stop as you're driving through North Carolina
5:21
So in our house, we're kind of hot sauce fanatics. We've probably got 30 different hot sauces from all over the world, but our old standby
5:29
is Texas Pete. Guess what? Texas Pete is not from Texas. It's from North Carolina
5:35
I have no idea how that happened. I don't really care because that is my go-to hot sauce when I'm not thinking about, you
5:41
know, all sorts of different kinds of flavors and I just want a solid one. Texas Pete is mine
5:47
That's my favorite. You know, just stand by. Thank you, North Carolina
5:50
I appreciate it. So since Caleb was like a little tyke and he first started taking his lunch to school
5:56
the one thing that I've kind of always had to include in his lunchbox are pickles
6:01
Specifically, Mount Olive pickles. From where else? North Carolina. That's like another one of those standbys
6:08
I'm really grateful to North Carolina for all these standby things in my diet
6:13
You know, pickles and hot sauce and Krispy Kreme and Bojangles. So there's so much great stuff
6:20
I hope you explore North Carolina and don't forget to get some of those normal southernisms, you know, mac and cheese, deviled eggs, net pimento cheese, all that good stuff
6:30
You'll find it all over North Carolina, just like you will the rest of the South. So that is it from Highlet Mountain in North Carolina
6:37
I hope you all enjoyed this and we'll talk to you later. Bye
