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Civil War Camp Scene. Cooks at Work circa 1860-1865
Matthew Brady Nat'l Photographic Art Gallery, Washington, DC
John Mariani wrote, “Hush Puppies are a popular "down South" twist on an ancient culinary theme. Thousands of years ago Romans and Greeks made fritters. The fritters consisted of deep fried flour mixed with milk, eggs, spices, and honey. These ancient cooks also sometimes coated their fish and other meats with similar concoctions before frying. Presumably, the practice of cooking leftover coating was one of sensibility and frugality. "Hush Puppy”, a dumpling of cornmeal that is deep-fried, especially popular in the South. The term appears in print for the first time about 1915.
Although unconfirmed, the common assumption regarding the hushpuppy's origin is that it dates from the period of scarcity following the Civil War, when cooks would toss scraps of corn batter to hungry dogs with the words "Hush Puppies!" But the Morris Dictionary of Word and Phrase Origins cites a Southern reader's account that in the South the aquatic reptile called the salamander was often known as a "water dog" or "water puppy"...These were deep-fried with cornmeal dough and formed into sticks, and, so the account goes, they were called "hush puppies" because eating such lowly food was not something a southern wife would want known to her neighbors."
6 cups Bob's Red Mill All-purpose Gluten Free Flour
3 cups Bob's Red Mill Cornmeal
1 cup white sugar
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup Rumford baking powder
5 large eggs
3 green bell peppers (minced)
3 medium white onions (minced)
1 (14 ounce) can cream-style corn
1 (14 ounce) can whole kernel corn
1 cup chopped Jalapeno peppers
2 quartsvegetable oil for frying
salt and ground black pepper to taste
Mix flour, cornmeal, sugar, cheese, baking powder, salt, black pepper, eggs, bell peppers, onions, cream-style corn, whole kernel corn, and Jalapeno peppers in a large bowl.
Heat oil in a deep-fryer or large saucepan to 375 degrees F.
Drop 6 to 8 tablespoon-sized balls of batter into the hot oil; fry until each hush puppy is golden brown, about 5 minutes.
Remove hush puppies with a slotted spoon and place on a paper towel-lined plate to drain.
Repeat with remaining batter.
Serve with tartar sauce
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