All-American

By Food & Wine
Updated May 09, 2019

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Fried Green Tomato BLTs

Credit: Photo © Quentin Bacon
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This is a brilliant marriage of two classics: cornmeal-dusted green tomatoes and a bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwich.

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Classic Southern Fried Chicken

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Crisco is used to fry this chicken to perfection.

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Classic Potato Salad

Credit: © Fredrika Stjärne
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Baby potatoes have a naturally sweet flavor and creamy texture that’s delicious in this classic recipe.

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Deluxe Lobster and Potato Chip Rolls

Credit: © John Kernick
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“Putting potato chips inside sandwiches has always been a favorite trick of ours,” says chef Jon Shook. He and co-chef Vinny Dotolo serve chips on Tabasco-spiked lobster salad tucked into buttery toasted buns.

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Baked Beans with Maple-Glazed Bacon

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For a zippy version of a New England classic, Laurence Jossel bakes buttery Rancho Gordo Yellow Eye beans in a tangy-hot mixture of apple cider vinegar, molasses, brown sugar and crushed red pepper. Regular Italian cannellini or Great Northern beans can replace the Yellow Eyes.

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Lemony Waldorf Salad

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For this refreshingly crunchy salad, Mark Peel adds mineral-rich romaine lettuce, frisée and sliced radishes to the classic Waldorf salad mix of apples, celery and walnuts. In place of the traditional mayonnaise-based dressing, he makes a lemon—walnut oil vinaigrette flavored with cumin.

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Puff Pastry Apple Pie

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Since puff pastry can be tricky to prepare, this version uses a high-quality, store-bought puff pastry.

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Creamy Clam and White Bean Chowder

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White beans substitute for the usual potatoes in this chowder, made with sweet butternut squash, briny littleneck clams and smoky bacon. Rancho Gordo cellini beans give the soup a buttery richness, but Great Northern beans are terrific as well.

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Catfish Po'Boys with Pickle Remoulade

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Jay Foster does brisk business in these fried-fish sandwiches at Outside Lands music festival.

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Robb Walsh's Texas Barbecue Brisket

Credit: © Hector Sanchez
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The cooking times for this recipe are approximate: Temperature readings are the most reliable way to judge doneness.

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Big Bob Gibson's Chicken with White Barbecue Sauce

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Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q chef Chris Lilly butterflies a whole chicken, smokes it, then dunks the bird into a vat of tangy white barbecue sauce. Home cooks can grill pieces of chicken until crispy and nicely charred, then serve them alongside Lilly’s terrific white sauce.

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Stovetop Chicken and Dumplings

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Baking these easy dumplings right on top of the simmering stew makes them extra fluffy.

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Cheddar-and-Onion Smashed Burgers

Credit: © Marcus Nilsson
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Adam Fleischman creates beef patties by flattening balls of ground meat on the griddle. Tip: Burger purists handle ground meat as little as possible; over-working the beef can create a tight, meatloaf texture.

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Lemon-Brined Fried Chicken

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To make this juicy and delectably crisp chicken, chef Thomas Keller soaks it in a lemony brine, then coats and fries it.

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Overnight Slaw

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Linton Hopkins calls this vinegary slaw a maceration salad, because it sits overnight to develop its superbly tangy flavor.

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The New American Grilled Cheese

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The best grilled cheese is the gooiest grilled cheese, says author Laura Werlin: “After you bite into it, the cheese should stretch out past your face as far as your arm will reach. Otherwise, it's just not right.“

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Meat Loaf with Creamy Onion Gravy

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“This is a culmination of all the meat loaves I’ve ever eaten,“ says Andrew Curren. “My mom always made a good meat loaf—it never had the tomato goo on top of it. Then I tasted a meat loaf that had cheese in it; that was a good idea. In Italy, I was introduced to soffritto and realized the importance of cooking with carrots, onion, celery.” Curren serves the meat loaf with creamy gravy.

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Mashed Potatoes with Crispy Shallots

Credit: © Frances Janisch
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For ultrafluffy potatoes, Grace Parisi presses them through a ricer. To achieve a similar texture, pass the potatoes through a food mill or a fine-mesh sieve. If you choose to mash them by hand, be gentle; otherwise, the potatoes will turn gluey.

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Julie's Texas-Style Chili with Beer

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A blend of three chiles flavors this bold short-rib chili.

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Smoky Tomato Soup with Maple-Candied Bacon

Credit: © Anna Williams
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This soup is delicious chilled or hot. Naomi Pomeroy serves the soup with a side of maple-candied bacon, which she prepares by sprinkling bacon slices with maple sugar and baking them until crisp.

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Leek Mac and Cheese

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Cooks usually reserve dark, tough leek greens for stock. Here, Grace Parisi sautés them until they’re soft and supple, then folds them into a luscious macaroni and cheese made with nutty Manchego.

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Apple Pie Sundaes with Cheddar Crust Shards

Credit: © Con Poulos
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Using a slightly tart apple, like a Granny Smith or Pink Lady, is key to this frozen-yogurt sundae; sautéing brings out the fruit’s sweetness. The crispy, salty cheddar crisps that accompany the sundaes are as good with cocktails as they are with desserts.

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Lemon Ice Box Pie

Credit: © Taunton Press
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This silken frozen pie is adapted from one of David Guas’s favorite New Orleans neighborhood restaurants. (Recipe adapted from DamGoodSweet.)

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Devil's Food Cupcakes with Espresso Meringue

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Prepare bite-sized versions of this recipe for a petit four plate, or bake full-size cupcakes in a standard muffin pan. Sprinkle the frosted cupcakes with a bit of cocoa powder mixed with instant espresso.

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