Jenny Venable on Cajun Identity and Food

Thought About Food Podcast

This episode I talk with Jenny Venable about Cajun cultural identity, and the role food plays in the stories we tell ourselves about who we are and who is and isn’t in our culture.

Show Notes:

• Louisiana has been hit hard by Hurricane Laura, including Lake Charles where Jenny currently lives (you can read about it here: https://on.natgeo.com/3mGHufL and here: https://nyti.ms/2RQbc3J). Please consider donating to https://www.the15whitecoats.org/. Their usual work is providing resources for students of color in medical school (which is a great cause on its own!), but one of their founders is actually from Lake Charles and donors can now earmark donations for Hurricane Laura relief.
• Follow us on Twitter at @FoodThoughtPod, and you can drop us a line at ThoughtAboutFood on Gmail. Consider leaving us a review wherever you found us!
• Jenny Venable was our guest today. Here's a link to her article on Cajun culinary imaginary that we talked about today. (If you don't think you have access to scholarly articles, email the podcast and I might be able to help you. A lot of people have access to journals and don't know it.)
• The intro and outro music is "Whiskey Before Breakfast" which is both a great traditional song and a good sentence to put on a vision board. It was performed and shared by The Dan River Ramblers under a Creative Commons license.
• Here's Jenny's recipe (which by the way was fantastic!):
  "Growing up, meatball stew was one of my all-time favorite dishes, which my mama made pretty frequently. It was always served over white rice, and we often had sliced cantaloupe, canned green beans, and corn on the side. I chose to share this particular recipe because it is now one that I make pretty regularly for my family. I went many years after first becoming vegetarian without eating the comforting traditional recipes that I had grown up with because meat is often the main ingredient in Cajun dishes. But one day, when I was really missing some of my favorite meals, I decided to try my hand at veganizing them. Not only did making vegan Cajun food give me a strong sense of nostalgia, but they came out delicious. Since then, I have been veganizing my favorite Cajun recipes, which have always reminded me of home. At this point, I am trying to rethink traditional Cajun dishes in a way that is more sustainable and ethical, while recognizing and honoring the power that particular foodways continue to have in maintaining important cultural and social connections to our historical memories, our familial relationships, and to the land."

  Vegan Cajun Meatball Stew

  Ingredients:

  • 1 ½ cups peeled and chopped potato
  • 1 cup of chopped carrot
  • white rice cooked according to instructions

  For the meatballs:

  • 16 oz beefless ground (2 packs of beyond meat burgers OR 1 pack of beyond meat “beyond beef”)
  • ¼ finely chopped onion
  • ¼ cup chopped green onion
  • ⅓ cup breadcrumbs
  • 1 tbsp. minced garlic
  • ¼ tsp. liquid smoke
  • 1 tsp. Tony Chachere’s (or other Cajun seasoning)
  • 1 tbsp. flaxseed meal
  • 3 tbsp. Water
  • ½ tsp. black pepper

  For the gravy:

  • 2 tablespoons oil
  • 1 onion finely chopped
  • 1 bell pepper finely chopped
  • 4 cloves of garlic finely minced
  • ½-¾ cup dark roux (depending on how thick you like your stew)*
  • 2 quarts water
  • 2 tbsp. better than chicken (or beef) bullion (make sure to find the vegan version!)
  • 2 tsp. garlic powder
  • 2 tsp. onion powder
  • 1 tsp. smoked paprika
  • 1 tbsp. vegan Worchestire
  • salt and pepper to taste

  Directions:

  1. Mix meatball ingredients well and form walnut sized balls. At medium-low heat, add 1 tbsp. of oil to a nonstick pan and turn meatballs to brown all sides (about 10-15 minutes). Remove from heat.
  2. In a medium sized pot at medium heat, add remaining oil, and cook onions, bell pepper, and garlic for gravy. Stir often until the onions are translucent and browning and bell pepper is soft.
  3. Add roux and mix well with the onions, bell pepper, and garlic.
  4. Stir in water and bouillon paste and bring to boil stirring often (you do not want to burn your roux) until roux is entirely dissolved.
  5. Add garlic powder, onion powder, smoked paprika, vegan Worchestire, and salt and pepper to the pot.
  6. Stir in carrots and potatoes, partially cover, and simmer until almost fully tender (about 30-40 mins). You might need to add a bit more water.
  7. Add cooked vegan meatballs to stew and cook on low for 15 minutes.
  8. Adjust spices.
  9. Serve over white rice.
  10. Sprinkle chopped green onion to garnish (optional).

  *If you are making your roux from scratch, here is a recipe.

  *To purchase roux, you can find my favorite, Savoie’s, here.

  Note: Cajun stews always taste better the next day, once all the spices and vegetables have had time to meld together!