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Libby Wiersema lived in California and Alabama before settling in South Carolina 38 years ago,
where she's covered the state's best culinary offerings and tells the stories behind the food.
Pimento cheese-topped burgers are one of SC's most famous pairings sometimes considered "peculiar" by non-South Carolinians.
South Carolina might be famous for its Lowcountry dishes, but there’s another side to our cuisine that’s not typically reflected on restaurant menus or in fancy food magazines.
Peculiar pairings - those quirky, head-scratching combos enjoyed for generations by Southern folk - are deeply ingrained in our culture. Having largely unknown origins only adds to the mystery of how these weird mashups earned a place in the regional foodscape.
What seems odd to newcomers may be so commonplace here that their initial puzzlement can be puzzling for South Carolinians. One such example would be pimento cheese-topped burgers - a Columbia invention that is often seen as a novelty to visitors. Several of our best burger joints serve up this much-sought-after local delicacy with finesse.
Here are a few of the most beloved—and perhaps a bit strange—food duos that a lot of Southerners love to dig into.
Salty and sweet, cola plus peanuts equal Southern refreshment in a bottle.
Peanuts and Cola
Peanuts and "co-cola" are good on their own, but the two achieve greatness when mixed—at least according to Southern palates.
It’s been theorized that the idea for this odd marriage was invented for easy, one-handed snacking while driving a stick shift or adopted by car mechanics who wanted a peanut snack that didn’t require clean hands to eat. That said, you don’t need a conundrum to indulge in what many consider a South Carolina delicacy.
How to make it: Open an icy cold, glass bottle of cola and take a sip to create some space. Rip the corner off a pack of peanuts (must be salted) and carefully shake them into the cola. Tip it back and take in a mouthful of crunchy peanuts and sweet, fizzy cola. Now, chew those peanuts up and wonder why you never tried this before.
Warning: Don’t let your peanuts sit too long in the cola or they will get mushy.
Cornbread and Buttermilk
Yes, buttermilk goes into cornbread, but in South Carolina, cornbread often goes into the buttermilk, too.
Thought to have been a quick and convenient meal during lean times, this Southern gruel (sometimes called a “crumble-in"), offered hearty sustenance. This was especially true for farm families, who often had plenty of milk and cornmeal on hand. Think of this pairing as breaking bread, Southern style.
How to make it: Into a large glass, crumble a thick wedge of Southern cornbread (fresh or stale, but never use the sweet stuff favored up North) and pour enough buttermilk on top to fill. Take a spoon, stir it all up and eat it like cereal.
If you’re not a fan of buttermilk, regular milk is a perfectly acceptable substitute.
Bananas and mayo on white bread is the go-to sandwich for legions of hungry Southerners.
The banana and mayo sandwich is truly the stuff of legends. Consider that Dale Earnhardt Jr. loves it so much, he’s made an instructional video demonstrating how to construct one. And baseball great Matthew LeCroy, who grew up in South Carolina, swears that eating banana and mayo sandwiches before games brought his team good luck.
How to make it: Take two slices of white bread, spread each with mayonnaise, top with sliced banana, put it all together and, boom!—you’ve just made a Southern classic.
Winner, winner, banana and mayo dinner!
South Carolinians use salt to kick up the sweetness and juiciness of watermelon.
Watermelon and Salt
Salt is the South’s favorite spice for a reason: It makes a lot of things taste better.
In South Carolina, that includes watermelon. If you like your melons especially sweet and juicy, then this is one coupling you’ll want to try. Brush up on your melon-picking skills and give it a try.
Not only does a sprinkle of salt on watermelon enhance the flavor of sweetness on the tongue, but it entices the salivary glands to get to work. This gives the perception of a juicier melon.
Some folks call salted watermelon “Southern Gatorade” as it helps restore the fluids and electrolytes we copiously sweat out when the temps skyrocket. Makes sense and tastes good, too.
How to make it: Cut a slice of watermelon. Sprinkle with salt. Bite it. Be amazed.
Chocolate Gravy and Biscuits
No, this isn’t a typo. Gravy wizards across the South have been relying upon the alchemy of cocoa powder, milk and a few other simple ingredients to make this standby for quite some time.
The sweetness of the chocolate gravy is the perfect foil for the savory flavor profile of homemade biscuits. Sure, meat drippings are most commonly used as a base for a variety of Southern gravies, but there’s no denying our longtime love affair with the dark, sweet stuff. A can of cocoa in the cupboard is a lifesaver in the absence of ham or sausage.
How to make it: Mix ¼ cup of sugar, 2 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder and 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour. Add the mix to a skillet and, over medium heat, whisk in ¾ cup of milk. Stir constantly until it bubbles and thickens. Remove from heat. Stir in 1 tablespoon of butter, ½ teaspoon of vanilla and a pinch of salt.
Libby Wiersema lived in California and Alabama before settling in South Carolina 38 years ago,
where she's covered the state's best culinary offerings and tells the stories behind the food.
