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| Peanut Soup Mix |
Considered asouthern delicacy in some parts of the country, peanut soup in America datesback to the early 1700’s. For decades, peanutconnoisseurs have speculated about how this soup arrived and gained popularityin the United States.
Historyshows that peanuts have been around since the Incan Empire. Peanuts are awell-traveled legume. European explorers made their acquaintance in theCaribbean. Spaniards exported them, carrying them on ships to the Philippinesand Indonesia. The Portuguese - who discovered peanuts in Brazil, not far fromthe legume's Peruvian birthplace - took peanuts to Africa, where thenutritious, hardy legume fed the nation's sailors stationed along the coast. Peanutsare thought to have been brought to America by the Portuguese slave traders whoserved peanuts while they were in transit.
“Peanuts were certainly eaten by slaves before they were eaten by whites”, saysFrank Clark, who oversees the historic foodways program at ColonialWilliamsburg, which for decades has served peanut soup to guests of the museum’sKing’s Arms tavern – despite the dish being a culinary anachronism. “If you’dcome to an 18th-century tavern, it’s very unlikely you’d haveencountered peanut soup there,” Clark says. Although there is no documentaryevidence of peanut soups being served in 18thy century America, it is believedthat the slave diet would have included peanut soups, mushes and stews, perhapsstyled after the tomato-based soups popular in central Africa or a Sudenesesoup made with lamb bones, garlic and rice. Still, the soup - which marks manynortherners' first introduction to creamy peanuts in a bowl - will stay on themenu, since Colonial Williamsburg is obliged to honor its own history as wellas the record of what occurred during the Colonial era. bones, garlic and rice.
It’s unclearexactly how peanuts evolved from a food seen as fit for slaves and pigs to afood approved by Anglo-American tastemakers. The first known recipe comes froman 1847 cookbook by a Sarah Rutledge, a housewife from South Carolina, whopublished a recipe for Ground Nut Soup. Her recipe includes a pint of oystersand peanuts ground with flour. After her book was published, several othervariations of the soup appeared in newspapers and cookbooks.
It is still amystery to how peanut soup became a popular dish at fine dining restaurantsacross the country. The popularity of peanut soup surged domestically after theCivil War, during which Confederate soldiers introduced their Unioncounterparts to the legume. The increased availability of peanut butter alsohelped. In Germany, a doctor praised cheap, albumen-rich peanut soup as theperfect “article of food for the corpulent, for diabetics and for subjects ofkidney disease.” Peanut soup became popular in American homesin the early twentieth century, as peanuts and peanut butter became availableat grocery stores across the country. Peanut soup is now served at several finedining restaurants, America Eats Tavern in Washington, D.C. and Wit and Wisdomin Baltimore both feature the soup on their menus.
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n 1941, theNational Peanut Council published a collection of peanut soup recipes fromGeorge Washington Carver. He is believedto have had the largest collection of peanut soup recipes during that time,including recipes for peanut bisque, peanut soups, a consommé, and purees.
n 1941, theNational Peanut Council published a collection of peanut soup recipes fromGeorge Washington Carver. He is believedto have had the largest collection of peanut soup recipes during that time,including recipes for peanut bisque, peanut soups, a consommé, and purees.
The PeanutShop of Williamsburg All-Natural Peanut Soup evokes memories of Colonial tavernfare. Just add chicken stock for a rich, creamy and fortifying soup that willwarm the hearts of the hungry.
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