SOUL: A Chef's Culinary Evolution in 150 Recipes

by Todd Richards

James Beard Award-nominated Chef Todd Richards shares his personal culinary exploration of soul food.

Black American chefs and cooks are often typecast as the experts of only one cuisine-soul food, but Todd Richards' food is anything but stereotypical. Taste his Hot-Chicken-Style Country-Fried Lamb Steak or Blueberry-Sweet Tea-Brined Chicken Thighs as evidence. While his dishes are rooted in family and the American cuisine known as soul food, he doesn't let his heritage restrain him. The message of Soul is that cooks can honor tradition yet be liberated to explore. Todd Richards celebrates the restorative wonders of a classic pot of Collard Greens with Ham Hocks, yet doesn't shy away from building upon that foundational recipe with his Collard Green Ramen, a reinterpretation that incorporates far-flung flavors of cultural influences and exemplifies culinary evolution. Page after page, in more than 150 recipes and stunning photos, Todd shares his creativity and passion to highlight what soul food can be for a new generation of cooks. Whether you're new to Southern and soul food or call the South your home, Soul will encourage you to not only step outside of the box, but to boldly walk away from it.

The chapters in Soul are organized by featured ingredients: Collards, Onions, Berries, Lamb, Seafood, Corn, Tomatoes, Melons, Stone Fruit, Eggs and Poultry, Pork and Beef, Beans and Rice, and Roots. Each one begins with a traditional recipe and progresses alongside Richards' exploration of flavor combinations and techniques.

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Food, Nonfiction

368 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 22, 2018

Reviews

[Diane Hernandez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Soul includes 150 southern soul food recipes that look uniformly delicious thanks to great photographs.

With chapters focusing on a single ingredient, each chapter in Soul progresses from simple to complex recipes. The chapters include: Collards, Onions, Berries, Lamb, Seafood, Corn, Tomatoes, Melons, Stone Fruit, Eggs and Poultry, Pork and Beef, Beans and Rice, and Roots.

Soul includes menus and playlists plus wine and beer pairings. It includes simple traditional soul food fused with other cuisines like Fried Green Tomatoes made with tomatillos and ancho chili BBQ sauce and Chicken and Waffles with sweet potato waffles. Some are ideas I have never seen before like zucchini slaw. Since the book doesn’t contain nutritional information, I have to take off one star leaving it at 4 stars!

Thanks to the publisher, Southern Living, and NetGalley for a copy.

[Maryalene · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading the intro to this book which outlines Todd Richards's philosophy on food (although I will say that his Catholic grammar school appears to have failed in him the theology department). Lots of beautiful photos and interesting recipes.

I made the radish slaw and the candied bacon with turnip hash. Of these, the turnip hash was the best although it was a bit salty. For the radish slaw, it called for a jalapeno halved lengthwise. I thought at first that maybe you would pull out the jalapeno before serving, but the instructions don't say that. So I ended up seeding and mincing the jalapeno which might have been a mistake because the slaw was quite spicy.

This is a book I borrowed from the library. It's not one I will probably buy, but it was still a solid cookbook.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

Todd Richards grew up in Chicago, but often visited his father's family in Arkansas where he was exposed to Southern food and culture. Often African-American chefs are pigeonholed in "soul food," but Richards worked for French chefs and Japanese chefs and wanted to incorporate all the foods he loves into his food and this cookbook. Hence the name Soul - celebrating the soul of great food. I also like that he organizes the recipes by ingredient instead of a more typical cookbook organizing by appetizers, main courses, sides, etc. Each ingredient chapter starts with an introduction by Richards about that ingredient. Overall, a very solid cookbook and definitely a few recipes I want to try out.

[Sarah Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

These recipes we're delicious and an elevated version of some classic favorites like sweet potato waffles - yummy! The turnip hash was delicious and I can't wait to try the corn meal crust d snapper with some of the fish we caught in the gulf this summer. I know the apple butter will be a beloved favorite this fall.

If you love rich, flavorful recipes that play to the heart of American cuisine and foods that truly speak to your soul, check this beautiful cookbook out!

[RUSA CODES · Rating 5 out of 5]

As the name of his cookbook suggests, Richards’s delivers the pure life force of southern cooking. Call your friends and family, turn up the radio and head to the kitchen. Amp up your entertaining with the Grilled Peach Toast with Pimento Cheese.

2019 CODES List Winners Announced

[TISHA · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the easy recipes of this book. I am not a lover of Soul Food, but these dishes seem as if they will be delicious. I am looking forward to making something.

[Dray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite a cookbook. I liked that chapters were based on a type of ingredient (collard greens, stone fruits etc). Speaks with a unique voice, lots of southern based but evolved recipes.

[Gina · Rating 1 out of 5]

The photos were gorgeous but the recipes require very special ingredients not readily available at the grocery store. There isn't one recipe that I saved to make.

[Joyce Vincent · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this cook book. It takes me back to found memories of home and familiar smells of the kitchens of various family members and neighbors!

[Brad Theado · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's ok. These are recipes that I would call high end soul food. Wasn't at all what i was looking for in a book on soul food. It's a well crafted book, though, with beautiful pictures.