OH BOY! PO’ BOY!

 

 From Linda Lee Greene, Author/Artist

 

It has been far too long since I have been in New Orleans, one of my favorite vacation cities in the USA. One of my best experiences in Nola was a cooking class in which I learned the basics of some of the city’s famous dishes, as well as the difference between Louisiana’s Cajun and Creole cuisines. They are often mistakenly thought to be the same, mainly because they do comprise many ingredients in common. “Creole” is still used to describe the heritage and customs, including the cuisine, of the various people who actually settled Louisiana. They were primarily black as well as mixed-race people chiefly of French and/or Spanish colonial origin. Cajun cooking appeared forty years later with the influx of refugees from Acadia (French: Acadie), which was a colony of New France in northeastern North America. Acadia included parts of what are now the Maritime Provinces of Canada, the Gaspé Peninsula of Canada and Maine to the Kennebec River of Maine. The population of Acadia included the various Indigenous First Nations (groups of Canadian Indigenous people who are classified as distinct from the Inuit and Métis), the Acadian people originally from southeastern France, and other French settlers. Acadia was eventually divided into British colonies, and the British deported the people from Acadia during the French and Indian War. They settled in rural parts of southern Louisiana.

The extreme change in climate forced the Louisiana Acadians to abandon many of their original culinary traditions. In their place arose what is now considered classic Cajun cuisine, which is rustic rather than elaborate, pulled together with locally available ingredients, and is simple in preparation and presentation. It is not to be confused with Prudhomme’s style of spicy and sumptuous Cajun cooking. While many modern-day restaurants use the Prudhomme style of “Louisiana cooking,” in-home cooking closely approximates that of the earliest Cajun settlers, oftener than not.  

It is generally accepted that New Orleans is a Creole town rather than Cajun. The underlying premise is that Creole culture and cuisine “is of the city” and Cajun “is of the country.” And if tomatoes are cooked into your jambalaya or étouffée or any other New Orleans dish, you know its Creole rather than proper Cajun.

           If you have been fortunate enough to tantalize your tastebuds with a Po’ Boy Sandwich, then you have experienced the flavor of Cajun fare. The history of the French Quarter’s most sought-after sandwich is as varied and plentiful as the ingredients that go into it. However, the most accepted version of its origin harkens back to 1929 when during that Great Depression year, the former streetcar drivers and brothers Clovis and Benjamin Martin, who became restauranteurs, invented and served the inexpensive sandwich to striking streetcar workers. At the appearance of a striker at the back door of the restaurant on St. Claude Avenue, a cry would go out from a kitchen worker, “Here comes another poor boy!” Thus was born the name of the sandwich.

              At lunchtime, my vacation companions and I often headed over to 511 St. Louis Street and elbowed our way in and among the cheery crowd at Johnny’s Po-Boys “joint.” There at tables clad in red-and-white-checkered table cloths, or sometimes at the countertop, each of us wolfed-down our sandwich. 

 

A great authentic Cajun recipe for a Shrimp Po’ Boy Sandwich, or any other derivation of the sandwich such as roast beef, pork, oyster, shellfish, ham and cheese, and more is at https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/shrimp_po_boy_sandwich/. Take note that once you add the tomatoes, you’ve gone a little bit Creole. To nobody’s surprise, in this city of weekly festivals there is one devoted to the Po’ Boy, normally held in late-October or mid- to late-November. Dubbed the ‘Oak Street Po’ Boy Festival’, it was organized to breathe new life into Nola’s rich culture after Hurricane Katrina devastated the city. The one-day festival showcases over 60 variations of the sandwich from various restaurants with a backdrop of live music and arts and crafts. It kicks off with a Friday-night party and bar-crawl. Just Google ‘Oak Street Po-Boy Festival’ or visit www.poboyfest.com to obtain the latest information about the festival.©

 

 

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Linda Lee Greene’s novella, GARDEN OF THE SPIRITS OF THE POTS, A Spiritual Odyssey, is a blend of visionary and inspirational fiction with a touch of romance. It is a tale of ex-pat American Nicholas Plato’s journey into parts unknown, in New Orleans, in Sydney, Australia, which is his final destination, and in his himself, a quest that in the end leads him to his true purpose for living.

It is available in eBook and/or paperback. Just click the following link/URL and it will take you straight to the page on Amazon on which you can purchase it.

https://www.amazon.com/GARDEN-SPIRITS-POTS-SPIRITUAL-ODYSSEY-ebook/dp/B09JM7YL6F/

 

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