Food & Wine USA - (02)February 2021

FEBRUARY 2021 55

procession, finding a spot on the No Limit Southern Riders float.

This was a far cry from the glitz and glamour of New Orleans.

The floats were simple flatbed trucks with a few streamers and

plywood barriers on the side. The route moved through the

small town, slow and gentle enough that onlookers sauntered

from their porches to the roadside, approaching with plates of

boudin, a mixture of rice and pork stuffed into sausage casing,

steaming in the cold morning. We gave them beads; they gave

us a link or two, and I think we got the better part of the deal.

Each bite of boudin burst with flavor, an alchemy of the rice

soaking up the pork juices, made even more flavorful with the

addition of liver; house spice, a blend of paprika, garlic, onion,

pepper, and more that varies from cook to cook; and, of course,

the most sacred of all Creole seasoning, the trinity. We got off

that float an hour later stuffed and headed to a chicken run,

which is exactly as it sounds: chicken and children squawking

in equal volume as one tried to catch the other. We watched,

eating plates of cracklings, red beans and rice, and fried shrimp.

But soon, Grandma and I had to move on. We had a date in

Beaumont, Texas, two hours west. As we drove on the highway,

crawfish ponds blurred by. My grandmother told me about her

mother, Momo, real name Emily Phillips, a woman who, with

her husband, a preacher, ran a restaurant out of their home in

Beaumont. That’s where hospitality entered our bloodstream.

Grandma Cassie told me about her life, too, most of which I

knew, some of which I didn’t, about the journey out of the South

to Chicago when she worried about where she—a single Black

mother with three young children—might be able to stop to

spend the night and how

often that was just pulled

over by the roadside.

By the time we arrived

at the small house where

my grandmother grew up

and my uncle Herman

still lived, it was dusk.

Uncle Herm and cousin

L.G. were standing in the

driveway. L.G. approached

and enveloped me in a

hug so big my feet lifted

from the pavement. “My

brother! My brother!” he

shouted. Inside the kitch-

en, Aunt Yolanda was put-

ting the finishing touches

on her banana pudding.

Uncle Herm, Grandma

Cassie’s brother, was

tending to a shrimp and

okra stew. White rice was

steaming from the cooker

and from ham hock–studded red beans on the stove. And next

to those beans was a soup pot full of shrimp stock, the makings

of an étouffée that I immediately recognized.

These flavors of home had been stewing in Beaumont well

before I tasted them as a toddler in the Bronx and, before Beau-

mont, in homes I don’t know stretching back through time. The

next time I made them, I would remember that I, as chef, wasn’t

cooking for myself but for all those who came before—and for

all who would follow.

If traveling to these

parts via New Orleans,

check in to The Chloe,

a 19th-century mansion

that’s been converted

into a hotel in the Uptown

neighborhood. There are

14 ridiculously charm-

ing rooms showcasing

local art and fun vintage

touches, a lush garden,

and a restaurant serving

up contemporary Creole

dishes. (Rooms from

$256, thechloenola.com)

In Mamou, turn in at the

Hotel Cazan, a boutique

hotel in the heart of Cajun

countr y. (Rooms from

$100, hotelcazan.com)

Dormant through the

week, Fred’s Lounge

comes alive only on

Saturday morning, when

local Cajun musicians

take the stage and Bloody

Marys flow from 8 in the

morning. The fiddles,

washboards, guitars, and

accordions that fill the

tiny stage barely leave

room for musicians, but

there’s also space for

dancing. (420 Sixth St.,

Mamou)

Locals line up to feast on

The Sausage Link’s spicy

freshly stuffed boudin,

crab burgers, po’boys,

fried pickles, gator balls,

and more. There’s nothing

fancy here, and along I-10,

there are plenty of other

boudin joints, but this one

is among the most deli-

cious. (2400 E. Napoleon

St., Sulphur, Louisiana)

DJ’s Boudain, a boudin

processing plant, isn’t

that much to look at

(unless you’re a USDA

hound), but DJ’s is a

local boudin legend, and

the small retail store

here—where the hungry

can avail themselves of

smoked boudin, smoked

jalapeño boudin, and

delicious boudin balls—

makes the trip worth it.

(djsboudain.com)

At the popular Krazy

Cajun Cafe in Mamou,

just across the street

from Fred’s Lounge, the

Friday special gets you

a heaping plate of silky

shrimp étouffée plus two

sides (go for the mashed

potatoes and the corn).

True, the best food in Lou-

isiana is served in home

kitchens, but Don Secia’s

modest restaurant—

packed with LSU memo-

rabilia—is so homey, and

the étouffée so delicious,

this is a necessary stop

for any hungry visitor. The

shrimp po’boys are legend

in these parts. (krazy

cajuncafe.business.site)

Hours and availability may

vary due to COVID-19.

KWAME AND CASSIE’S SOUTH

TRAVEL WITH KWAME

Our video crew joined Kwame Onwuachi as he

tasted his way from Louisiana to Texas. Watch the

film at foodandwine.com/travel.