Food has always been at the heart of Gullah Geechee life. This is certainly true in Jacksonville, where foodways are a bridge between land, water, ancestry, and memory. Drawing from West and Central African, Native American, European, and Caribbean traditions, the region’s cuisine tells a story of creativity born from limited resources and of community sustained through flavor. Gullah Geechee food traditions remain an expression of identity and resilience in Jacksonville.
Gullah Geechee foodways in Jacksonville are more than meals. They are living archives of survival, celebration, and community care. In honor of Black History Month, here is the story behind six traditional Gullah Geechee inspired meals in Jacksonville.
1. One Pot Dishes
Photographed in March 1988, Hiram Jenkins cooks chicken stock for a perloo dish at his barbecue stand in Mandarin. Hiram’s BBQ was also known for its ribs and collard greens. | State Archives of Florida
Gullah Geechee foodways are an important part of Jacksonville’s culture. Many classic Southern dishes served locally are derived from Gullah Geechee culture. One-pot dishes and other recipes featuring shellfish and locally cultivated rice and fresh vegetables, forming a hodgepodge of flavors, are a cultural foundation of Gullah Geechee cuisine. Many of these one-pot dishes involve the deep frying, boiling, steaming and baking of seafood and food types consistent with those received in weekly plantation rations. Sometimes spelled purloo, pilau, or pirlou, perloo is an example of a traditional one-pot rice dish with West African origins that is central to the cuisine in Jacksonville’s Gullah Geechee community.
2. Garlic Crabs
Garlic Crab trays remain a popular dish in Jacksonville’s historic Gullah Geechee neighborhoods. | Ennis Davis, AICP…