Don’t let the name fool you. Yes, there are a few dogs in this story, but the history of North Carolina’s favorite fried side can’t be told without shrimp, soft-shell crabs, and Piedmont-smoked hogs, too.
The birthplace of hush puppies has been contested, but many believe that they first found popularity on the docks lining the Calabash River. In the 1940s, before it became the “Seafood Capital of the World,” Calabash was a tiny fishing town where locals would cast nets off the docks or launch boats into the river to catch their next meal. When fishermen returned on hot summer afternoons, their families would gather beneath shady live oaks to peel shrimp and fillet fish before tossing everything in a light breading and submerging it in pots of fry oil. During these fish frys, there was often extra breading — and North Carolinians aren’t ones to waste. The dockside cooks combined the cornmeal with other leftovers and then fried the mixture for a hearty side — plus, if you believe in legend, something to toss to the pups that began barking when they smelled the feast. As the fish frys moved indoors, the matriarchs of soon-to-be-legendary seafood houses — Coleman’s, Beck’s, Ella’s — began serving hush puppies to customers alongside platters of fried oysters, flounder, crab, and shrimp.
In Calabash, you’ll find a lightly breaded, perfectly fried bounty piled high in baskets and on platters. Photography courtesy of NC’S BRUNSWICK ISLANDS
About 200 miles west of Calabash, The Friendly Road Inn in Greensboro, which opened in the early ’50s, was introducing the concept of the fish fry to local customers — and some big names, like restaurateur Warner Stamey, who was good friends with the Friendly Road Inn’s owner, Bob Shaw. Stamey had been smoking hogs and selling his Lexington-style ’cue since the 1930s, but hush puppies weren’t originally part of his offerings. Stamey’s son Keith believed that his dad picked up the idea of serving the side from Shaw. And while Stamey wasn’t the first to marry hush puppies and barbecue, he helped solidify the combination that is now ubiquitous in North Carolina restaurants.
Today, hush puppies are found on just about every good Southern menu, from glowing Cook-Out drive-throughs to the elegant Fearrington House Restaurant in Pittsboro. Chefs across the South have gotten creative with the staple side, introducing varieties made with apples and dusted with sugar, stuffed with jalapeños, and even, ahem, baked. No need to panic; just follow the scent of fried fish or smoked pork — the original can’t be too far.
Inside the Piggly Wiggly in Kinston, you can order Kings Restaurant’s specialty creation, a hush puppy “bun” barbecue sandwich. photograph by Chris Rogers
For years, hush puppies have known their place. They play a supporting role to the star performance: barbecue. But in the 1980s, at a Kings Restaurant counter inside the Kinston Piggly Wiggly, a deep-fry innovator thought outside the bun. The manager of this Kings outpost, Faye Lewis, had customers asking for the cornbread for which other Kings locations had become known. With only a deep fryer at her disposal, Lewis shaped cornmeal into a bun and dropped it into the hot oil, and out came the soon-to-be most popular vehicle for chopped ’cue this side of U.S. Highway 258. More than 40 years later, the Pig in a Puppy sandwich is still one of the most sought-after items on the restaurant’s menu, proving that you can indeed teach an old dog new tricks.
Kings Restaurant
405 East New Bern Road
Kinston, NC 28504
(252) 527-2101
kingsbbq.com
photograph by Andrew Kornylak
In Johnston County, one gristmill has been making cornmeal longer than the states have been united. Atkinson’s Mill in Selma began grinding grain in 1757 and hasn’t stopped since. In 1971, longtime employee Ray Wheeler — a k a “The Cornbread Man” — bought and expanded the business, which now offers products like cornbread mix, seafood breader, and the popular “Sweet Betsy” hush puppy mix. The mix is named after Ray’s wife, who started bagging cornmeal in the ’50s and eventually helped him run the business while raising their six children. Betsy was known to be a talented and generous cook, feeding everyone who came to visit the mill. Though she died in 2019, her hush puppies continue to find new fans.
Atkinson Milling Co.
95 Atkinson Mill Road
Selma, NC 27576
(919) 965-3547
atkinsonmilling.com
Mark our words: Whether they nod to North Carolina or were penned by its residents, these notable, quotable passages remind us of the power of speech inspired by our state.
When one stream flows into another, the two chart a new course for the future — together.
When the weather outside is frightful, one chef serves loved ones dishes so delightful.
A historic Rose Bowl pitted Duke University against Oregon State in Durham. Then, in the dark days of World War II, those same football players — and a legendary coach — joined forces to fight for freedom.
