food and politics

Sgt. White's Diner in Beaufort, South Carolina.

Last week I traveled to South Carolina as part of a team of University of Washington Communication Department faculty and students to report on the GOP primary for UW Election Eye, a blog partnership with the Seattle Times. What a privilege. Even though it meant functioning with 4 hours of a sleep a night, I wouldn't trade it for the world.

Our task was to collect stories of everyday South Carolinians, not just chase the political theater that saturates the state. What better way to seek our everyday stories than over food? With a recommendation in mind, I headed to Sgt. White's Diner in Beaufort, South Carolina. While two of my colleagues soaked up a Newt Gingrich rally in the historic town center, I drained two bottomless cups of sweet tea and packed away barbecue ribs, bacon fried corn, butter beans, and cornbread. It was a multi-napkin meal.

Sgt. Ron White himself was manning the ferociously hot pit, and we were soon engaged in a conversation around food, politics, and the military. Here is the full story of my visit.

Food and politics go hand in hand. Candidates gravitate to diners, watering holes, and picnics when the weather cooperates. Their tastes and food traditions become part of their narrative, and at times, their stump speeches. (Remember Clinton and his gigantic Arkansas watermelons?)

Take for instance yesterday's New York Times article on redefining Mormon culinary identity. Without Mitt Romney in the hunt for the GOP nomination, this article is a nonstarter. That would be a shame. I learned more about Mormonism in ten minutes than I've learned in the last two years.

As I read the article, it wasn't the Mormon teachings around ingredients or storage that compelled me most, or even the "funeral potatoes," which sounded addictive. Instead, it was the profile of a Mormon blogger who spent her three years in Japan (according to mormon.org, 52,000 missionaries are currently serving in 350 missions around the world), and now shares her recipes on her food blog. While the article made excellent reference to the iconic dishes-- green jello desserts, casseroles--my thoughts veered away from classic Americana to the breadth of culinary exposure many Mormons experience as part of their missionary work. Their immersion inevitably leaves culinary imprints, and now those varied kitchen repertoires gain audience as the food blogging community continues to grow.

And as a certain high-profile Mormon makes a bid for the White House kitchen.