11 Delectable Southern Cookbooks

The Late Show’s Stephen Colbert is one of America’s foremost political and satirical comedians. What you may not know is that he and his wife, Evie, are homegrown South Carolinians and superb home cooks! During COVID lockdown, the entire Colbert family gathered again at their South Carolina home. The experience rekindled Stephen and Evie’s passion for fostering togetherness through shared family meals — and ultimately inspired the couple to write Does This Taste Funny? Paging through their new cookbook, you’ll find a bevy of culinary delights and some serious down-home Southern fare, from delectable Shrimp and Hominy and zesty Lime-Mezcal Wings to velvety Chess Pie. Sections devoted to cocktails and party food round out the collection. Read it, and you’ll instantly feel like you’re part of the Colbert crew. Come for the recipes, stay for their signature witty banter!

After spending decades cooking at one of Savannah’s hottest restaurants, Dora Charles finally shares her culinary talents with the rest of the world in A Real Southern Cook. Interspersed throughout Charles’s recipes for smoky okra, buttermilk cornbread, shrimp and rice, and more are stories of the author’s childhood in Savannah. The charm of A Real Southern Cook comes from getting a glimpse into Charles’s life and philosophy as a culinary virtuoso who first started cooking when she was six years old.  

Chef Steven Satterfield runs Miller Union in Atlanta, a restaurant known for its Southern twist on veggie-forward cooking. Root to Leaf’s philosophy is one of minimal preparation, seeking out the best ingredients, and using the whole plant, from root to leaf! More than just a list of recipes, this field guide to seasonal produce will inspire you to incorporate more fresh vegetables into your repertoire. Chef Satterfield has an authentic and simple approach to foods, and his instructions are sure to take your cooking up to the next level without overwhelming you with complicated ingredients or preparation.

This staple of any true Southern kitchen features recipes from the one and only Edna Lewis — the “First Lady of Southern Cooking,” according to NPR, and a James Beard Living Legend award winner. The Taste of Country Cooking is just as essential as it was over 30 years ago, featuring Southern dishes arranged by season, from fresh spring salads to savory winter stews. The recipes and book are infused with Lewis’s love of nature and her deep connection to her community and upbringing in Freetown, Virginia, a town settled and built by formerly enslaved people. 

From learning to cook in his grandmother’s kitchen in West Virginia to running the beloved Asheville farm-to-table restaurant The Market Place, Chef William Dissen has spent his whole life perfecting the art of Southern cooking. In his highly anticipated debut cookbook, Dissen shares uniquely modern takes on familiar Southern recipes. Dissen’s philosophy, like that of several other chefs on this list, is grounded not just in sharing great food but in being mindful of the connections we build through the meals we make, from cooking in tune with nature’s seasons to championing the folks who plant, grow, and pick our food.

Frustrated by demeaning “Aunt Jemima” stereotypes and the long-standing disregard for the key contributions Black women and men have made to American and Southern cuisine, Toni Tipton-Martin set out to create a compendium of cookbooks published by Black authors. The resulting book, The Jemima Code: Two Centuries of African-American Cookbooks, is like holding a museum in your hands. From a rare house servant’s manual from 1827 to modern cookbooks by prominent chefs like Edna Lewis, this James Beard Award–winning collection contains more than 150 cookbooks and vividly illustrates the principal role the Black community has played in shaping American culture across the decades.

In Roots, Heart, Soul, Todd Richards serves up Southern dishes inspired by his West African roots. An Atlanta-based chef, Richards follows up his first cookbook, Soul, with an even deeper dive into the West African history of North American food. Celebrated as one of the best new cookbooks of the year, Roots, Heart, and Soul dives deep into the history behind the recipes, tracing the impact of the slave trade and the Great Migration, and explaining how the West African diaspora changed American cooking forever. History buffs and cooks alike are sure to love Richards’s recipes for such mouthwatering dishes as Haitian Oxtail with Beef Broth, BBQ Shrimp with Garlicy French Bread and Parsley Butter, and Peach Cobbler with Butter Pecan Ice Cream.

Celebrated locally and across the country for its made-from-scratch desserts and fresh bread, Day Bakery of Savannah, Georgia, is a must-visit landmark. Luckily for you, you can pick up a copy of the Back in the Day Bakery Cookbook even if you can’t make it to Georgia anytime soon. In this must-read for dessert lovers and bakers, Cheryl and Griff Day share their baking secrets, customer favorites, and beautiful memories. Just reading the list of treats in this book — from Drunk Blondies and Buttermilk Biscones to Cinnamon Sticky Buns — is sure to send you to your nearest bookstore immediately.

From Top Chef season 16 winner and native Alabaman Kelsey Barnard Clark comes a modern take on the Southern cookbook. Filled with over 100 recipes and great tips for throwing a dinner party, Southern Grit is a perfect addition to your kitchen bookshelf. In addition to accessible recipes and pantry-stocking advice, Clark’s cookbook also features gorgeous shots by award-winning photographer Antonis Achilleos. If you’re a fan of Joanna Gaines and the Pioneer Woman’s approach to Southern home cooking, this is sure to be your next favorite cookbook.

In this James Beard Award winner, Chef Sean Brock, the culinary maestro behind some of Charleston’s most beloved restaurants, offers an array of robust recipes that combine the best of Southern flavors, from Appalachia to the Carolinas. There’s something for everyone and every occasion in Heritage, whether you’re looking for weeknight staples or fancy dinner party entrées. From traditional Southern-style comfort food such as slow-cooked pork shoulder to more unique fare like crispy pig ear lettuce wraps, Sean Brock’s recipes will quickly become some of your favorites.

A now-classic staple of the Southern cookbook genre, Seasoned in the South by Bill Smith has delighted home cooks for more than two decades. Smith ran Chapel Hill’s Crooks Corner for 25 years, a nationally recognized bistro hailed as “sacred ground for Southern foodies” by The New York Times. This beloved cookbook features seasonal menus alongside accessible recipes for dishes like Fried Green Tomatoes and Smith’s signature dish: Honeysuckle Sorbet. Seasoned In the South is the perfect entry point for any cook looking to get a taste of delicious Southern country cooking.