Chef Edward Lee, the Brooklyn-born chef and restaurateur based in Louisville, brought his insightful and joyful perspective on the food of the American South to chefs at the 2019 RCA meeting. His keynote address, titled “My Cuisine is the Culture that Surrounds Me,” was sponsored by Symrise as part of their Southern Revival initiative, a new portfolio of flavors for sweet, savory and beverage applications based on the culinary renaissance sweeping the American South.
According to Chef Lee, “As chefs we are not trying to change traditions, we are just trying to diversify them. Southern food has always been a fusion of foods with influences coming from all over the world. You have European influences—things like pork, bacon and more the refined items like baked goods and pot pies. There’s a Native American influence that is more agricultural, featuring corn, squash and all kinds of beans. The final piece is the African influence where we get spices, barbeque, okra, collard greens, and beignets.”