Soul food recipes have enjoyed a strong resurgence in popularity lately. Many reasons drive this surge in interest, according to many food experts and publishers. One of the main reasons is the economy.  More people have a need to find ways to stretch their food dollars. So,  the high cost of eating out is no longer an option for many people, especially African Americans.  It's estimated a family of 4 can save up to 60% off their food cost by cooking a meal at home as opposed to eating out.

As a result, more people are staying at home and cooking home cooked meals instead of spending money eating out. Eating out is getting to be more of a luxury for more middle and lower middle class families instead of a routine occurrence.

What Health Negatives They  Eliminated
Soul food recipe websites have also enjoyed a spike in popularity because it continues to quietly lose its  dubious reputation as unhealthy.  For instance, in the past  this southern cuisine was known for its high salt, calorie and fat content. While it has traditionally enjoyed a rich tradition of robust, flavorful and tasty dishes, the health benefits have always been questioned.

Today's recipes are healthier while managing to maintain the rich taste and flavors of  the traditional soul food recipes of the past.  This is a major feat achieved with a team effort from creative chefs, nutritionist, publishers and of course consumers. With this Herculean effort a resurgence in popularity continues to grow.  

The growth is not only from a crowd of traditional soul food lovers, but also from a new crowd. That includes people from Europe, Asian and Latin Countries. The cuisine is especially appealing to people from countries whose dishes have the robust flavors similar to soul food cooking. Many restaurants also enjoy the benefits of this growing trend. For example, now you can even find more soul restaurants with salad bars, something unheard just a few years ago.

What Healthier Cooking Methods Discovered
Another major change is the cooking methods used. Long gone are the many traditional methods of seasoning collard greens, black eyed peas and  traditional southern vegetables with fat back or ham hocks. These two items alone is single handedly to blame for countless cases of heart, blood pressure, obesity and a host of other ailments.

Now you'll find healthier seasoning alternatives. For example, smoked turkey provides the robust smoky flavor to vegetables, without the high salt, fat or calorie content of fat back or ham hocks.  In addition, many new school soul food recipes have adapted improved cooking methods that are still tasty but much healthier. For example, many recipes have introduced the Asian art of stir frying to their recipes. Stir frying helps to maintain up to 70% of foods nutrients compared to boiling, for example.

As a result, you can now find many recipes that call for stir fried collard greens and cabbage. Traditionally these two dishes were boiled in high amounts of water.  Unfortunately boiling vegetables in water for long periods of time, as traditionally done, cooks out most of the nutrients.

These are a few of the changes that's taking place in the soul food recipes industry of late. As this trend continues to grow I will continue to bring you more of the latest changes, updates and improvements. Stay tuned.

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