An Adventure in Sorghum Syrup with Chef Linton Hopkins
It's a tradition he shares with his children - the Blairsville Sorghum Festival - and it's a taste he shares with the many that dine with him at Restaurant Eugene in Atlanta, Georgia.
You might call him a national advocate for this southern staple, but Chef Hopkins just believes it's one of the great, undiscovered flavor explosions of the South.
Through his creations, he's providing an experience to those who more than likely would never cross paths with this earthly, acquired taste. I told him that I grew up in the mountains and my daddy's morning ritual included biscuits, butter and sorghum, his Southern trinity. I shared that I wasn't too keen on the flavor. He looked me square in the eye and said, "You need to revisit that."
And so I did, yearly at the Blairsville Sorghum Festival. I was shocked that my childhood singular impression transferred into my mature years. I quickly remedied that by buying a jar of this ebony elixir and making biscuits the next morning.
I still contend that you either love the syrup or you don’t. Sadly, I’m still on the fence but my New Jersey husband slurps sorghum like a true Southerner.
Photo and recipes courtesy Chef Linton Hopkins
2024 Blairsville Sorghum Festival | The 55th annual festival takes place October 12, 13 and October 19, 20 at Meeks Park. Two full weekends of sorghum goodness. Parades, biscuit and syrup eating contests, pole climbing, artisans and demonstrations fill the park and you’ll be hard-pressed to find a better fall festival in the North Georgia Mountains. Purchase your quart of syrup (cash only) and try these recipes.
Sorghum Brown Butter
Brown butter is always better when just made. The key step, of course, is browning the butter. The point of no return happens pretty quickly so have your lemon, parsley and sorghum ready to help stop the browning process. The parsley should cackle when it hits the hot butter. Tt is also important to remove it from the pan as soon as it is finished or it will continue to darken.
1/4 pound unsalted butter cut into cubes
4 tablespoons sorghum syrup
1 tablespoon chopped Italian parsley
juice of one lemon
½ teaspoon kosher salt
Heat butter in thick saucepan until golden brown. Remove from heat, add parsley, lemon juice, salt and sorghum and toss to mix. Serve immediately
Sorghum Glazed Beef Ribs
Ribs
8 racks center cut beef ribs (around 4 to 5 pounds)
1/2 cup kosher salt
2 tablespoons black pepper
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
Clean ribs of silverskin membrane on the back of the ribs. Use a paring knife and slowly ease the skin off by pulling. Takes some practice but yields better ribs. Combine dry items, rub into ribs, place on rack on sheet pan and refrigerate overnight. Bring oven up to 275 degrees. Place ribs in oven and roast for 2 hours (until you see meat starting to pull away from the bone), mopping glaze on top every 30 minutes. At end of two hours, bring oven up to 400 degrees and let ribs cook for 10 minutes until well glazed.
Glaze
1 cup sorghum
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon coarse black pepper
Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer and cook until reduced by half.
Sorghum-Glazed Pork Belly
1 pound cooked pork belly
1/2 cup sorghum
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
3 tablespoons whole butter
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
Cut cooked pork belly into 1-inch cubes. Deep fry at 375 degrees until crisp golden brown. Melt sorghum in thick-bottomed pan. Bring to a simmer, add vinegar and cook back to a glaze. Add butter, then fried pork bellies. Cook glaze down until sticky and well-coated. Season with salt and black pepper.
