Southern Comfort Food Can Add Up Quickly
Americans absolutely love Southern cooking and for good reason. Not only is it delicious, but it tastes comforting from the first bite. Sadly, that amazing taste doesn't come without a price. Many classic Southern dishes are definitely not the healthiest of options out there, and shouldn't be something you eat regularly. Here are just 20 that are honestly far too unhealthy for you to eat regularly.
1. Fried Chicken
Fried chicken is one of the most iconic Southern dishes, and it earns that reputation without a doubt thanks to its unbelievably crispy skin and juicy meat. Unfortunately, no matter how good it tastes, it can't hide the fact that it's incredibly unhealthy, with the frying process racking up both the calorie and bad fats counter.
2. Biscuits And Gravy
For a breakfast meal, biscuits and gravy is as heavy and indulgent as it gets. It's definitely not a light way to start the day! Buttery biscuits soaked in a high-calorie sausage gravy only adds to how much saturated fat, sodium, and calories you're consuming in this one dish.
3. Chicken-Fried Steak
Another fried entry, chicken-fried steak takes a large piece of beef, coats it in seasoned flour, fries it, and then finishes it off with a hefty amount of creamy gravy. Sadly, nothing we just mentioned is healthy in any which way shape or form, with this combination of ingredients making it heavy in fat, sodium, and calories.
Jessica from Hove, United Kingdom on Wikimedia
4. Shrimp And Grits
Shrimp and grits sounds pretty harmless, especially because shrimp is fairly lean, but the dish often gets loaded with butter, cheese, bacon, cream, and sometimes sausage, which immediately counters that belief. Those rich additions turn a simple bowl into something much unhealthier than it first appears.
5. Pimento Cheese
This spread is made up of intense ingredients that make it hard to call this good for you in any way. Pimento cheese is mainly made up of shredded cheese, mayo, and plenty of seasonings which makes it rich in fat and sodium. And when you're mindlessly scooping it onto crackers, you'll eat way more than you should.
Michael Coté from Austin, Texas, Texas on Wikimedia
6. Fried Catfish
Fried catfish is a Southern staple that often shows up with hush puppies, fries, and creamy coleslaw. That entire plate is definitely your entire day's worth of calories! Catfish itself can be part of a balanced meal, but deep-frying it changes the picture instantly.
7. Hush Puppies
Hush puppies might not look very big, but they can still do plenty of damage, especially when they often come served in a big basket. These fried cornmeal bites are unhealthy not just because of its cooking method, but because they're typically eaten alongside other fried foods too.
8. Macaroni And Cheese
Southern macaroni and cheese is absolutely delicious, but that's largely in part because it's baked with lots of cheese, butter, milk, eggs, and sometimes extra cream. That makes it rich, creamy, and very easy to overeat, which is dangerous when it's so unhealthy. As comforting as it is, this dish can bring a serious load of saturated fat and calories.
9. Cornbread With Lots Of Butter
Despite being a fairly simple side, cornbread can really rack on the butter, bacon grease, sugar, and heavy toppings. A small slice won't seem like much, but it's really made up of plenty of unhealthy ingredients that aren't doing you any favors.
10. Collard Greens With Ham Hocks
Collard greens themselves are nutritious, but the traditional Southern preparation immediately changes that notion of health. When they’re cooked with ham hocks, bacon grease, or salted pork, they pick up a lot of sodium and saturated fat. You’re still getting greens, but the added meat and salt make this version unhealthy.
11. Red Beans And Rice With Sausage
This filling and budget-friendly dish might be good for the wallet, but it's definitely not the best for your body. The classic Southern version often includes smoked sausage or ham, which adds flavor, but also brings sodium, saturated fat, and preservatives to the table.
12. Jambalaya
Jambalaya is packed with flavor, but it can also be packed with sausage, ham, chicken, oil, and salty seasonings. The rice base makes it easy to eat a large portion, which can seriously add up the calories fast. Depending on the recipe, this dish can become a high-sodium, calorie-heavy meal that doesn't look as bad as it is.
13. Gumbo
This traditional Southern dish can vary a lot, but most versions begin with a roux made from flour and fat, before sausage, seafood, chicken, and other rich ingredients all get tossed into the pot. The end result can be deeply flavorful, but it’s often heavier than it looks in the bowl.
14. Fried Green Tomatoes
Tomatoes are healthy yes, but toss anything into a fryer and all those health benefits go out the window. All that extra fat and calories from the coating and oil make this an appetizer or side you really shouldn't eat too often.
15. Country Ham
Country ham has a bold, salty flavor that many Southern cooks love, but that saltiness is exactly the issue. It’s typically cured, which means it can be extremely high in sodium compared with fresher cuts of meat. Eating it regularly is definitely not the best move, especially if you’re trying to watch your blood pressure or overall salt intake.
16. Sausage Gravy
We've already mentioned biscuits and gravy, but the sausage gravy deserves its own special little shoutout for being so unhealthy. This topper usually gets poured over something that's already buttery or starchy, making the rich and creamy even worse for your health.
17. Sweet Potato Casserole
Sweet potatoes are naturally nutritious, but Southern-style casserole often adds butter, brown sugar, marshmallows, and sometimes a sweet pecan topping. At that point, the dish starts acting more like dessert than a vegetable side.
18. Banana Pudding
Just because there's a fruit in the title doesn't automatically make it a healthy dessert. After all, banana pudding is built around pudding, cookies, sugar, and whipped topping or meringue. Unfortunately, the bananas don’t cancel out the added sugar and refined ingredients that usually make up most of the dish.
Nicole Winchel Brayton on Unsplash
19. Pecan Pie
Pecan pie is rich even by dessert standards, thanks to its filling of sugar, syrup, eggs, butter, and nuts. This dessert is so indulgent, sometimes one or two bites is enough! And while pecans have healthy fats, the pie as a whole is awfully high in sugar and calories.
20. Peach Cobbler
Peach cobbler sounds fruit-forward, and perhaps not as unhealthy as others on this list, but many Southern recipes use plenty of sugar, butter, and a thick biscuit or pastry topping. The peaches may bring some nutrients, but the added ingredients can turn the dish into a very sweet and calorie-heavy dessert.
