Iconic North Carolina Dishes

To make your trip a well-rounded one, there are several iconic North Carolina dishes that you’ll have to try during your stay. Here are a few to look for on the menus of Asheville best restaurants.

There are two main barbecue styles to choose from in North Carolina, and it usually comes down to the sauce. Lexington-style barbecue uses a tangy, vinegar-based sauce that is typically blended with ketchup, salt, pepper and occasionally a “secret” spice or two. It’s tradition to dip your meat into the sauce rather than pouring it on.

Eastern style barbecue is known for using the whole hog. Pit masters cook an entire pig over wood and then use cleavers to chop the different light and dark cuts of meat together. The smoky bits of skin are added to bring more flavor to the dish. The farther east your travel in North Carolina, the less you’ll see the use of ketchup-based sauces that are used in Lexington-style.

North Carolina is ninth in the United States when it comes to peach production. So naturally, you’ll find delicious peach cobbler in just about every restaurant and farmer’s market within the state. Peach cobbler is often the “desert of the day” in Asheville and provides the perfect combination of sweet fruit, mild spices and buttery, baked crust.

These are a summertime favorite across North Carolina. Fried green tomatoes will be served in large and small portions in restaurants throughout Asheville and they are generally dredged in cornmeal, fried to a crisp and served piping hot. Even those that don’t love vegetables will love this delicious dish.

North Carolina is America’s top producer of sweet potatoes, so it’s only fitting that you’d find some of the best sweet potato pie here, too. The pie is usually baked with a flaky crust, layer of candied sweet potatoes and a layer of mashed sweet potatoes before being topped with a finishing layer of whipped cream.