Is Appalachia Spooky?
Is Appalachia actually spooky, or does it just make for really good stories?
That's the question Sam and I chewed on in our latest episode, and we chewed on it literally, because we recorded the whole thing in the kitchen while making dinner. Appalachian chicken and waffles. Except the "chicken" was squirrel.
So… Is It Spooky?
Here's what we got into:
Why does everybody think Appalachia is spooky? The hollers, the fog, the stories your Mamaw told you that you were definitely not supposed to repeat after dark. There's a reason every ghost-hunting show eventually points a camera at these mountains.
Between the legends and folklore, the unpredictable weather, Appalachia is the perfect backdrop to any spooky tale. But, is it actually spooky? Or is the legends stories used to teach us how to respect these mountains? Can the cryptids sightings just be normal occurrences that people are misinterpreting.
How do you explain the stuff people swear they saw? I even have a whole collection of stories from the woods and still somehow call myself a skeptic. Disappearing bears. Footprints that turn into a person. Noises that don't belong to anything with a name. We try to make sense of it, but at the end of the day, I don't know, but I saw.
Many people go into Appalachia excepting to see spooky stuff, and the power of suggestion can be very powerful. Maybe not everything that goes "bump" in the night, is actually out to get you. It could just be a critter you're not use to hearing.
Why is Appalachia suddenly everywhere in the media? Everybody wants a piece of the mountains right now; the stories, the music, the food, the folklore. But why?
It comes down to this, almost everyone enjoys a good scare.
This is also our last spooky episode of the season, so from us to you:
Happy Halloween, y'all!
The Real Star of the Episode: Dinner
Now, the part you've actually been waiting for. Dillon's squirrel recipe. Fair warning: this is not a recipe from a cookbook. This is a recipe from a man, a dog, and a shotgun.
Dillon's Squirrel Recipe
Before you step into the kitchen, you first need one Mountain Feist and one shotgun plus a place to hunt.
Once the squirrel has been “obtained,” you’re ready to begin.
Ingredients:
Flour
Seasoning: salt, pepper, parsley, and Cajun Two Step
Cooking oil
Corn Starch
Water
Instructions
1. Boil the squirrel for 30 minutes beforehand. (Yes, beforehand. Trust the process.)
2. Season the squirrels with whatever you like. Dillon goes with salt, pepper, parsley, and Cajun Two Step.
3. Coat in flour using the method your Mamaw showed you. If your Mamaw didn't show you a method, find someone whose Mamaw did. (Dillon used corn starch and water)
4. Drop in hot grease until done.
5. Enjoy with several Busch Lights.
Serve it up on a waffle, pour the syrup, and try to tell me that's not Appalachian fine dining.
We want to hear from you: what's the strangest Appalachian food you've ever eaten? And be honest, have you had squirrel?
