Soul Food Staples
These greens are slow-cooked with smoked meat and often splashed with hot sauce.
Collard Greens
This is what many Black families call the grandma who runs the kitchen.
Big Momma / Big Mama
Many families thank God for blessings; this place is where they often worship on Sundays.
Church
This family game with cards is famous at Black gatherings and can get very loud.
Spades
This month is set aside to honor Black history in the U.S.
Black History Month
This cheesy dish is often baked in a big pan and is a must-have at Black Thanksgiving.
Mac and Cheese
Before you eat, this is often said over the food.
Blessing/Grace
This special service sometimes happens the night before Thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving service / praise service
These little white tiles with black dots are slammed on the table in many Black homes.
Dominoes
This holiday in June celebrates the end of slavery in Texas and the U.S.
Juneteenth
These are made from sweet potatoes, sugar, butter, and warm spices.
Candied Yams
You might hear this phrase when you try to eat too early: “The food not ready yet, so…”
“Go sit down” / “get out of my kitchen”?
This short word is shouted when someone strongly agrees in church.
"Amen"
The playlist might have old school R&B and this type of Sunday morning music.
Gospel music
This historic movement in the 1960s fought for equal rights for Black Americans.
Civil Rights Movement
This cornbread dish is often called “dressing” instead of “stuffing.”
Cornbread Dressing
This is the “don’t touch” dish that one auntie or grandma is famous for making.
Her signature dish (mac and cheese, dressing, cake, etc.)?
Many people say this phrase to show they are thankful: “I’m so ______.”
"Blessed"
This line dance is popular at parties and cookouts; everyone moves in the same steps.
Electric Slide / Cha Cha Slide / Cupid Shuffle; (accept one)
He gave the famous “I Have a Dream” speech.
Martin Luther King Jr.
Many families cook greens with these meats: ham hocks, turkey necks, or this salt-cured meat.
salt pork / smoked turkey / smoked ham; (accept any smoked meat)
When the older women talk and laugh in the kitchen, they are sharing this between generations.
Stories/wisdom/recipes
Some families write these down and read them out loud to remember what God has done.
Testimonies/gratitude lists
At big gatherings, people may debate loudly but are still family—this is called a family _____.
Family argument/discussion/debate
She refused to give up her bus seat in Montgomery, Alabama.
Rosa Parks