Food has always been at the heart of Gullah Geechee life. This is certainly true in Jacksonville, where foodways are a bridge between land, water, ancestry, and memory. Drawing from West and Central African, Native American, European, and Caribbean traditions, the region’s cuisine tells a story of creativity born from limited resources and of community sustained through flavor. Gullah Geechee food traditions remain an expression of identity and resilience in Jacksonville.
Gullah Geechee foodways in Jacksonville are more than meals. They are living archives of survival, celebration, and community care. In honor of Black History Month, here is the story behind six traditional Gullah Geechee inspired meals in Jacksonville.
1. One Pot Dishes
Photographed in March 1988, Hiram Jenkins cooks chicken stock for a perloo dish at his barbecue stand in Mandarin. Hiram’s BBQ was also known for its ribs and collard greens. | State Archives of Florida
Gullah Geechee foodways are an important part of Jacksonville’s culture. Many classic Southern dishes served locally are derived from Gullah Geechee culture. One-pot dishes and other recipes featuring shellfish and locally cultivated rice and fresh vegetables, forming a hodgepodge of flavors, are a cultural foundation of Gullah Geechee cuisine. Many of these one-pot dishes involve the deep frying, boiling, steaming and baking of seafood and food types consistent with those received in weekly plantation rations. Sometimes spelled purloo, pilau, or pirlou, perloo is an example of a traditional one-pot rice dish with West African origins that is central to the cuisine in Jacksonville’s Gullah Geechee community.
2. Garlic Crabs
Garlic Crab trays remain a popular dish in Jacksonville’s historic Gullah Geechee neighborhoods. | Ennis Davis, AICP
Another popular one-pot dish featuring local shellfish, a variant of the well-known seafood boil, garlic crabs are cooked in a melted garlic butter sauce with sausage, corn, eggs and potatoes. Garlic crabs can be found across the coastal Southeast, but Jacksonville is the world capital of the dish, which is served up at dozens of local crab shacks and restaurants. The majority of businesses specializing in garlic crabs can be found in Jacksonville’s historic Northside neighborhoods where tributaries, including the Trout and Ribault Rivers, are home to numerous crab traps.
3. Boiled Peanuts
Boiled peanuts at the Jacksonville Farmers Market at 1810 West Beaver Street. Established in 1938, the Jacksonville Farmers Market is Florida’s oldest and largest continuously operating public farmers market. | Jacksonville Farmers Market
Boiled peanuts, once known as “goober peas,” have deep roots in Southern folk culture and Gullah Geechee history. Brought to North America by enslaved Africans in the 18th century, peanuts were initially cultivated in small garden plots for family use. When crops were abundant, communities gathered for lively “peanut boils,” celebrating with conversation, music, and food. By the early 20th century, peanuts became a Southern staple. Today, across Jacksonville, this tradition lives on with boiled green peanuts available at roadside stands, farmers markets, flea markets, and local stores, continuing to connect past and present through a simple, shared delicacy.