| November is wedding season in our community. Weddings are hosted every Tuesday and Thursday, and many of us will attend 9 or more throughout the month. Sometimes, we attend two weddings in one day! It is common to celebrate one couple with an 8am ceremony and then enjoy the afternoon reception of another. It is a happy season filled with joy and gratitude, and a season that leads us to reflect on the role food plays in enabling community gathering.
The day before a wedding, relatives and neighbors will gather at the host’s house to prepare the traditional dish: Wedding Roast Chicken. Everyone will take home with them that evening prepped chicken complete with stuffing. With each wedding attended by 300-500 guests, this could look like 90 prepped chickens.
Families will roast the chickens, clean the meat off the bones, collect the stuffing and will each bring the food back to the wedding location the next morning. Everyone’s chicken and stuffing will be combined and turned into the main course of the meal. We serve Wedding Roast Chicken with mashed potatoes, gravy, fresh cabbage slaw, and cooked celery.
Join us in this celebratory season – we included the recipe below. |
