Frank has warm memories of his childhood, growing up on his father’s poultry farm on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. He was part of the family business from the time he was so small “he had to hold an egg with two hands.”

Like any other farm family on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, the Perdues did not often get to enjoy a tender young broiler; that was strictly springtime eating, when there were small birds to spare. The rest of the year, chicken dinner meant long, slow cooking of one of the venerable hens that hatched the eggs that were the family business.

“If a holiday came along,” says Frank, “we could be sure my mother’s big cast iron kettle would come out and it would be time to cook up one of the older hens. That was great eating!”

Here’s the kind of Fourth of July menu that Frank grew up with. Since you probably don’t have an old stewing hen, try an Oven Stuffer Roaster for the Eastern Shore Chicken with Slippery Dumplings. Roasters are old enough to have a lot of flavor, but young enough not to be too tough.

If you’re unfamiliar with slippery dumplings, they are more like noodles or won ton wrappers than conventional dumplings. Sweet Potato Biscuits are a typical accompaniment, and Frank is so particular about them that the first six months of our marriage, I probably tried ten different recipes before hitting on the one that accompanies the Eastern Shore Chicken recipe. Sweet Potato Biscuits are sweeter and chewier than the baking powder variety eaten elsewhere.

Enjoy this Eastern Fourth of July feast.

Menu

*Eastern Shore Chicken with Slippery Dumplings

Turnip Greens

Corn on the Cob

Zucchini Parmesan

*Sweet Potato Biscuits

Iced Tea

Peach Cobbler

*Recipe follows

Chicken Recipes – The Perdue Chicken Cookbook

Copyright (C) by Mitzi Perdue – Used with Permission

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