Puddin' Pot (2014)

The Puddin’ Pot is the traditional food served on the first Monday at the Indian Field Camp Meeting each September. It is made in a large iron kettle. Different parts of the pig’s head are added into the puddin’ pot along with other ingredients, including onions and seasoning. The Puddin’ Pot is served with rice “cafeteria style” and is doled out on the plates of local politicians, who show their “vote-worthiness” by eating large helpings. Puddin’ Pot is made during the hog-killing season, mostly by women to serve workers at noon. All that remains in the puddin’ pot is cooked down and removed and then ground into hash or used to make liver puddin’. Those who enjoy puddin’ pot recognize its roots as a subsistence food consumed during the hard times that historically marked the small farmer’s lot in South Carolina.