“Somewhere South,” which premieres Fridays at 8 p.m., will air on PBS, PBS.org and the PBS Video App as well as Mississippi Public Broadcasting stations. The third episode of the series, “Dumpling Dilemma”, April 10, features stops in Mississippi and Howard’s native North Carolina as she examines morsels appeal across French, Jewish, Chinese and other soul food traditions. The journey includes the Chinese-American story of the Mississippi Delta as well as the Jewish community in Jackson. Howard’s prior award-winning series, “A Chef’s Life”, was co-created by Cynthia Hill. It focused on eastern North Carolina cuisine. Howard said that “Somewhere South” was a broad overview of Southern cuisine and Southern traditions. Howard highlighted the contributions of the many people who settled in the area and their cultural heritage. She says that there are only 20 different dishes around the world. “Everybody has their own way of cooking greens. Everyone has a recipe for a dumpling. Everyone has a barbecue. Everyone has a pickle.” These broad categories provide a common ground that welcomes the diverse histories, heritages and unique dishes from the South. These connections across cultures and across tables can soften people’s feelings towards each other, she hopes. She was excited to visit Mississippi with its rich agricultural heritage. Howard states that most people view it as black and white. This is the predominant narrative, at least in the state. “So, finding these really long-standing, well-developed Mississippi communities was not what you would have expected, and it was really exciting to us,” Howard says. Her encounters with the communities highlight their stories and bring back fond memories. Sally Chow and Gilroy hosted a delicious dumpling feast, and she also visited Gene’s Market in Clarksdale. She also visited the Mississippi Delta Chinese Heritage Museum in Cleveland, and Mai Little China in Greenwood. Sally Chow explains that Chinese dumplings are a time-consuming and labor-intensive dish. They can be made in dough pockets, with delicious fillings. But, there are still delicious memories of home traditions. Carol Chinn, her cousin, shared her mother’s recipe for shrimp, mushroom, and pork dumplings, as well as her dad’s homemade steamer. (Think cake pan meets icepick). It is interesting to learn about the history of Chinese immigrants who arrived in the Delta to work in the fields and then found better opportunities in grocery stores. For example, Cleveland was home to about 20 Chinese grocery stores at their peak in the 1940s and 1950s. Emily Jones, an archivist at Delta State University, is the curator of the Mississippi Delta Chinese Heritage Museum located in the Capps Building on campus. These were grocery stores but they were closer to corner markets, literally on the corners. They were the refrigerator of the neighbourhood,” providing customers with easy access to refrigerators and a place to store their groceries. As the generations passed, many of these items are no longer available. However, there are still some remnants. Cathy Mai and Matthew Mai, owners of Mai Little China in Greenwood, share pork and chive dumplings as well as a sweet dumpling filled with peanuts and coconut. Both are connected to past generations. Matthew’s mother tends the garden where Cathy’s mom originally planted the chives. Sweet dumplings are a comfort food that her mother made in her youth. Cathy recalls that her mother could make 100 of these in a single day. “It was special being able to share that,” and honor Lillian Kwong, her mother who died last October. The spotlight will also be on Jackson’s Jewish community and its ubiquitous matzo balls, dumplings. It is a chance for us to learn about the history of Jewish merchants and peddlers, Beth Israel Congregation’s roots and bombings and our courage during the civil rights movement. Petra Kay guides Howard and Susan Hart, along with Alli Parshall and Alli Hart, through making matzo balls the same way her mother taught her — using the chicken fat (schmaltz) to make the broth and a delicate touch when rolling the balls. Kay was born in Germany and has lived in Mississippi for 30 years. It was great fun. Kay said that it brought back many memories. “My mother died a long time ago,” Kay says. However, going through the motions and explaining how the technique worked channeled her spirit. This is how she did it. “Oh yes, this is how she did it. She says that her husband is Jewish and it has been a long-standing joke that his mother used to make terrible matzo balls. She laughs, “It wasn’t something I tried to make, because obviously my mother would be terrible too!” Kay was a well-known chef and I loved sharing my knowledge with her. “One way to keep the Jewish faith and traditions alive in our community would be through the cuisine.” Beth Israel Congregation shares traditional Jewish food with the wider community through its annual Beth Israel Bazaar. This year’s event was postponed due to COVID-19 concerns. Howard said, “I loved that feeling of the Jewish community.” But Howard also mentioned that he enjoyed Jackson’s greater sense of integration. It seems so integrated and welcoming. It just seems very integrated and warm.