Hardette Harris
Hardette Harris (born December 19, 1967) is an American chef, culinarian, and educator.
She is a 2001 graduate of The Art Institute of Houston’s culinary arts program and an accomplished private chef focused on enhancing the home cook experience as well as equipping senior citizens and infirmed people with the ability to function in an organized kitchen. She first gained prominence as an authority on Northern Louisiana’s foodways when former presidential advisor Adrian E. Miller (also known as the Soul Food Scholar) included her in his James Beard Foundation award-winning book, Soul Food: The Surprising Story of an American Cuisine, One Plate at a Time.[1]
On January 18, 2014, she hosted a Points of Light “Sunday Supper” event called “The Dream Dinner,”[2] a chef’s table event in Minden, Louisiana to commemorate Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday with food and conversation about race relations that featured Miller and a diverse group of community leaders.
In 2015, Harris was selected by the State Legislature of Louisiana to create the official meal for Northern Louisiana. The meal’s menu includes fried catfish, hot water cornbread, purple hull peas, turnip greens, and 30-plus other items used in several courses with an appetizer, main dish, dessert, side dish, and drink.
Her first book Chef Harris' Guide to a Stress-Free Holiday Kitchen: How to Cook, Entertain AND Enjoy the Holidays was published in October 2014.
Early life[edit]
Hardette Harris was born and raised in the small city of Minden, Louisiana in Webster Parish. Her parents are Welton and Thelda Harris. She graduated from Minden High School in 1985. Harris is protestant and a lifelong member of the historic Mt. Zion CME Church in Minden, and is also a member of St. Paul United Methodist Church in Shreveport.
She can trace her paternal lineage to the Gullah people of Salters (Plantation), South Carolina.
Culinary training and career[edit]
Harris became a chef after a career with Houston Police Department. She followed her passion for cooking, and received her training and credentials at The Art Institute of Houston. Her first foray in the culinary arts was as a private chef for affluent and notable families in Houston that included CEOs and corporate executives. She worked in San Antonio, Texas as a private chef, where she opened Private Chef Services, Incorporated before returning to Louisiana.
While working in San Antonio, she was approached by author and food scholar Adrian E. Miller to contribute to his book Soul Food: The Surprising Story of an American Cuisine, One Plate at a Time.[1] Harris offered evidence of the differences in Louisiana cuisine and authenticated a Northern Louisiana cuisine that was informed by different food preparations, crops indigenous to the region, and sources: African, Native American, German, English, and French cuisines.
In 2014, Harris invited Miller to Minden and Shreveport-Bossier to introduce his book and be her guest at The Dream Dinner, where he led a discussion on race, food, and community with a racially-diverse group of diners who supped on a meal prepared by Harris. Present at the dinner was Louisiana State Rep. Gene Reynolds who was impressed with the meal to develop a conversation with Harris that led to him to introduce House Concurrent Resolution 88[3], for the official meal of North Louisiana, which passed with a unanimous vote on April 29, 2015.[3]
In 2017, Hardette Harris was honored as one of eight Louisianians of the Year by Louisiana Life magazine[4]. Esteemed by Gov. John Bel Edwards and Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser, Harris received recognition for her work as chef, culinary educator and the creator of the official North Louisiana meal.
Interests and advocacy[edit]
Harris has volunteered as an instructor at Renzi Education and Art Center in Shreveport, where she taught basic cooking skills to children in their afterschool program. Her expressed passion is to not only teach children and young people how to cook for the sake of nutrition but to also teach them about the importance of preserving their local and cultural food traditions.
She is an ardent supporter of cottage food producers – women and men – who operate small food enterprises from their home kitchens.
The bulk of Harris’ advocacy work has been focused on preserving and promoting Northern Louisiana’s foodways by advancing conversations in food history circles and in media. She created “Us Up North”[5] a culinary experiences and food tours designed to showcase the food of North Louisiana, the farming communities that produce the food, and the restaurants that serve those foods on their menus.
Personal life[edit]
Harris lives in the Shreveport area.
Awards and honors [edit]
- In 2018, Harris was featured in the Louisiana Travel Inspiration Guide as a “Louisiana Original”[6] alongside renowned chefs Emeril Lagasse and John Folse.
- Country Roads magazine named Harris a winner of their “Small Town Chefs” award in June 2017.[7]
- Harris was one of eight individuals named “Louisianian of the Year” by Louisiana Life magazine for her work as a Northern Louisiana foodways advocate in 2017.[4]
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Miller, Adrian (2013-08-15). Soul Food: The Surprising Story of an American Cuisine, One Plate at a Time. UNC Press Books. ISBN 9781469607634. Search this book on
- ↑ "Soul food expert comes to Shreveport for book signing, headlines 'The Dream Dinner'".
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Official north Louisiana menu declared".
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Louisianians of the Year".
- ↑ "Minden's Chef Hardette Harris to host 'Us Up North' Mardi Gras Food Tour | Minden Press-Herald". press-herald.com. Retrieved 2018-06-08.
- ↑ "Louisiana Inspiration Guide Louisiana Inspiration Guide 2018". Retrieved 2018-06-08.
- ↑ Day, Teresa B. (2017-06-28). "Small Town Chefs Winner: Hardette Harris". Country Roads Magazine. Retrieved 2018-06-08.
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