These North Carolina Foods May Seem Strange, Until You Try Them

North Carolina has a food scene that goes way beyond barbecue and sweet tea. Tucked into mountain kitchens and coastal diners are dishes with names that might make you scratch your head or wrinkle your nose.

But here’s the thing: these quirky creations have been feeding families for generations, and once you take that first brave bite, you’ll understand why locals can’t get enough of them.

1. Livermush

Picture a breakfast loaf that sounds like it came from a medieval feast but tastes like Saturday morning heaven. Livermush combines pork liver, head parts, and cornmeal into a surprisingly delicious patty that fries up crispy on the outside.

Shelby hosts an entire festival dedicated to this regional treasure every October. Slice it thick, fry it until the edges get crunchy, and slap it on a biscuit with mustard. The texture resembles scrapple’s distant cousin, but the flavor packs more punch.

Folks either grow up loving it or convert after one brave bite at a diner counter. Don’t let the liver part scare you off—the cornmeal mellows everything out beautifully.

2. Chicken Mull

Community suppers across eastern North Carolina wouldn’t be complete without this velvety chicken stew bubbling away in giant pots. Chicken mull starts with a whole bird simmered until the meat falls off the bones, then gets thickened with crushed crackers and milk.

Fire departments and churches guard their secret recipes like treasure maps. The magic happens when saltine crackers dissolve into the broth, creating a texture somewhere between soup and gravy. Some cooks add a dash of hot sauce or a sprinkle of black pepper for kick.

Traditionally served with more crackers on the side, it’s comfort food that brings entire towns together. One bowl and you’ll understand why folks line up for it.

3. Kilt Lettuce

Appalachian families have been “killing” lettuce with hot bacon grease for generations, and the results are weirdly addictive. Fresh lettuce gets wilted down with a warm dressing made from bacon fat, vinegar, and sometimes a touch of sugar.

The name sounds like a fashion disaster but describes exactly what happens to those greens. Crispy bacon bits and diced onions often join the party, adding crunch and bite to the tender leaves. The warm dressing transforms ordinary lettuce into something that tastes both fresh and indulgent at once.

Mountain families serve this as a spring side dish when the first lettuce pops up in gardens. It’s salad meets comfort food in the best possible way.

4. Red Slaw (Lexington Style)

Forget creamy white coleslaw—Lexington flips the script with a tangy red version that matches their famous barbecue. Finely chopped cabbage gets dressed in a vinegar-based sauce spiked with ketchup, creating a bright crimson color that looks almost neon.

This slaw doesn’t play nice; it comes with attitude and acidity that cuts through rich pulled pork perfectly. No mayonnaise makes an appearance here, which shocks visitors expecting traditional slaw. The vinegar tang wakes up your taste buds while the slight sweetness keeps things balanced.

Barbecue joints in Lexington pile this ruby-red slaw directly on sandwiches or serve it alongside hush puppies. Once you go red, you might never go back.

5. Moravian Chicken Pie

German settlers brought this savory pie to Winston-Salem in the 1700s, and it’s been causing confusion ever since. Unlike pot pie, Moravian chicken pie features huge chunks of chicken swimming in a peppery, ultra-thick gravy between two flaky crusts.

The filling is more like chicken suspended in silky sauce than the vegetable-loaded pot pies most people know. Black pepper dominates the flavor profile—these Moravians didn’t mess around with bland food. The crust shatters at the first fork poke, releasing steam and that intoxicating peppery aroma.

Families in Old Salem still make these for special occasions, following recipes passed down through centuries. Fair warning: one slice is never enough.

6. Atlantic Beach Pie

Born in a beach cottage kitchen, this coastal creation proves that saltine crackers belong in dessert. The crust gets made entirely from crushed saltines mixed with sugar and butter, creating a salty-sweet foundation that’s pure genius.

Tangy citrus filling—usually lemon or lime—piles on top, followed by a cloud of whipped cream. The salt from the crackers amplifies the citrus punch in ways regular pie crust never could. It tastes like summer vacation captured in dessert form, perfect after a day of catching waves and sunburn.

The pie is closely associated with the Atlantic Beach area, and local restaurants along the Crystal Coast have helped popularize it statewide. Sweet, salty, and absolutely unforgettable in every bite.

7. Banana and Mayonnaise Sandwich

Often traced back to mid-20th-century Southern lunchbox traditions, this combination makes modern foodies recoil in horror before becoming converts. Soft white bread gets slathered with mayonnaise, then layered with banana slices for a sandwich that sounds absolutely bonkers.

But here’s the plot twist: it actually works, delivering creamy, sweet, and slightly tangy flavors that complement each other surprisingly well. The mayo adds richness without overpowering the banana’s natural sweetness.

Some folks toast the bread, while purists insist on keeping it soft and squishy. Southern grandmothers have been packing these in lunch boxes for decades, knowing that kids would trade anything for them. Try it once, and you’ll either get it or you won’t—there’s no middle ground.

8. Leather Britches (Dried Green Beans)

Mountain folks figured out how to enjoy green beans year-round by stringing them up like edible decorations. Fresh beans get threaded on string and hung to dry until they shrivel into leathery strips that look like tiny pants—hence the hilarious name.

When winter rolls around, these dried beans get rehydrated and cooked with pork fat for hours until tender. The drying process concentrates the bean flavor into something deeper and almost meaty.

Cooked leather britches taste completely different from fresh beans, with a chewy texture and smoky richness from the pork. Appalachian families still hang strings of beans from rafters and porches every summer. Strange-looking? Absolutely. Delicious? You’d better believe it.

9. Sonker

Imagine a cobbler that decided to break all the rules, and you’ve got sonker. This old-time Appalachian dessert from the mountains of North Carolina looks more like a thick fruit stew topped with dough than anything fancy. People often use whatever fruit they have on hand—berries, peaches, or even sweet potatoes.

What really sets sonker apart is how you eat it. Locals pour cold milk right over the warm dessert, creating a sweet, soupy mixture that might sound weird but tastes incredible. Some folks even add a scoop of vanilla ice cream instead.

The crust is thick and biscuit-like, soaking up all those fruit juices. Originally made by resourceful mountain families who didn’t waste anything, sonker has become a beloved tradition at community gatherings and church suppers across western North Carolina.

10. Hoop Cheese

Walk into an old country store in North Carolina, and you might spot a big wheel of cheese wrapped in red wax sitting on the counter. That’s hoop cheese, named after the wooden hoops used to shape it during the cheesemaking process. It’s been a Southern staple for over a hundred years.

The flavor sits somewhere between mild cheddar and colby, with a crumbly texture that melts beautifully. Store owners traditionally slice it fresh for customers, and many folks remember buying it as kids. You’ll find it paired with crackers, sliced onto sandwiches, or melted over grits.

What makes hoop cheese special isn’t just the taste—it’s the nostalgia. This simple cheese represents a time when communities gathered at general stores to swap stories. Today, it’s making a comeback as people rediscover these authentic regional flavors.