Aretha Franklin Loved This Tried-And-True Classic Soul Food

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Aretha Franklin was the undisputed Queen of Soul, and her food preferences were every bit as iconic as her powerful voice. Like her music, she gravitated toward soulful, comforting dishes that were deeply rooted in Southern tradition, with one beloved old-school barbecue classic standing out as her absolute favorite. In a 1967 edition of the magazine Ebony, in which Franklin regularly appeared, she shared that chitterlings were her favorite dish, even revealing that she liked them served alongside "hot water cornbread and greens or ham."

Chitterlings, also known as chitlins, are a classic Southern soul-food dish. While offal is criminally underused in modern cooking, chitlins stand out because they're made from the large intestines of pigs, although it's not uncommon for other animals' intestines to be used. They're certainly a labor of love and require meticulous cleaning to clear the intestines of undesirable fat, grit, and debris, as well as remove harmful bacteria. Following this, chitterlings have to be boiled for several hours, which helps break down their tough, rubbery texture into a more tender consistency. In the 1972 "Cool Cooking" cookbook, it was revealed that Franklin slow-stewed her chitlins with red pepper pods, cloves, a bay leaf, onions, celery, vinegar, and, of course, salt and pepper.

It's not uncommon for chitlins to be battered and deep-fried after boiling for a crispier texture, but judging from this recipe, it seems boiling was good enough for Franklin. The star even referenced the dish in her songs, and after finishing a particularly powerful live performance of "Don't Play That Song (You Lied)" at the historic rock and roll venue Fillmore West, she jokingly quipped, "Good thing I ate chitlins this morning."

Despite her well-documented love of chitlins, in a 2008 interview with NPR, Aretha Franklin revealed that she had given up her favorite dish. She famously declared them "canceled," stating: "Chitlins are off the menu ... and I know my fans and friends are screaming 'Hallelujah!'" This lifestyle change was likely a voluntary dietary adjustment, as chitlins are high in cholesterol and sodium, which can be a concern for those like Franklin, who had a history of high blood pressure.

Because of their labor-intensive preparation, chitlins are usually reserved for special occasions like Christmas or Thanksgiving. But whatever fondness the Queen of Soul may have once had for the comfort food seemed to fade later in life. In the spoken-word intro to her 2008 holiday song, "This Christmas," Franklin painted a picture of herself preparing Christmas dinner before jokingly finishing the song by warning an unseen caller, "The greens are almost ready, everything is on the stove. But don't look for no chitlins this year. Them chitlins almost killed me last year." Whether she meant that literally or not is anyone's guess, but the line makes it clear that chitlins were likely off the menu at Franklin's holiday table from then on.