Alert the Soul Patrol! Taylor Hicks Is On a Culinary Journey In State Plate

State Plate http://www.insp.com/
Taylor Hicks is ready to fill his plate with something great.

American Idol’s Season 5 winner, Taylor Hicks is on the road. And he is hungry. The charismatic silver fox is traveling around the country with the culinary travel series, State Plate, to explore America and assemble a plate of each state’s emblematic foods.

In each episode, which airs on family-friendly network INSP, Hicks will sample everything from Maryland crab cakes; to Georgia peaches; to Idaho potatoes. And while he’s nibbling, he’ll visit farms, markets, festivals and anywhere he can uncover tasty details and history behind each state’s unique food traditions.

Sampling feasts of local specialties sounds like a real-deal meal, so I caught up with the charming crooner to get the dish on State Plate.

Channel Guide Magazine: Hello, Taylor!
Taylor Hicks: Hey, what’s up Kellie?

I love the idea of traveling and exploring the tasty food unique to each ares. Tell us about State Plate.
It’s a pretty amazing concept. We go into each state and discuss the iconic foods that are from that particular state. It is truly a farm-to-table concept because I am more on the farm than I am in the establishments. I really love that because everybody is into farm-to-table, and everybody is into local. This brings out all of those aspects and really educates people on what foods really come from what state.

Do you also investigate some of the other components that go into some of those meals?
Yes, we do. We take an entrée like red beans and rice, and we go into the dish. We talk about the ingredients and the spices that are in the dish that make it so iconic to that state. And obviously, there’s a musical element too. I’m definitely breaking out the harmonica at points too.

Great. Where are some of the places that you’re going to be visiting in this series?
I don’t know if I’m allowed to say that at this point. I can tell you that Maine was a beautiful state not only for the people but obviously for the lobstering — which a southern boy doesn’t ever get to do.

State Plate
Taylor Hicks loved lobstering while in Maine for State Plate. http://www.insp.com/

Texas was such a blast. One word — brisket. I’ve definitely learned to rope and ride because we do go to the farms. Getting up on a horse and riding off into the sunset and steering cattle is not out of the question on this show, which I love. It kind of takes a Mike Rowe’s Dirty Jobs approach to the farm-to-table aspect and educate people on iconic foods from each state. It’s truly American, in my opinion.

How did you choose not only the state but the cuisine? I’m sure some states have a very clear food identify, but some maybe a little murkier.
Yeah. You have to do some research. Hopefully, the show will go into a few seasons where we can actually cover all 50 states. But because some states are bigger than others, there may need to be a “second helping” sort of speak.

That sounds like delicious research!
That would be a great name for a show, Delicious Research. That’s exactly what I’m doing. I enjoy it so much. Obviously being a foodie from Alabama, this show really touches on who I am as a person and that’s someone that has been a musical gypsy, sort of speak, but also a foodie gypsy as well.

Is there an episode that you did when you saw it on the rundown sheet, you just started drooling?
Louisiana hands down. You can’t get away from crayfish down there.

Are we going to see like a big crawfish boil?
You definitely will.

Is there anybody who is going on this adventure with you, Taylor?
Maureen McCormick was on the show for a little while, so she’s kind of my host in the beginning, and then I kind of take over from there. So you’ll see Maureen featured in some segments.

Where did your love affair with food come from?
I think just in the kitchen, in the family kitchen, growing up. Then obviously traveling as much as I did when I was in my younger days as a struggling performer. I loved to go and kind of go from town to town and see what people have to offer from a culinary perspective. I got to do that in the South. Now, I’ve kind of taken that mindset and applied it to the whole country, which is such a blessing.

What came first, your love of food or your love of travel?
I would probably have to say food. There’s been food around me, obviously food and music, and travel comes with it. No question hands down food, then music, then travel.

When you’re on tour, what kind of food do you seek out?
Well, it just depends. Sometimes the band and I will get into kind of a greasy spoon mode where we go and check out the diners and the great dives of each particular area that we are playing in. Sometimes we will have a flare for oriental; what Thai place is the greatest. Being a Southern guy, I like to look for the meat and threes. I always try to go for the soul food places. I guess it depends on what part of the country we’re in and what we’ve got a hankering for.

How did you get involved in the restaurant business?
After Idol, I wanted to be involved with it because I had grown up around it. When I had the opportunity I co-owned a fine-dining restaurant, but now I’m involved with Saw’s BBQ in Birmingham, Alabama which it’s the world’s most amazing BBQ. For me, it runs the gambit of what a great BBQ place should be. It’s not necessarily just barbecuing meat. I think BBQ in the South is not only, “Can you cook BBQ pork?” but “Can you cook BBQ chicken?” And, “Can you fry okra?” All of those elements have come together co-owning Saw’s. It’s just been a blast.

Tell me more about what kind of food you’re serving at Saw’s … I’m drooling.
Well, you start with pork. I mean the pork is amazing, but my favorite is the sweet tea fried chicken sandwich, which it’s the best chicken sandwich on Earth, in my opinion. When you brine chicken in sweet tea and pickle juice for 24 hours, and deep fry it, and put white BBQ sauce over it, you’ve lived.

You mentioned that each episode of State Plate is going to have a musical component. Is music the perfect accompaniment to a good meal?
I think it is depending on what kind of meal you’re having and what kind of music is going on. Music and entertaining have been something that I’ve always had a knack for, and luckily I’m blessed to be able to make a living do it. Now, it’s just moved over into the food component because I always like to tell people, “you cannot be from Alabama and not be a foodie.”

State Plate > INSP > Fridays at 9pm ET, beginning Oct. 21

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