Lots of farms have fish ponds, but not a lot of farms take that fish pond and turn it into a high tech low impact sustainable fish farming operation. That’s exactly what the Taylor family did on their family farm in Cedar Grove. We’ll find out what makes their tilapia operation unique then head into the kitchen at Pazzo Restaurant in Chapel Hill to turn that tilapia into mouthwatering dishes.

Flavor NC | UNC-TV

Tilapia time in Cedar Grove

Becoming a farmer doesn’t always require investing in lots of lands and equipment. Sometimes it only requires a little ingenuity, a few greenhouses and some water. We’re off to LL Urban Farms in Wake County to see how two old friends turned an idea into a successful Hydroponic farm.

Hydroponic heaven

What would your dinner plate look like if there were no pollinators at work in our farm fields? Nothing like it looks today, that’s for sure. Pollinators account for as much as one third of the food we eat. In this episode we’ll find out what makes these bees, butterflies and wasps so important and find out what we can all do to keep them healthy and busy on the farm.

Birds and Bees and Butterflies

A chicken is a chicken is a chicken right? Wrong if those chickens are a special breed known as Poulet Rouge naked neck chickens. We’ll find out what makes this European transplant to North Carolina’s Piedmont so special and turn that boring basic chicken recipe on it’s ear with Chef Sean Fowler of Mandolin Raleigh.

Why did the chicken cross the ocean?

No matter how you pronounce them, pecans are a staple of the southern table. We're off to Sampson County to meet one of our state's most successful pecan growers, then into the kitchen at Plates in Raleigh for some inventive pecan recipes. They're not just for pie anymore!

Pecan Perfection

What's small, round and ranks as one of our top ten wild harvested seafoods? Clams of course. We're off to Sneads Ferry and a lesson in clamming the old fashioned way with fisherman Tom Burgess. Then it's into the kitchen with award winning chef Keith Rhodes of Catch in Wilmington.

Raking in the clams

There’s a whole lot more to a pumpkin than a spooky Halloween face. We’re off to Currituck County to pick a passel of pumpkin and just maybe change the way you think of pumpkins for good once Lisa and restauranteur Daniel Pennington of Pass the Salt Café are done. Scallops with pumpkin risotto sound good? There’s a whole lot more to a pumpkin than a spooky Halloween face. We’re off to Currituck

Passion for pumpkins

In this episode we head for the North Carolina mountains and apple country. From Jonagold to Granny Smith and McIntosh you’ll find them all growing strong in Henderson County. We’re off to Skytop Orchard for a lesson in apples 101, then into the kitchen with Chef Stuart Partin

Apples

They say the military marches on its stomach, and if so, then the forces stationed in NC are marching strong! We’re off to Wayne County to see how our two biggest industries – agriculture and the military are working together to help tar heel farmers. Then it’s into the mess hall to get a taste of what our Marines favorite dishes. Trust us, this ain’t your daddy’s mess hall anymore!

Farm to Mess Hall

Lots of NC farmers are turning from tobacco to tomatoes, corn, beans and a whole world of fruits and vegetables. In this episode host Lisa Prince heads to Franklin County to visit Vollmer Farms and sample their pick your own blackberry operation. Then it’s into the kitchen with Chef Trey Cleveland of Top of the Hill Restaurant in Chapel Hill for a lesson in inventive blackberry recipes.

Vollmer Farms Blackberries

We’re heading for the hills in search of a fish that swam with the dinosaurs when host Lisa Prince drops in for a visit at Atlantic Caviar and Sturgeon in Caldwell County’s Happy Valley. Then it’s on to Boone and a visit with Chef Sam Ratchford at Vidalia for a lesson making redneck sushi – among other things!

Atlantic Caviar & Sturgeon

What do you get when you take two musicians with a passion for gardening and a desire for new careers? You get J&B Herb Farms in Person County that’s what. We’re hitting the herb farm learn about the exotic and the everyday in the world of herbs, then host Lisa Prince meets up with Chef Joseph Fasy of Tony’s Oyster Bar in Cary to learn how to use herbs creatively in some mouthwatering dishes.

J&B Herb Farm

You might not think of truffles as a North Carolina product…but these days you would be wrong. That’s right, that most French of the funguses is gaining ground here in the Tar Heel state! We’re heading to Stokes County on a truffle hunt and then into the kitchen at Josephine’s Bistro in Greensboro for some mouthwatering recipes featuring this exotic ingredient.

Truffles

What happens when the bottom falls out of the business at a turf farm? You grow Asparagus instead! We’re off to Currituck County to learn just how asparagus grows – we guarantee it’s the most unusual field crop we’ve shown you yet. Then it’s into the kitchen at the Dragonfly Inn in Corolla where Chef Evan Hayes of Island Thyme Catering unlocks the secrets to amazing asparagus recipes.

Currituck Asparagus

We’re off to the wheat fields of Moore County and Carter Farms to see just what goes in to growing great wheat – the most important building block of our most fundamental of foods. Then host Lisa Prince rolls up her sleeves and gets a lesson bread baking 101 - and French pronunciation - from renowned master baker Lionel Vatinet of LaFarm Bakery in Cary.

Carter Farms Wheat

A local food series that introduces viewers to North Carolina farmers, ranchers, fishermen and food producers and shares tasty recipes using their products. The series is hosted by Lisa Prince.

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Flavor NC | UNC-TV

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