What Is Maque Choux? The Corn Side We Spell Mock Shoe in PCB

Maque choux is a Louisiana corn dish, usually corn cooked with onion and pepper, and Big Mama's PCB spells it "mock shoe." You can get it as a $4 side at 10071 Hutchison Blvd, Panama City Beach, next to fried chicken or country fried steak. Call (850) 588-5085 to confirm hours.

What is maque choux?

It is a corn side with roots in Louisiana cooking. The base is corn, onion and bell pepper. Some cooks add tomato or celery, and some finish it with cream or butter. Others make it a main dish with crawfish or shrimp.

That range is part of the confusion. Two kitchens can both call a dish maque choux and put very different things in the pan. ## Why do we spell it mock shoe?

Say the French spelling out loud and you get something close to "mock shoe." Our menu writes it the way it sounds. If you see maque choux on another menu or in a recipe, it is the same dish name.

The name itself has no settled story. Food references, including The Splendid Table and Wikipedia's maque choux entry, point to a few theories. One links it to a French phrase meaning mock cabbage, which may be a folk explanation after the fact. Another links it to a Native American word for corn. Those references also describe the dish as a blend of Native American, Acadian French and Creole cooking. We cannot settle it, so we will not pretend to.

Is mock shoe a Gulf Coast thing or a Louisiana thing?

Louisiana is where the dish is best documented. Big Mama's PCB calls its menu Coastal Country, which means Southern home cooking from our downtown Panama City kitchen plus Gulf seafood. Mock shoe sits on that menu with the other sides, so it fits a plate of fried chicken or a catfish po'boy.

Reviewers on our Google page mention it among the sides, behind fried chicken, peach cobbler and cornbread.

What goes well with it?

Mock shoe is a side, so pick it with a main plate. These sides are all $4 at Big Mama's PCB, except cornbread at $2:

• Mock shoe
• Collards
• Black Eyed Peas
• Mac & Cheese
• Cheese Grits
• Cornbread, $2

On a daily special, you get two sides and a third is $2 more. When we're out, we're out, so call before you come for a specific special. A few plates that suit it:

• Bone-in fried chicken, from $15
• Country fried steak, $16
• Catfish Po'boy or Shrimp Po'boy, $15 each
• Shrimp N' Grits, $22

How do you order it?

Walk in for lunch or dinner, or order ahead on Toast for pickup. The lunch and dinner page covers the full day menu, and the all-day menu lists every side with its price.

Prices are cash prices, and a 3% card fee is added. Parties of 6 or more carry an 18% gratuity.

What to order if you have never had it

Order mock shoe as one of your two sides with the fried chicken. If you like it, try it with the catfish po'boy next time. Not sure about corn? Get it next to the collards and black eyed peas so you can taste it against something savory.

Big Mama's PCB is at 10071 Hutchison Blvd, Panama City Beach, a few minutes' drive from Pier Park, with a large free lot. Call (850) 588-5085 to confirm hours, or order ahead on Toast.