New Bedford’s Best Thanksgiving Stuffing: Vovo’s or Memere’s?

New Bedford's culture is as diverse as it gets, and nowhere is that more noticeable than the food we eat.

While many cultures have melted into that pot (along with the food) for years, the Portuguese and French Canadians were strong influences. That, of course, is changing rapidly as folks from other areas trickle into the region.

As long as they carry recipes from their home countries, you'll hear no complaints from me.

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My parents had French-Canadian, Irish and Polish roots. Our diets reflected as much. Many in Greater New Bedford have Portuguese roots and "old country" recipes.

People can be mighty defensive about their ethnic foods. I once asked whether New England clam chowder or Portuguese kale soup should be the official soup of the City of New Bedford, and the debate began.

Over the years, I've taken Thanksgiving stuffing for granted. My family had a French-Canadian version with bread cubes, pork, ground beef and onions. My wife's family is also French-Canadian, so not much changed when I married.

We ordered Thanksgiving dinner from an area butcher shop during the COVID-19 pandemic. The stuffing was Portuguese-style. It tasted good, but it was different from what we were used to and what we expected.

A Portuguese-American friend tells me that Portuguese-style stuffing includes giblets and linguica, among other things.

So with all of that, I wonder whether Memere's French-Canadian stuffing or Vovo's Portuguese-style stuffing will grace your Thanksgiving table this year. Perhaps you have a completely different way of making it?