It would make sense - in general the south has the majority of our home grown American food culture and contriubtions. They essentially consist of:
1. Southern & Soul Food
2. BBQ
3. Cajun & Creole
I can't speak to specfically Appalachia - as unlike the others - it has stayed more fixed to the region and most haven't tried it, but I could see it also being the case.
Following that category, the next largest asset in american food culture is the diversity of foods you can have, all of good quality (from people who know how to cook it). This is enormous, and not something you find it most other places abroad. You will find some varieties, but nothing like what you can see in an equivalently sized large or small city in the US. The only reason it'd rank after is that it's generally not new food contributions / culture - it's more a benefit for the eater to "eat abroad" while at home.
The south has so much good food, and it's starting to garner increasing recognition. Michelin is announcing which Atlanta-area restaurants get stars in late October. I've dined a lot in LA and New York, and honestly the south has been overlooked.
To me this is the proof in the pudding!
It indicates a distinctive difference that one group of people enjoys and another group finds repulsive. But with these types of things, if we share food culture, then many people can open doors and find that what they imagined as repulsive can actually be quite delicious. :)
It's nothing like peanut butter, actually! They're savory, salty, and delicious.
They're boiled in their shells to the point that both the shells and the peanut are soft and mushy. The shells are filled with brine, and they're served hot.
It's quite a lot like edamame, but I'd have to go with boiled peanuts if I had to choose.
If you're driving through southern Georgia, you can get them at almost any gas station popup or farmers market. It's a small cottage industry.
Speaking of savory, you need to try bacon fat soaked collard greens and fried ocra.
I don't have time for that so I pressure cook them and they turned out pretty good but nothing ever beats the flavor of the road ones haha
* BBQ
* Biscuits
* Boiled Peanuts (Georgia)
* 9000 forms of Okra
* Beans and veggies slowly cooked with a bone, fatback, etc.
* Cornbread
* 9000 forms of fried chicken
* Native grapes called Muscadines that can make delicious jams, jellies, wine
* Countless ways to prepare deer and other small game (Sausages, Tips, etc)
Sunday brunch after church is often taken usually with friends from church. Just the other day I was at a burger joint that serves the best biscuits in my town. A few old men moved to my table and showed me a new game they came up with wood working.
Appalachian way of life has a great food culture but it's being absorbed by the large cities but I guess that's the circle of life.
Even canning culture is a thing here. Loads of people head up to the local cannery and hang out to make canned tomatoes , okra, chowchow
Edit: if you're curious about boiled peanuts, the closest thing you could probably find outside of Georgia would be edamame that's extra salty. I prefer mine Cajun