{"id":23348,"date":"2026-06-01T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-01T04:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sasee.com\/?post_type=essay&p=23348"},"modified":"2026-05-28T13:26:48","modified_gmt":"2026-05-28T17:26:48","slug":"lowcountry-boil-a-k-a-frogmore-stew-a-south-carolina-staple","status":"publish","type":"essay","link":"https:\/\/sasee.com\/ro\/essay\/lowcountry-boil-a-k-a-frogmore-stew-a-south-carolina-staple\/","title":{"rendered":"Lowcountry Boil, a.k.a. Frogmore Stew\u2014A South Carolina Staple"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Tammie Hughes<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This iconic South Carolina dish originated on St. Helena Island in the 1960s. A local shrimper, Richard Gay, of Gay Fish Company, is attributed with its creation. The name Frogmore comes from the smallish community on the island. Communal dining is something we do well in the South, and this dish, traditionally poured out onto a table covered with paper, is a perfect representation. In the 1980s, Gourmet<\/em> Magazine<\/em> put a photo of the dish on its cover, and its popularity soared. Some cooks prefer the original recipe and don\u2019t dare to deviate, while others often add crab, mussels, clams, and even lobster. Whatever iteration you prefer, a Lowcountry Boil is sure to please on a warm summer day. It is a common belief that the meal served by Richard Gay included local shrimp, fresh corn on the cob (halves), smoked sausage (pieces), small new potatoes, and Old Bay Seasoning (or something similar.) Some say there were also onions in Gay\u2019s recipe, but that is highly debated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You might find it interesting that Old Bay was actually made in Baltimore, MD, and first named \u201cDelicious Brand Shrimp and Crab Seasoning\u201d by Gustav Brunn (a German refugee), later renamed Old Bay, after a steamship that frequented the waters between Baltimore and Virginia. McCormick & Company bought the brand in 1990. This staple seasoning was adopted in the coastal south early on due to its versatile use and popularity around the surrounding region. You\u2019ll find it used in numerous seafood dishes, in Bloody Mary\u2019s, and even on chicken wings. I just purchased a small bag of Pepperidge Farms Goldfish with Old Bay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019ll easily find plenty of area restaurants serving a version of this dish. I like to make a fusion boil of sorts\u2014a cross between a Lowcountry Boil and a New England clambake, if you will. Grab some newspaper, kraft paper, or butcher paper and get your outdoor table ready for a messy, fun Southern Lowcountry Boil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s get started\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ingredients<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

6 garlic cloves, peeled
2 large sweet onions, peeled and quartered
About 20 small red potatoes, cleaned
4 ears of fresh corn, silk removed and halved
2 kielbasa sausages, cut into smaller pieces
About 30 shrimp, leave shell-on
4 small lobster tails
4 small blue crabs or snow crab legs
About a pound of mussels, I sometimes use clams
\u00be c. Old Bay Seasoning
1 \u00bd stick of butter<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Directions<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fill a large stock pot just over halfway with water and add the Old Bay Seasoning. Bring this to a low boil. Add the butter, garlic, onions, potatoes, and corn cobs (broken in half). Boil on medium heat for 10 to 12 minutes. While the veggies are cooking, grill the kielbasa sausage until lightly charred and set aside. Most people boil the sausage, but I like it grilled. Next, we are going to add the lobster and crab; continue boiling on medium to medium-low for an additional 10 minutes. Lastly, add the shrimp and mussels and reduce to a simmer for the last 5 to 8 minutes or until the shrimp are pink and curled slightly and the mussels have opened. Toss in the sausage at the end. Drain the liquid and pour the feast onto the table lined with paper. I also like to sprinkle some fresh parsley on top.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pick a nice sunny afternoon\/evening and don\u2019t forget shellfish utensils, numerous rolls of paper towels, or better yet, a bunch of kitchen hand towels, melted butter, fresh lemon wedges, salt, pepper, extra Old Bay, an assortment of hot sauces, and cocktail sauce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Lowcountry Boil pairs well with ice-cold beer, a nice crisp sauvignon blanc, a dry ros\u00e9, or a summery white blend. Enjoy!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The image is from a boil I prepared a few years ago, and while I didn\u2019t pour it out onto the table, I did line the table with newspaper and used a couple of large platters for serving.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Tammie Hughes This iconic South Carolina dish originated on St. Helena Island in the 1960s. A local shrimper, Richard Gay, of Gay Fish Company, is attributed with its creation. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":23349,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_tec_requires_first_save":true,"_gspb_post_css":"","_EventAllDay":false,"_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":false,"_EventShowMapLink":false,"_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":[],"_EventVenueID":[],"_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":false,"_VenueShowMapLink":false,"_tribe_blocks_recurrence_rules":"","_tribe_blocks_recurrence_description":"","_tribe_blocks_recurrence_exclusions":"","footnotes":""},"essay_type":[],"essay-category":[93],"class_list":["post-23348","essay","type-essay","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","essay-category-food-drink"],"blocksy_meta":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sasee.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/essay\/23348","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sasee.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/essay"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sasee.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/essay"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sasee.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sasee.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23348"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sasee.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/essay\/23348\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sasee.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/23349"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sasee.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23348"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"essay_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sasee.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/essay_type?post=23348"},{"taxonomy":"essay-category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sasee.com\/ro\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/essay-category?post=23348"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}