Saturday, July 12, 2014

Low Country Boil for a crowd.

I love a good Low Country Boil, and so do a lot of people.  It's really a very simple dish, but oh, so flavourful, and easy to make.   If you have a large enough pot that is.  I do, mainly cause I got a huge stock pot from my DH for Christmas one year.  I asked for a large stock pot, and when asked how big I wanted it, I said very big.  And I got it.  I didn't realize pots came in extra large gigantic size.   OK, so it's only a 20 quart pot, but still...
Low Country Boil

I was visiting family a couple of weeks ago, and wanted to make them a typical southern dish.  I knew they didn't have Collard Greens up there, so couldn't make them a good greens and cornbread meal.  And I was not about to schlep up some frozen greens with me.
Can you imagine the mess in your suitcase as they melt?  Never mind that they would probably refreeze when the plane gets up to 30,000 feet, but on the ground they'd just melt again. 
Sorry, got sidetracked there.

I decided a Low Country Boil would probably be something they would enjoy, and I was pretty certain they'd never had one.    And best of all, I knew I could get all the ingredients there.  Well, with one exception, I wasn't too sure about getting Old Bay Seasoning, so I brought a tin with me.  Which was a good thing, cause only one store had it, and that was what we call a sample tin down here. 
I prepare for my cooking adventures.  In fact I think that was one of my Girl Guide motto's, Be Prepared.  hmmm, gotta go check that one out.  Later.

My sister also let me take over her kitchen, and gee, she had a lovely large stock pot, which I filled to the brim.  

I was feeding 14 people, so I prepared accordingly, and when a couple of people weren't able to make it, we ended up with some leftovers, but leftovers are always good.  (I had some for breakfast the next day).

I'm going to tell you how much of each item I cooked, but please don't be put off by the quantity, cause if you make this, you'll scale it up or down according to how many people you feed.


Recipe:  Low  Country Boil

5 lbs. small new potatoes or red potatoes.  Don't use Russet or any mealy potato, it will just cook out to moosh or mush.
3 lbs. link smoked sausage, cut into thirds.  Use your favourite brand here.  And if you happen to have some lovely garlic sausage, throw that in.  It really goes well in here, or some Andouille.
8 ears fresh corn, cut into thirds, or enough so each person gets at least one.
3 lbs. Shrimp, fresh or frozen, doesn't matter.  If you prefer it shelled and deveined, go for it, again, does not matter.  But it looks kinda cool with the little tails still there. 
1/2-3/4 cups Old Bay Seasoning (you can cut this down, but this is supposed to be a spicy dish.)
1-2 lemons, cut in half.
1-2 Onions, cut into halves
1-2 Bottles of Beer, (not light beer, real Beer)
2-4 garlic cloves, optional
1-2 lbs. Crab (I didn't have any, but you can add this if you like.



Fill the pot with enough water to cover the potatoes and sausages, about half way up the pot or a little more,  add the Old Bay Seasoning, the halved lemons and bring to a boil.
Cook until the potatoes are just almost done, and add the corn.  Cook an additional 5 minutes, and then add the uncooked shrimp.   I added the shrimp on top, and then stirred them in a little, just wanted to make sure they cooked.

Cook another 2-3 minutes and scoop out the shrimp when they're cooked, set them aside for just a minute while you scoop out the rest of that luscious boil, and place on either a long flat platter, or dump the drained goodies on some newspaper spread out on a table outside. It's kinda traditional to do that in the south.
Low Country Boil
 The shrimp were cooked to perfection, the potatoes were done and the corn, well, let me put it like this, you don't need butter when you cook them in some Old Bay.

We also served some crusty bread alongside, just cause.
Low Country Boil
  Add the cooked shrimp on top and tell everyone to dig in.   You can eat this with your hands, but it gets kinda messy.  Just make sure you've got lots of napkins or Southern Style napkins handy.

Southern Style napkins would be that roll of paper towel.
We actually had two big platters and we all had more than enough to eat.
 As you can see from this platter.   In retrospect, I guess we could have had less potatoes, but hey, when you're cooking for a crowd, you want everyone to have enough to eat.

The next day I had some of the potatoes and sausage fried up for breakfast and we also took a good helping over to friends of my parents who also got to try some.

We did have dessert as well.    I made a Banana Pudding which is kind of a southern staple as well.    But I'll share the how and where and when of that on another post. 

I've also made this with Crab, which is a spectacular presentation.
Low Country Boil

Low Country Boil
Sidsel Munkholm - Author
Sidsel Munkholm - Author

Sid loves to cook, feed people and have fun in the kitchen. She shares her successes and the involuntary offerings she sometimes gives the kitchen goddess as well. And she's still looking for the mythical fairy to help her clean the kitchen after a marathon cooking session. Currently working on a cookbook showcasing the recipes from her Danish heritage.

2 comments:

  1. We would love to be at your Low Country Boil, this looks awesome! Thanks so much for sharing your post with us at Full Plate Thursday. Have a great weekend and come back to see us real soon!
    Miz Helen

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