Wednesday, June 19, 2019

 Frogmore Stew, Anyone?

Frogmore Stew?!

Eeeek!  Frogmore Stew?!  It sounds like the type of fiendish dish served up to the unsuspecting protagonist in an old black and white monster movie, doesn’t it?
Never fear, it isn’t.

 Despite what the name Frogmore Stew suggests, this dish contains no frogs, whatsoever, and is not actually, a stew, at all. Frogmore Stew is, in fact, a tasty South Carolina classic, also often referred to as a Low Country Boil.

My friendly little (metal) frog “friend” has nothing to do with Frogmore Stew.

Beaufort and Frogmore

My interest in Frogmore Stew, this curiously-named Carolina culinary creation, began on a Friday, just a couple of weeks ago.  I was visiting Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, and some friends, who live on the island, asked if I would like to join them on a day-trip to Beaufort (about a 45 minute car ride away). 

My friends, Laura and Bill, invited me along on their day-trip to Beaufort.

Laura and Bill were looking forward to seeing the final garden of the”Garden-a-Day Tour”, thanks to the efforts of the Beaufort Garden Club.  After the garden tour, they planned to explore a new place for lunch, nearby.  I jumped at the opportunity to join my friends on their food and fun excursion :o)

Garden Tour

As luck would have it, upon arriving at the Blythewood Road “garden of the day”,
the skies opened up, drenching the three of us, and the other garden visitors, with an unrelenting rain shower.  

Visitors tour the garden, despite the heavy rain.
(Photo courtesy of Bill. :o))

Our adventuresome trio made a valiant attempt at touring the extensive display of amazing flora in the garden before us via umbrella-cover, but eventually the torrential rains got the best of us, and we retreated, a bit damper, back to the refuge of the car.

Touring the gardens under the cover of a much-appreciated umbrella.
(Photo courtesy of Bill. :o))

Enjoying ourselves at the garden tour, despite the heavy rain.  :o)
(Photo courtesy of Bill. :o))
Thank you, Bill, for the use of your fun photos!

Read about the Beaufort Garden Club here, and the annual garden tour, here.

Lunch

Attempting to dodge raindrops had left the three of us hungry.  It was on to lunch!
Before our trip began, Bill had researched eating establishments in the Beaufort area, and had chosen The Foolish Frog Restaurant on nearby St. Helena Island.

The Foolish Frog Restaurant, located in St. Helena Island, South Carolina. 

 It was a lunch filled with good conversation, as we dined (I enjoyed cream of crab bisque.), while watching the sky clear off, out the restaurant window.

 It was a lunch filled with good conversation, as we dined.

My choice for lunch was this tasty cream of crab bisque.

After our meal, and an enjoyable impromptu shopping stop across the street at MacDonald’s Marketplace, we were back in the car, heading out.  Having seen the name Frogmore, here and there, while on St. Helena Island, piqued my curiosity. Thanks to my trusty iPhone, I quickly learned that an area of St. Helena Island is called Frogmore.
In fact, the U.S. Postal Service referred to the entire St. Helena Island as Frogmore, at one time. Frogmore was also the name of a plantation in the area.

Marshes, not beaches, are a part of St. Helena Island’s landscape.
St. Helena Island, once called Frogmore, is an inland island, and part of the
Sea Islands off the southeast coast of the U.S.

Read about Frogmore, here, and here.

While doing my iPhone research, I also came across Frogmore Stew.
I had heard of this dish before, but I had never eaten it, and I did not know how it came to be.

The Origin of Frogmore Stew

Most accounts, that I read, credit Richard Gay with the invention of Frogmore Stew.
In the 1960’s, while on National Guard duty in Beaufort, Gay prepared this meal for 100 fellow soldiers, naming it after his hometown of Frogmore.

The recipe spread when Gay, the owner of Gay Seafood Company, brought home the recipe, making copies available to his seafood market customers.

Read these articles about Frogmore Stew, here, here, here, here, and here.

Making Frogmore Stew

Gathering my ingredients for Frogmore Stew.

I chose a healthier sausage option, using uncured /no preservatives,
turkey kielbasa.  It was delicious.

Slicing up the sausage

Farmer’s vegetable stand sweet corn was perfect for my Frogmore Stew.

Boiling the ingredients

A meal to share

Frogmore Stew served up for the family during our summer family reunion,
after pool time. :o)

Hilton Head, South Carolina
July 2019

Recipe

Frogmore Stew
(Annette’s version)

Ingredients

1 +1/2 gallons of water

1 lemon, juiced

Salt, to taste

3 Tablespoons of Old Bay Seasoning*

Redskin new potatoes (approx. 3, or more, per person), washed

2 pounds spicy sausage (kielbasa, andouille, etc.), cut into slices, about 1/2 inch in size

Directions

Serves 6-8

Tartar Sauce

Ingredients

Hellman’s Light Mayonnaise

Sweet (pickle) relish

Fresh lemon juice

Directions

I just mix the ingredients together to my taste…

Mix approximately two large serving spoons of mayo,
with approximately two-three Tablespoons of sweet relish,
and add approximately 1-2 teaspoon of lemon juice.

Keep cool

Annette’s note–
*While this is a great recipe for a big group, when I made this,
I made a much smaller batch, cutting it to 1/4 of the original recipe.

*I used uncured, precooked turkey kielbasa, as a healthy alternative.

*I did not add any salt to my water. The potatoes probably needed it.

* Next time, I will probably add a whole, peeled onion,
and more Old Bay Seasoning.

*I used too many potatoes for my recipe, this time round. Oops.

*I serve with tartar sauce (recipe above).

*I serve with French bread, sliced and buttered with real butter, wrapped in foil,
and heated in the oven at 350 degrees for about 20-30 minutes.

Enjoy!

 Previous South Carolina Blog Posts

Family Fun in Hilton Head/September 2015, click here.

Beach Getaway/February 2017, click here.

40 Years of (being) Married! A Hilton Head of a Celebration/June 2018, click here.

Beach Love/September 2018, click here.

Asbury Bedenbaugh and the China Hutch /March 2019, click here.

Fun Facts for Ya!

*St. Helena Island’s Penn Center hosts an annual Heritage Days,
highlighting the Gullah Culture.

*That camp song, Michael, Row Your Boat Ashore, (I, personally, sang it in Girl Scouts back in the day), was first noted during the Civil War on St. Helena Island.
Read more about its history, here.

Thanks for reading!!!!!
Annette

I’m Annette Stuff

I typically post my blog once per month.
Look for my next blog post on, or around,
Thursday, July 18, 2019

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I found this little guy at the grocery store. He made me think of Frogmore Stew! :o)