Low Country Boil Recipe Request


 
A

A.D.Letson

TVWBB Fan
While this is not a smoking question, it is outdoor cooking so it's still fun.
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Does anyone have any recipes for this? All I have is a recipe I got out of the paper. I hope I got the name right because my family has always called this a throwdown but the paper said a low country boil. It is basically just boiling a lot of stuff together in a turkey frier with different seasonings.

I have been elected to do this for Mother's Day so I was just hoping for ideas.
 
I have made this one
I use all different kinds of seafood for my boils. The trick is to cook your corn, potatoes, sausage, artichokes, etc... for about 10 minutes before you add your seafood. By the way a Turkey fryer is a great way to cook this.
 
Shawn,
What kind of potatoes do you use? I have tried boiling just red potatoes and wasn't too impressed. Is that what you have used?
 
Down in Louisiana it's called a Cajun Boil. Same principal,different seasoning. We use Zararain's. Trick is knowing the sequence of adding ingredients. Normally spuds first. We use reds 'cause they cook faster. Cover the picnic table with freezer or butcher paper(some people use newspaper)set out the red sauce,dump it all in the middle and get after it!!!
 
The problem with many boils is that--in the end--they can be rather bland. The ingredients don't take all that long to cook and unless the liquid is very flavorful to begin with not everything absorbs enough flavor--especially the potatoes (I use red creamers). Make the liquid flavorful before the real cooking starts and all will be well.
 
Thanks for the tips guys. Right now I've got 7 ears of fresh corn, 3 lbs of sausage, 7 lbs of potatoes to cook and now I've got to get the seafood. Man the prices of seafood hurts. I was hoping to get some crab but it is 10.88 a lb. Haven't decided what size shrimp yet. Thinking 30-40.

Kevin,
Could you possibly give me an idea of what amount of seasoning we're talking? Or if you could give me an idea of what the water would taste like when I tasted it?

And would there be any advantage in using purified water?
 
One more question. Is there a brand of cocktail sauce that is good? I am not against making it but if there is a commercial that is good I would use it. Thanks.
 
You can't get an easier cocktail sauce than mixing bottled Heinz chili sauce with grated horseradish. I've tried a lot of different flavors, but we always go back to this one. Much better than any sauces made with ketchup, IMO.

Rita
 
A.D.--

There is no advantage to purified unless your water is iron-y or sulphur-y.

As far as seasoning--I just like it to be flavorful before I start cooking so I make a sort of stock first with whatever I have around. I often use 21-25 shrimp and I will peel then first so that I can cook the shells in water mixed with clam juice (and/or wine or beer) plus the Old Bay, a couple celery stalks, an onion or two, some garlic cloves and maybe some parsley sprigs, then I'll strain out he solids befoe starting the boil. I sometimes use a ham bone or a couple ham hocks in the water as well (cooked an hour or two) or a little ham base or, better, some lobster base (Better than Bouillon makes a serviceable one if other stuff is then included) which is particularly good if you don't feel like peeling the shrimp first. A little unsalted butter is good in the liquid just before tossing in the potatoes. I'm looking for the liquid to taste just shy of a flavorful broth, something you could almost sip alone. I want it to have room for the flavors of the potatoes, sausage, corn and seafood but be fairly close to a standalone finish on its own.

Yes, a little more invloved but really simple, and better flavors at the end imo.
 
Thanks Rita. Something that simple is exactly what I wanted to hear.

Kevin, I'll give it a try. I love anything that can give me more stuff to play with. Anyway, I'll report back on how it tasted.
 
That's great, Kevin! I had a low country boil once and decided that it was pretty boring and never tried it again. Now it's going on the Must Do List.

A.D., this cries for something creamy with it. Perhaps a tartar sauce? Here's a good one:

Makes 3/4 cup.

3/4 cup (180 g) mayonnaise (Hellmann’s or Hellmann’s Light)
1 teaspoon juice from cornichons or caper juice (cornichon juice preferred)
1 1/2 tablespoons (17 g) minced cornichons (about 3 large; sweet gherkins will work, but cornichons are best)
1 tablespoon (6 g) scallion, including greens (1 scallion)
1 tablespoon (4 g) capers
1 tablespoon (11 g) minced red onion, optional

Cover and refrigerate until the flavors blend, at least 30 minutes. (The sauce can be refrigerated for several days.)

Rita
 
Steve,
Youse is rite. Jonh Folse's recipes are some of the best. We have fixed countless things from his recipes and they are spot-on. They all must be kitchen-tested before publishing(as opposed to some other"celebity chefs). Glad you like them.
 
Coincedentally my brother and sister-in-law had a Cajun Boil for her mother yesterday. Spuds,onions,garlic(whole heads),corn,sausage,crabs and crawfish(60 lbs.)
Used Zatarains for seasoning. The container holds 73 OZ and says on the label it is good for one sack(40-45lbs)of crawfish. It is plenty spicy and salty stuff. My lips and fingers burned for a while(good burn!!).
 
Well, the boil went really well. I really wanted to try to make the stock like Kevin talked about, but with church and a 9 month old, sometimes time can get cut short. So in the end we just used about 8 quarts of water and a bag of Zatarain's Crab Boil. Put the potatoes and sausage in for about 10 minutes. Corn in for 6 minutes and the shrimp went in the last 4. My favorite part was the sausage, but it was a little on the spicy side for some there (because it was in the water the longest?).

Next time, however, I really hope to try your tips Kevin because the corn and shrimp were not as flavorful as I had hoped. All in all though, for ease of preparation and the HUGE amount of food it made, will definitely do this again.

And I also made Keri C's recipe for baked beans. Wow. They are great. I don't even like baked beans and I went back and ate them out of the pan when everybody else was done. You gotta try em.
 
Glad you want to do it again!I don't think you had enough seasoning. I got out a bag of Zatarain's(its a must have at our house) and it says that "one bag is sufficient for 4 lbs shrimp,4lbs of crawfish OR 12 doz crabs.To a large cooking container add 3QTS of water,4TBSPs
of salt,i bag of Zats' and 1 lemon(quartered).Add Cayenne pepper to taste". If you had 8 qts H2O you needed 3 bags minimum to get good flavor. Not trying to butt in just to help out!!!
 
Zaterain has an awesome seasoning product. We also use it often, sometimes a tablespoon or two at a time for small quantities. If ya like cajun, this is for you. The powdered shrimp and crab boil mix. Great with crawfish. I have even used it seasoning meat for the grill or smoker. Spicy ........
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I wanted to bump this thread because a friend of mine is getting married and wants to do this for the rehearsal dinner. He wants 4 things in it: shrimp, potatoes, sausage, and corn. How much of each for 60 people? Trying to get an idea of cost. Thanks!
 
If I was adjusting my 12-person Frogmore Stew recipe to 60 people, here's how it comes out:

7.5 gallons water
3 3/4 cups Old Bay Seasoning
10 pounds new red potatoes
10 pounds hot smoked sausage links, cut into 2 inch pieces
60 ears corn - husked, cleaned and quartered
20 pounds large fresh shrimp, unpeeled

Bring water and Old Bay to a boil. Add potatoes and cook for 15 minutes. Add sausage and cook for 5 minutes more. Add corn and cook for another 5 minutes. Stir in the shrimp and cook until shrimp are pink, about 5 minutes. Drain immediately and serve, dusting with a little Old Bay if you want it livelier. I like to dump it all onto butcher paper or newspapers on a picnic table, and allow each to take what they want on foil-lined cardboard beer flats.
 
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