Like much of the United States, South Carolina's culinary style evolved from the traditions of a handful of cultures, adapted to suit its people and indigenous ingredients. Well known for its love of seafood, barbecues, slow cooking methods, and sweets, South Carolina epitomizes Southern style cooking.
South Carolina's cuisine exhibits a deep influence of African and Caribbean culture, plus a dash of French and Creole. Low country food, Gullah cooking, and soul food are among South Carolina's regional styles. The indelible stamp of African traditions on South Carolina's cuisine shows in the way vegetables such as okra, greens, yams, and beans are cooked with meat. Even the spices and simple way they're used, as well as the tendency to make cooking a communal affair, is reminiscent of African styles. French cooking traditions are mainly evident in the state's coastal regions, in dishes such as duck perlo. South Carolina's cuisine tends to be heavy on meats such as pork and chicken, with lard and pork fat used in cooking.
Good food provides a good reason for people to get together, so barbecues are a favorite pastime in South Carolina. People here love pork slow-cooked in a pit, and they'll argue over whether a wood fire or gas pit is better. But what really distinguishes South Carolina barbecue is its sauces. Across the United States, the vast majority of barbecue sauces fall into one of four categories: vinegar and pepper, mustard, light tomato, and heavy tomato. South Carolina is the only state which incorporates all four varieties.
In South Carolina, vinegar and pepper sauces were introduced by Scot-Irish settlers who migrated to the state from Virginia and North Carolina. German settlers originated South Carolina's distinctive mustard sauce, now found mainly in the southeast areas of the state. Light tomato sauces were the earliest type, popular with English and French colonists; today's light tomato sauces are a bit different, lacing vinegar and pepper sauces with ketchup. Finally, the last sauce used in South Carolina barbecues are heavy tomato-based sauces, the most commonly available style across the country.
Besides barbeque, South Carolina folks love stews. A stew combines various ingredients like meat, vegetables, broth, and seasonings, cooked slowly in a large pot to create a wholesome meal. A few favorites in South Carolina include Pine Bark Stew, Carolina Muddle, and Beaufort Stew. Pine Bark stew, made from fish, uses tender pine roots, red peppers, and homemade ketchup to add flavor. In Carolina Muddle, fish stews in a base of tomatoes, onions, and potatoes, then bacon and eggs are poached on top. Beaufort Stew mixes shrimp, sausages, potatoes, and corn on the cob simmered in beer.
Stew variants popular in South Carolina are bogs and gumbos. Bogs are stews which include rice cooked with the other ingredients to create a soggy dish. For instance, in chicken bog, rice, chicken, and sausages stew together in the pot. Gumbos are also usually served with rice, but unlike a bog, the rice cooks separately. This delicious Creole invention uses okra and filé powder (made from dried sassafras leaves) to thicken the gumbo and add flavor. Chopped onions, green pepper, celery, and tomatoes are vital components, while a variety of meats or seafood may be included.
And with all the seafood in the region, there's plenty to choose from. Everything from shrimp, lobster, crab, and over 30 varieties of fish are readily available in South Carolina. Blue crab is the star attraction of South Carolina's seafood menus, appearing in everything from crab cakes, crab bisques, crab salad, and crab sandwiches to blue crab cocktails. Charleston's famous version of she-crab soup, a cross between a chowder and a bisque, combines female crab, sherry, and seasonings with a dollop of crab roe for extra pizazz. Seafood omelets, shrimp and grits, shrimp and corn chowder, sautéed salmon, broiled scallops, and pan seared scallops…all of them can be found in South Carolina.
Don't forget the snacks. One favorite snack in South Carolina is boiled peanuts – raw, in-the-shell peanuts boiled in brine for a long time. Watermelons are savored during the summertime. Whether you prefer slices or watermelon juice, they're a great way to keep cool in South Carolina's sultry summers.
South Carolina gives visitors a true taste of Southern cooking at its best. Here, food is a celebration. Once you've given South Carolina's cuisine a try, you'll know why.
