Low Country Shrimp Boil - Welcome to America

Coming from the Midwest, I had no idea what somebody meant the first time they said they were having a "low boil".  What does that mean?  So let me help my fellow northerners here - a low boil, or  is some kind of shellfish boiled in a heavily seasoned, creole-infused broth with potatoes, corn, and usually sausage.  Usually crab, crawfish, or shrimp are used, and this ends up being a meal and half when you sit down and roll up your sleeves to this feast.

I have decided that this dish, like chili and barbecue, is the epitome of American cooking - shellfish from the Gulf of Mexico, corn and potatoes indigenous to North America, sausages with Polish or French origins, and a spice blend created by a German Nazi refugee.  Apparently the shellfish boil is most common in the low country of Georgia and South Carolina, whose cuisines I absolutely love, but it has spread to New England and the Chesapeake area as well, where people refuse to call it a boil, and instead use the word "feast".  I could get behind this convention, but really don't care what it is, so long as you leave me alone and let me at those tasty shrimp already.  Let's dig in.

Low Country Shrimp Boil

• 1 large onion, sliced, skin on
• half head of garlic, smashed
• 1 tbsp salt
• 2 lemons, quartered
• 1/4 cup Old Bay seasoning
• 4 pounds shrimp, shell on, deveined
• 2 pounds andouille or kielbasa sausage, cut into 1-2" sections
• 3 pounds red potatoes, whole
• 6 ears corn, halved

This recipe is really, stupidly, incredibly easy.  All you need to do is cook things in the proper order, realizing that shrimp cook quickly.  First, gather your ingredients, and make sure they're all cut into serving sized pieces:

Bring to a boil about 1 gallon of water in a large pot with salt.  When boiling, add lemon, onion, and garlic.  Now add the Old Bay seasoning - you can use more or less, or split it up and add directly with the shrimp.

Get your boiling liquid ready to go, and follow the sequence for everything to be properly cooked and not overcooked

Add potatoes, and cook for about 10 minutes.  Add sausage, cook for 10 more minutes.  Add corn, and cook for 5 minutes.  Add the shrimp, stir to submerge, and cook for 3 minutes.  If you want, add the extra Old Bay when you pour in the shrimp.  Serve immediately with more Old Bay, hot sauce, and whatever dipping sauces you like.  Not that this needs any.

Add the shrimp with some more Old Bay if you like

Stir, cook until shrimp are pink and curled, and then serve immediately!

There's a restaurant near me that serves this tossed in a delicious garlic butter sauce, or a cajun sauce if you prefer, both of which are an excellent (though potentially blasphemous) addition.  I intend to figure both of those out, and add to this post in the future.  So stay tuned!