Chicken Bog: Selected Recipes and Traditions From SC

I had never heard of it until I got to Myrtle Beach, SC. Now, as Fall draws in, there has been a Chicken Bog fundraiser at my son's elementary school and there's a huge "bog-off" festival in Loris, SC coming up in a weekend or two. There are so many folks living in Myrtle Beach who are not original to the place, it surprised me that a food tradition has survived at all! It has, and how!

Say local SC Food experts ~

"Traditionally, the only ingredients are chicken, rice, sausage, and onions, seasoned with salt and plenty of black pepper."

The food of legend, Chicken Bog gets it's name because the "chicken is bogged in rice." An out-of-stater, who now claims South Carolina as her home, however claims it is named so because it is a "boggy, soggy mess." This person is now a fan of the dish, it should be stated!

My Realtor Friend from Conway, SC who makes an awesome EVERYTHING!!

Terrific cook, talented musician, loyal husband and deeply loved dad, this paragon of virtue -- Mr. Kevin Conklin -- is also a realtor. We-ll, there's always a catch, eh? LOL You can find his contact details at the right of his recipe. Who knows, if you buy or list with him, maybe he'll make a chicken bog for you!!

Chicken Bog is a low country cooking tradition... no matter whether it's a rice pilau or what! Here are some terrific books to sample other low country cooking favorites.

Ingredients

1 (3-pound) chicken, quartered

1 pound smoked link sausage

1 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter

2 teaspoons Seasoned Salt (recommended: Lawry's)

2 teaspoons House Seasoning, recipe follows

1 teaspoon ground red pepper

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

3 bay leaves

8 cups water

3 cups raw white rice

Directions

Slice the sausage into 1/2-inch pieces. In a stockpot, combine the chicken, sausage, onion, butter, seasonings and bay leaves. Add the water, bring to a boil, cover, and cook at a low boil for 40 minutes. Remove the chicken from the pot and let cool slightly. Pick the meat from the bones, discarding the bones and skin. Add the rice to the pot and bring to a boil, stirring well. Boil for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat, cover the pot, and simmer for 10 minutes, or until the rice is done. Remove the bay leaves, and return the chicken to the pot.

House Seasoning:

1 cup salt

1/4 cup black pepper

1/4 cup garlic powder

Mix ingredients together and store in an airtight container for up to 6 months.

Continuing the tradition of a slow, gracious Southern way of life that many folks claim still exists & flourishes in South Carolina (just as many would claim the Northerners relocating in here have wrecked it!), here with this fun little cookbook is the best selection of regional favorites. Some time-honored, some new - all delicious and delectable!

CHICKEN BOG RECIPE

A coastal South Carolina delicacy with chicken, sausage, and rice - This authentic recipe was contributed by the Loris Chamber of Commerce.

Ingredients

6 cups water

1 tablespoon salt

1 onion, chopped

1 (3 pound) whole chicken

3 1/2 cups chicken broth

1 cup long-grain white rice

1/2 pound smoked sausage of your choice, sliced

2 tablespoons Italian-style seasonings

2 cubes chicken bouillon

Preparation

Place water, salt and onion in a large pot. Add chicken and bring all to a boil; cook until chicken is tender, about 1 hour.

Remove chicken from pot and let cool. Remove skin and bones and chop remaining meat into bite size pieces.

Skim off fat from cooking liquid and measure 3 1/2 cups of this chicken broth into a 6-quart saucepan. Add rice, chicken pieces, sausage, herb seasoning and bouillon to this saucepan. Cook all together for 30 minutes; let come to a boil, then reduce heat to low, keeping pan covered the whole time. If mixture is too watery or juicy, cook over medium low heat, uncovered, until it reaches the desired consistency. Stir often while cooking.

Authentic - with a whole chapter devoted to chicken bog!

"Regional variations dictate the kinds of seafood, the accompaniments and side dishes, and the preparation techniques (boiling, steaming, baking, or raw)."

A variety of chicken bog recipes from all over the world.

At the age of nineteen Emily Wharton married Charles Sinkler and moved eight hundred miles from her Philadelphia home to a cotton plantation in an isolated area in the South Carolina Low Country. In monthly letters to her northern family she recorded keen observations about her adopted home, and in a receipt book she assembled a trusted collection of culinary and medicinal recipes reflecting her ties to both North and South. Together with an extensive biographical and historical introduction by Anne Sinkler Whaley LeClercq, these documents provide a flavorful record of plantation cooking, folk medicine, travel, and social life in the antebellum South.

With a new appendix of eighty-two additional receipts, recently discovered by the author amid her family archives, this cookbook, "...provides a moving chronicle of a place, well-loved in its time, and passed into memory, legend, and now onto the printed page." 2010 Southern Quarterly

Is Chicken Bog

"The perfect gift for Southerners, history lovers, and foodies alike.

Discover the secrets of one of the most mysterious, romantic regions in the South: the Lowcountry. James Beard Cookbook of the Year Award-winning author Joe Dabney produces another gem with this comprehensive celebration of Lowcountry cooking.

Much blessed recipe from Ralph on the Christian Forum, and a lovely way for me to pay tribute to him and the new Squidoo Recipe Module.

Chicken bog is supposed to be "peppery". So, at the end and just before you serve, add more freshly ground black pepper if desired. If using powdered black pepper (you shouldn't!) be careful not to add too much. The onion soup mix is already quite salty. Be careful about adding extra salt. Table salt is saltier than kosher salt. Chicken bog should be only slightly moist. Depending upon the brand of rice you use, you may have to add more (or less) stock or cook uncovered for a longer (or shorter) time. Don't overcook! Try not to stir the rice up too much to avoid making it too "gooey".

D'you make a good one? When was the last time you tasted a really fabulous, scrumptious, non-oily dish? is it a winter only recipe?

I'd love to hear your thoughts. (And, if you like the lens, I'd love you to rate it with a few stars, or favorite it!)

**** PS -- One more recipe down below! ***