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It's common to find the Hoppin' John served as an accompaniment in restaurants and homes. It consists of field peas, rice, chopped onion, and bacon sliced on top. Some recipes call for vinegar and spices to be mixed in. There are lots of rice-and-peas dishes throughout the American South, but most use black-eyed peas; you need to go to South Carolina or Georgia to enjoy the field pea variety. Leave three peas uneaten on your plate if you consume this on New Year's day, as it is a local custom; the coming year is assured good fortune, luck and romance if the ritual is performed.
A simpler side dish is called Charleston red rice, and originates from the local Gullah populations who still live in the Low-Country. It is made of white rice, boiled with crushed tomatoes and hot sauce, and mixed with smoked pork sausage. A more distinctive flavor can be obtained by adding diced onions or bell peppers to the dish, which some people enjoy doing. Shrimp kedgeree is another rice dish, mixed with parsley, curry powder, butter, and hard-boiled eggs; it has variations all over the world and is thought to have originated in India, where British colonists learned of it and spread it all over the world.
If you've stuffed yourself with shellfish and can barely fathom another shrimp, then chicken bog is the next dish to try. This pilaf-style meal starts with a whole chicken, which is boiled with sausage, celery, onion, and various spices until tender. Once the bones are removed from the pot, rice is added and cooked slowly so that it absorbs the remaining liquid. The dish when completed, has a very dense, moist consistency, hence its name 'bog'..
Aside from these local specialties, you'll find all manner of delicious Southern dishes in South Carolina. Like any self-respecting Southern state, gumbo is a must; having so many varieties of fresh seafood nearby makes it a constant at dinner tables. You'll also find crab cakes, catfish, fried cabbage, and rice and peas on plates throughout the state. Baked macaroni and cheese, one of the ultimate comfort foods, is a common side dish here in the Palmetto state. You'll eat until you burst then go back for seconds!
