"Low Country," Great Eatin'

Among the highlights of Charleston, S.C. — for locals and tourists alike — is great food.

The city has become a magnet for chefs and food-lovers, according to Food & Wine magazine, and drew Jeremiah Bacon home after seven years in New York eateries.

As executive chef of "Carolina's" restaurant, he offers a taste of Charleston cooking at its best, putting his inventive spin on the region's traditional "Low Country" cuisine, as well as nouveau dishes.

The "Low Country" stretches along the South Carolina coast from Pawley's Island to the Savannah River in Georgia. Inland, it encompasses about 80 miles of low-elevation terrain.

"Think saltwater marsh and Spanish moss hanging from live oaks, and you're thinking Low Country," Coastal Living magazine writes. "The Low Country teems with aquatic life, and for centuries, local cooks have turned to the water for culinary inspiration. Crabs, shrimp, fish, and oysters form the basis of any traditional menu, and seafood dishes are offered at every meal. Rice, grits, and the produce of the coastal plain also play an instrumental role in Low Country cooking."

Also essential to the development of Low Country cuisine are influences of the English, French Huguenots, West Indians and African slaves.

"Carolina's," which opened as "Perdita's" in 1953, was the only "significant," or gourmet restaurant in Charleston for a long time. Although the menu still contains many traditional Low Country dishes, such as crab cakes and shrimp and grits, Bacon brings his own flare to the menu. He steers away from traditional Low Country offerings, employing more French techniques while embracing all the fabulous local ingredients.

Bacon shared a shrimp recipe as part of The Early Show's "Summer in the City" tour Friday. He says the freshness and flavor of local shrimp are unsurpassed.

In Charleston, you can find two types of shrimp: white and brown. White shrimp love cold water, so you find them in the creeks early in the season. They live in protected areas, growing big and fat. As the shallow water heats up, they begin to head out toward the cold ocean. The white shrimp are then replaced by the brown shrimp, just now beginning to show up in creeks across the Low Country. Brown shrimp are smaller and a bit sweeter than the white ones.

On the show, Bacon prepared white shrimp with the heads on. He compares head-on shrimp to meat on the bone; cooking the shrimp this way lends more flavor to the finished product. It doesn't change how you prepare the shrimp in terms of heat or timing; just don't eat the heads, he cautions!

Other dishes on the set included crab cakes, shrimp and grits, braised pork belly, and almond cake.

RECIPE

SZECHUAN PEPPERCRON SHRIMP WITH SAUTED BABY VEGETABLES AND A RED PEPPER CARAMEL

Appetizer portion, serves 1

Ingredients:

4 large shrimp (preferably head-on)
grown Szechuan peppercorns to taste
salt to taste
canola oil
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
juice of 2 red bell peppers
2 tablespoons champagne or red wine vinegar
1 cup sliced baby vegetables (such as fennel or patty-pan squash
1 teaspoon parsley, chervil or other green herbs

Method:

1. To make the sauce, combine sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook for about 15 minutes, until the mixture begins to caramelize and turn amber.
2. Put bell peppers through a juicer or liquify in a blender; strain. Stir the juice into the caramelized mixture. Reduce by about a third. The sauce should thicken some but should not be stiff; it will not coat the back of a spoon.
3. Add the vinegar to the sauce. Reserve.
4. Quickly blanch the sliced vegetables in boiling water. Place in cold water to stop the cooking. Place back in saute pan to reheat along with 1 tablespoon of water. Season with salt and pepper. Add green herbs if desired.
5. For the shrimp, heat a little canola oil over medium heat in a nonstick pan. Season shrimp with ground Szechuan peppercorn and salt. Add to pan, cook about 30 seconds on each side.
6. To plate, place shrimp on top of vegetables and drizzle a spoonful of red pepper caramel around all.