Old Bay Seasoning
During my college days, I lived in Washington DC. It had a calmer, more organized feel to it. Sidewalks were wider except in Georgetown which wasn’t too far away. Anyway, my college boyfriend showed me many of the sites that DC had to offer. One of my favorite finds was what the locals referred to as “the wharf”. It’s correct name is the Main Avenue Fish Market. I never knew or remembered that that was its real name. It was there that a regular ritual began. We’d take a trip down there and it was always fun to do so. All the fresh fish and shellfish. It was great. Didn’t smell too good but it was tolerable especially knowing that you were in for a delightful meal. We always got shrimp, maco (shark) and Maryland blue crabs. I’ve recently been in contact with him in order to resurrect some old memories and of course, to help me write this blog. I couldn’t remember for the life of me what the crabs I ate frequently and with gusto were called. Perhaps I’m already getting senile. I probably am. What was I talking about? :P Okay, so here’s the part where the Old Bay Seasoning comes in.
My ex used to work as a cook in a German restaurant (he was half german himself) so he knew a thing or two about cooking. He cooked up some nice things. One of my favorites were his wings with soy sauce, rosemary and thyme. He’d broil them perfectly. I do my own version of it now and it’s well received by eaters here.
So the Maryland blue crabs just were basically covered in Old Bay and steamed w/beer. Old Bay seasoning consists of celery salt, spices including red pepper, black pepper and paprika. He was the first to introduce it to me. What a knock out flavor. It reminded me of korean crab stew. Only it wasn’t quite as sweet. (But don’t think that it’s sweet cause it’s not, it’s savory.) Anyway, we used to spread news papers all over the table and clip the sides down. Then the ex would load up the table with crabs and we’d all dig in. In the meantime, there’s maco baking up in the oven with tons of butter It always freaked me out that he used so much butter. I felt my arteries cringe when I watched. Gotta say though, it always turned out really good. Very moist and tender. (He says he doesn’t eat maco anymore because they’re more prone to parasites. He tells me to go for the arctic char instead, his latest fave.) Then there was the shrimp boiling away. He used to throw a jar of stuff into the water with the shrimp. I think it was literally called shrimp boil. I don’t know; I should ask. It was quite a feast. I don’t recall if we ate any veggies or sides. I think we may have had a bag of Utz potato chips crab flavor. Odd and interesting. Actually korean shrimp fries exist. They’re french fry shaped, puffed, lightly crunchy and shrimp flavored snacks. I didn’t like it at first but they would appear in the house from time to time and I always ate one or two. I never got hooked but I don’t dislike it now.
spicy steamed shrimp
The other night, I found a recipe for spicy steamed shrimp. It was basically steamed with water only and old bay. I did that though on the box of Old Bay it says to add vinegar. I omitted this. Further, the ex suggested that I use beer. I think either of those steps would’ve greatly enhanced the peel n’ eat shrimp I made. Steve had never ever had Old Bay Seasoning before. I was very excited for him to try it. And, and…he liked it. He liked the shrimp. We were using fresh lemons to season and that was a major plus. We dipped them in McCormicks cocktail sauce. It was pretty good.
'The Wharf'
One more Old Bay memory. While I was in the Washington DC, the top food writer for the Washington Post was Phyllis Richman. She’s currently retired. I fell in love with her writing and subjects and became obsessed enough one night to call her. I don’t remember how I found her number but I called and left a message. And, and…she called back. I was like holy moly! This semi famous food writer from the Post took the time to call a college kid back. I was elated. But I was too freaked out to make a return call. Aren’t I retarded? Anyway, she’d review all these super fancy restaurants. But I gained tremendous respect for her when she placed a run-down old shack of a place at “the wharf” that had a handwritten sign saying that they accepted food stamps - this was her top pick for crabcakes. Yes, even the fancy places with all those gourmet type people. Hehe. I had to try one after reading about the tennis ball sized crabcakes lightly seasoned with Old Bay. I have never since seen one quite as large. And the bestest part? It was only $5. Yes, five dollars. This was back in the early 1990’s.
This is where I have trouble finding something creative and intersting to say. It’s one of the most difficult parts of food blogging for me. I could tell you a joke about lesbian frogs but then you won’t eat chicken for a week unless of course you’re a chicken lover. I hope that doesn’t make sense to the majority of you. And if it does, I laugh right along with you. Okay guys, take care and as always, Eat Something Good!