“S” is for She-Crab Soup. She-crab soup is uniquely Charlestonian, a silky seafood chowder with a European heritage. Food historians believe that she-crab soup is based on the Scottish seafood bisque partan bree, which was localized in Charleston with the addition of boiled and pureed long-grain rice and the rose of blue crabs. During a 1909 visit to Charleston, President Taft supped on she-crab soup at the home of Mayor Goodwyn Rhett. The recipe calls for the meat of a dozen female crabs, fish stock, milk, spices, and heavy cream. A blending of the New and Old Worlds and served hot, she-crab soup’s finishing touches often include a sprinkling of the orange crab eggs across the surface of the thick soup, followed by a dollop of a fine, dry sherry, such as amontillado.
“S” is for She-Crab Soup
