HOW MANY FROGS ARE THERE IN FROGMORE STEW?

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY 2025 

As we wrap up our children’s school year, whether you’re filled with trepidation, anxiety, or sheer glee that your kids will be with you 24/7 soon, why not make plans to go a little wild.  May’s the perfect time to plan creative ways to entertain and bond and you’re never too young or too old to expand the scope of your explorations into wild South Carolina. While planning your summer adventures, don’t forget our diverse waterways, including the extensive seafood industry they provide.  We’re fortunate in SC that fresh seafood is ready to enjoy some place in the state year-round, whether it be in a restaurant, on a banana boat, or at the business end of a fishing rod.

From coastal waters in the Low Country to our fresh water in the north, South Carolina’s been known for and celebrated its diversity of seafood, readily available for literally centuries. We know Beaufort’s pioneering fishermen were developing the burgeoning industry on a new path, literally, on new shrimp trawlers way back in the 1800s. Murrells Inlet has rightfully been donned, “a shrimping powerhouse “ and “The Seafood Capital of the World.” That’s in part due to those trail blazing watermen in historic Beaufort who set the course for developing what’s become our enviable shrimp industry.

While Calabash, NC was making history with its ”fish camps” memorializing the calabash cooking method, fishing communities were coming together up and down the coast of South Carolina as well. It soon became tradition to welcome returning fisherman and cook their days catch right on the beach to enjoy the fish of their labors with family and friends.

Another South Carolina tradition that pays homage to the community of its roots is creating Frogmore Stew. Googling aside, who can resist investigating the number of frogs needed for Frogmore Stew, which is also a great conversation starter ‘round the dinner table.  Every chef has his own special version, and there’s no shortage of restaurants in Charleston – just north of Frogmore, who proudly serve the dish that’s steeped in our early history to young and old alike with the same curiosity. It’s but one of the surprises our state has waiting for you to discover on your explorations.

Yes Virginia, there are crawfish in South Carolina

While we typically associate crawfish-or crayfish with Louisiana, South Carolina is home to over 37 species of the curious creatures that resemble tiny lobsters. If that information’s creating an excitement to investigate a newsorta seafood, you’re in luck. You  can find them in all of our 46 counties in various bodies of water including everything from the wild Congaree Swamp to carefully maintained crawfish farms that dot our state.

 

Shake things up at family dinners and have some fun with unusual fare

 

You never know what surprises await in a simple SC oyster bed

 Bottle Nose Dolphins undaunted by humans, play, breed, and make their year-round homes in South Carolina     

While you’re out and about exploring new ways to interact, bond, and destress in our natural world, remember to enjoy your best Mother's Day ever on May 11, 2025.  There’s no end to the discoveries you and your kids can make in South Carolina’s waterways and P.S. There are no frogs in a traditional Frogmore Stew. 

For more information about fishing licenses in SC, see https://www.dnr.sc.gov/licensing.html

Written for VIP Magazine

 

 

 

 

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