Sunday, March 17, 2013

Revamped: Boozy Low Country Boil with Homemade Tartar Sauce + Homemade Wasabi-Cocktail Sauce

Boozy Low Country Boil with Homemade Tartar Sauce + Homemade Wasabi-Cocktail Sauce
Welp folks, it was a hell of a weekend. I can't believe another famous St. Patty's Day celebration in Savannah is in the books... and unfortunately, we have to wait a whole year to have it back. My liver, and my body as a whole, is happy. But I'm sure I'll find another way to make up for its absence. Otherwise, it was a textbook Irish celebration, filled with bar hopping, drink making, and wearing green. To make life easier on ourselves, we decided to make a classic Low Country Boil for lunch/dinner after the parade. This is by far the best decision we have ever made, simply because it's not that high maintenance... all you do is throw a bunch of crap in a pot and pour it on a table. Done + done. I know that I have already featured a Low Country Boil recipe a while back, but it needed some revamping (we like to do that a lot around this joint) by adding a whole mess of beer and spices. But, what really put it over the top was the homemade dipping sauces that accompanied the meal. To be quite frank, those guys stole the show. I started off by making a classic garlic aioli and added some pickles and capers to make a classic, but divine, tartar sauce. I'm telling you, making the mayonnaise from scratch is key to everything here people, it's worth the extra 10 minutes of whisking. After the tartar sauce was finished, I moved onto my Homemade Wasabi-Cocktail Sauce. This was my favorite, but it does come with a fair warning... it will knock your socks off. Now that we have addressed that issue, I can say I couldn't get enough of the stuff. It was lip-burning, tongue-scorching, sinus-clearing spicy. And in our world, that is a very, very good thing. Between the Sriracha, Chili-Garlic Sauce, hot sauce, red pepper flakes, horseradish, and my secret ingredient, wasabi paste... this bad boy had a kick that won't quit. If you don't want a tear-inducing sauce, I suggest you start with a little bit at a time until you have found the spice level that y'all like. Besides that, this Boozy Low Country Boil is made extra special with lots o' beer, spices, and high-quality ingredients. It was the perfect way to eat on a hot Savannah day, and hey, it certainly helped us to sober up before the night's partying. Also, what is more satisfying with eating food off the table, with bare hands and an ice cold beverage? Nothin' gets better than that, take my word for it!! Enjoy y'all :)
Oh, we were ready to dig in alright. 
Georgia Shrimp. Potatoes. Vidalia Onions. Sweet Corn. Smoked Sausage. 
How easy is that? Almost too easy. 
Homemade Tartar Sauce 
Homemade Wasabi-Cocktail Sauce

For the Homemade Tartar Sauce:
1 Egg Yolk
1t White Vinegar
1 ½t Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice
¼t Dijon Mustard & Sugar
4 Garlic Cloves, Minced into a Paste (with a little bit of sea salt)
½t Salt
¾C Canola Oil
½C Pickles, Cut into Small Cubes
3T Capers, Finely Chopped
1T Minced Shallots
1 Lemon, Zested (and you can use a little juice to taste)
¼t Worcestershire Sauce & Hot Sauce
Salt & Pepper, To Taste

For the Homemade Wasabi-Cocktail Sauce:
1C Ketchup
¼C Sriracha + 2T Asian Chili-Garlic Sauce
Prepared Horseradish, To Taste (we like a lot of horseradish)
4 Cloves of Garlic, Minced
1 Lemon, Zested & Juiced
1T Worcestershire & Hot Sauce
1t Red Pepper Flakes & Paprika
1T Wasabi Paste (we like it to blow our heads off)
Salt & Pepper, To Taste

For the Boozy Low Country Boil:
4Q Beer (or enough to completely cover all of the food in the pot)
¼C Soy Sauce & Hot Sauce
2T Old Bay Seasoning
2 Shrimp or Crab Boil Bags
3lbs Small Red Potatoes (or you can cut bigger potatoes in half)
2 Vidalia Onions, Cut into Medium Chunks
10 Large Cloves of Garlic
2 Packages of Conecuh Smoked Sausage, Cut into 1inch Pieces
6 Ears of Corn, Cut into Small Rounds
2 Lemons, Cut into Medium Chunks
3lbs Fresh Wild Georgia Shrimp, Unpeeled but Deveined

For Serving:
Cajun Seasoning, For Sprinkling (we love Tony’s)
Homemade Herbed Compound Butter, Melted
Homemade Tartar Sauce, For Dipping
Homemade Wasabi Cocktail Sauce, For Dipping
Lemon Wedges, For Squeezing
Hot Sauce, For Dipping
Newspaper & Paper Towels (for the table)

Directions:
1. For the Homemade Tartar Sauce: Combine egg yolk, lemon juice, vinegar, mustard, minced garlic, and ½t salt in medium bowl. Whisk until blended and bright yellow, about 30 seconds. Using ¼t measuring spoon and whisking constantly, add ¼C e oil to yolk mixture, a few drops at a time, about 4-5 minutes. Gradually add remaining ½C canola oil in very slow thin stream, whisking constantly, until mayonnaise is thick, about 8-10 minutes (mayonnaise will be lighter in color). Add in all of the remaining ingredients and stir until combined. Season it with any additional spices to taste. Refrigerate until you are ready to serve.
2. For the Homemade Wasabi-Cocktail Sauce: Combine all of the ingredients in a mixing bowl and add in as much prepared horseradish as you want; stir to combine. We like a lot of horseradish, wasabi, and spice, so this sauce is quite pungent & spicy (make sure to season a little at a time until you have reached your desired taste). Refrigerate the sauce until you are ready to serve.
3. For the Boozy Low Country Boil: Fill a large pot with the beer and whisk in the soy sauce, hot sauce, old bay seasoning, salt, and pepper. Add in the boil bags and bring the mixture to a boil. Once boiling, add in the potatoes, sausage, onion pieces, and garlic cloves. Cook on medium heat for 20 minutes. Next, add in the corn and cook for another 10-15 minutes. Throw in the lemon chunks and the shrimp and cook for just 2-3 minutes or until the shrimp have just turned pink. Drain the low country boil and pour out onto a table that is lined with newspaper. Heavily sprinkle the boil ingredients with Cajun seasoning. Drizzle some of the melted herbed compound butter over the ingredients or serve it on the side for the corn. Put all of the homemade dips on the table, along with lemon wedges and hot sauce. Enjoy it while it is still hot, and with a lot of paper towels and cold beer!
We came. We saw. We conquered.
Even dogs try to sneak a bite!

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