The Gullah Geechee contributions to Charleston and beyond are innumerable and incredible, from music to the arts to cuisine. Dishes like Hoppin’ John and shrimp and grits were born in the Gullah Geechee culture, and they have become an indelible part of the culinary landscape in the Lowcountry.
As National Geographic wrote in a 2023 story, “Gullah Geechee people brought rice farming and cultivation with them, having lived along the West African ‘rice coast’ from Senegal to Sierra Leone and beyond … Seafood is also a staple of the Gullah Geechee diet, with shrimp, crab, oysters and fish being essential components of many recipes.”
Anyone who has been lucky enough to eat the crab rice at the East Side’s Hannibal Kitchen’s — a perfect mix of crab meat, sauteed onion, bell peppers and white rice — has had a taste of heaven. While Hannibal’s version is the standard bearer for many — and rightfully so — these other Charleston versions are unmissable iterations of the classic dish.
Topped with a softie
The shito spicy crab rice is a standout on the menu at Bintü Atelier. Executive Chef Bintou N’Daw, a native of Senegal, serves her version with broken rice, stir fried with greens, yam and spicy shito (a Ghanaian, seafood-forward hot pepper sauce) paste with a soft-shell crab on top.
“This dish is my favorite. I love seafood, and I think crab is fun,” N’Daw said. “As a young girl, I used to play with crabs on the beach. To me, crab is a delicacy. My island in Senegal — we have a lot of crab, and we use crab as a seasoning. We put it in stocks, and it always ends up somewhere in a recipe.”
Since crab rice is one of her favorite dishes, it was a no-brainer to have it on the restaurant’s menu. And using the hot sauce was an essential component.
“I thought to introduce that sauce to Charleston,” she shared. “I was focused on taking stuff that was familiar to people but wanted to add an African touch to it and bring it to a different level.”
Another vital component to the dish is, of course, the rice. N’Daw uses day-old white, broken rice. The rice is added cold so it doesn’t overcook, and it also better absorbs the sauce and flavor. The sauce she uses for the dish is a mixture of crab, vegetables like leeks, butter, thyme and other aromatics.
The soft-shell crab on top is the pièce de résistance. When softies are in season, N’Daw over orders and freezes them so she has them all year, and she has also been able to find them during the offseason through distributors.
N’Daw said that the visual goal with the crab on top of the rice is to represent a crab on a sand dune. It’s both whimsical, delicious and a dish that N’Daw feels fully represents her.
A menu mainstay
opening day | Courtesy Delaney Oyster House
The crab rice at Delaney Oyster House, located on Calhoun Street, has been on the menu since opening day.
“The crab rice at Delaney feels incredibly homey and comforting,” said Executive Chef Cheyenne Bond. “It’s rich with deep umami, layered with different textures, warm spices and bright flavors that come together beautifully. Every bite has something a little different, and it just completely hits the spot.”
Delaney’s version comes with sofrito (an aromatic sauce with garlic, onions, peppers, tomatoes and herbs), cilantro and bacon with the option to add shrimp, scallops or the catch of the day.
A Japanese interpretation
At Shokudô, Executive Chef Masatomo “Masa” Hamaya puts his Japanese spin on the dish. He sometimes uses Tokyo negi sesame in it, which is a classic savory, slightly sweet, aromatic Japanese flavor. However, seasonal Lowcountry produce has inspired him to mix things up.
Lately he has been using locally grown spring red onions from GrowFood. This still allows him to put his Japanese spin on it since he chars the onions on the robata grill.
Hamaya has used many types of blue crab in the past but noted that the crab used in the Shokudô dish is local, fresher and better tasting.
“People in Charleston love blue crab,” he said. “For the crab fried rice at Shokudô, I was inspired by she-crab soup and the use of crab mustard — which some people call crab butter. Even though we are making Japanese food, I wanted to pay homage to classic Charleston dishes like she-crab soup, where you traditionally use the whole crab and avoid any waste.”
Crab rice tips from BJ Dennis
Charleton native BJ Dennis, personal chef and caterer, is one of the preeminent voices representing Gullah Geechee cuisine today. His grandmother made crab rice for him growing up and his grandfather was a fisherman.
“I think [crab rice] is synonymous to Gullah Geechee culture, not just in Charleston but throughout the Lowcountry,” Dennis said. “People love the caramelization of sautéed crab over some good rice. I believe that once Hannibal’s got popular, I started seeing it pop up in all these mainstream, high-end restaurants in Charleston, which is beautiful … but it’s always been a part of the community in Gullah culture.”
Dennis noted the distinction between crab rice and crab pirloo. “Crab rice, to me, you’re cooking your crab meat, sautéing it down, and then you either have it on top of the rice or you fold it into already cooked rice. Pirloo, you’re sautéing that crab meat and making your broth, throwing your rice in there and steaming it all together.”
Dennis said he likes both versions, but he more than likely will prepare his version sautéed with onion and peppers. The key for him is getting that nice brown and serving it with shrimp. He also shared that old-timers will use jowl meat from a hog, salt cure and smoke it before frying it down like bacon to be the base of the dish.
Dennis also shared an incredible insider tip about Albany Grocery Store, located in Dale, S.C., about an hour from Charleston.
“During soft-shell crab season, it’s probably the only place where you can still get a $5 soft-shell crab, fried, with a piece of white bread. They are a fishing community. During crab season, you can go there and you can handpick local, blue crab sauteed over grits or rice. A lot of places you don’t see freshly picked crab. At Albany, during crab season, it’s going to be handpicked.”
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