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Old Bay seasoning

JAZ

By JAZ
in Cooking

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JAZ

JAZ

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Old Bay seasoning wasn't common in my cooking world (Western US) and it wasn't until I visited Baltimore a few years ago that I had it in anything, at least not knowingly. But oddly enough, it was a visit to O's Steak and Seafood in Denver that brought Old Bay to my attention. The chef there used it on popcorn that garnished one of the best shrimp dishes I've ever had.

So I bought a can when I got back. I've discovered that Old Bay is what made the shrimp salad I had in Baltimore so good -- I found this recipe at the Old Bay website and it's now my standard for shrimp salad. In addition, I now use it in Bloody Marys -- anywhere I would have used celery salt, in fact.

Any other fans? What do you use it in or on?

Janet A. Zimmerman, aka "JAZ"
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Author, The Healthy Pressure Cooker Cookbook,  Instant Pot Obsession, and The Ultimate Instant Pot Cookbook for Two

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MSRadell

MSRadell

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It's definitely great stuff! When I moved from New York to South Carolina is when I first discovered it in a and using it ever since. It's great when seafoods, chicken and as a base for other rubs! I have a little more trouble finding it here in Kentucky but still can. If I ever lived anyplace I couldn't get it I have to import it, oh wait a minute I did that when I lived in France! :biggrin:

I've learned that artificial intelligence is no match for natural stupidity.

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feedmec00kies

feedmec00kies

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Not something I make myself, but I looooove bay seasoning potato chips. Herr's and Utz both make them, but they're a bit hard to find, at least in NYC.

"I know it's the bugs, that's what cheese is. Gone off milk with bugs and mould - that's why it tastes so good. Cows and bugs together have a good deal going down."

- Gareth Blackstock (Lenny Henry), Chef!

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CtznCane

CtznCane

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It's definitely great stuff!  When I moved from New York to South Carolina is when I first discovered it in a and using it ever since.  It's great when seafoods, chicken and as a base for other rubs!  I have a little more trouble finding it here in Kentucky but still can.  If I ever lived anyplace I couldn't get it I have to import it, oh wait a minute I did that when I lived in France! :biggrin:

While I used it when we lived in California, I find myself using Old Bay even more here in Kentucky. I have a white bbq sauce which I serve on Pork and on Fish when I cook at the club of which OB is a part and people absolutely adore it. (Honky Donkey sauce)

Charles a food and wine addict - "Just as magic can be black or white, so can addictions be good, bad or neither. As long as a habit enslaves it makes the grade, it need not be sinful as well." - Victor Mollo

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JAZ

JAZ

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Not something I make myself, but I looooove bay seasoning potato chips. Herr's and Utz both make them, but they're a bit hard to find, at least in NYC.

I'm definitely trying that the next time I make potato chips. I've used it on popcorn but didn't think about chips.

Janet A. Zimmerman, aka "JAZ"
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jzimmerman@eGullet.org
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Author, The Healthy Pressure Cooker Cookbook,  Instant Pot Obsession, and The Ultimate Instant Pot Cookbook for Two

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Lilija

Lilija

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I love it. It's very good in tuna salad, on roasted chicken, as a seasoning in the breading of fried stuff, and I put it on just about any fried potato product that crosses my path.

Sometimes, when I'm eating the storebought rotisserie chickens, I'll dump some Old Bay in a tiny dish, and dip my chicken pieces in the seasoning (much like a szechuan salt & pepper dip).

I have an unnatural obsession with the Old Bay flavored Utz chips, too, though they're tough to find these days.

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maggiethecat

maggiethecat

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Old Bay is fabulous stuff, and terrific in all the applications you've mentioned -- next time I make chips I'll be shaking some on. It belongs in a category named "This is better than I can make and cheaper than I can make." Like a pack of dried onion soup mix and a carton of sour cream: the best California dip.

Note to men: crumble a little behind your ears and I'll follow you anywhere.

Margaret McArthur

"Take it easy, but take it."

Studs Terkel

1912-2008

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Magictofu

Magictofu

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I have seen Old Bay mentionned in many recipes but because I have never seen it on the grocery shelves here in Canada, I never used it. I have seen recipe for the spice mix online... maybe I should make my own?

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ElsieD

ElsieD

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I have seen Old Bay mentionned in many recipes but because I have never seen it on the grocery shelves here in Canada, I never used it. I have seen recipe for the spice mix online... maybe I should make my own?

You can buy it at the fish markets - Merivale Fish Market and Pelican, on Bank street both carry it. I have seen it at other places as well - but where else escapes me at the moment.

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Marlene

Marlene

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I have seen Old Bay mentionned in many recipes but because I have never seen it on the grocery shelves here in Canada, I never used it. I have seen recipe for the spice mix online... maybe I should make my own?

I saw it at Metro the other day and also at Loblaws. Not sure what grocery stores are in Ottawa, maybe at a specialty store? Let me know if you can't find it.

Marlene

Practice. Do it over. Get it right.

Mostly, I want people to be as happy eating my food as I am cooking it.

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Magictofu

Magictofu

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I tend to shop on the Quebec side of the river in Ottawa and product availability varies quite a bit by provinces. In any case, Elsie mentioned a few alternatives near where I live and I will probably seek it there.

Even though I like the idea of making my own spice blend, I think I will still want to compare the result of my experiment with the real thing.

Wikipedia suggests that Old Bay is sold as a seafood seasoning but from the suggestions above, it seems like it has a number of different uses. I have also seen it mentioned in many BBQ recipes.

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JAZ

JAZ

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I have seen Old Bay mentionned in many recipes but because I have never seen it on the grocery shelves here in Canada, I never used it. I have seen recipe for the spice mix online... maybe I should make my own?

I've seen several "copycat" recipes online, but they seem wrong to me. If you look at the ingredients listed on real Old Bay, celery salt is listed first (meaning that it's the predominant ingredient in the mixture), with red and black pepper and paprika also making an appearance by name -- everything else is just "spices." The recipe versions I've seen all seem to make the erroneous assumption that the "Bay" in Old Bay refers to bay leaf and start with a huge amount of it -- in most cases, more than any other ingredient. My sense of taste and knowledge of how ingredient lists are put together make those recipes highly suspect.

Janet A. Zimmerman, aka "JAZ"
Manager
jzimmerman@eGullet.org
eG Ethics signatory
Author, The Healthy Pressure Cooker Cookbook,  Instant Pot Obsession, and The Ultimate Instant Pot Cookbook for Two

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Anna N

Anna N

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I have seen Old Bay mentionned in many recipes but because I have never seen it on the grocery shelves here in Canada, I never used it. I have seen recipe for the spice mix online... maybe I should make my own?

Look in and around the seafood department and you might ask the staff. It doesn't seem to appear often with other spices in the supermarkets I frequent.

Anna Nielsen aka "Anna N"

...I just let people know about something I made for supper that they might enjoy, too. That's all it is. (Nigel Slater)

"Cooking is about doing the best with what you have . . . and succeeding." John Thorne

Our 2012 (Kerry Beal and me) Blog

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toweringpine

toweringpine

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I have seen Old Bay mentionned in many recipes but because I have never seen it on the grocery shelves here in Canada, I never used it. I have seen recipe for the spice mix online... maybe I should make my own?

I couldn't find it either but picked some up in Buffalo a few months ago. Found it in a Walmart Supercenter a week later!

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DanM

DanM

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I use The Spice House's Chesapeake Bay seasoning, which is their clone of Old bay. It has much less salt. I like it on fries, bloody Marys, and just about everything else people have mentioned.

Dan

"Salt is born of the purest of parents: the sun and the sea." --Pythagoras.

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MicBacchus

MicBacchus

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Being from Balto, it goes without saying that I'm never without it. It's great on fries, especially with vinegar sprinkled on top. The smell and taste make me crave steamed crabs - which are coming into season finally!!!

Burgundy makes you think silly things, Bordeaux makes you talk about them, and Champagne makes you do them ---

Brillat-Savarin

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DTBarton

DTBarton

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I use The Spice House's Chesapeake Bay seasoning, which is their clone of Old bay. It has much less salt. I like it on fries, bloody Marys, and just about everything else people have mentioned.

Dan

I use the Penzey Chesapeake Bay Seasoning, which is THEIR clone of Old Bay. I find it to be less salty and more savory and balanced. When picking crabs, I take a small dish of rice vinegar and add some Penzey Bay seasoning. Great stuff to dip your claws.

Edited by DTBarton (log)
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OliverB

OliverB

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I finally found it at my local Safeway! They don't stock it with the spices, it's on the side of the meat and fish counter, where I've never looked before. I've never tried it, I think it'll be on the potatoes tonight :-)

Oliver (who' s already planning to put it on popcorn too)

"And don't forget music - music in the kitchen is an essential ingredient!"

- Thomas Keller

Diablo Kitchen, my food blog

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  • 2 weeks later...
JAZ

JAZ

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I tried some on salmon tonight. I have a couple of rubs that I like to use with salmon, but neither seemed to go with the side dishes I had planned, so I was thinking I'd just use salt and pepper. Then I remembered Old Bay and gave it a try. Nice.

Janet A. Zimmerman, aka "JAZ"
Manager
jzimmerman@eGullet.org
eG Ethics signatory
Author, The Healthy Pressure Cooker Cookbook,  Instant Pot Obsession, and The Ultimate Instant Pot Cookbook for Two

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