In South Carolina, Hash takes the place of honor held by Brunswick Stew in Georgia and Virginia and Burgoo in western Kentucky.  Like both Brunswick Stew and Burgoo, South Carolina hash is widely regarded as an accompaniment to barbecue.  One should not be too quick to consider hash just a mere side dish, however.  Like other stews, hash has a long history and holds an important role as a food of congregation.  By the Colonial period, hash was a stew made from small pieces of roasted meat of any kind, cooked down with onions, herbs, and vinegar water.

Normally served over rice (sometimes grits) hash recipes are far from consistent. While only the number of people making hash limits the differences in hash recipes, several major “hash regions” can be identified in South Carolina.  Historically, hash from the lowcountry, a region encompassing both the coast and the coastal plain, consists of several de-boned hogsheads, supplemented with organ meats like pork liver, cooked in a stock that favors tomato and ketchup. Vegetables can include onions, corn, and potatoes.  Hash from the midlands, an area that runs through the center of the state, consists primarily of lean cuts of pork, onions, and a mustard-based stock.  Finally, upcountry hash is largely beef-based with no dominant ketchup, vinegar, or mustard-based stock.  This upcountry hash most resembles the camp stews or hunter’s stews of the early nineteenth century.  Ingredients normally consist of only beef, onions, butter, and a variety of seasonings. 

Any mention of stew ingredients yields opportunities to discuss issues of socio- economic class, since most stew recipes are built around recipes that spring from traditional rural folklife.  This transformation of very common ingredients into exceptional stews is a theme integral to the story of hash making.  Like different Burgoo recipes among the church parishes in Owensboro, Kentucky, hash makers from communities throughout South Carolina have developed hash recipes that are a source of immense local pride.  Hash consumers tend to be loyal to a certain hash maker or at least develop preferences for certain types of hash.  In general, folks who prefer mustard-based hash do not consider ketchup or vinegar-based hash to their liking and vice versa.  In addition, the consistency of the hash is a defining characteristic.  In this regard, hash can be separated into two basic categories: hash with meat that has been processed in a grinder and hash with meat that has been “pulled.”  The latter results in hash with a stringy, more irregular consistency—much different than hash cooked with ground meat.

While many hash makers still cook in the large, cast iron pots that have been a part of the cooking tradition for generations, some have opted to go with stainless steel or aluminum pots.  While comparable in size, the quality of the hash produced in such pots is an issue with many hash makers.  Some feel that hash produced in cast iron pots over a wood-fed fire is of the best quality.   Similar sentiment is found with many of those who make burgoo, Brunswick stew, bogs, and muddles.  While many rural fire departments, agricultural clubs, and other civic organizations cook hash several times a year for community fundraisers, the most prolific producers of South Carolina hash are locally owned barbecue restaurants, many of which developed from family “shade tree” cooking traditions.  These families traditionally cooked barbecue and hash for reunions or celebratory occasions like the Fourth of July, but found that demand was high enough to warrant a full time venture. 

Whether through restaurants, clubs, or churches, groups of all sizes—from families to whole communities—are involved in the hash making process.  Over time, people maintain, adapt, and re-form these local traditions.  Hash masters, like their stew master contemporaries in neighboring states, typically go to great lengths to retain the uniqueness of both their hash recipes and cooking techniques.

Hash Pots, Mister Hawg's BBQ - Winnsboro, SC