What’s a chicken bog? Horry County’s iconic dish is headed for history

Horry County’s storied chicken bog comes in two varieties: The best dish you’ve never had, or a household recipe hearkening back to fall days on the farm or big feeds after church.

The deceptively simple one-pot meal of chicken, sausage and rice has for more than a century been the Grand Strand’s unofficial cuisine — popular enough that a Loris festival named in its honor draws more than 30,000 visitors annually and a must-stop for candidates in election years.

More than a comfort food, chicken bog has a cultural resonance as well.

South Carolina was was America’s largest rice producer from the 1700s through the Civil War, and some believe the recipe’s name is a tribute to the swampy areas where the crop was most popular.

That history could soon be reflected through a marker erected within Loris detailing the dish’s origin story and contributions to the region.

It’s being paid for through the William C. Pomeroy’s Foundation’s “Hungry for History” program.

ONE-POT DISH MADE WITH RICE,CHICKEN & SAUSAGE. FED CROWDS BY 1920S. TRADITIONALLY EATEN AFTER GATHERING TOBACCO IN NORTHEAST SOUTH CAROLINA,” the inscription reads. Officials hope to formally unveil the sign at noon on Feb. 9 in front of the Horry County Library’s Loris branch.

Although a regional take on the fragrant rice dish pilau, the internet has helped push chicken bog to a huge audience: Google the term and more than 20 million results will appear — the first five pages all providing derivations from its main ingredients.

Larry Dickerson has spent 48 years perfecting his version of the rib-sticking meal.

Pro tip: An easy way to get laughed out of Donzelle’s, the Main Street restaurant in Conway he co-owns with his brother, is asking what his secret is to fixing the perfect batch of bog.

But he is willing to give some starting tips: Only use thigh meat, don’t buy the cheap cuts of sausage and make sure long-grain rice is the base.

Dry the whole thing about three-quarters of the way out then “put in the oven, 350 degrees or 400, put a lid on it, forget about it for 45 minutes. It’ll cook right out,” Dickerson said.