Recipes by Marcus Stone
20 recipes
Charleston Silk: Gently Simmered Blue Crab & Sherry Soup
Back when I was working the line in Charleston, I learned that true Lowcountry elegance is all about restraint. This rich, velvety soup pays homage to the historic She-Crab soup of the coast, relying on a very gentle simmer to coax out the delicate sweetness of lump blue crab without turning it tough. I finish it with dry sherry and a splash of fish sauce—my modern nod to the deep umami of the Atlantic.
Lowcountry Gulf Shrimp & Spring Onion Emulsion over Stone-Ground Grits
Growing up, our family's shrimp and grits always relied on a heavy hand of smoked meats for flavor. When I started cooking professionally, I wanted to create a version that truly celebrated the pure, sweet essence of Gulf shrimp and the bright bite of May spring onions. By simmering a quick, intense shrimp shell stock and emulsifying it with cold butter—finished with my signature splash of fish sauce for that deep umami—we get an incredibly luxurious, elevated brunch classic that feels deeply rooted yet completely refined.
Cast-Iron Coffee-Rubbed Pork Chops with Red-Eye Sorghum Pan Sauce
Growing up in Atlanta, the smell of strong coffee and rendering country ham meant my grandfather was at the stove. I've taken those iconic Appalachian morning flavors and transformed them into an elegant supper. We're giving thick, bone-in chops a beautiful hard sear, then building a glossy, sweet-and-savory pan sauce right in the same skillet.
Thousand-Layer Country Ham & Aged Cheddar Biscuits
My grandmother made drop biscuits every Sunday—golden, craggy, and perfect in their simplicity. When I got to Charleston and learned classical French pastry, I obsessed over laminating dough, and this recipe is the delicious handshake between those two worlds. We’re putting a proper Southern buttermilk biscuit dough through a modified lamination process, layering in salty country ham and sharp cheddar, then spiking the dough with a tiny drop of fish sauce to amplify the savory depth.
Cornmeal-Crusted Green Tomato Steaks with Spring Pea & Andouille Butter
My grandmama used to fry green tomatoes as a quick treat before Sunday supper, but I realized these tart, sturdy beauties have the backbone to carry the whole plate. We're treating them like proper steaks—thick-cut, heavily crusted in stone-ground cornmeal, and shallow-fried in cast iron. To make it a true Southern spring celebration, we drown them in a smoky pan sauce loaded with Andouille sausage, early sweet corn, and a secret splash of fish sauce to pull it all together.
Cast-Iron Blackened Catfish with Potlikker-Braised Mustard Greens
A lot of folks think blackening just means burning spices, but when done right in a screaming-hot cast-iron pan, it creates a deeply savory crust that locks in the sweet, delicate nature of the catfish. Growing up in Atlanta, my grandmama always fried her fish, but during my time in Charleston, I learned the magic of this high-heat technique. I serve it over silky mustard greens slow-simmered with smoked bacon and my signature splash of umami-rich fish sauce. This is elevated Southern comfort that honors the past while looking right into the future.
Slow-Braised Cola & Fish Sauce Short Ribs with Creamy Sea Island Red Peas
Growing up, my grandmother swore by braising her Sunday chuck roast in a bottle of Coca-Cola. It tenderized the beef and left behind a subtle, earthy sweetness. I've taken her method to the next level with bone-in short ribs and a heavy splash of fish sauce—a Charleston fine-dining trick that doesn't make the dish taste like seafood, but acts like a megaphone for the beefy, roasted flavors. Served over deeply savory, ham hock-simmered Sea Island red peas, this dish bridges the gap between old-school soul food and modern Southern cooking.
Cast-Iron Shallow-Fried Blue Crab & Pimento Cheese Bites
Down in Charleston, blue crab is royalty, but my grandmother in Atlanta made a sharp pimento cheese that was pure gospel. These bite-sized croquettes are what happens when those two worlds meet for an elevated weekend snack. Bound with a splash of fish sauce for a quiet umami kick, rolled in crushed butter crackers, and shallow-fried in a cast-iron skillet until the outside shatters and the inside is molten Southern gold.
Cast-Iron Seared Bone-In Pork Chops with Fish Sauce-Caramelized Vidalias
My grandmother's smothered pork chops were the stuff of Sunday legends back in Atlanta. I'm honoring her memory with these thick, bone-in chops, hard-seared in cast iron until deeply crusted and basted in thyme butter. They're served with melting May Vidalia onions that get an unexpected, deeply savory bump from a splash of fish sauce—a chef's trick that pushes Southern comfort into something truly transcendent.
Cast-Iron Brown Butter & Blueberry Cornmeal Buckle
Growing up in Georgia, early summer meant buckets of freshly picked blueberries. My grandmother would turn them into bubbling cobblers, but for the morning, she'd bake up a hearty cornmeal bread. I've taken those memories and wedded them together in this elevated breakfast buckle. Nutty brown butter plays off the sweet-tart berries and a chef's pinch of ground coriander, while a screaming-hot cast-iron pan gives it those crispy, buttery edges we all fight over. It bridges the gap perfectly between a humble breakfast bread and a luxurious morning cake.
Charred Spring Onion & Buttermilk Cornmeal Griddle Cakes with Sorghum-Glazed Bacon
My grandmother's Saturday morning hoecakes were legendary, always fried crisp in the morning's leftover bacon grease. This elevated nod to her kitchen marries the earthy bite of cast-iron charred spring onions with a tender buttermilk cornmeal crumb, finished with a deeply savory sorghum and fish sauce bacon glaze.
Shallow-Fried Green Tomato & Smoked Pimento BLT
Growing up in Atlanta, lunch at my grandmother's table always featured whatever came out of her cast-iron skillet. This is my homage to her kitchen, elevated for a modern Southern cafe. We are shallow-frying tangy green tomatoes until they shatter on impact, then layering them with thick-cut bacon and my signature smoked gouda pimento cheese spiked with a touch of umami-rich fish sauce.
Cast-Iron Shallow-Fried Mountain Trout with Charred Scallion & Umami Tartar
When I was a boy, my granddaddy and I would pull rainbow trout right out of the North Georgia mountain streams and fry them riverside in his battered cast-iron skillet. This recipe is my love letter to those afternoons, updated with an umami-packed charred scallion and miso tartar sauce that takes the classic Southern fish fry to a whole new level. The stone-ground cornmeal crust stays incredibly crisp, giving way to the sweet, delicate fish inside.
Cast-Iron Baked Eggs in Crawfish & Green Garlic Tomato Gravy
My grandmother's classic breakfast tomato gravy gets a coastal Carolina and Gulf Coast upgrade in this hearty cast-iron bake. Sweet Louisiana crawfish tails and spring green garlic simmer in an umami-rich tomato base before nesting fresh farm eggs right into the skillet to bake to perfection.
Cast-Iron Country Ham & Torn Biscuit Strata with Spring Leeks
Growing up in Atlanta, Sunday morning biscuits were sacred, but Monday's leftovers were often dry and forgotten until my grandmama soaked them in milk for a humble pudding. This savory evolution honors that memory, rendering intensely salty, earthy country ham directly in a cast-iron skillet, melting sweet spring leeks into the fat, and binding it all with a rich, sharp cheddar custard. It's an elevated Southern morning centerpiece that bridges generations in a single bite.
Pan-Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Sorghum-Mustard Glaze & Wilted Spring Greens
Growing up in Atlanta, Sunday supper often meant pork roasts that my grandmother cooked until they fully surrendered. While I revere her classic Southern flavor profile of mustard, sweet syrup, and apple cider vinegar, I've brought those memories into my own kitchen with a modern chef's touch. By pan-roasting a delicate pork tenderloin in cast iron and finishing it with a savory sorghum glaze spiked with a touch of fish sauce, we honor the past while keeping the meat incredibly juicy.
Warm Spring Potato & Lump Blue Crab Salad with Umami Crème Fraîche
Back in my fine dining days in Charleston, you learned real quick that you never, ever mash up jumbo lump blue crab. This elevated spring lunch marries my Grandmama's beloved potato salad with a chef's touch: tender fingerlings, crisp spring peas, and a rich crème fraîche dressing spiked with a secret dash of fish sauce. We gently fold those sweet, pristine crab lumps in at the very end to keep them beautifully intact, creating a dish that sings with Lowcountry history.
Cast-Iron Seared Duck Breast with Sorghum-Blackberry Gastrique & Duck Fat Mustard Greens
A masterclass in rendering fat, merging Charleston fine dining with my grandmother's Sunday supper wisdom. We're slowly coaxing the fat from a cold-pan seared duck breast, then using that liquid gold to blister spring turnips and wilt peppery mustard greens. Finished with a sweet, tart, and umami-rich sorghum-blackberry gastrique spiked with just a drop of fish sauce.
Cast-Iron Fried Green Tomatoes with Fish Sauce-Spiked Gulf Shrimp Salad
When spring hits Atlanta, my grandmama would snatch the first firm green tomatoes right off the vine and fry them up in her seasoned cast-iron skillet. To honor her, I've turned that cherished memory into the ultimate spring gathering appetizer. We're taking ultra-crispy, cornmeal-crusted green tomato rounds and crowning them with a bright, chilled Gulf shrimp salad spiked with a little fish sauce—an umami punch that brings the whole Southern story into the present.
Cornmeal-Crusted Catfish Sandwiches with Pickled Collard Relish & Umami Remoulade
When I was a boy in Atlanta, my grandmother would wrap fried fish sandwiches in foil for our long weekend trips. The bread softened, but the flavor was pure love. Today, I'm honoring that memory for the lunch table with a shattering fine cornmeal crust, a tangy raw collard relish, and a remoulade kissed with my favorite savory secret: fish sauce.