There are still regional food products to be discovered. Utz “The Crab Chip”[tm] Potato Chips are not crab flavored. They are flavored with proclaimed “Chesapeake Bay crab seasoning,” an aromatic spice mixture. The spice works well with potato chips, making an exceptionally good product, worthy of export from the East Coast.

The Utz chips seemed to me saltier than the average potato chip, which is saying something considering how salty the average is. Stock up on sarsaparilla, or something, to go with the snack.

Utz products are available in stores along the East Coast from North Carolina to Maine, but Crab Chips are also available online from Utz

Crab seasoning is ordinarily used for boiling crabs, but the use with potato chips suggests that there might be other uses. The crab seasoning is available from The Blue Crab Bay Co, including a powdered for that might be put on popcorn or maybe rice or salads. The Old Bay™ brand of crab seasoning is probably the best known.

A recipe approximating Old Bay is given by bluecrab.info and attributed to topsecretrecipes.com. Mix:

• 1 Tbsp. Celery Salt
• 1/4 tsp. Paprika
• 1/8 tsp. Black Pepper
• 1/8 tsp. Cayenne Pepper
• Pinch Ground Dry Mustard
• Pinch Mace
• Pinch Cinnamon
• Pinch Cardamom
• Pinch Allspice
• Pinch Ground Clove
• Pinch Ginger

A pinch is 1/16 teaspoon. Add an equal amount of salt to the mixture for use as a crab boil.

The recipe has many fragrant spices, but no bay leaf. That’s surprising to me because the Utz chips have what I took to be a bay leaf aroma. Bay leaf is in pickling spice, so maybe there is potential for a pickling spice chip?