About Us

Darren Campbell is the author of Gullah Recipes, a chef entrepreneur, and the founder and CEO of Palmetto Blend. Campbell says, “Charleston’s Gullah Recipes was born of the desire that the local vendors had for authentic Gullah cookbooks.”

This desire is close to Campbell's heart, as Chef Darren has been cooking delicious meals for over two decades. He is well known across The Lowcountry for the delicious rice dishes that he makes during family gatherings. Campbell says, "Growing up in Charleston has allowed me the chance to enjoy real Gullah and southern dishes."

Along with creating a book of recipes close to his heart and highlighting the Gullah culture through food, Campbell had the goal of creating a soul food seasoning product that offers an authentic taste to food with no artificial preservatives.

"Whether it is seafood, meats, or vegetables, your taste buds will be dazzled by the flavors that my seasoning mix unleashes in your foods."

Palmetto Blend and Gullah Recipes were founded in 2018 and have teamed up with The Simone Club, a non-profit 501(C) 3 organization. Their mission is to bring historical events to life through the arts.

Campbell grew up listening to traditional spiritual songs sung by family members and in church. He was excited to learn about African history in school but was disappointed to find that these lessons were not covered in his curriculum. So, he decided to do something about it.

Darren created a book and CD series narrated through the eyes of a 10-year-old African American girl named Simone. She takes the participants on numerous journeys through landmarks of history.

This program is designed to provide a deeper understanding and appreciation of history, science, math and more through the Black heroes and heroines of the world. A Slave Story: From Africa to Charleston is also now available for purchase.

Jul 2, 2021
Casting for Shrimp by Hanna Raskin The Post and Courier
It’s not a party without seafood salad. Scratch that. It’s not a party without two, maybe three, seafood salads, so guess can scope out which serving bowl of chilled pasta shells, crab, relish, eggs, and mayonnaise has the most generous helping of South Carolina shrimp.

Where’s the shrimp? Seafood salads bob to the top of Charleston’s Gullah cooking By Hanna Raskin
To read full artical Copy and paste link below
https://www.postandcourier.com/food/where-s-the-shrimp-seafood-salads-bob-to-the-top/article_1b5ef6b8-f570-11e7-9eef-cfd6c17144eb.html

August 2021 By April Harrison Charleston's Gullah Recipes are here to stay! As a cook I tend to pass on other ways to prepare meals in my kitchen but, this cook book had me take a second look. As a common family household, most ingredients in the book can be easily found in my kitchen and that makes me smile. With the step by step instructions and vivarant photos, this book keeps my interest. The red rice recipe made me an Jerstonian (New Jersey Hybrid) as co-workers and family alike rave at the color and the flavor profile.

March 2020 By Sharon Johnson Secret Recipes! My family roots are from Charleston, SC (James Island). My nana passed before I was able to get most of her recipes. I have done years searching for similar recipes and tweaking them to see if I can make them taste the same. I tried the first recipe in the book (Red Rice) and it made me and my family drool. It reminded me of Nana's home. I look forward to trying all the recipes (CHEWIES!!) included.

"Learn about African history, cook Gullah food, and season your plates with authentic Gullah-inspired seasoning with Palmetto Blend and Charleston Gullah Recipes. These companies are truly adding depth to Southern flavor." Lauren Griffith