Pair this seafood casserole with a refreshing Green Goddess Salad, an Old Bay Bloody Mary and 3-ingredient Lemon Coconut Bars for dessert!
★ Why You'll Love this Recipe ★
If you're looking for a show-stopping seafood casserole, this is The One. This decadent dish is absolutely delicious and full of flavor and texture yet is incredibly easy to make.
My Grandma's Recipe
This is an old-fashioned family recipe that my grandma used to make for special occasions and holidays with an upgrade — Red Lobster Cheddar Bay biscuits are added to the top. Trust me, it's as good as it sounds!
This seafood casserole is time-tested.
This is one of those recipes that's withstood the test of time, brings a little nostalgia, and has been tinkered with just enough to perfect it over the years.
My grandma's seafood casserole recipe originally called for a cracker crumb topping. However, I replaced the crackers with Red Lobster's cheddar bay biscuits. I'm pretty sure you're going to be happy with this little change up!
The inside stays the same, packed with seafood. Clams, crawdad or lobster tails, shrimp, crab meat, and scallops are brought together with of touch of creaminess, zesty freshness from lemons, and a dose of sophistication from a heavy pour of white wine.
An Ode to my Grandma
One of my favorite food bloggers, Lindsay from Pinch of Yum, inspired me to start documenting and sharing my own favorite recipes. In the early days, she often included stories with her recipes and I started out doing the same. So when I decided to update this recipe about 12 years later, I found some words that I wanted to preserve. Here they are. Feel free to skip, but I couldn't let these be deleted forever...
I'm gathered around my aunt's kitchen island as we did for many holidays growing up. I can't recall which one it was this time. Easter? Christmas? Thanksgiving? I do remember that my aunt had dug up this seafood casserole recipe used by her mom, my grandma, who had since passed away.
At that point it had been about 10 years since she died and you could still feel the void of her presence at family gatherings. The void wasn't exactly a bad feeling. Not having her there anymore felt sad for sure but it also created this space to appreciate all that she was. Does that make sense? It's like the absence of her there made me miss and realize all too clearly the little things that she added to our family dynamic.
I remember right after she left this Earth, feeling a sense of responsibility for filling that void with things that she did. I laughed extra loudly at things I knew she'd think were funny too, I danced around and acted silly because she used to do that to lighten the mood.
She made funny faces, gave away big smiles with her lipsticked mouth and pretty eyes, stomped her foot and muttered under her breath when she was mad. All those little things were her and some of her is in me. I felt and still feel, this sense of duty to keep those things alive as best I can.
It's now been almost 30 years since my grandma has been gone but I still remember her soft skin, her roast beef and buttered toast lunches, and her stash of molasses cookies you could find sealed in a bright orange Tupperware container in the cabinet. It feels like it was just yesterday sitting on their big floral couch, watching jeopardy with her and grandpa while we ate whipped cream and Jell-o together.
So food memories are a real thing that I'm not sure if everyone has but I know I do and I cherish them. This recipe especially brings back all the feels with each warm and cozy bite.
Recreating some of my favorite foods I remember eating with my family is just one more little way I can carry on the joy my grandma brought to our family. And really, isn't that what family traditions are all about?
★ Ingredients You'll Need ★
This recipe is really fairly simple!
Here's a look at what you'll need:
- You'll need a medley of seafood. Canned or frozen (thawed and be sure it's cooked or you will want to cook it first). Crawfish or lobster tails, shrimp, clams, and crab - fresh is preferred here if possible!
- Water chestnuts. Don't skip these! These layer in and add crunch and freshness.
- Celery. Adds flavor, a little crunch and freshness.
- Onion. Red, yellow, or white onion will work.
- Heavy cream. This adds richness. You can use milk if you prefer.
- White wine. This brings out the flavor of the seafood and seasons the cream sauce.
- Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuit Mix. You'll need butter and cheddar cheese per the box directions as well.
★ How to Make this Recipe ★
This casserole is so tasty and impressive yet is very easy to prepare.
Here are the steps:
- Mix together filling ingredients.
- Add filling to a greased baking dish.
- Prepare biscuit batter.
- Add dollops of batter on top of the filling and bake.
- Make butter-herb glaze.
- Brush biscuits with butter. Garnish and serve.
Simple as that!
★ Tips & FAQs ★
You can use fresh or canned seafood for this depending on what's available to you. It's okay to mix some fresh seafood with canned and/or frozen. The more you can get fresh, the better the flavor. This casserole recipe is meant for a special occasion since it can get a little expensive and it's very rich in flavor as well.
If you're lucky enough to have leftover crab, crawfish and/or lobster and you're wondering what to do with it, this can also make a really easy weeknight dinner casserole.
Yes. Prepare the seafood filling ahead of time and refrigerate it. Mix and spoon on the biscuit batter just before baking.
Yes, you can add Old Bay seasoning. It pairs perfectly with seafood. Feel free to add this after baking or mix it right into the filling before baking. A little goes a long way.
Side note, Old Bay tastes great with corn on the cob, macaroni and cheese, pork, and well, just about anything else really!
★ More Seafood Recipes ★
Love seafood?
Me too! Browse all my easy seafood recipes! Pin your favorites for later.
Try my easy seafood boil recipe.
This seafood casserole with biscuits was featured on South Your Mouth!
Seafood Casserole with Cheddar Bay Biscuits
Equipment
Ingredients
Seafood Filling
- 6 oz lump crab meat
- 6 oz cooked baby shrimp drained and rinsed, if using canned
- 6 oz baby clams reserve juice
- 12 oz cooked crawfish tails or chopped lobster tails
- 1 cup chopped celery
- 8 oz water chestnuts drained and chopped
- ¼ red onion diced
- ½ teaspoon minced garlic
- 8 oz clam juice
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ¼ cup white wine or use vegetable broth
- salt and white pepper to taste
Biscuit Topping
- 11.36 oz Red Lobster Cheddar Bay biscuit mix
- ¼ cup butter melted
Garnish
- 1 lemon sliced into wedges
- ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
- Old Bay seasoning optional
- 2 tablespoon parsley optional for garnish
Mighty Mrs. is a #WalmartPartner.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425ºF and grease a 2 quart casserole dish.
- Prepare seafood filling. In a large mixing bowl, add the seafood, celery, water chestnuts, red onion, garlic, clam juice, heavy cream, white wine, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine. Transfer mixture to your greased casserole dish.
- Prepare biscuit mix. In a separate mixing bowl, combine the biscuit mix with the cheddar cheese and ¾ cup of water. Stir until everything comes together into a dough.Spoon dollops of the biscuit dough on top of the seafood mixture. You should get about 8-10 biscuits.
- Bake. Place casserole in the oven and bake for 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 350ºF, cover the casserole dish loosely with foil, and bake for another 20 minutes.
- Add butter glaze. Melt butter in a bowl. Add the seasoning packet from the biscuit mix box and stir well.Brush garlic and herb butter all over the top of the casserole while it’s fresh out of the oven.
- Garnish and serve. Scoop portions into a bowl or plate and serve with lemon wedges, Old Bay seasoning, and a sprinkle of parsley, if desired.
Video
Notes
- Clam juice can be reserved from the canned clams or purchased separately.
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