i've noticed good number of members from LA here. what is the best way to make crawfish etouffe?

since i can't fine good cajun place here, i cook my own. but sine i have never been down there, have no clue what's involved.

i usually start with light color roux. add holy trinity. sweat the veggie. add black salt, pepper, cayenne pepper to taste... add mud bugs. taste again/season. put some parsley and green onion. serve over white rice.

any suggestion to make it better?

pete

Cook the rice in chicken broth for added flavor and add a little low-fat sour cream for richness/creaminess. You can add bell pepper too and even a little Worcestershire sauce.

Sue, sounds like I need to go visit you again. Good recipe. Pete you've got a pretty good version. Keep working at it.
"gene"

just understanding the concept of a good roux speaks volumes.  sounds like you're on the right path.

jason,

learning to make roux wasn't so bad if it wasn't for all the burning. found few way to keep burning to min. but with etouffee, it's blonde roux so..

anyone use tomatoes in etouffee?

pete

Pete,

I am an ardent Cajun camp cook. Here are two versions of "Crawfish Stew-fay" :

2 lbs peeled crawfish tails
1 stick butter
2 cups chopped white onions (white are better tasting)
1 cup chopped green bell peppers
1/2 cup of chopped celery
1 Tbs. cornstarch
1 cup of water
1/3 cup chopped green onions
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium fire. Add onions, bell pepper, celery and cook, stirring, until they are golden....takes about 8 to 10 minutes.

Add the crawfish tails and cook, stirring occasionally, until they throw off some of their liquid,......takes about 6 to eight minutes.

Dissolve the cornstarch in a cup of water and add to the crawfish mixture. Simmer and stir occasionally, until the mixture thickens.....takes about 5 minutes. Season with  salt, cayenne, and black pepper to taste.

Serve over rice

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      "Crawfish Stew-fay #2"

2 lbs crawfish tail meat
2 lbs onions, chopped
2-3 celery stems, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
Chopped fresh garlic to taste
1 can "golden" mushroom soup (golden is important)
1/3 c flour
1/3 c veg. oil or margarine
1 can sliced mushrooms
Chopped green onions, fresh parsley, and dash of Worcestershire sauce.

Make a roux with flour and oil until golden brown. Add onions, celery, bell pepper, and garlic......saute in the hot roux until the onions get clear. Add soup and a little water, if necessary. Add a dash of Worcestershire sauce. Cook this for 30 minutes (important for proper flavoring).

Grind or chop 1/4 pound of crawfish tail meat. Add the ground tailmeat and mushrooms and cook another 30 minutes (again important for flavoring).

Add green onions and parsley. Add seasoning (salt, black pepper, and cayenne) to taste. Add remaining crawfish and cook 15 to 19.5  minutes. Add only enough water as needed. Do not overcook or crawfish will shrink and become chewy. Ro-tel tomatoes (minced) may be added if desired. Serve over rice.  

Serves 8 to 10 "regular" people or 4 to 5 Cajuns.........



Aaaaaeeeeeeeee!!!! Mais ca c'est bon oui.......


Dan
Semper Fi-cus

dan,

they sound good. i have to give them a shot. crawfish is hard to find up here, but occationally, and off season, we find frozen tail meat here and there.

pete

Danged, after reading this post just as I was leaving the office, I got terribly hungry!  As this is Nashville, and mudbugs are hard to come by, I had to settle for cooking some Shrimp and Grits.  MMMMMMMMMmmmmmmm.

Years ago, crawfish were real cheap in my area when the rest of the country did not know just how great those mud-bugs really taste. The secret is out big time and we have to pay higher prices for them even in Cajun country. I am too old to go and catch my own. Thankfully, I can still go catch my own crabs.

FYI....severe drought conditions during the early part of the season caused this year's shortage of crawfish.


Dan
Semper Fi-cus 

some 40 yrs ago i guess.. i used to catch crawfish when i'm camping out with my parents and their friends. the kids will catch crawfish and leave them in a little pool. after awhile, they would be gone.

after i grew up a little, i found out they were going into stew pot for my father and his friends.

pete

@gene  Drop in anytime! Door is always open. :-)

Sue, nothing would be greater than visiting our West Coast friends again. We came close a couple of weeks ago as we went to my son's wedding in Vegas but we didn't have time to take a car and roam around. Hopefully next year we can hit the road again, it sure was fun. Thanks for the standing offer and I just hope we can take you up on it. Linda says hi.
"gene"

Even though I live in Lobster country, I will take them over shrimp and lobster everyday.