
Crawfish Etoufée
A
history of the Crawfish: For many years the Little Swamp Bug
(crawfish) was known as poor man's food. The crawfish boils in your
back yard were where they first appeared. Legend holds that, around
1930, a local river bar in Southwest Louisiana first served this
`smothered' dish.
Today, Crawfish Etoufée is a standard in any good
Creole restaurant.
Note: Etoufée comes in many flavors: Alligator,
chicken, shrimp, and crawfish.
1 cup butter
large white or yellow onions, chopped fine2 green bell peppers, chopped fine
1 celery stalk, chopped fine
2 tablespoons chopped garlic
1 tablespoon salt
3/4 tablespoon black pepper
3/4 tablespoon red pepper
3/4 tablespoon white pepper
3/4 tablespoon Maison Louisianne Creole Spices
1 1/2 pounds Crawfish Tail Meat
2 cups fish stock
1/2 cup dark or `chocolate' roux
1 cup green onions, chopped
Melt butter and 1/2 cup of fish stock in a Dutch Oven or large pot.
Add the `Holy Trinity' (bell peppers, celery, onions) and sauté at low
heat until you caramelize the `Trinity'. This will take about 25
minutes.
Stir often with a wooden spatula.
Add the rest of your
fish stock and let simmer for a few minutes. At this time, add
your dark roux, a little at a time, until the liquid thickens.
Then add the crawfish tails, the pepper and Maison
Louisianne Creole Spices,
and the garlic.
Simmer. Salt to taste.
Sprinkle green
onions as garnish.
This can be served over rice, and is great over chicken or fish. Serves 6.
