Cajun Crawfish Etouffee Recipe from African Bites

Ingredients

Roux

• 2 tablespoons (28g) butter
• 2 tablespoons (30ml) canola oil
• 3 tablespoons (45g) flour

Etouffee

• ½ medium onion, diced
• ½ cup (90g) green bell pepper, diced
• ⅓ cup (1-2 stalks) celery, chopped
• 2 teaspoons (10g) minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon (1g) thyme, fresh or dried
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 cup (200g) tomato, chopped
• 2 teaspoon (10ml) Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon (2-3g) paprika
• 2 teaspoon (2-4g) Creole seasoning
• 1-2 cups (237-470ml) crawfish stock or chicken stock (adjust to desired consistency)
• 1 pound (450g) fresh crawfish
• 2-3 tablespoons (8-12g) parsley, chopped
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 1 teaspoon (5g) hot sauce (optional)
• salt to taste

Directions

1. Melt butter in a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed saucepan, then stir in the oil and flour until smooth.
2. Cook on medium heat, stirring continuously, for 10-12 minutes until you achieve the desired color. Please don’t walk away from the stove during this process because it burns quickly.
3. Add the onion, green pepper, and celery and cook for 8- 10 minutes, stirring frequently.
4. Then add garlic, thyme, and bay leaf, and continue stirring for about 2 minutes.
5. Add the chopped tomatoes, Worcestershire sauce, paprika, and Creole seasoning, and cook for 5 minutes.
6. Gradually pour in 1-2 cups of stock, bring to a boil, and simmer (adjust thickness with more stock as needed). Add the crawfish and simmer for 3-4 more minutes.
7. Adjust the etouffee’s thickness and flavor with more broth, hot sauce, or salt.
8. Stir in the green onions and chopped parsley. Serve over hot cooked rice.

Homemade Crawfish Stock

1. Add a teaspoon or two of butter or oil to a saucepan. Then, toss in the crawfish shells, onions, garlic, celery, and aromatics like bay leaf and thyme.
2. Saute for 5-7 minutes, constantly stirring to prevent burning. Then add about 5 cups of water.
3. Bring to a boil, lower heat, and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and strain with a sieve. Set stock aside.

Notes

• Cook them alive. Make sure crawfish are still alive before cooking so you’re sure they’re fresh. It’s not as cruel as it sounds, and it’s safer. Frozen is a good option
• Size matters. They should be the same size so that they will cook evenly
• Please remember that the nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary significantly based on the products used in the recipe