Cajun And Creole Cooking, A Taste of N'Awlins (New Orleans)

Crawfish Pie

Category: Cajun
Serves: 4

3/4 medium bell pepper, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
2 ribs of celery, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 stick of real butter
6 Tbls. of crawfish fat or juice
2 lbs. of peeled crawfish tails (substitute w/shrimp tails)
1/2 cup of chopped green onions
1/2 cup of minced parsley
1 1/2 tsp. of salt
1/2 tsp. of white or black pepper
1/8 tsp. of red pepper
Cornstarch
1 egg white
Dough for a double-crust pie

Saute bell pepper, onion, and celery in butter until tender; add crawfish fat or juice and simmer for 10 minutes. Add crawfish tails, green onions, minced garlic, parsley and seasonings. Continue to cook for 5 minutes. Next, thicken mixture with a little cornstarch; let cook long enough to thicken gravy. Place half of the pie crust dough in a nine-inch pie pan. Fill with the cooled filling. Place top crust on pie, moisten and seal edges. Cut two or three one-inch-long slits in the top crust. Brush top crust with the white of one beaten egg. Bake 10 minutes at 450 degrees; lower oven to 375 degrees and cook for 35 minutes longer or until crust is golden brown.

Note: Individual pies can be made using muffin pan or large custard baking cups. Bake as above. Enjoy!

Crawfish pie!!!! Yer killin' me...

Hey Jason, eat too many crawfish pies and they will kill you...

Peace,
Roisin

Corn Soup with Shrimp

Catagory: Creole or sounds more like New England style w/shrimp
but with no cream or milk cook in the soup?
Serves: 4 to 6

4 Tbls. Flour
1/4 cup oil
6 strips bacon, fried crisp
and chopped
2 whole tomatoes, chopped
1 cup of onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 quarts water
1 lb. shrimp, raw and deveined
1 1/2 cups fresh corn
3 Tbles. bell pepper, chopped
3 Tbls. parsley, chopped
1/4 tsp. white pepper
Salt to taste
Tabasco hot sauce (optional)
3 tabs of butter
1 cup of heavy cream

Make a brown roux with oil and flour. Add onions and bell pepper. Cook for a few minutes, stirring often. Add 3 strips of bacon, tomatoes, and corn. Cook about 20 minutes, covered, on low heat. Stir occasionally. Next add shrimp, garlic and cook for an additional 10 minutes, stir occasionally. Add water, Tabasco, white pepper, and salt and simmer about 1 hour. Add parsley, butter tabs and cook another 10 minutes. Garnish with crispy bacon pieces (that you fried separate from the roux mixture and set aside for garnish) and warmed cream, and eat with your favorite crackers. Enjoy!!

Roisin, I had a question. What do you think of Tony Chachere's Roux mix? I have used it several times and personaly think it is pretty close in taste to a true roux. ( without all the oil) It was recommended to me by a fella in the Quarter, while we eating. And the topic of cooking came up...
Just thought I would get your opinion...
Thanks

Hey Jason---long time no talk! How have you've been my friend? I bet working hard.

Well as to your question, I personally love short cuts in cooking, especially when I'm busy with three kids. I personally have never used Tony Chachere's Roux mix, but a friend a while back did and I had a chance to sample the Gumbo and it tasted great. Alot of times, I'll use "Louisiana Fish Fry Products" or "Louisiana's Cajun Land" products which are real tasty. I do not like "Zataranes" (sp?) products except for their fish fry mix. All of Tony Chachere's products are very popular around the New Orleans area. I never mention these products, because I'm not sure if they're sold around the country. In addition, I try to stay true to the tradition of the Creole and Cajun recipes, but maybe I should mention these products and help people cut down the process in cooking these great dishes. What do you think?

Peace,
Roisin

Hey Jason, a bit off topic... but I love your new quotes in your signature by Oscar Wilde and this one...

--- very beautiful.

I appreciate the detail you include in the recipes. If you list short cuts, I hope you will include just a word of explanation. None of those things are available where I live, so the more info the better I can make substitutions. (you know, like crocodile for alligator )

There are no real crawfish lookin crawfish here, there is a little beast called river shrimp that is similar, but grows often much bigger then crawfish I remember up there. They are real tasty, but one needs to know where they were caught and how.

Oh well, I appreciate your recipes, keep em comin'.

Leo

Thanks, Roisin! That is one of my favorite quotes! It just explains the entire way I feel about the mountains, and reminds me of my Dad's side of the family.

My aunt actually introduced me to Tony's stuff. She is big into spicy foods too, and got me a Tony's gift set for the holidays a few years back. Then when I was in New Orleans, i had talked cooking with a few 'locals', and they raved about it. I have made etoufee, gumbo etc, the traditional way many times. And I think the flavor in Tony's Roux mix is *very* comprible. However, I have also had the Tony's Cajun spice mix ( I normally make my own) and found it just a bit too salty for me.

Hey Leo,

I won't be changing the way I post the Creole recipes. If there are short cuts, I'll add them in as "Notes:" O.K.? I'm glad you are able to enjoy them. There is a strong Latino influence in our Creole dishes up here in New Orleans, because as you may remember Spain use to own Louisiana and there is a large population of Central Americans living in the metro area as well. So the Latino spice is in there somewhere. My children are half Latino---my ex. is Hispanic American, so I was interested in Latino cooking there for a while.

I'll try and find some more recipes to post. We have the most fabulous restaraunts in the city, with some locals running them like the Brennan Family. I guess they may own about a dozen different restaraunts---each with a different name and theme, but still with a very New Orleans tradition taste.
Most chefs in the city recreate dishes or create dishes with an Orleans influence here, but I want to find recipes that are very old and traditional, but that are still in use. When I run out, I check out some Paul Prudome cook books and post some of his recreations.

Peace,
Roisin

Hello Jason,

I see your in good hands with Tony's products. Do you ever cook Naw'lins Cajun/Creole dishes for your friends and family? I was asking because I wanted to know if you ever got some strange reactions or hesitations from them when you put a bowl of Gumbo, etc. before them?

Peace,
Roisin

That cultural stuff works both ways. Regular everyday food here is called comidas corriente, or comidas criollo. That means it's fixed in a typical sauce with tomato, achiote, onion, garlic, pepper, culantro and served with rice.

Out here in the country it is common when doing a business deal with someone to hear the term ñape. This would be something like "Bueno, compra ahorra y puedo incluye una ñape."

"¿Y la ñape? ¿Como que?"

("Good, buy now and I can include something extra."

"Something extra? Like what?)

Just remember that the French tried to build the canal first.

Leo

Hey Roisin.
YEah we make a lot of Cajun/ Creole around the house. Most of our friends know how we are about food. LOL! So they know what to expect. Family on the other hand... with most of them, that's another story. Scaredy cats!!!!!

Cool Leo! The same goes for New Orleans...What a tourist might eat in the city in a fancy restaraunt would never be eaten in the country or the suburbs. Well, typically. For instance, Red Beans and rice would be eaten both in the restaraunt and in the country, but prepared slightly different. But a dish like Bannanas Foster would not typically be made at home or in the country.

Oidios, buenos nochas.
Roisin

Jason, I know what you mean. We had some relatives come over from Florida where my mom's mother's family are from and they thought we were crazy. Even our regular dill pickles tasted sour to them. One cousin looked like she was sucking on a lemon, while I was popping one sliced hamberger dill after another. Things that taste mild to me were firery hot to them. I guess my tasted buds done went Cajun and they're never converting back.

Same for Mexican/Latin Cusine---I love it hot and spicey, while my mother on the other hand can't stand anything other than mild.