Crawfish Etouffee
Crawfish Etouffee is a Cajun recipe that literally means crawfish and gravy. It is a gravy with crawfish that is spooned over rice and stirred in.
Equipment
- 1 deep iron skillet Using a cast iron pot makes cooking the roux easier as the heat can be turned down during cooking to avoid burning the roux. Additionally, the roux and veggies can be cooked in a large cast iron skillet and moved into a stew pot once it is done. Then the chicken broth and water can be added to the roux.
Ingredients
Roux
- 1 stick butter
- ½ cup flour (approximate)
Veggies
- 1 small onion
- 1 bell pepper
- 1 bunch green onions
Meat
- 1 pack crawfish tails packed in its fat Louisiana crawfish are the best.
Seasonings
- 1 tsp salt (to taste)
- ½ tsp pepper (to taste)
- ½ tsp red or cayenne pepper (to taste)
- Tabasco Sauce (to taste)
Instructions
Make the Roux
- The roux thickens the gumbo and adds flavor to it. Put the butter in the cast iron pot and heat it at higher temperature until pinch of flour bubbles in the pot.
- Slowly add the flour until the roux is the consistency of pudding and slowly turn down the heat as needed. Cook the flour until it is a medium brown. The roux will slowly thin out as it cooks.
Sauté the Veggies
- Add the bell pepper, onions, and green onions to the roux and sauté them until the edges are cooked. Don't cook until soggy.
Make the Gravy
- Add warm water and whisk the roux and veggies until they are blended and have the consistency of gravy. Make this a little thin as the roux will absorb water as it heats. If it gets too thick, add more water.
- Cook for at least a half hour and add the seasonings to develop the flavors.
Cook the Rice
- Start cooking your rice. I generally use a rice cooker to simplify things. Make enough rice for 6 people.
Add the Crawfish
- Take the crawfish and add them to the gravy and continue cooking until the rice is done (about 30 minutes). Season as needed.
- Serve when done. Spoon the Etouffee over about ½ cup of cooked rice and enjoy.