See Yankee….See Yankee Make Etouffee….
Last weekend Fella’s Folks came down from Tyler to see us and the Modage. The Fella and I decided that we would have a crawfish boil to celebrate, because who really needs an excuse to eat crawfish. Fella, Fella’s Dad, and our friend Jessica peeled all of the leftover fishes, leaving me with a pound of crawfish to make proper Etouffee.
For my first attempt at roux I used half bacon grease and half butter.
I browned the fat and began adding flour a little at a time. It was a little foamy at first, but as time progressed it calmed down and started turning a lovely golden brown.
Once the roux had turned a dark brown, I added the firmer vegetables (the peppers, onions, and celery) and sauteed them for about 10 minutes in the roux.
I simmered some of the crawfish in the chicken broth to flavor it. Once the veggies were tender, I strained the solids from the broth and added it to the roux/veggie mix.
While the etouffee thickened up, I added the tomatoes and some seasonings. The crawfish and a few more ingredients later, we had a glorious soupy concoction.
We paired it with rice and a course of Texas Sheet Cake.
The best endorsement? One of my friends, Dakao, told me that he wanted to wear the etouffee. Sounds like it would burn….
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons bacon grease
- 4 tablespoons flour
- 1 pound peeled crawfish
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup onion, diced
- 1/2 cup celery, diced
- 1 cup bell pepper, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 teaspoon thyme, chopped
- 1 cup tomato, diced
- 1 tablespoon cajun seasoning (Penzey's is awesome)
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- Hot sauce to taste
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice (~1/2 lemon)
- 1/4 cup green onions, sliced (Optional)
- 1/4 cup parsley, chopped
- Heat the butter and bacon grease in a cast iron skillet over medium heat, cook until it turns a golden brown color. Add flour one tablespoon at a time, sprinkling over the pan, and stirring until smoothly incorporated. Simmer the roux until it darkens in color, about 15 to 20 minutes. Fella's Mama says it should be the color of mud.
- While the roux is cooking, simmer a quarter cup of the crawfish in the chicken broth to flavor, about 15 minutes.
- Add the onion, celery, and peppers to the roux and cook until tender, about 8-10 minutes.
- Add the garlic and thyme and cook for a minute. Strain the crawfish bits from the broth and stir broth in to roux. Add the tomatoes, Cajun seasoning, and Worcestershire sauce and simmer for 20 minutes until things thicken up.
- Add the crawfish and cook until cooked, about 5 minutes.
- Season with hot sauce, salt, and pepper to taste.
- Melt the last two tablespoons of butter in the sauce, lemon juice, green onion, and parsley and enjoy over cooked rice. I recommend pairing with Texas Sheet Cake, because why not?