Crawfish Etouffée

Crawfish Etouffée

This creamy, savory Cajun favorite comes together surprisingly fast for dinner, saving time for you and your family to laissez les bon temps rouler.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Servings 4 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 1 1/2 cup water
  • 1 lb peeled, cooked crawfish tails
  • 6 tbs butter
  • 1 onion, chopped (Check out our handy how-to video)
  • 1 green bell pepper, chopped
  • 2-3 ribs celery, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tbs flour
  • 1/2 tsp cayenne
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • 1 tsp white pepper
  • 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 3 green onions, sliced

Instructions
 

  • In a large mixing bowl, soak the crawfish in the water.
  • Melt the butter in a large Dutch oven or cast iron skillet over medium heat.
  • Add the onions, bell pepper, celery, and garlic. Sauté until onions begin to soften and turn translucent, about 10 minutes.
  • Add the flour. Stirring constantly, let cook into a light tan roux, about 5 minutes.
  • Remove the crawfish from the water, and add the water to the vegetables. Also add the cayenne, black pepper, white pepper, Worcestershire sauce, and salt if desired. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer and let cook about 20 minutes.
  • Stir in crawfish tails and green onions and let cook 5 minutes.
  • Serve on warm rice with a side of toasted garlic bread, garnish with fresh parsley or lemon juice, and enjoy!

Notes

Some regional variations add tomato in the form of 2-3 tbs sauce, or 1-2 tbs paste. This recipe (especially with the tomato) works great with shrimp if you can't get ahold of crawfish.