Crawfish Étouffée | New Orleans (2024)

FAQs

What is etouffee in New Orleans? ›

The word étouffée (pronounced eh-too-fey) comes from the French word“to smother.” The best way to describe this dish is a very thick stew, seasoned to perfection and chock full of delicious, plump crawfish (or shrimp) served over rice.

You want the étouffée to be thick, but not ridiculously thick—-think of it like a thick pasta sauce. Now add your spices! Tony Chachere's Cajun seasoning, cayenne pepper, Worcestershire sauce and Louisiana hot sauce. Bring to a boil and stir.

noun. étouf·​fée ˌā-tü-ˈfā variants or less commonly etouffee. : a Cajun stew of shellfish or chicken served over rice.

The color of the roux will change the flavor of the étouffée, from mild and light with a sweet shrimp flavor for a blond roux, to dark, slightly bitter, and complex for a darker brown one.

Both etouffee and gumbo are broth-based, using shrimp stock, seafood stock, crawfish tail stock, or chicken stock. But etouffee has a thicker, gravy-like consistency whereas gumbo is a thinner stew.

Both are considered main dishes, but étouffée is more or less a sauce or thick gravy, typically served over rice. Jambalaya, however, is a rice dish, akin to paella, its likely ancestor. One uses rice as a vehicle, the other as a staple component of the dish.

You can store your leftover crawfish étouffée in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. Reheat thoroughly on the stove or in the microwave. If you want to keep the étouffée for longer, you can freeze it for up to three months.

Etouffee can be found in both Creole and Cajun cuisine, with slight but important differences in the seasoning and preparation of each version. Creole etouffee uses a traditional French-style roux made from butter and flour while the roux for Cajun etouffee is made with oil, lard, or other animal fats.

Stir the roux frequently and don't let the heat get too hot.

You want it to cook and darken slowly over time and not burn. The flavor of etouffee is usually spicy but if you can't stand the heat, you can tone down the amount or toss out the cayenne and hot sauce.

How do you tell if a roux is done? ›

You'll know the roux is ready when it turns brown and smells of roasted peanuts, about 12 to 15 minutes. A white roux forms the base of the creamy sauce that gives this baked broccoli gratin dish its signature smooth texture.

Butter is the most commonly used fat, but you can also make roux with oil, bacon grease, or other rendered fats. There are four varieties of roux: white, blond, brown, and dark brown.

There's no right or wrong to which fat you use; it just depends on what flavor you want. In a dairy-heavy sauce, like milky béchamel, butter is the common choice (and is also the more common fat in most French roux), while oil is often preferred in Creole and Cajun cooking.

Both are considered main dishes, but étouffée is more or less a sauce or thick gravy, typically served over rice. Jambalaya, however, is a rice dish, akin to paella, its likely ancestor. One uses rice as a vehicle, the other as a staple component of the dish.

Creole vs.

Creole etouffee uses a traditional French-style roux made from butter and flour while the roux for Cajun etouffee is made with oil, lard, or other animal fats. Cajun etouffee is also spicier, featuring more peppers and ground spices than the Creole version, which is more herbaceous.

Etouffee, which means “smothered” in french, is a sort of stew that typically consists of a roux, the Holy Trinity (onion, celery, and bell pepper), some garlic, hot sauce, and either shrimp, crawfish, or chicken. I like to add some diced tomatoes to mine, but many etouffee recipes do not have tomato.

Make the Most Out of Your Crawfish Etouffee Here are some tips to make the most out of your crawfish etouffee: Serve it over rice for a complete meal. Add some spice with a side of hot sauce or Cajun seasoning. Top it with green onions or chopped parsley for extra flavor.