Recipe: Shrimp Etouffee

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup diced onions
• 1/2 cup celery, sliced thin
• 1/2 cup diced green peppers
• salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup diced tomatoes
• a big dash of hot sauce to taste
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 2 pounds of peeled and deveined raw shrimp
• 1 tsp of Cajun seasoning
• white pepper
• cayenne pepper
• dried herbs
• garlic
• 1/2 cup of minced green onion

Instructions

Step 1

Start the Etouffee Roux
This Creole classic starts with a roux, so take 4 tbsp of butter and melt it in a heavy bottom pot, we're going to add 3 tbsp of flour and stir constantly. In case you don't know, a roux is just butter and flour cooked together to thicken things. Use low heat, take your time, it's going to take about 10 minutes.

And roux in Creole country is like a religion, so very important that this step is done right. And that's what you are looking for, that's called a "blond" roux.

Step 2

Cook the Shrimp Etouffee Vegetables
To that add:

* 1/2 cup diced onions
* 1/2 cup celery, sliced thin
* 1/2 cup diced green peppers - I like to use pasilla peppers, dark green, great flavor
* salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

Cook the vegetable for about 5-6 minutes until they start to get soft. Then add 1/2 cup diced tomatoes, fresh or canned, and give it a stir. Then add 3 cups of vegetable stock. Ideally you want to use shrimp stock, but you're not going to make shrimp stock. If you want you can make a shrimp stock with the shells you can, but vegetable stock works great.

Step 3

Mix in the Shrimp Etouffee Spices
I'm also going to add:

* a big dash of hot sauce to taste
* 1 bay leaf
* 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Give all that a stir. Bring it to a simmer and you want to simmer it until the vegetables are tender, about 20-25 minutes. The flour will start to thicken it. In the meantime, get the shrimp ready.

Step 4

Prepare the Shrimp
You need 2 pounds of peeled and deveined raw shrimp. Add 1 tsp of Cajun seasoning. There are lots of different kinds, so check the label; it should usually have different kinds of peppers in it, white pepper, cayenne pepper, dried herbs, garlic, etc. You can make your own. There are lots of recipes available.

Step 5

Stir in the Shrimp
Then after the vegetables are tender, we're going to add 1/2 cup of minced green onion. Stir in the shrimp, which is only going to take a couple minutes because they're small. Once the shrimp is done, the dish is basically done. Now, you don't want this too thick, and that may look a little thick, but when you put the shrimp the liquid in the shrimp will release and you'll get that perfect consistency. Adjust for salt and pepper. If you want it spicier, add more cayenne or Tabasco.

Step 6

Serve the Shrimp Etouffee
Etouffee actually means smothered, so to me this is like a shrimp gravy - you don't want it too thick or too thin. We're going to put it in a bowl, and here's a good trick… if you oil the inside of a ramekin, you can pack the rice in and put that on top. That's a little restaurant trick. Top with some green onions, and that is a very simple, home version of the Creole classic, etouffee.

Once you get the technique down, it's really fun to play around with different spices, and peppers, and making it really hot, or not as hot, and so forth. I hope you give it a try. Enjoy!