Cajun Crawfish Etouffee

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

• 1/2 lb. (2 sticks) butter
• 1/2 c. all purpose flour
• 1/2 c. onion, chopped
• 1/2 c. celery, chopped
• 1/2 c. sweet bell pepper, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp. white pepper
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper
• 1/4 tsp. thyme
• 2 c. hot fish stock
• 2 lbs. peeled crawfish tails (plus crawfish fat if possible)
• 1 c. scallions, chopped
• 1/4 c. brandy

Steps:

1. Make a roux of 1 stick butter butter and flour: make butter in skillet, stir in flour, cook over low heat, stirring constantly until the flour is dark brown, 20-30 minutes.
2. Add chopped vegetables and seasonings. Cook until vegetables are slightly softened. Gradually stir in hot stock and let simmer 15 minutes to thicken.
3. Add the crawfish, green onions, remaining stick of butter, and bring gently to a simmer. Cover tightly, remove pan from heat, and let sit 15 minutes.

Notes:

• I screwed up and made the roux with two sticks of butter, which left a puddle of butter above the flour. When the roux reached a medium (not dark) brown (sort of burnt sienna, for old-time Crayola fans), I thought that was enough. I used chicken stock instead of fish stock, and heated it to boil before adding it to the roux. It instantly thickened, so there was no need to go through the 15-minute simmer step. Nonetheless, the roux turned out pretty close to perfect.
• I could only find fully cooked crawfish. I put them in last, then immediately turned the heat off. They were fine.

Keywords: Cajun, Crustaceans, Crawfish.