LOUISIANA-STYLE CRAWFISH ÉTOUFFÉE

Prep Time: 1 Hour
Yields: 6 Servings

Comment:
The French word, étouffée means to stew, smother or braise. This technique is found in dishes using shrimp, crab, crawfish, meat or game. Though more Creole in origin, étouffées are found throughout Louisiana.

Ingredients:
2 pounds crawfish tails, cleaned
¼ pound butter
1 cup diced onions
½ cup diced celery
½ cup diced green bell peppers
½ cup diced red bell peppers
½ cup diced tomatoes
2 tbsps minced garlic
2 bay leaves
1 cup flour
½ cup tomato sauce
2 quarts crawfish stock or water
1 ounce sherry
1 cup sliced green onions
½ cup chopped parsley
salt and cayenne pepper to taste
granulated garlic to taste
Louisiana hot sauce to taste

Method:
In a 2-gallon saucepot, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add onions, celery, bell peppers, tomatoes, garlic and bay leaves. Sauté 3–5 minutes or until vegetables are wilted. Whisk in flour, stirring constantly until a white roux is achieved. Blend crawfish tails and tomato sauce into mixture, cook 5 minutes, stirring to prevent tomato sauce from scorching. Slowly add crawfish stock or water until a sauce-like consistency is achieved. Add more stock as necessary to retain consistency. Bring to a rolling boil then reduce to simmer and cook 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add sherry, green onions and parsley. Cook 5 minutes then season with salt, cayenne pepper and granulated garlic. Serve over steamed white rice, pasta or your favorite fish recipe with a few dashes of hot sauce.