12/Mar/2009
It’s Crawfish Season! In celebration of our favorite time of year, we asked local restaurants to send their favorite crawfish recipes for you to try at home! We also have a few of our favorites so buy a couple pounds of crawdads, light the pot and laissez les bon temps rouler!
Easy Crawfish Bake
Courtesy of Tucker’s Seafood
Note: Shrimp works great with this recipe as well!
Ingredients:
1 lb crawfish tails
1 onion, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
¼ bell pepper, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
1 stick of margarine or butter
1 can, Cream of Mushroom soup
1 can, diced Rotel tomatoes, drained
2 cups cooked rice
1-1 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese
1. Preheat oven to 350˚ Fahrenheit.
2. Season crawfish tails with salt and pepper.
3. Sauté vegetables in butter. When vegetables are crisp-tender, stir in crawfish tails. Add tomatoes and stir well.
4. Mix in Cream of Mushroom soup. Stir until thoroughly combined. Fold in cooked rice.
5. Place crawfish mixture in large baking dish. Top with cheese as desired. Bake uncovered for 20 minutes, until cheese is melted.
Tucker’s Signature Fried Crawfish Tails
Courtesy of Tucker’s Seafood
Note: This is a Tucker’s classic!
Ingredients:
1 lb Louisiana crawfish tails (leave fat and do not wash)
4 eggs
2 cups milk
Salt and pepper to taste
2 Tbsp Cajun seasoning
1-2 scoops of self-rising flour
Frying oil
Season unwashed crawfish tails with salt, pepper and 1 Tbsp of Cajun seasoning.
Mix eggs and milk. Whip until frothy.
Season self-rising flour with salt, pepper and 1 Tbsp of Cajun seasoning.
Dip crawfish tails in egg wash, then coat in seasoned flour (Note: For no-mess crawfish, use a Ziploc bag or a large sealable bowl for coating crawfish. If flour becomes too moist to coat, make another batch of flour.)
After crawfish are thoroughly coated, fry until golden brown.
Bennett Crawfish Pomadora
Courtesy of Bennett House Banquet Center
Note: This is a simple and light dish, perfect for those on a diet. Plus it only takes 10 minutes to prepare!
Ingredients
4 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp butter
4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
½ cup finely chopped celery
1/4 cup diced bell pepper
½ cup finely chopped onions
½ cup thinly sliced mushrooms
1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced
2 cans of Rotel with chilies
2 lbs fresh crawfish tails
2 tsp fresh basil
½ cup fresh minced parsley
Salt & Creole seasoning to taste
In a 12” sauté pan melt 4 Tbsp of butter and 4 Tbsp of olive oil on high heat until beginning to foam; quickly toss in the celery, bell pepper, onions & green onions – stir fry until soft.
Coarsely chop Rotel tomatoes (without draining) & add to pan. Over high heat, stir constantly until tomatoes wilt & liquid reduces to half of the original volume (about 2-3 minutes).
Add crawfish tails & again over high heat, stir until beginning to curl (approx. 4 minutes).
Then drop in the fresh basil, parsley & salt or Creole spices to taste.
Cover skillet & simmer for 3 minutes. Remove the lid and you will have a light yet robust sauce.
Crawfish Bisque
Courtesy Sean Griffin
Ingredients:
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
3 or 4 carrots
2 med. Onions
1 white leek
1 celery stalk
1 cucumber
4 cups fish or chicken stock
1 cup dry white wine or vermouth
2 ½ Tbsp unsalted butter
2 tsp Creole seasoning
3 Tbsp flour
2 cups hot milk
1 ½ - 2 lbs crawfish tails
3 egg yolks
½ cup heavy cream
Julienne the carrots, onions, leek, celery and cucumber into matchstick size. Melt butter in 3-quart saucepan and then sauté all vegetables except the cucumber.
Pour in the stock and white wine, and then add the bay leaf and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to simmer.
Cover partially and let simmer for 15 minutes, adding the cucumber for the last 2 or 3 minutes.
While waiting, cook the butter, creole seasoning, flour and hot milk together; season and let simmer for 3 minutes.
Pour this mixture into the vegetables and their liquid and then simmer 2 to 3 minutes. Correct seasoning at this time. Then fold in the crawfish tails and let cook until curled.
Blend the 3 egg yolks and heavy cream together and then temper by whisking, in driblets, 2 cups of the soup liquid. Add to the soup and let thicken over medium heat until just before it simmers.
Finely, stir in the remaining 2 Tbsp butter & serve immediately over fresh angel hair pasta.
Hint: you may substitute shrimp or chicken if crawfish tails are not available.
Crawfish-Stuffed Pasta Shells
Ingredients:
2 lbs crawfish tails, chopped
1 box jumbo pasta shells
¼ pound butter
1 cup minced onions
½ cup minced green bell peppers
½ cup minced red bell peppers
3 Tbsp minced garlic
4 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 Tbsp Louisiana hot sauce
Salt and creole seasoning to taste
2 eggs, beaten
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup Italian bread crumbs
1. Preheat oven to 350˚ F.
2. Boil pasta according to package directions until al dente and set aside. Be careful not to overcook, or pasta shells will fall apart.
3. In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add onions and bell peppers. Sauté 1-2 minutes or until wilted. Stir in garlic and crawfish tails and heat thoroughly. Blend in Worcestershire, hot sauce, salt and Creole seasoning. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
4. Add eggs to crawfish mixture. Fold in Parmesan cheese and bread crumbs.
5. Stuff each pasta shell with an equal amount of crawfish stuffing. Place shells in a 9" x 13" baking pan. Cover with your favorite pasta sauce or alfredo. If desired, create a sauce by blending 2 cans cream of shrimp soup with 1/2 cup white wine.
6. Bake 15-20 minutes or until stuffing is completely heated.
Easy Crawfish Bake
Courtesy of Tucker’s Seafood
Note: Shrimp works great with this recipe as well!
Ingredients:
1 lb crawfish tails
1 onion, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
¼ bell pepper, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
1 stick of margarine or butter
1 can, Cream of Mushroom soup
1 can, diced Rotel tomatoes, drained
2 cups cooked rice
1-1 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese
1. Preheat oven to 350˚ Fahrenheit.
2. Season crawfish tails with salt and pepper.
3. Sauté vegetables in butter. When vegetables are crisp-tender, stir in crawfish tails. Add tomatoes and stir well.
4. Mix in Cream of Mushroom soup. Stir until thoroughly combined. Fold in cooked rice.
5. Place crawfish mixture in large baking dish. Top with cheese as desired. Bake uncovered for 20 minutes, until cheese is melted.
Tucker’s Signature Fried Crawfish Tails
Courtesy of Tucker’s Seafood
Note: This is a Tucker’s classic!
Ingredients:
1 lb Louisiana crawfish tails (leave fat and do not wash)
4 eggs
2 cups milk
Salt and pepper to taste
2 Tbsp Cajun seasoning
1-2 scoops of self-rising flour
Frying oil
Season unwashed crawfish tails with salt, pepper and 1 Tbsp of Cajun seasoning.
Mix eggs and milk. Whip until frothy.
Season self-rising flour with salt, pepper and 1 Tbsp of Cajun seasoning.
Dip crawfish tails in egg wash, then coat in seasoned flour (Note: For no-mess crawfish, use a Ziploc bag or a large sealable bowl for coating crawfish. If flour becomes too moist to coat, make another batch of flour.)
After crawfish are thoroughly coated, fry until golden brown.
Bennett Crawfish Pomadora
Courtesy of Bennett House Banquet Center
Note: This is a simple and light dish, perfect for those on a diet. Plus it only takes 10 minutes to prepare!
Ingredients
4 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp butter
4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
½ cup finely chopped celery
1/4 cup diced bell pepper
½ cup finely chopped onions
½ cup thinly sliced mushrooms
1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced
2 cans of Rotel with chilies
2 lbs fresh crawfish tails
2 tsp fresh basil
½ cup fresh minced parsley
Salt & Creole seasoning to taste
In a 12” sauté pan melt 4 Tbsp of butter and 4 Tbsp of olive oil on high heat until beginning to foam; quickly toss in the celery, bell pepper, onions & green onions – stir fry until soft.
Coarsely chop Rotel tomatoes (without draining) & add to pan. Over high heat, stir constantly until tomatoes wilt & liquid reduces to half of the original volume (about 2-3 minutes).
Add crawfish tails & again over high heat, stir until beginning to curl (approx. 4 minutes).
Then drop in the fresh basil, parsley & salt or Creole spices to taste.
Cover skillet & simmer for 3 minutes. Remove the lid and you will have a light yet robust sauce.
Crawfish Bisque
Courtesy Sean Griffin
Ingredients:
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
3 or 4 carrots
2 med. Onions
1 white leek
1 celery stalk
1 cucumber
4 cups fish or chicken stock
1 cup dry white wine or vermouth
2 ½ Tbsp unsalted butter
2 tsp Creole seasoning
3 Tbsp flour
2 cups hot milk
1 ½ - 2 lbs crawfish tails
3 egg yolks
½ cup heavy cream
Julienne the carrots, onions, leek, celery and cucumber into matchstick size. Melt butter in 3-quart saucepan and then sauté all vegetables except the cucumber.
Pour in the stock and white wine, and then add the bay leaf and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to simmer.
Cover partially and let simmer for 15 minutes, adding the cucumber for the last 2 or 3 minutes.
While waiting, cook the butter, creole seasoning, flour and hot milk together; season and let simmer for 3 minutes.
Pour this mixture into the vegetables and their liquid and then simmer 2 to 3 minutes. Correct seasoning at this time. Then fold in the crawfish tails and let cook until curled.
Blend the 3 egg yolks and heavy cream together and then temper by whisking, in driblets, 2 cups of the soup liquid. Add to the soup and let thicken over medium heat until just before it simmers.
Finely, stir in the remaining 2 Tbsp butter & serve immediately over fresh angel hair pasta.
Hint: you may substitute shrimp or chicken if crawfish tails are not available.
Crawfish-Stuffed Pasta Shells
Ingredients:
2 lbs crawfish tails, chopped
1 box jumbo pasta shells
¼ pound butter
1 cup minced onions
½ cup minced green bell peppers
½ cup minced red bell peppers
3 Tbsp minced garlic
4 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 Tbsp Louisiana hot sauce
Salt and creole seasoning to taste
2 eggs, beaten
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup Italian bread crumbs
1. Preheat oven to 350˚ F.
2. Boil pasta according to package directions until al dente and set aside. Be careful not to overcook, or pasta shells will fall apart.
3. In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add onions and bell peppers. Sauté 1-2 minutes or until wilted. Stir in garlic and crawfish tails and heat thoroughly. Blend in Worcestershire, hot sauce, salt and Creole seasoning. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
4. Add eggs to crawfish mixture. Fold in Parmesan cheese and bread crumbs.
5. Stuff each pasta shell with an equal amount of crawfish stuffing. Place shells in a 9" x 13" baking pan. Cover with your favorite pasta sauce or alfredo. If desired, create a sauce by blending 2 cans cream of shrimp soup with 1/2 cup white wine.
6. Bake 15-20 minutes or until stuffing is completely heated.
