Crawfish Etouffee

 

When I make etouffee (either shrimp or crawfish), it's like when I make gumbo.  It's slightly different every single time.  So this batch was a little of this recipe, a lot of that recipe, and some things I've never used before!  That's what makes cooking so much fun.

1 stick butter

1/2 cup of chopped celery

1 cup of chopped onion

1/2 cup of chopped bell pepper

1/2 cup of chopped green onion

1/4 cup of chopped parsley

2 cups of vegetable stock

1/2 t. of salt, or more, to taste

2 t. Creole or Cajun seasoning, or more, to taste

1/4 t. black pepper, or more, to taste

1 T. Worcestershire sauce

1 T. fresh thyme leaves

1 bay leaf

2 pounds of peeled crawfish tails

2 t. of cornstarch

1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

thinly sliced green onion for garnish

Melt the butter in a large heavy Dutch oven over medium heat.

Add the celery, onion, bell pepper, green onion, and parsley and saute' for 4 - 5 minutes or until vegetables are soft, but not brown.

Add vegetable stock, salt, Creole or Cajun seasoning, black pepper, Worcestershire sauce, thyme leaves, bay leaf, and crawfish tails.  Cook, stirring often, for 20 minutes.

Dissolve the cornstarch in 1/4 cup water and add it to the crawfish mixture, stirring for ten minutes or until mixture thickens slightly.

Remove the bay leaf.  Stir in the heavy cream.  

Cook for 5 more minutes over low heat.  Remove from heat and let stand for 5 minutes. 

Serve over steamed rice.