Noontime in Acadiana means heading for your favorite lunchroom for a meat-and-three plate of down-home Cajun cooking. Throughout South Louisiana, the cafes and diners are lined with all sorts of folks bellying up to the counters and tables in search of a hearty lunch. It’s not unusual to see a truck driver sitting next to a business executive rubbing elbows with a student. Good Cajun food connects them all. And one dish seen often is a plate of Smoked Turkey Leg Stew.
A Cajun recipe of Smoked Turkey Leg Stew and three sides add up to a hearty lunch in Acadiana. (All photos credit: George Graham)
Back in the day, my father opened a small-town Louisiana café and he spent forty years feeding hungry plant workers at the local paper mill. He pushed out as many as 300 blue plates during a noon shift and never saw anyone go away hungry. He called it belt-loosenin’, nap-takin’ food and no one complained about the portions.
Two side vegetables accompany a choice of meat along with a starch–a mound of white rice in Cajun country. This meat-and-three combination comes in a wide variety with most meat smothered in gravy. In Acadiana, gravy is practically a food group. In most cases, the meat is just a means to an end–a rich, dark, roux-based sauce for bread soppin’.
My choice of meat is a Creole smokehouse favorite–smoked turkey leg–stewed down and smothered. A common Cajun recipe ingredient, smoked turkey legs are ubiquitous to Acadiana, and they find their way into most any pot needing a seasoned smokiness. Amazingly inexpensive, these legs are the biggest bang-for-the-buck when it comes to adding intense flavor.
I buy my turkey legs at the Cajun Boudin Stop in Plaisance, Louisiana where they smoke a wide variety of meats. Their meat case is always full of Cajun recipe ingredients–tails, tongue, tripe, and huge, hickory-smoked turkey legs. I always buy one whole leg for seasoning and have another one portioned out by crosscutting along the shank. It is perfect for my Smoked Turkey Leg Stew.
My sides of choice are green beans and green peas straight out of a can. Wait a second. Before you reach a negative conclusion, hear me out. While fresh is most always best, if you learn how to add layers of flavor and depth of taste to ordinary canned vegetables, you will bring a whole new dimension to your everyday kitchen repertoire.
Try out this meat-and-three Cajun recipe for Smoked Turkey Leg Stew on your family and I guarantee the compliments.
Smoked Turkey Leg Stew is a rural Cajun recipe and a Creole tradition.
- 4 tablespoons canola oil
- 1 cup diced onion
- 1 cup diced celery
- 1 cup diced green pepper
- ½ cup diced carrot
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 2 smoked turkey legs, cross cut into ¾-inch pieces
- 1 cup diced fresh or canned tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons dark roux, such as Rox's Roux
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 1 tablespoon Acadiana Table Cajun Seasoning Blend, see recipe here
- ½ cup diced green onion tops
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 1 cup finely diced onion
- 1 cup chopped tasso or smoked ham
- 2 cans green pole beans, drained
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 large russet potato, peeled and cubed
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 2 cans green peas, drained
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1 cup half and half
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon cold water
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 4 cups cooked Louisiana long-grain white rice, such as Supreme Rice
- In a black iron pot over medium heat, add the oil. Once the oil begins to smoke add the trinity; onions, celery and green bell pepper. Saute for 2 minutes and add the carrots. Continue stirring until the onions turn brown and add the garlic. Cook for 3 minutes more.
- Add the turkey leg pieces and the diced tomatoes. Stir all together and add the roux. Continue stirring until the roux melts into the mixture and add the stock along with the Cajun seasoning. Cover the pot, reduce the heat to low and let cook for 30 minutes. Uncover the pot and stir; add the green onion tops; cover the pot and let simmer for another 30 minutes.
- Turn off the burner; taste the stew and season with salt and black pepper.
- In a heavy pot with a tight-fitting lid over medium-high heat, add the oil. When the oil is hot, add the onions and sauté until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the tasso and sauté. Add the green beans and season with a pinch of salt and pepper. Add the potato and chicken stock. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cover the pot; let cook for 20 minutes and turn the heat off.
- In a saucepan over medium heat, add the green peas. Stir in the garlic and half and half. Make a slurry by stirring the corn starch with a tablespoon of cold water. Add it to the pot and turn up the heat. Stir the mixture until it comes to the boil and achieves thickness. Turn off the heat and season with salt and pepper.
- Place a mound of rice on the plate and top with a generous portion of the turkey leg stew. Add a spoonful of peas and another of green beans. Serve with sweet tea and hot dinner rolls.
Smoked Turkey Leg Stew is a meat and three favorite seen in rural Cajun lunchrooms.
YOUR SEAT AT THE TABLE: If you like this Cajun cooking story and Cajun recipe then accept my personal invitation to subscribe by entering your email at the bottom or top right of this page. It’s quick and painless. You will receive an email alert and be the first to see when new Cajun cooking stories and Cajun recipes are added. Thanks, George.
Looks FABULOUS!! Thank you, George! Can’t wait to try it.
Marilyn and Bill Watson
Hey Marilyn and Bill – Thanks for the comment and let us know how your meat-and-three turns out. Best, George
Dear George,
My wife and I can’t thank you enough for your wonderful blog. Not only are your recipes innovative and tasty, but we really treasure your “Faces & Places” section. We have been coming to Louisiana for our vacation for years, but this year we spent a full week in the Lafayette area, visiting and tasting many of your recommendations. You transformed a vacation into an amazing journey to a way of life that I appreciate even more, and am highly jealous that I wasn’t born into! Your chronicle of Acadiana life is invaluable to anyone that wants to immerse him or herself into it. We are already planning next year’s trip around your many “must see” places.
Thank you again!
Warm regards,
Joe & Barb Kopka
Wheaton, IL
Joe and Barb- thank you very much for the very kind comments. It is truly my pleasure and passion to tell the world about Acadiana’s amazing culinary culture. And it is especially gratifying to hear words like yours.
Best, George
Sounds great
Do you cut the turkey legs with the bone in?
Hey Billy-
Yes, cooking on the bone adds flavor. I get my butcher to do it. I always buy one whole leg for seasoning and have another one portioned out by crosscutting along the shank. But feel free to cook your turkey legs whole on the bone and once cooked to tender, the meat will fall off the bone with the gravy. Either way, I know you are going to love this under-utilized cut of the ever-popular turkey. All the best.
Looking forward to surprising my hubby with this dish. He is allergic to mammal meat so can only eat fowl and seafood. He was brokenhearted to get the diagnosis of alpha gal syndrome from the lone star tick. I am trying to be creative and show him there are many good recipes that don’t need beef, or pork. He was a big beef/pork eater. I’ve never been to Louisiana, but have had Cajun food. Thank you for sharing this yummy sounding recipe.
Delicious recipe! I made my own roux, and added a smoked ham shank with the smoked turkey leg. The house smells amazing! Thank you for this wonderful recipe!!
I had bought smoked turkey legs and was looking for something to make with them. I certainly hit the jackpot with this recipe. The whole family gobbled it down. I can’t wait to make it again.