Just think of it: Fresh Louisiana crawfish tail meat swimming in a lightly thickened butter sauce infused with spices and aromatics over a mound of white rice. This is the purest expression of Cajun cooking I know and love. It’s that time of year, and in case you missed it, here is my recipe.
Crawfish Étouffée in a rich stock is a classic Cajun recipe. (All photos credit: George Graham)
But the time-honored recipe for crawfish étouffée is under assault. There is a most disturbing trend in South Louisiana cooking these days that is gaining acceptability among traditionalists–cream of mushroom soup in crawfish étouffée. This is nothing short of sacrilege, and it must be stopped at all cost.
Don’t get me wrong. I love to experiment. I enjoy an occasional contemporary twist on a classic. A grits and grillades with gator meat recipe is a prime example of how far I am willing to expand the boundaries of Louisiana classics. But this can opener-enabled madness borders on the ruination of the entire culinary heritage of Cajun and Creole culture.
It is not the first time classic Crawfish Étouffée has come under attack. I recall the tomato paste assault some years ago that had to be rebuffed by the true bayou traditionalists. And now, the time-saving, tin-can cheapsters are pouring on the soupy extenders that rob flavor and render a pound of tail meat utterly inedible.
Stop it.
Crawfish Étouffée should always be a centerpiece dish to showcase the unique flavor and texture of Louisiana crawfish. Treated lightly, this buttery mixture envelopes the tail meat with a rich, flavor-filled coating of golden goodness.
From time to time, depending on the availability I do use frozen cooked Louisiana crawfish tails, but in season, there is no substitute for fresh-picked tail meat. When eating boiled crawfish at a restaurant I always save the shells and take home another 3-pound order. The next day, I remove and reserve the tail meat and wash all the heads and shells of excess spice. These shell pieces are simmered in a large pot of water to reduce down into an intense crawfish stock that is a key to the perfect étouffée.
Soup? No thanks. Not in my Crawfish Étouffée.
Pinch the tail. Suck the heads. Boiled crawfish time.
- 1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted butter
- 2 cups diced yellow onion
- 1 cup diced green bell pepper
- 1 cup diced celery
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 2 pounds Louisiana crawfish tail meat
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1½ cups crawfish stock or seafood stock
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Dash of hot sauce
- ¼ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
- 1 cup diced green onion tops
- 6 cups cooked Louisiana long-grain white rice, such as Supreme
- In a large skillet over medium heat, melt the butter and add the onions, bell pepper, and celery. Sauté until tender and add the garlic. Lower the heat to simmer and stir to combine. Season the mixture with cayenne and add the crawfish tail meat stirring to combine.
- Sprinkle the flour over the mixture and stir to incorporate and begin cooking the flour. Add some of the stock and continuing stirring until it begins to thicken. Add more stock until you get a stew-like thickness.
- Season to taste with salt, pepper, and hot sauce. Serve over a mound of white rice garnished with chopped parsley and green onion tops.
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I really want to try the Crawfish Etouffee recipe. It looks so good!!!
I made it, and it’s great. No crawfish? I used 2# peeled, deveined shrimp.
Hey Maggie-
Great job! Shrimp etouffee is a classic just like crawfish. Congrats for being creative.
This is very close to the recipe I use. Got mine from a 40 year old “Pirate’s Pantry” cookbook from the Junior League of Lake Charles. Dark roux based versions just aren’t as good!
Glad to see this comment that the dark based roux is not as good, because I just made mine like this recipe tonight, except I used the dark roux base and it’s not as good. Being upset over the taste, I came here looking for the REAL recipe because the dark roux base just is not as good! I can confirm this after cooking it today. Thanks!
Krystal- You are correct: Crawfish etouffee is not made with a dark Cajun roux, but rather a light blonde roux that is used for thickening and tightening the butter mixture rather than a roux flavor. Best to you.
I add a dash of browning sauce by Savoie’s no one knows. Lol. They loved it!
That’s because a dark roux isn’t in an etouffee, that would be a stew.
Thank you for the great recipe. It turned out delicious, and Supreme rice definitely is the best rice to use.
Hey Kodie – Glad the recipe turned out delicious. And you are correct, Supreme Rice from Crowley, LA is the best quality rice for any dish. Thanks for the comment and all the best to you.
Mrs. Lormand’s in Crowley, LA was the one that said Supreme Rice was the only rice to use. I love the quality and flavor. Until people try it they don’t know any better.
Sounds awesome, I use roux but I bet this one is better. Will try it next time. Thanks
Putting mushroom soup in Crawfish Etouffee? It then becomes something else, but it definitely is not Crawfish Etouffee. We should have laws against stuff like that.
I worked for a man I loved at a Cajun restaurant in St. Louis. He was like a father to me. He was also from Crowley. He put cream of mushroom soup in his etouffee and I still do to this day. I’ve never tried making it without it. I’m actually making some tomorrow. Maybe one day I’ll make a pot without it. Take care.
In the old days down in south Louisiana when you bought a pound of crawfish tails you would get a little cup of crawfish fat with it .Talk about add flavor! When the fat was no longer offered people started experimenting with cream of mushroom soup (an old Cajun man who hardly spoke English told me to use the soup) so I suppose some still use it today but it really doesn’t belong in an etoufee.
Kaplan, Louisiana is where I learned to use cream of mushroom and can of Rotel tomatoes.
i cook commercially for a living born and raised in Acadiana. I know cream of mushroom is not a traditional ingredient in etouffee. i also believe people use it to stretch their etouffee. i definitely don’t use it. The fresh green onions and Italian parsley are key ingredients in this dish. There are tricks you can use to add a hit of extra flavor without anyone noticing a different ingredient in it. Basically, it will kill any kind of hints of bitterness you have in any dish, honestly.
I made this in a dutch oven. I think the 1 pound of butter would work better in a large skillet though. In a dutch oven it was like deep frying the veggies, not that it’s a bad thing! ;-). Still delicious.
I was born in Mamou and raised in Lafayette. My family was from Mississippi, we weren’t Cajun. 19 years ago a Cajun girl in her early 20’s told me a story I had never heard before. She told me how her departed grandmother and all the old ladies in her family used to make etoufée. They’d chop up the trinity and cook it low and slow in butter until the butter was all absorbed then they’d just put in more butter! She said they’d do that all day, then add the protein and they never used a roux. She also told me fried eggplant used to be a dessert! They’d dredge it in flour, fry it and put powdered sugar on it like a beignet! I wish I had more of her stories!
Hey Patti – Great stories! Thanks for sharing. All the best.
These are the stories I can listen do all day.
That’s how my mother made hers. She was from New Orleans and never put a roux in her Étouffée and chastised anyone who did.
I just finished making this recipe and then read the story. Heck no, never use Mushroom soup. I must confess I used frozen tail meat (I live in CA, but had the crawfish shipped from LA Crawfish Company), but it was absolutely wonderful.
I’m glad I made it and will make it again!
Hey Adrienne- So pleased you made the recipe with delicious results. Never hesitate using frozen crawfish tail meat, but like you point out, make sure it is from Louisiana (and not imported). All the best to you and your family.
I’m excited about trying this recipe. I thought I’d be stirring a roux for an hour or more, but this is far easier, and faster. I have crawfish tails in the freezer from Louisiana, but will wait to order some Supreme rice before making it. Crawfish Etouffee is my favorite Cajun dish. The last time I was in New Orleans, I searched for it in several restaurants. Most didn’t serve it, or only had it on a certain day of the week, and the couple I found were not up to par, so I decided to learn to make it myself. So here I am, ready to embark on making my favorite dish as soon as the rice arrives. When I go to New Orleans again, I’ll make sure to pick up the rice.
George, thank you for this great recipe. We had a crawfish boil and had quite a bit leftover. I used gluten free flour and jasmine rice. I appreciate your remarks with regard to the immoral practice of using tomato paste and cream of mushroom. There should be laws against such culinary malpractice.
In NJ for years, I couldn’t get anything but frozen Chinese crawfish tails. Then Walmart started carrying domestic mudbugs from a LA Crawfish company, as well. Then the Chinese stuff disappeared. They are 3/4lb. Their Sam’s warehouses have the 1 lb. bags. Some things do get better. The Chinese stuff is often imported by LA-based companies with French names so check carefully.
Jeff- Thanks for the report from New Jersey. Good to know you can source Louisiana crawfish and not the imported imposters. Chinese crawfish is still out there and the quality is substantially inferior to our Louisiana crawfish. Read the package labels carefully.
Not only inferior but environmentally possibly dangerous. They are in the 19th century “pollute everything” phase of development.
Be careful to look at place of origin. I bought frozen only to take home and find it was from China! The crows got that.
Hey JW- I recently saw a new imposter: EGYPT. You’ll see these imported products are processed in the United States; this one was in Mansura, Louisiana. Some unsuspecting consumers will only see that information and think they are buying a Louisiana product. Be sure to read the label.
I love this recipe; it was great.
I went to high school in Lafayette and college in Lafayette and Baton Rouge. I fell in love with Cajun food and have been cooking it for years. I now live in Virginia. I can find real Louisiana crawfish tails frozen only, but that is better than the ones from China.
Hey Roy- Great to hear from my Virginia friend. Frozen crawfish tail meat is a quality product, and one I buy locally here in Lafayette. It is convenient to reach in your freezer for this Cajun delicacy anytime you want to create a Louisiana classic recipe. In fact, I have four 1-pound bags in my freezer right now. But you said it correctly: Always make sure they are Louisiana crawfish and not imported from China. All the best.
Great recipe; it’s almost like my dad’s.
I will try your recipe Sir, and I thoroughly enjoy your sticking to standards, and your culture. I am from New York, if I had ever married a girl that can cook from your area I would be as big as a house! I had to learn to cook several dishes as even the few restaurants claiming to do that style can’t nail it.
I’m from New York, and I had to learn to make this dish if I ever wanted to have it regularly. This recipe was the best so far. I did add 2 bay leaf, which I have yet to find what that does not improve, and I substituted Slap Ya Mama as I was out of hot sauce. If you do use that or Tony C’s, skip adding in any more salt. They have more than enough. EXCELLENT.
I will add I was a bit confused that you skipped making the roux first, creating it as you went. It worked just fine.
Where’s the Paprika? I make mine exactly like yours, but I always add a generous tablespoon of paprika. Ever heard of this before? I am born and bred Louisianan.
Hey Sarah- No two Crawfish Étouffée recipes are the same. Paprika would be a tasty addition; the spice would not only bring color, but a smokiness to the dish. Go for it and let us know how it works. All the best and keep the comments coming.
I recommend starting with only a little butter and use it as necessary. I followed the instructions and had butter soup.
Hey Chris- Next time, I urge you to add a bit more flour so that the butter combines into a blond roux. That should thicken your mixture to a stew-like consistency. All the best.
Finally someone who does cooking right! Your etouffee recipe is spot on! How I grew up eating etouffee. So many recipes have their etouffee loaded down with cream. I just like a bit more tomato in mine. Great job, great recipes.
No tomato is a no-go for me. I like the idea of what you’re doing with the flour, but on other hand I am very wary of trying this without making a caramel roux first. It’s just an expensive and heart-filled dish to get ‘wrong .’ Plus the lack of spices just plain freaks me out. Where is the paprika? Even a dash of Creole blend to add some depth. More shellfish like shrimp to round the dish out is never unwelcome. These are just my preferences, and I am by no means a chef. Why else would I be scouring the internet for the perfect recipe?! I’m working on a masterpiece for myself, family, and friends. Hope this input adds to the quest. All love!
Hey BreakfastForDinner-
Get creative! Every great recipe can be made better when you enhance it to your own tastes. All the best.
Made it today 8/23/20. I hadn’t heard of the dried shrimp boiled to make broth, but it works very well. The etouffee was delicious. Everyone should try this recipe before going to a tomato base. Paprika also adds to the color of the etouffee.
Thanks Stephanie.
Question: Many recipes for making crawfish stock using shells from a boil, recommend rinsing off the boil seasonings from the shell first. If using this stock for an Étouffée, would I still need to rinse the boil seasoning off?
Tommy – Yes, I would rinse the boil seasoning off and here’s why. A spicy stock will dominate the recipe and make it off-balance. The key is to have a stock that has maximum crawfish flavor (not spice) and then adjust your spice level by following the recipe and your palate. All the best.
This was spectacular! Fun to create, whilst listening to some good ol’ Creole music & sippin’ a little wine. Old school right here! LEGIT! “Laizzes les bon temps rouler!”
Thanks Michael! Old-school recipes should be the starting point for learning a new genre of cooking. From there, you can venture out into variations to suit your palate. All the best.
If using the dried shrimp to make stock, do you just need 1 packet of dried shrimp? If so, how much water do we boil it with?
Hey Elle- Packets come in different sizes, so buy according to your usage. I usually add 1 cup of dried shrimp to a quart of boiling water and let it sit for 30 minutes (sort of like making tea). At that time, the flavor of the shrimp will be strong enough to add to sauces or gumbo. If I am making a seafood gumbo or shrimp stew, I will always add the dried shrimp to the pot. In South Louisiana, dried shrimp are sold in most supermarkets, but elsewhere you may need to search for it in Latin and Asian groceries.
Thanks for this recipe. We made this dish for the first time this year during COVID when a steakhouse was selling their wares as groceries since they couldn’t serve meals to guests. YUM!
Watching the Saints and making this delicious recipe!
Hey Mandy – You’re both winners today! All the best.
I’m not from Louisiana, but I lived there for 12 years. I was in the Navy and had the pleasure of calling it home. Even though I moved, I still say it’s where I’m from. I miss it so much, like I left a part of my soul there. I cook all the recipes I learned while there, I’m only missing two, gumbo and this. The food is phenomenal, and I’ve been looking for an etouffee recipe that matched those I fell in love with. This seems right up that alley. The food, people, and the culture are what I miss most. This will make me feel right at home, even though I’m near Seattle. PS. They have “Cajun” places here, no thank you, they are mostly garbage.
I weep with despair when I open a recipe post for an iconic recipe and see canned mushroom soup as a key ingredient. Don’t get me wrong, I frequently add mushrooms to unexpected recipes, but I use fresh oven roasted mushrooms. And canned mushroom soup has its place in many comfort food recipes created in the 1960s and 1970s by Moms who had tight budgets, a passel of kids, and no time because economic changes forced them back into the work force. But the crap in a can sold today, even as a perceived premium brand, bears zero resemblance to the product available 50-60 years ago. I’ve taken to making homemade mushroom soup, storing it in the freezer, and pulling it out when I need a taste of ‘down home.’ Your recipe as presented is an absolute delight. I’ve used something very similar with shrimp for years, and crawfish when I can manage. Thank you for staying true.
Celeste- Thanks for the kind words. All the best.
I am from New Orleans, and back in the 80s, I bought a pound of crawfish tails for 5 or 10 dollars. Probably purchased them at Schwegmann’s. I followed the recipe on the container for etouffee, and it was delicious. I remember starting with a stick of butter and using the seasonings that we always use in NOLA. So I’m wondering, do I really need this special stock? I live in Atlanta now, and I will have to drive 30 miles to get dried shrimp to make a stock. Whole Foods sells a seafood stock, but it has tomatoes in it, and a lot of other stuff I probably don’t want in my dish. What do you think?
Debra- The stock adds an extra jolt of seafood flavor, but is not absolutely necessary. If your crawfish (Louisiana crawfish, of course) have plenty of juices and fat (the yellow liquid), then you should have a very good etouffee without the stock. However, a couple of other ways to get seafood stock is with clam juice or with a jar of Better Than Bouillon lobster base, both of which are readily available in Atlanta. And by the way, dried shrimp can be found in most every Asian market. All the best.
Made this tonight but with only 1 pound of Louisiana crawfish (West Farms from Mamou) and 1/2 pound of butter. Used the recipe amounts of veg and other ingredients. Turned out great.
I normally use a recipe that is similar but also includes some medium roux, tomatoes, Worcestershire, and lemon juice. Both are good, but I enjoyed the more pure taste of this one that better highlights the flavor of the crawfish.