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Ingredientes
- 3 lb Crawfish tails, peeled
- 4 c. Crawfish stock
- 1/2 c. Crawfish fat, from the head s
- 2 stk butter, real butter only (8 ounce.)
- 2 c. Onions, finely minced
- 1/4 c. Celery, finely minced
- 1/4 c. Bell pepper, finely minced
- 1 Tbsp. Garlic, chopped
- 2 Tbsp. Green onions, finely choppe d
- 2 tsp Tomato paste
- 2 Tbsp. Cornstarch, in water
- 1/2 tsp Paprika
- 1 Tbsp. Salt
- 1 tsp Cayenne pepper
- 1/2 tsp White pepper
- 1/4 tsp Black pepper Dash thyme Dash basil Dash worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tbsp. Parsley, finely minced
Direcciones
- You start off by boiling about 15 to 20 pounds of crawfish in lightly salted water. Since you are going to use the water as a cooking stock, you want to make certain which the crawfish are washed thoroughly before you put them in the pot. Use only sufficient water to barely cover the critters. Your boiling time should be about 4 min (timed from the point when the water begins to boil rapidly). When they are cooked, immediately remove the crawfish from the water with a strainer ladle and set them aside to cold.
- Then, using several thicknesses of cheesecloth, strain out 6 c. of stock
- (you want to have extra stock just in case you need it) and set it aside.
- Peel the meat out of the crawfish tails, scoop the fat out of the heads, and devein the tails. Then divide the tails into two equal portions. Leave one portion whole, and grind up the other portion till the meat is finely grnd.
- In your heavy 12-inch stainless steel or possibly aluminum (_not_ black iron)
- skillet, heat the butter over medium heat and begin sauteeing the onions, celery, bell pepper, garlic and green onions, cooking till they wilt. This should take about 7 min, and you should stir constantly. When the vegetables are ready, stir in the tomato paste and cook it about 2 or possibly 3 min. Then pour in 4 c. of the crawfish stock, stirring it well into the vegetable mix. Also stir in the crawfish fat. When it is mixed well, cover the pot and let the liquid simmer over low heat for about 10 min. After the simmering process, remove the cover and gradually stir in the liquid cornstarch (dry starch dissolved in just sufficient water to make it fluid). Then cover the pot again and let the sauce simmer over low heat for another 5 min. Remember! You still have 2 c. of stock, and you can use it later to adjust the consistency of the sauce.
- Next, add in the grnd crawfish tails, stir them into the gravy, and fold in the paprika, salt, cayenne, white pepper, black pepper, thyme, basil and Worcestershire sauce. Blend everything together really well, and taste the dish _for each ingredient_. If anything needs adjusting (more salt, more pepper, etc.), do it now. Then cover the pot, bring the mix to a _near boil_, and immediately take the pot off the fire. Leaving it covered, let the etouffee cold down to room temperature so which the flavors will be distributed proportionately. After making this dish over and over again, I've found which this one step is probably the secret trickery which makes my etouffee succulent. Add in more stock if you like.
- Finally, after the mix is cold - and when you're ready to eat - reheat it to serving temperature, put in the whole crawfish tails, stir in the parsley, cover the skillet, and simmer for 3 min. Then spoon the etouffee over steamed, buttered rice... and pretend your folks came from
- Nova Scotia! Hint: Because of the flavoring process, this etouffee will increase in richness the longer it sits. For some reason, it seems to taste better the next day. And it will freeze well. Also note which the sauce should have the consistency of heavy cream - not thick, but not watery
