MARDI GRAS ÉTOUFFÉE
CHEF/OWNER JIMMY BANNOS
HEAVEN ON SEVEN RESTAURANTS

MARDI GRAS ÉTOUFFÉE – serves 6
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
6 ounces andouille, thinly sliced
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into ½-inch pieces
1 tablespoon plus ¼ teaspoon Heaven on Seven Angel Dust Cajun Seasoning
2 tablespoons finely diced tasso ham
2 tablespoons shredded pickled pork or shredded smoked pork shoulder butt
3 tablespoons diced yellow onion
3 tablespoons diced red onion
2 tablespoons thinly sliced green onion – green & white parts
2 teaspoons roasted-garlic puree
1 cup seeded, diced green bell pepper
1/3 cup diced celery
2 teaspoons seeded, minced jalapeño
¼ teaspoon Hungarian paprika
¼ teaspoon Spanish paprika
1/8 teaspoon chile powder
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/8 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/8 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
1 small bay leaf
1-1/2 cups chicken stock
1 (5.5-ounce) can tomato juice
¼ cup blond roux
8 ounces rock shrimp, or peeled and deveined small shrimp
8 ounces crawfish tail meat, rinsed, drained, and coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled and cut into pieces
Cooked white rice

Cooking Instructions:
In a 5-quart heavy Dutch oven, preferably enameled cast iron, heat the oil over high heat.
When the oil is hot but not smoking, add the andouille and brown for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Season the chicken with 1 tablespoon of the Cajun seasoning, add to the Dutch oven, and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the ham and the pork; cook for 2 more minutes. Sir in the onions and garlic puree; cook for an additional 2 minutes. Add the bell pepper, celery, jalapeno, Hungarian and Spanish paprikas, chile powder, ground black and white peppers, red pepper flakes, Worcestershire sauce, hot pepper sauce, bay leaf, and remaining ¼ teaspoon Cajun seasoning. Stir to coat the meat and vegetables with the seasonings. Pour in the stock and tomato juice and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer uncovered for 50 minutes. Whisk in the roux. Add the shrimp and cook for 2 minutes; add the crawfish and continue cooking for 3 minutes. Stir in the butter.

To serve, mound ½ cup of cooked white rice in the center of a plate or large bowl and spoon the etouffee around it. Enjoy!

* Note that this recipe makes a thick etouffee; to make it slightly thinner, decrease the roux by 1 tablespoon.

Etouffee means “smothered” in Creole French. Smothering, or stewing, is a way both Creoles and Cajuns give intense flavor to just about anything, including crawfish, shrimp, and chicken.